In case anyone is interested, Dark Sky, the Chinese piece on which I based my concerto first movement is a Taiwanese song about an old couple fighting about what to cook!
Here is a version which influenced my choice by Maestro Wenarto, an artist, crossfitter, singer, Youtube opera star and aeronautical/astronautical engineer – I hope you enjoy. It’s worth sitting through to the end.
I have already written about Hans Gál, the Austrian Jewish composer who left Nazi occupation to live in Edinburgh and got an OBE. He died aged 97, but his music has not had the same longevity so conductor, cellist, author and guitarist Kenneth Woods has been resurrecting his symphonies in a series of CDs.
Here’s another clip of NYGE at Easter in Rugby School performing Villa Lobos Bachianas Brasileiras No.5 (arr.Chris Susans) with Belinda Evans.
This will be on the programme on Saturday 17th August at the Menuhin Hall and on Sunday 18th at West Dean Open Day
To remind ourselves of the coming concerts on
Saturday 17th August at Menuhin Hall (1.30pm) and
Sunday 18th at West Dean (1.45pm)
here is a clip of the National Youth Guitar Ensemble with Belinda Evans at Rugby School last Easter.
The pieces are four Hebridean Songs I arranged for soprano and guitar orchestra.
My first experience of mapping was failing to connect with a bar stool which wasn’t where I thought it was. Many of us have a misconception of how our joints connect and where an action starts from. The Alexander teacher Barbara Conable has done extensive research and written books on the subject of body mapping.
A while ago I wrote an article about focal dystonia and mentioned Jerald Harscher, a guitarist and teacher with whom I had an enlightening session on Skype (even though I was beginning to feel self conscious about the spelling of my name when talking to him.)
It’s 2.00am, the bar is closed, the atmosphere is hazy and you are down to your last cigarette. You are weary and sad and on your own…. c’est le cafard…
Find more Esquisses as mp3 downloads from her site!
WYGF is the World Youth Guitar Festival, which conjures up images of children aged 8-18 jumping up and down with balloons, enthusiastic tutors being silly in a panto, and also some serious ensemble work with some of the best names in the business. It is a place where young guitarists of all abilities make music together under the musical direction of inspirational tutors and mentors.
This year, tutors include Gaelle Solal from France, the Duo Agostino from Australia, Frank Gerstmeier from Germany, Johannes Moller from Sweden, Peter Nuttall, Mark Eden, Mark Ashford, Helen Sanderson, Chris Stell, Nick Powlesland, Matthew Robinson and myself. The organisation was ably managed by Sandra and Trevor Dukes, Georgina Bashford as Head Mentor and the Festival Director Helen Sanderson.
This all took place in the hallowed grounds of Uppingham School.
Johannes Moller plays his composition “From her source to the Sea” about the river Ganges dedicated to Avik Saha at the 22nd Iserlohn Guitar Symposium – 2013
It was an exciting occasion – the world premier of the first two movements of my concerto “China Sings” – Kuang Junhong played with great delicacy and fiery virtuosity, and the orchestra was superb. Watch this space for all three movements with symphony orchestra.
A couple of videos – the first is the rehearsal of my piece for Organ and Guitar Quartet played by Tobias Aehlig, the Amadeus Duo and the Gruber Maklar Duo. This is in the Oberstdat Church in Iserlohn – sorry the video content is boring, but it is more or less what the audience was looking at! Las Meninas Bailan refers to the famous painting by Velasquez and is a depiction of what happens below stairs! The main theme is a Spanish Christmas Carol, “Riu, riu, chiu” from the Cancionero de Uppsala manuscript.