CLScapades http://cls.posterous.com City of London Sinfonia blog posterous.com Tue, 16 Oct 2012 09:10:55 -0700 Spotlight on...John Adams http://cls.posterous.com/spotlight-onjohn-adams http://cls.posterous.com/spotlight-onjohn-adams

We compare and contrast the life of John Adams with that of Igor Stravinsky in our previous blog post, ahead of our concert on Thursday night at Cadogan Hall.

Name       
John Coolidge Adams

Age       
65

Nationality   
American   

Background   
His father taught him how to play the clarinet, and he was a clarinetist in community ensembles as a young boy. He began composing at the age of ten with his music first performed publically when he was 14 years old. Studied at Harvard University where he was awarded two degrees. He received the 2003 Pulitzer Prize in Music for his orchestral work, On the Transmigration of Souls, a memorial to the September 11 attacks.

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Image: Margaret Mitchell

Breakthrough Moment
Acknowledged for bringing contemporary history to the opera house with his post-modern operatic works Nixon in China (1987), The Death of Klinghoffer (1991) and Doctor Atomic (2005). A recent survey shows him to be the most frequently performed living American composer of orchestral music.

CLS performance
Gnarly Buttons
is his concerto for clarinet and small orchestra, written for and premiered by our Principal Conductor Michael Collins, and featuring the banjo, mandolin and guitar! Grand Pianola Music was inspired by a dream in which he found himself driving down Interstate 5, being approached by two of the world's longest Steinways! It unusually features two pianos and three female voices sing a wordless harmony.

Stravinsky & John Adams
Thursday 18 October, 7.30pm
Cadogan Hall, London

Stravinsky Octet
John Adams Gnarly Buttons
John Adams Grand Pianola Music

Tickets from £15
Box Office: 020 7730 4500/cadoganhall.com

 

 

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Fri, 12 Oct 2012 03:07:39 -0700 Spotlight on...Igor Stravinsky http://cls.posterous.com/spotlight-onigor-stravinsky http://cls.posterous.com/spotlight-onigor-stravinsky

Ahead of our concert on Thursday night at Cadogan Hall, we take a quick look at the life of one of the twentieth century's most influential composers: Igor Stravinsky.

Name
Igor Feodorovich Stravinsky

Age    
130 (if still alive!)

Nationality   
Russian by birth, then became a Swiss resident, took French citizenship in 1934, before becoming a naturalised United States citizen in 1945.   

Background   
Third son of Feodor Stravinsky, one of the principal basses at the Maryinsky Theatre, St Petersburg. Studied law at university before concentrating on music fulltime.Studied informally with Russian composer and member of The Five, Nikolay Rimsky-Korsadov, for three years.  

Stravinsky_picasso

Breakthrough Moment
The Firebird, a ballet, premiered in Paris in 1910 that first brought him to international prominence. His third ballet The Rite of Spring is often seen as one of the major landmarks in classical music history, as it is often cited as the beginning of modernism and established Stravinsky as the most radical composer of his age.

City of London Sinfonia Performance
His Octet is widely seen as one of the most influential pieces of chamber music. It is scored unusually for woodwind and brass instruments and is regarded as marking the start of Stravinsky's neoclassicsm compositions. American composer Aaron Copland who attended the premiere, later commented “No one could possibly have foreseen . . . that the Octet was destined to influence composers all over the world.”

Stravinsky & John Adams
Thursday 18 October, 7.30pm
Cadogan Hall, London

Stravinsky       Octet
John Adams    Gnarly Buttons
John Adams    Grand Pianola Music

Michael Colllins conductor/clarinet

Tickets from £15
Box Office: 020 7730 4500/
cadoganhall.com

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Thu, 04 Oct 2012 04:21:00 -0700 Retrospect - September in Pictures http://cls.posterous.com/retrospect-september-in-pictures http://cls.posterous.com/retrospect-september-in-pictures

September saw the start of our 2012/13 concert season with a return trip to the Wiltshire Music Centre in Bradford on Avon, and the start of the second series of  CLoSer on 19 September, with Guest Artists the Katona Twins at Village Underground.

Our Wellbeing through Music concert series returned to Great Ormond Street Hospital after a short summer break, with one of the children commenting that conducting our players was "the funniest thing ever!"

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Principal Conductor Michael Collins & the orchestra rehearse at Wiltshire Music Centre

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Our String Quartet at Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital

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Our new cushions make their Village Underground debut!

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The hugely talented Katona Twins perform at CLoSer

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The new series of CLoSer started on 19 September

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We love this audience snap of our strings performing at CLoSer!

Images by Becca Newman, James Berry & Andrea Zapata

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Thu, 30 Aug 2012 02:41:10 -0700 New Online Brochure http://cls.posterous.com/new-online-brochure http://cls.posterous.com/new-online-brochure

Our new London concerts brochure which lists all City of London Sinfonia concerts from September 2012 to February 2013 is now ready.

Highlights for the next sixth months include a return to Village Underground in Shoreditch for a second CLoSer series, a programme of Stravinsky and John Adams with our Principal Conductor Michael Collins taking centre stage at Cadogan Hall, and a reunion with Polyphony for a performance of Mozart’s Requiem at St John’s Smith Square, conducted by our Artistic Director Stephen Layton.

We look forward to seeing you at one of our upcoming concerts!

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Mon, 20 Aug 2012 04:46:00 -0700 CLoSer FAQs http://cls.posterous.com/153209260 http://cls.posterous.com/153209260

Did you miss our first CLoSer series at Village Underground? Don't worry, because we're back for a second series, starting next month. If you're new to CLoSer and want to find out more, then here is everything you need to know...

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What is CLoSer?
CLoSer is our popular informal concert series, which takes place at Village Underground in Shoreditch. This series there are three concerts on 19 September, 13 February and 10 April and all are designed for both the complete beginner and the classical music enthusiast.

What happens at a CLoSer gig?
The clue’s in the name – these concerts give you a chance to get closer to the music and the musicians. CLoSer concerts are short, informal and intimate. Village Underground is far removed from the traditional concert halls and churches you usually find classical music in. There are no rows of seating and no stage. Instead we scatter the floor with cushions so that you can relax, get comfy and closer to the music.

Cushions

What kind of music is performed at CLoSer concerts?
We perform a wide variety of music from Bach to Stravinsky, from jazz to tango and have a diverse range of Guest Artists at each concert. There are ‘talking' programme notes throughout the performance, so you don't need to know anything about the composers, music or performers beforehand.

Is it going to be really formal?
This concert series is designed to appeal to those who like their live music experiences to be intimate and informal and enjoy a glass of wine while listening! There is no traditional concert seating so you can sit on beanbags or stand and there's no dress code so you can wear whatever you like.

Trumpets

Can I take a drink into the concert?
Yes, of course. The bar opens at 6.45pm and remains open throughout the performance.

How long does the concert last?
Each concert lasts 75 minutes, with no interval.

How much are the tickets?
Tickets for each CLoSer concert are just £15 which includes a free drink from the bar! If you are aged 16-25 years old, whether you are a student or not, you are eligible to sign up for our FIVER scheme which entitles you to tickets for just FIVE POUNDS. We also do Early Bird tickets for just £1. Early Birds are now sold out for September’s concert – you have to get in there fast!

Ruth

In partnership with Spitalfields Music and Village Underground.

Ahead of our new CLoSer series starting next month, this week City of London Sinfonia will be taking over the Spitalfields blog. Check back daily for more CLoSer news.

Images: James Berry and Clare Parker

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Tue, 31 Jul 2012 06:33:32 -0700 Retrospect - July in Pictures http://cls.posterous.com/149920360 http://cls.posterous.com/149920360

Another month has flown by at City of London Sinfonia. During July we had many more performances at Opera Holland Park, as well as two family day concerts in Newmarket and Whitechapel, a performance with Michael Collins at Petworth Festival and a chamber lunchtime concert at St Thomas' Hospital.


The highlight of our month was undoubtedly welcoming the Olympic Torch to Holland Park with our friends from Opera Holland Park. We look forward to August when we’ll be taking part in the Paralympic Flame Celebrations in Suffolk.

Here's a few pictures from the past month...

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The sunny view from our roof terrace at Piano House, Brixton

 

Pre-falstaff

July saw performances at Opera Holland Park 2012 - here is the audience and orchestra waiting for Falstaff to begin

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The Onegin set during the interval at Opera Holland Park 

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The office team rehearse for their handbell rendition of Land of Hope and Glory to celebrate the start of the Olympics

  

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The Olympic Torch passed by our office in Brixton on Thursday 26 July...

  

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...whilst our players were warming up for the arrival of the torch in Holland Park

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The moment the torch arrived and passed through the Opera Holland Park choir

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Our principal oboe, Dan Bates, introducing the quintet at St Thomas' Hospital at our lunchtime chamber concert on 30 July

 

Images: Anna Jessiman, Alex Marshall and Gillian Hunter

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Fri, 27 Jul 2012 07:28:00 -0700 Olympic Torch in Holland Park http://cls.posterous.com/olympic-torch-in-holland-park http://cls.posterous.com/olympic-torch-in-holland-park

On Thursday 26 July, the Olympic torch passed through the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and stopped briefly in Holland Park. We were delighted to perform, along with the Opera Holland Park Chorus and Investec Choir, for this very special occasion. Here's some photos from this special day.

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Conductor Stuart Stratford with the City of London Sinfonia violins

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Orchestra leader Matthew Scrivener with Stuart Stratford

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The Opera Holland Park Chorus and Investec Choir

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A 'minute maestro' participant

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Stuart Stratford and more 'minute maestro' conductors

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Julia Riley and Anna Leese singing The Flower Duet from Lakmé

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City of London Sinfonia violins

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Peter Auty performing Nessun Dorma

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12-year-old Tabitha-Skye Mcduffus from Chelsea Academy carried the torch through Holland Park

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Tabitha carrying the torch through the choir

Images: Anna Jessiman

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Wed, 11 Jul 2012 03:52:09 -0700 Zany for Zanetto http://cls.posterous.com/zany-for-zanetto http://cls.posterous.com/zany-for-zanetto

As the Gianni Schicchi/Zanetto double bill at Opera Holland Park comes to an end this week, we focus on Mascagni's lesser known one act opera Zanetto.

Florence

1.    Mascagni had so many devoted fans during his lifetime that 'mascagnano' was recognised as a common noun in the Italian dictionary.

2.    The premiere of Zanetto in 1896 featured as part of the annual celebrations for Rossini’s birthday.

3.    A private performance of Zanetto was held in London shortly after the Italian premiere, with Italian sisters Sofia and Giulia Ravogli.

4.    Five years ago in June 2007, Zanetto was performed in New York for the first time since its US premiere in October 1902.

5.    Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti, the librettist for Zanetto (along with Guido Menasci), was a lifelong friend of Mascagni’s, born in the same year and city.

 

The remaining performances of the Gianni Schicchi/Zanetto double bill are on July 12 & 14 at 7.30pm, as well as The Christine Collins Young Artists' performance on July 14 at 2pm.

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Thu, 05 Jul 2012 03:40:00 -0700 Retrospect - June in pictures http://cls.posterous.com/retrospect-june-2012 http://cls.posterous.com/retrospect-june-2012

June was a busy month for us with the start of our ninth season at Opera Holland Park, a UK premiere of Gluck's Il trionfo di Clelia at the Royal Opera House and several education projects inbetween. We started the month in good spirits celebrating the Queen's Diamond Jubilee in style with our friends at Piano House and finished by humming along to Donizetti, Mozart and Puccini.

Here's a few pictures from the past month...

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Gillian and Alex raise their cups for the Diamond Jubilee

 

Lucia_2012
Watching Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor which opened this year's Opera Holland Park 2012 season

 

Gillian__mini_accordian
Gillian, our Education Manager, received a new instrument to add to her collection

 

Gosh_quartet
A few of our players performing at Great Ormond Street Hospital

 

Linbury_lighting
Preparing the set for Clelia at the Linbury Studio Theatre, downstairs at the Royal Opera House

 

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Rehearsing for Il Trionfo di Clelia

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Fri, 29 Jun 2012 03:06:18 -0700 Gen up on your Gianni http://cls.posterous.com/gen-up-on-your-gianni http://cls.posterous.com/gen-up-on-your-gianni

For the next edition in our trivia opera guide for novices and opera buffs alike, we take a look at  Puccini's one-act opera Gianni Schicchi.

  • The work is the third and final part of Puccini's Il trittico (The Triptych)—three one-act operas. When Il trittico premiered in New York, Rome and London, Gianni Schicchi was an immediate hit and by 1920 Puccini had given his reluctant consent to separate performances. Gianni Schicchi has subsequently become the most-performed part of Il trittico and has been widely recorded
  • The libretto is based on an incident mentioned in Dante's The Divine Comedy

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  • The world premiere took place at the Metropolitan Opera (above image) in New York unusually without Puccini being there
  • Woody Allen directed Gianni Schicchi for Los Angeles Opera in 2008
  • Gianni Schicchi was to be the last opera Puccini ever completed


Gianni Schicchi is in rep at Opera Holland Park until 14 July.

Check out our Opera Holland Park Pinterest Board for more interesting facts on this year's season.

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Mon, 30 Apr 2012 03:18:00 -0700 CLoSer - the final review http://cls.posterous.com/closer-the-final-review http://cls.posterous.com/closer-the-final-review

We asked Anna our new Marketing Intern to give us her review of our final CLoSer this series...

The final instalment in this year’s first CLoSer concert series at Village Underground, Shoreditch, brought together a great selection of jazz inspired repertoire performed by our multi-talented musicians and conducted by Clark Rundell. As the title suggests, the CLoSer series enables the audience to get up close and personal with the players, both during and after the performance, in a less traditional concert setting.

Closer_blog_photo

The dimly lit venue was the perfect location for this jazz finale which featured Darius Milhaud, Mark-Anthony Turnage and Gwilym Simcock on the programme. With two of the three composers present (I’m positive that Milhaud would have shown his face had he been alive!) this really was a special and intimate evening. The informal and relaxed surroundings encouraged audience members to prop themselves up against the wall, perch on seats, lounge on cushions and lean against the bar, creating the perfect atmosphere for the music to follow.

Opening the programme was Milhaud’s jazz inspired La Création du Monde. Based on African folk mythology, the music was powerful, evocative and, at times, pleasantly chaotic. This was followed by Turnage’s masterpiece for viola, Eulogy. If anybody could make the viola cool it would be Turnage, most recently known for his opera on Anna Nicole, along with our  principal viola and soloist for the evening, Fiona Bonds. With intriguing and beautiful melodies, the music lured the audience into a more tranquil state.

Closer_blog_photo_three

There were obviously many fans of the Mercury Prize nominee and jazz pianist Gwilym Simcock in the room, all eagerly waiting to hear his new composition Move, written specifically for this occasion. The three-movements were appropriately titled Clunky, Columns and Industrial, which Gwilym noted were comparable to the underground brick location in which he was performing. His mesmerising playing and brilliant improvisation skills were totally mind blowing creating a buzzing high on which to end the evening.

Described by audience members as the “best club-classical experience so far”, the first CLoSer series has been both informative and inspiring, and the next series looks to be equally exciting.

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CLoSer 19 September, 7.30pm
Village Underground, Shoreditch

Music by Copland, Stravinsky & Piazzolla
Michael Collins, conductor/clarinet
Katona Twins, guitar duo

BOOKING NOW OPEN: 020 7377 1362/spitalfieldsmusic.org.uk
Tickets: £15 or Early Birds £1

Images: James Berry

 

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Thu, 19 Apr 2012 03:24:00 -0700 Spotlight on...Mark-Anthony Turnage http://cls.posterous.com/spotlight-onmark-anthony-turnage http://cls.posterous.com/spotlight-onmark-anthony-turnage

Our final CLoSer concert on Wednesday 25 April includes a performance of Mark-Anthony Turnage's masterpiece for viola:Eulogy. But who is this most prolific of English composers? Here's a quick snapshot:

Name
Mark-Anthony Turnage 

Age
51 

Nationality
British

Background
Studied at the Royal College of Music where he met composer and conductor Oliver Knussen, who was to become his tutor, Won a scholarship to study with Gunther Schuller and Hans Werner Henze at Tanglewood in America.

Turnage_crop
Breakthrough moment
Greek, his first opera, which received a triumphant premiere in 1988 and his many ensuing productions worldwide established his international reputation. However he is probably most widely known outside of classical music for his opera Anna Nicole, which tells the story of the rise and fall of the late glamour model, which was staged at the Royal Opera House in 2010. 

CLoSer performance
Eulogy
A miniature viola concerto accompanied by small ensemble. Turnage is known for his complete absorption of jazz elements into a contemporary classical style as this piece reflects. 

Listen to our Turnage greatest hits playlist on Spotify.

CLoSer: Jazz Finale
Weds 25 April, 7.30pm
Village Underground, Shoreditch

Tickets: £15 (includes a free drink)
Box Office: 020 7377 1362/spitalfieldsmusic.org.uk

 

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Mon, 16 Apr 2012 04:41:00 -0700 Spotlight on...Darius Milhaud http://cls.posterous.com/composer-focus-darius-milhaud http://cls.posterous.com/composer-focus-darius-milhaud

Our final CLoSer concert on Wednesday 25 April has a distinct jazz flavour to it and includes a performance of Darius Milhaud's jazz inspired La creation de monde. But who was this most prolific of twentieth century composers? Here's a quick snapshot:

Name
Darius Milhaud

Age
120 (if still alive today)

Nationality
French

Background
Born in France and spent time living abroad in Brazil during the First World War. When the Nazis occupied France early in World War II, Milhaud, a prominent Jew, was forced to flee to the US. He had developed severe rheumatoid arthritis, which often confined him to a wheel chair, which compounded the need to escape the Nazi regime. 

Darius_milhaud_crop
Known as..
A “member” of Les Six - an informal group of six composers working in Montparnasse, whose music came to be seen as a rejection of prewar impressionism, and particularly the musical style of Richard Wagner and the impressionist music of Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel.

Repetoire
Wrote music for nearly every genre imaginable.  His major works span several ballets and operas, to more commercial film and theatre scores. He also composed twelve symphonies and eighteen string quartets.

CLoSer performance
La création du monde
The Creation of the World uses ideas and idioms from jazz, and was originally cast as a ballet in six continuous dance scenes. It tells the story of creation through African folk mythology. The piece is highly influenced by the then newly arrived American jazz scene.

Listen to La création du monde on our Spotify playlist.

CLoSer: Jazz Finale
Weds 25 April, 7.30pm
Village Underground, Shoreditch

Tkts: 020 7377 1362/spitalfieldsmusic.org.uk


 

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Wed, 21 Mar 2012 03:40:22 -0700 Working with Giants http://cls.posterous.com/working-with-giants http://cls.posterous.com/working-with-giants

Our Education Manager Gillian, explains how music educators help students to tackle Mozart.

Many of you will have heard of the ‘Mozart effect’ – the popular belief that ‘listening to Mozart makes you smarter’. Indeed, there has been academic research which indicates as much, and this coupled with vast amounts of anecdotal evidence, has parents and teachers switching over to Classic FM in an effort to increase children’s brain power. All this can only be good news for those of us tasked with teaching classical music to children.Young children are innately curious about where music comes from and are fascinated by meeting live musicians and seeing orchestral instruments being played up close. In the orchestral outreach sector, we teach from a starting point that all children should have the opportunity to see and hear live professional musicians and we are passionate about exposing children to ‘real’ orchestral repertoire.

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The breadth of Mozart’s work makes it incredibly straightforward to expose children to his music, live. Musicians who visit schools often, without prompting choose to play a Mozart excerpt to illustrate their instruments. From his horn concertos to the violin sonatas, Mozart was a master of writing for a specific instrument. His melodies let the instrument they were written for really sing and illustrate brilliantly what makes a flute’s sound different from that of an oboe.

When learning about classical music, there is often a dichotomy between the enjoyable act of listening to the music and the often perceived ‘dry’ nature of studying and analysing its style and form. As with understanding Shakespeare, we must ensure that the experience of the opera (or play, or symphony) is intertwined with the understanding of its form and meaning. Additionally, we can deepen this understanding by further integrating the study of the composer – or playwright himself. Mozart’s playful ‘Presto’ movements, for example in his chamber works and symphonies, are so easy to engage with when we imagine the playful nature of Mozart’s character. Understanding Mozart’s relationship with his father makes the plot of his opera Don Giovanni all the more gripping. In short, integrating the ways in which we teach and learn Mozart (and indeed Shakespeare), not separating the musical from the historical, the listening from the analysing, the drama from the form, is a positive way forward to making the topic exciting and relevant.

To read the full article visit the Teaching Shakespeare website

 

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Thu, 15 Mar 2012 03:37:21 -0700 CLoSer part two - in words and pictures http://cls.posterous.com/closer-part-two-in-words-and-pictures http://cls.posterous.com/closer-part-two-in-words-and-pictures

Our second CLoSer concert at Village Underground played to a packed crowd on Wednesday 29 February, when the Holst Singers and baritone Derek Welton joined us as Guest Artists. We thought we'd share with you some of the best photos from the night and what the audience had to say:

"Great music - venue warmed by a a fantastic orchestra"

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"Think that might have been my favourite concert in a while; got the whole relaxed thing pitched just right"

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"Incomparable polyphony, musical alchemy!"

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"wonderful programming (incredibly varied), hushed audience, informal atmosphere, excellent musicians & gorgeous setting!"

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"Totally brilliant. Say no more!"

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The final concert in the series will be a jazz finale extraordinaire, when we’ll be joined by Guest Artist and renowned jazz pianist Gwilym Simcock, who’ll be joining the orchestra to perform some of his own compositions, as well as music by Mark-Anthony Turnage and Darius Milhaud.

Listen to our Spotify Playlist to hear some of the music to be performed on the night.

CLoSer
Wednesday 25 April, 7.30pm,
Village Underground, EC2A

Tickets: £15 (includes a free drink)/ Students £5
Box office: 020 7377 1362/spitalfieldsmusic.org.uk

Images: Clare Parker

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Thu, 01 Mar 2012 03:02:00 -0800 Conquering the Antarctic Interview: Hugh Bonneville http://cls.posterous.com/interview-hugh-bonneville http://cls.posterous.com/interview-hugh-bonneville

Ahead of the final concert in our Conquering the Antarctic tour this Saturday, we caught up with Hugh Bonneville, acclaimed actor from ITV's Downton Abbey, to talk to him about his involvement in the tour.

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Image: Philip Thorne

What drew you to take part in the Conquering the Antarctic tour and what do you know about the story of Captain Scott's expedition to the South Pole?
The story of Captain Scott is something that I have known about from childhood, like every boy and girl from my generation; one of the great adventures, albeit with a tragic ending. I remember from an early age being inspired by the grandeur and the ambition of the expedition, despite the tragic nature of it all. Of course it was 1912, the year of the Titanic and the year of Captain Scott, what a year! It’s full of schoolboy heroism but ultimate folly in the end; the flawed ambition of Empire.

Captain Scott's final diaries are at the heart of the concert tour; do you keep a diary? If so how long have you kept one for and why?
I haven’t kept a diary since I was 18!  It was usually full of what a terrible result I had in a football match; why wasn’t I any good at goalkeeping?


To read the diaries of Captain Scott in the context of the Vaughan Williams music (which will be performed alongside the readings in the concert) is very moving. You see the confidence with which the polar party set out, the camaraderie of the men and Scott’s admiration for his team; the great chemistry between the men and Scott’s determination to keep his leadership up, despite the will, gradually beginning to slip away.


He definitely ranks up there alongside the great adventurers such as Shackleton and Mallory. I think his tremendous spirit of adventure and daringness to fail ranks him alongside any hero. Flawed as they may be, they were all prepared to push themselves and what is known about the world, to its limits.

Have you ever had any desire to be an explorer and if so where would you go and what would you explore?
I’m a good map reader but a hopeless explorer! I’d love to go to parts of the world that are remote, but I’d be hopeless in icy conditions. I’m fascinated by rivers that hide their source. I did some wandering during my GAP year travels, but that was in several degrees of comfort compared to what these guys experienced. I wouldn’t last five seconds in Bear Grylls back garden, let alone out in the field with him!

What was your first experience with music? Do you play an instrument?
I can’t pretend to be a musician.  My parents are very keen concert goers and my first conscious memory of music is my Dad playing an LP of Faure’s Requiem. My father is an excellent pianist and his effortless technique on the piano made me furious every time I tried to plink out my Grade One. I then took up the clarinet, which remains one of my favourite instruments, which I absolutely love, and only wish I’d kept going.

What's the hardest and also the most satisfying part of being involved in the Downton Abbey phenomenon?
The hardest thing is trying to keep track of which part of the world has seen which series and making sure you’re not giving the game away in press conferences. The most satisfying thing is to be involved in a show that has caught the imagination of so many people around the world; it doesn’t happen very often in your career. We've started back at Downton Abbey already. And no, I’m can’t tell you what happens in Series Three, I’ve only read up to Episode Two!

Conquering the Antarctic
3 March 2012

Cadogan Hall, London

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Tue, 21 Feb 2012 03:38:00 -0800 Stravinsky's Mass http://cls.posterous.com/concert-focus-closer-stravinsky-mass http://cls.posterous.com/concert-focus-closer-stravinsky-mass

The second concert in our innovative, informal series, CLoSer, will focus on the human voice with a performance by CLS and the Holst Singers of Stravinsky's Mass.

Stravinsky began work on his Mass in 1944, completing the Kyrie and Gloria towards the end of that year. Pausing to work on other projects, he returned to the Mass in 1947, finally completing all the movements in 1948. He rarely wrote non-commissioned music, so is believed by his friend Robert Craft (the American conductor and writer) to have written his Mass out of ‘spiritual necessity.’

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Although he was devoted to the religious content, Stravinsky chose to write a Roman Catholic mass, despite being a member of the Russian Orthodox Church.  His reasons for doing this were practical ones: he was committed to creating a Mass that would be performed in liturgical circumstances, and, given that he disliked the sound of unaccompanied singing, couldn’t write for the Russian Orthodox Church, which forbids any music but the human voice and bells. The Roman Catholic Church permits instrumentation on religious occasions so provided the right vehicle for Stravinsky’s small wind ensemble and four-part choir.

Despite Stravinsky’s desire that the Mass be used liturgically, it has almost always been performed in concert since its first performance at La Scala in Milan in 1948. It remains, however, deeply committed to the affirmation of faith. Although he denied that he was influenced by any particular composer or composition, Stravinsky uses a chanting style of singing that is reminiscent of monastic chant, a style that, despite his tendency to put musical stresses on unstressed words, preserves the text of the mass and connects his work to older Christian musics.

His commitment to the spiritual content is, appropriately, particularly apparent in the Credo, about which Stravinsky is quoted by Robert Craft as saying “One composes a march to facilitate marching men, so with my Credo I hope to provide an aid to the text. The Credo is the longest movement. There is much to believe.” 

 Listen to Stravinsky’s Mass on our Spotify playlist

 

CLoSer: Spirit of the Voice
Wednesday 29 Feb, 7.30pm
Village Underground

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Thu, 16 Feb 2012 04:43:00 -0800 CLoSer Interview: Holst Singers http://cls.posterous.com/closer-interview-holst-singers http://cls.posterous.com/closer-interview-holst-singers

We caught up with Will Davies from the Holst Singers, our Guest Artists at our next CLoSer concert, to find out more about this extraordinary choir.

Holst Singers, what are the origins of the choir and its name?
We were founded in 1978 under Hilary Davan Wetton, but for almost two decades have been conducted by our Musical Director Stephen Layton, who has shaped and nurtured the celebrated sound we make. I believe our name was actually taken from the Holst Room at St Paul’s Girls’ School where we originally rehearsed in the early days - so I guess we are named after the composer, but not directly!

How many singers in the choir? What’s the average profile of a Holstie? (if there is such a thing!)
We have a core of about 40 singers who are the ‘regulars’, who you’ll catch performing at most concerts. I’m not sure there is an ‘average’ Holstie! I suppose most of us are graduates with a chapel choir background, so Oxford and Cambridge feature fairly heavily in the choir’s make-up. Outside of that, we’re a very varied bunch, a whole range of ages and occupations. Without wanting to sound too cheesy, the thing that unites us all is music. I think we’re in a unique position as an institution– we’re one of the nation’s top-flight choirs, but we work entirely as a self-run amateur outfit, with no subscription fees or anything like that. It means that everyone involved is there to concentrate on the music-making; it works really well for us.

What is it like working with CLS Artistic Director Stephen Layton?
In short, truly inspiring. He’s one of the world’s greatest choral conductors, and it shows. He always seems to know exactly what he wants to achieve with the music, from the broad sweep of a piece to the subtle nuances. What’s great is that he knows how to get us to produce the performance he wants; he works us hard, but it’s always worth it for the end result.

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What’s the range of the choir’s repertoire? Do you enjoy performing newly-commissioned work, or prefer more established repertoire?
We love getting our teeth into a wide range of repertoire. I suppose we have a reputation for performing works in the very loose category of ‘unjustly neglected a cappella gems’ – works by Baltic composers like Tormis and Ešenvalds for instance, or the Russian Orthodox music on our Ikon recordings. We’re also actively involved in performing new commissions, from premiering Tavener’s Veil of the Temple to working with Imogen Heap on her soundtrack to The Seashell and the Clergyman.

Talk us through the pieces you’re performing for CLoSer.
We’re performing two pieces, Stravinsky’s Mass and Immortal Bach by Knut Nystedt. The Stravinsky is a great work. It’s quite severe, almost bleak at times, but beautiful with it. It’s scored for choir and a fairly small wind ensemble, and you get these wonderful moments of sparse, dissonant instrumental writing with the choir almost chanting the text, especially in the Credo. That’s probably the most challenging movement for us – not because it’s particularly difficult musically, but because he treats the text in a really counterintuitive way. Instead of setting it in the ‘usual’ way (accented and inflected as one might speak it, with expression) he produces a sort of muttering mantra; it’s this kind of ‘march of belief’, which is surprisingly tricky to get your head around at first.

Immortal Bach is really interesting – Nystedt takes the first two lines of the chorale Komm, süßer Tod and deconstructs them. You hear the unadulterated chorale first and then you hear it transformed, by dividing the choir into separate groups who sing each phrase of the chorale at different speeds, coming together at the cadence points before continuing onwards. It’s a bit tricky to explain without a choir on hand to demonstrate, but it’s very effective – the result is this fantastic smeary collage of Bach.

What do you hope the audience take away from your performance on 29 February?
I hope they get an impression of how the human voice can speak powerfully to you, in unexpected ways. I think the thing that connects the music we’ll be performing is that neither piece uses voices conventionally, to wring emotion from words or to make you say, “Oh, what a lovely tune”. The Nystedt is in a sense just the application of a simple mathematical rubric to a Bach chorale, and the Stravinsky is ascetic, austere music; and yet both produce this captivating atmosphere.

What would the Holst Singers desert island discs be and why?
Ah, now this is going be tricky. I’d have trouble enough doing my own, letting alone trying to speak for the whole choir – I’m inevitably going to get lynched when they see this! “How could you miss out Spem in alium?!” Ah well, here goes…
I think we need something early in there. Let’s have Palestrina’s Missa Papae Marcelli, because it’s pretty damn fit, especially the way the Kyrie kicks off; I could listen to that soaring-and-descending motif go round and round all day. It would be rude not to have anything Slavic on the island, let’s cram the Rachmaninov Vespers in the bag too. Last one… we need something English in there too. This’ll be a controversial one, but let’s go for the Vaughan Williams Shakespeare Songs. The middle movement is the sexiest thing ever. Wait. We get a full set of sheet music for these on the island too, right?!

CLoSer: Spirit of the Voice
Weds 29 February, 7.30pm
Village Underground, Shoreditch

Poulenc Suite Francaise
JS Bach French Suite
Poulenc Le Bal Masque
Nystedt Immortal Bach
Stravinsky Mass

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Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:47:00 -0800 Behind the Scenes Photos: Conquering the Antarctic rehearsal http://cls.posterous.com/behind-the-scenes-with-cls-and-hugh-bonnevill http://cls.posterous.com/behind-the-scenes-with-cls-and-hugh-bonnevill

Here's a sneaky peek of what happened in our first rehearsal for our upcoming tour, Conquering the Antarctic. It was our first chance to get our teeth stuck into Cecilia McDowall's new piece (written especially for the tour) Seventy Degrees Below Zero and to meet our narrator, actor Hugh Bonneville .

 

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Images: James Berry

We're now set to get on the road and celebrate the Scott centenary and this epic and inspiring story.

Conquering the Antarctic

3 Feb - Symphony Hall, Birmingham SOLD OUT

4 Feb - Corn Exchange Cambridge

7 Feb - St David's Hall, Cardiff

8 Feb - Town Hall, Cheltenham

3 Mar - Cadogan Hall, London Limited tickets available

 

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Mon, 30 Jan 2012 06:15:00 -0800 Flashback: L’Chaim http://cls.posterous.com/flashback-lchaim http://cls.posterous.com/flashback-lchaim

In this edition of Flashback, we look to 1998 and the launch of our L’Chaim, Living Music project, which is still going strong and celebrating ‘living music’ today.

 

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"In tandem with the commencement of Music for Children at Great Ormond Street Hospital, the Education and Community Programme also launched L’Chaim, Living Music. This is an informal concert project at the Otto Schiff Housing Association (OSHA) for Jewish refugees of Nazi persecution. Most OSHA residents are of German or Austrian origin, and their combined rich cultural heritage and love of music has been the defining factor in helping to shape the project.

 

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"Based at seven different homes and sites throughout North London, L’Chaim, Living Music will provide a three-year rotating programme of classical, Jewish, folk, religious and coffee house music... Whilst physical frailty may now prevent some of the residents attending concerts elsewhere in London, this has not hindered their support and enthusiasm for this project, and they have been integral to the planning process, programming and structure from the outset.

 

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"A long list of composers and musical interests was drawn up by the residents, many of whom are musicians themselves. After this initial meeting, it was clear that musical interests veered strongly towards the German classical tradition, but that many OSHA residents also enjoy folk, religious, light classical and jazz music. With these interests in mind, the programme for the year was drawn up...

"Soon after this, a trio of musicians were booked for the first three visits to OSHA (Erika Klemperer, violin, Danny Lyness, viola, Jo Cole, cello) and...they devised the first concert programme (including complete works by Beethoven, Kodaly and Schubert.) The first visits were a great success, reaching over 70 residents and staff and instant feedback from the residents was overwhelmingly positive."


Extract from CLScapades newsletter 1998

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