Fruit of Friendship

[vkioulaphides]

Dear friends,

this morning I shipped to our own Alex T. my newborn Concerto per orchestra a pizzico, my first major work for picked/plucked instruments: mandolins 1 and 2, mandola, guitar, mandoloncello, and chitarrone moderno— written expressly for the excellent Het Consort.

On this occasion, I must thank all of you for the wonderful encouragement you offered way back when my "Diferencias" thread appeared last October. Up until then, the idea of such a work as the Concerto had simply never crossed my mind. But, the Diferencias were evidently liked by many, I asked in passing "what other work might be welcome by the mando-community", Alex responded... the rest is history.

The Concerto per orchestra a pizzico is in three movements, fast-slow-fast: a Sinfonia first movement, a notturno second one, and a Rondo finale, subtitled Telemanniana, fusing the jolly, francophile galantries of the Master from Magdeburg with the "modern" material of the earlier two movements— hey, it's not for nothing that I am a child of mediterranean neoclassicism #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

The form of the piece was determined during several conversations with Alex: We mused over the idea of a concerto in the usual sense, one presumptively featuring such a young virtuoso as Sebastiaan de Grebber, accompanied by the rest of the ensemble; we also considered some sort of a concerto grosso with more than one soloist. The final outcome, i.e. taking the multiplicity of soloists to the maximum, was a work that features each and every section as occasional soloists, all the way from the first mandolins to the warm, soulful chitarrone.

Having made these usual "composerish" (and largely inane) descriptive remarks, I wish my latest baby bon voyage with the hope that the recipient(s) enjoy it. And, once again, I express my gratitude to the entire MC-community for all your kind words and warm encouragement; without you, this Fruit of Friendship would simply never have happened.

Pick on!

[jeffshuniak]

vic, I would really like to write out some of my own things sometime, even if for only my memory's sake... I find writing my own work pretty difficult, at least very time consuming...the notes are easy but the timing is key...those darn "rests" I wish I could have this done for me... I am aware its pretty expensive to have this done... do you know how expensive??

I would love to hear your music sometime. I dont have that band arrangment right now, nothing close. maybe down the road I'll hit you up for a copy.

[Sellars]

Hi victor,

Not really knowing you, apart from some email contact, I shouldn't be one of the first to congratulate you, but since I'm at the right spot at the right time, I will http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

Congratulations!

I'm looking very much forward to when your composition will be performed (I hope that will be in the Netherlands)

Regards,
Roel

[Jim Garber]

Victor:
That is wonderful news! Congratulations!

I seriously looks fwd to hearing the performance of your piece by Alex's excellent orchestra and perhaps, as per another thread, we will hear the American premiere in New York?

Jim

[vkioulaphides]

Thank you, both.

Roel, I assume that the eventual premiere will be in The Netherlands. In fact, (schedule-madness permitting) I may try to attend— I can dream, can't I? #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif So, who knows, we may even meet!

Cheers,

Victor

[John Zimm]

Congratulations Victor. That is great news, and I bet it is really satisfying to have completed the composition and sent it off to the next phase of it's life. I really wish I was blessed with a talent for composition the way you are. Best of luck.

-John.

[Eugene]

I can hardly wait for the recording! I love your stuff, V.

[vkioulaphides]

*blush* Why, thank you, E! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

But, let us not put undue burdens on the hapless recipient: This being truly a fruit of our friendship, Alex is under no obligation (contractual or other) to do anything with this piece; having said that, I certainly do hope the piece is performed, both in Europe and in the States, recorded, enjoyed by the most possible audiences, etc.

That, or burned along with the withered Christmas tree in January, in the Dutch manner! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[margora]

I, as well, am very eager to see the score. I am quite sure the Providence Mandolin Orchestra will be interested -- of course, after Alex has had the piece for the requisite amount of time.

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello all,

Congratulations again Victor! It is exciting to hear that the music is on it´s way now.


It has been wonderful to witness Victor´s enthusiasm while composing his "Concerto per orchestra a pizzico" (a wonderful title, by the way) and how he, right from the start, saw the many interesting possibilities for all instruments involved.

I knew, because of what he wrote about the first Consort CD on the tremolo in the lower register, that he liked the warm and dark sound of the Mandoloncello. So I hoped for something special for that (almost forgotten) instrument.

You probably can understand that when he told me that he wanted to include the Mandoloncello I was really happy. And thrilled when, some weeks later, he informed me that the Mandoloncello and Chitarrone moderno were given key parts to play in the second movement!

So yes, I am very eager to study the score and see it in real.

Last week I informed the members of Het Consort that the Concerto per orchestra a pizzico was nearly finished and I know I speak for all of them when I say that we really look forward to play and hear it!


Many thanks Victor!


Greetings,

Alex.

[vkioulaphides]

You are most welcome, Alex.

And, looking at the wonderful image you attached, with the evening performance under the tent, well... I can think of no better ambience to perform the Notturno middle movement! #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

I hope you like the piece.

Cheers,

Victor

[PlayerOf8]

Bravo! Multi Bravo! ViVa Meastro Victor!


George

[Bob A]

It's such a gas to exist on the margins of such a group of talented involved musicians. I give you joy of your latest creation, Victor, and thanks to Alex for commissioning works for the repertoire of our favorite instrument.

Pluck on into the twenty-first century!

[Plamen Ivanov]

Congratulations Victor, and bon voyage to your new piece! I hope (I know) it will be well accepted by the mandolin players! What do you think, could this concerto be performed by our chamber formation, that you already know? Of course, involving one more mandolin. I wish also great succes to Alex and Het Consort in performing and recording the piece!

"Fruit of friendship" - I like that!

Good luck! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[vkioulaphides]

Thank you for your kind words, Plamen.

[QUOTE]"our chamber formation, that you already know"

Uh-oh... old age crops up again... http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif I do not remember the chamber formation you are speaking of, Plamen. Would you be so kind as to remind me?

The Concerto a pizzico requires a minimum of six instruments: first and second mandolin, mandola (tenor or octave), guitar, mandoloncello, and chitarrone moderno; absent the chitarrone, any effective, EADG bass instrument would work.

There are no divisi requirements, so one-player-per-part would be possible. Naturally, however, the piece would sound fuller and richer with small sections of instruments, such as those found in Het Consort.

[Plamen Ivanov]

Hm, this is the first time, when I`m disappointed with your brain, Victor. Usually it works pretty well! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif I`m sure you will remember after some more thinking.

Good luck! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[vkioulaphides]

Oh, Plamen, I am personally disappointed with my brain ALL the time! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

But, there is still hope for you: Just wait until you have a child. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif School(s), violin lessons, homework, ballet classes, language(s), commuting from one place to the other, chauffeur duty...

I DO, however, remember events of 30-some years ago with extreme detail and lucidity— another sign of old age, of course, as I can barely remember anything from the last rehearsal I played yesterday. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif

Any clues?

[billkilpatrick]

dear victor -

i've been away from the mando list for a while, otherwise i would have commented earlier (in the old days one sent telegrams for this sort of thing.)

congratulations victor, i had no idea you were writing something so grand. i can't wait to hear it. what i am, more than anything else, is wildly curious!

"fruit of friendship" is such a wonder title but i must stop speculating on what it will sound like and wait patiently for a recording of its performance.

i converse with composers, don't you know...

tante bene cose - bill

[Jonathan]

Victor - Am I correct in assuming that the chitarrone is the huge bass guitar that always amazes me in pictures of the Het Consort? #Is it tuned like our own beloved double bass?
Yours in EADG friendship,

Jonathan

[vkioulaphides]

It is, indeed, Jonathan. And yes, the tuning is like that of the double-bass although (as per the expert tutelage I received from our dear Alex), its part is notated in treble clef, like the guitar— the guitar, of course, sounds an octave lower than notated; the chitarrone, alla quindicesima.

In fact, in the orchestration of this piece, I used the mandoloncello as the "bass of the mandolin choir", while using the chitarrone as the "bass of the guitar choir". Being an orchestral musician, you understand me without need of further explanation.

The fine chitarrone-ist of Het Consort is Marianne, Alex' companion in both music and life; partly because of this, and partly because, being a bass-player myself, I like meaningful, melodious bass-lines, I featured the chitarrone and mandoloncello as the "ad hoc soloists" in the slow, middle movement. I hope the players enjoy playing those cantabile entries as much as I enjoyed composing them.

In view of the piece's "later life", i.e. after it goes into some sort of more general circulation, I think that any EADG (contra)bass instrument would work on the part originally written for the chitarrone: an acoustic bass guitar (a good, sonorous one, that is), a double-bass perhaps... pizzicato, of course— the bowed tone being foreign to the fundamental conception of this piece. Let us see...

[Jonathan]

Thanks, Victor. I'd love to hear the sound of the chittarone, so I guess it's time to order one or more of the Consort's CDs. I assume I can do this at their website - let me know if there's a better option.
You mentioned acoustic bass guitars - that's something I have a bit of a hankering for, although few that I've played have impressed me. The best was an Ernie Ball Earthwood bass from the 60's that was really a blast. I've never come across one for sale, online or otherwise, so they must be as scarce as Vega mandocellos.
Hope I'll have a chance to hear your work someday. BTW, it's not too late to submit a piece to the CMSA's composition contest, if you're so inclined. (Deadline is June 1)

Jonathan

[Jim Garber]

Acoustic bass guitars: a friend of mine plays a Tacoma -- relatively inexpensive and sounds as good as any of them I have heard. I also know a few folks who have fooled around with guitarrones, but that is another story.

Jim

[vkioulaphides]

Yes... #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif #I am aware of the acoustic deficiencies of ever so many acoustic bass guitars. Still, there MUST be better specimens, perhaps as Jim suggests.

Please forgive my "populist" bias: As Alex and I were discussing this piece, I made my intention clear that I didn't care to write the kind of work that would require the world's leading virtuosos, sequestered for daily rehearsals (16 hours a day, of course) for 2-3 YEARS in order to come off well on the performance date. I simply have no interest in feeding the shelves of the local library with yet another "academic" score— too many of those collecting dust already. Besides, any hypothetical such work would fly in the face of the very spirit of the mandolin-orchestra tradition.

I wanted, instead, a work that could be put together in 2-3 rehearsals by any group of competent players— assuming some prior practice-time devoted to the parts by their respective players, plus, of course, the leadership of a capable conductor.

Following along these lines of, well... Gebrauchsmusik, I don't want to make the piece seem impossible to perform without the rare —but wonderful!—#chitarrone; hence my suggestion of alternatives.

P.S. And yes, Jonathan, I would recommend most enthusiastically any of the recordings of Het Consort; the tone of the chitarrone is quite an experience! (...as, of course, is the sonority of a world-class orchestra a pizzico)

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello all and in particular to Victor,

Yes! Victor´s Concerto per orchestra a pizzico has arrived and it just looks great!

I haven´t had the time yet (this week was quite hectic; rehearsals of a music contest in our hometown Zwolle (first price: mandolin and guitar[!], second price: guitar and third price for piano. So ´our´ instruments are doing great over here!) and more rehearsals in connection with the "Open day" and the Concert week of our Music school) to give it a thourough look, but already by just glancing at it everything shows very clever writing for all instruments involved.


Especially the part for the guitar section (often still not much more than simple chords that have to be played like boem-stja-stja etcetera-perpetua...) are treated here like ´real´ ochestra instruments with nice melody lines, chords with unexpected colour-notes and very effective position playing. A good example is Victor´s ´campanella´ writing; for instance the use of a repeating open 1st string while a run downwards the fingerboard (high- to low positions) has to be made.

Wonderful!

I soon hope to have a better look at it and will keep you updated.


Best and thanks again Victor,

Alex


Photo of the winning Mandolin & Guitar duo: Ruth and Thomas Rouw.

[vkioulaphides]

Thank you for your kind words, Alex. Yes, I can imagine just how busy you must be!

Indeed, in this piece I wanted to avoid the all-too-common, chordal accompaniment patterns usually given to the guitars; no reason to use the instrument only in this fashion, just because it does accompany chordally with good effect. I hope my more "linear" writing for the guitar section sounds good. I did, by precaution, score it against VERY light textures in the picked instruments.

I count as my greatest privilege that someone of Alex' expertise will have a first glance at this score before it is "carved in stone". It is a fortunate composer indeed who has the practical wisdom of a performer guiding his own efforts.

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello Victor,

It been a while since we talked about it here, but I must say that the Concerto per orchestra a pizzico does not only "look great" (as I wrote in my previous post here) but it also sounds great!

Last week at our rehearsal - after everybody had studied his/her part at home - we had the 1st real go at it getting everything as you and I discussed it. It worked just wonderful!

And this can be said of all the three movements. It is really beautiful music in the real sence of the word beautiful. We like it very much!



Many thanks from all of us!

Alex.

[Jim Garber]

Alex and Victor:
I am looking fwdt to hearing even a rough recording of this piece. So far I have liked everything that Victor has composed... atleast the ones he has offered to us.

Maybe you can see if Carlo would include one of your pieces in his workshop for the coming year.

best
Jim

[vkioulaphides]

Thank you so much, Alex!

I can say only this: Of all rewards a composer can reap from his efforts, none is more valued than the approval of his esteemed colleagues who perform his works; not the reviews, not the grants, not the awards.

In this I remain grateful to Alex, for encouraging me to write the Concerto to begin with, and to all the fine performers of Het Consort, who have worked so diligently to make my little note-scribbles come to life.

Jim: Yes, I would be happy to share some of my works with Carlo; he already has a copy of Diferencias. Whether my stuff constitutes interesting pedagogical, i.e. "workshop" material, is entirely his judgment call.

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello Victor et all,

I am happy to inform you that #Victor´s composition ´The CONCERTO PER ORCHESTRA A PIZZICO´ (http://www.mandolineorkest.nl/agenda/enagenda.htm) will be premiered next month.
To be more precise: we will perform it at an evening concert in Groningen, one of our capital towns in the North of the Netherlands, on the 19th of March.

We all look forward to this!


Best,

Alex

[Jim Garber]

Victor, will you be there for the premiere?
Alex, will you be recording it?

Jim

[Neil Gladd]

News from the small world / coincidence department: In my job as a Performing Arts Examiner for the Copyright Office, Victor's first mandolin pieces crossed my desk a few years ago and I got to sign off on them. I now work on motion pictures instead of music, but the job is changing and I've been getting some cataloging training. One of the first things I had to catalog was Victor's new Concerto, so I got to have a look at the score. Reading through it in my head, sans mandolin, it looked like a great piece, so I'm looking forward to hearing it!

[John Craton]

Congratulations, Victor, on your new world premiere! I hope the Consort will be recording the work so that those of us shackled to this side of the pond will have the opportunity to hear it. Though I've been privileged to hear only a few of your works to date (a situation I hope soon to remedy), I have been most impressed with what I've heard. I look forward to the experience of your new concerto. Best wishes all round!

[vkioulaphides]

How VERY exciting! I #have no words by which to describe the feeling of anticipation...

Ehm... —a scary thought!— depending on my schedule at the opera, Alex, I might be even able to "skip the pond" for that weekend. The week after (Holy Week), I am rehearsing St. Matthew Passion but, of course, I could easily fly back on Sunday the 20th (or even Monday the 21st) and be back on time for my rehearsals.

In the immortal words of Winnie the Pooh (my favorite philosopher, by the way): Think, think, think! #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

P.S. Mille grazie for all the kind words from colleagues Neil and John; the Café might well be the ONLY place where composers —notoriously UNkind to each other— are this supportive. I guess the mandolin brings out the best in us! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello Victor,

Well, be sure you are most welcome! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif


Greetings,

Alex

[vkioulaphides]

"Il colpo è fatto."

(Mozart, Le Nozze di Figaro)

It's done! The gods of rehearsals, recordings, and live performances have granted my wish: for once in recent history, a weekend without work. Airplane tickets in the bag, accommodations worked out... who can ask for anything more?

Alex, my friend... prepare yourself for the direct acquaintance of a most outrageously silly individual! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

ATTN: All MC-friends: Prepare yourselves for (more) profuse verbiage by a deliriously happy me, after my return; count on digital images, too. I am told that the lovely town of Groningen has a world-class flower show right around that time. Considering, then, that flowers and Holland go together in most people's minds, I expect, ah... floral intoxication. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Jim Garber]

Excellent, Victor! We will look fwd to your report and great that you will be there and meet Alex.

Jim

[Plamen Ivanov]

Hello!

Alex, could you provide some more information about how to get tickets for the performance. I have some friends in Groeningen, that might be interested in attending. Good luck to all of you!!!http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

Plamen

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello Plami,

How nice of you to point out our concert in Groningen to your Dutch friends!
If they like to make a reservation for tickets they can dial the phone number written at the bottom of this particular concert announcement. #Here is the link to the agenda at our Web site. (http://www.mandolineorkest.nl/agenda/enagenda.htm)

Thank you (also for your comment on our playing and interpretation of Kuwahara´s Song of the Japanese Autumn!),


Greetings,

Alex

[Plamen Ivanov]

Greetings Alex,

Thank you very much! In fact I saw the information on your website two days ago, while browsing for something else there and already forwarded the info to my friends. In fact they are a Russian guy and a Polish woman. Both of them are professors in business administration in the local University. They were very excited and I hope, that they will have the chance to visit the concert.

Best regards,
Plamen

[vkioulaphides]

[QUOTE]"News from the small world / coincidence department:"

Funny, how all that works... A fabulous Dutch mezzo-soprano, Wilma Wever, premiered two of my songs a couple of years ago. In a rare flash of mental presence, I e-mail her the news of this premiere.

Whad'ya know... Wilma IS from Groningen! (...uh-oh... family already notified!) Knowing of my profoundly philosophical lifestyle, she replies enthusiastically with things I ought to eat while in Holland, to wit:

zoute haring and metworst
oude wijven
stroopwafels and krentenbollen

http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Alas, how little credit I get for my ascetic virtues!

[John Craton]

Just be grateful your premiere is in Holland and not Spain where you'd be treated to the delightful dish of squid in its own ink. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

[vkioulaphides]

Indeed. While a mariner at heart, with some three MILLENNIA of seafood in my genes, ink is, ahm... one thing I don't "do". Italians have their pasta nera, pitch-black pasta, with squid ink mixed in the semolina—#virtually no perceptible taste to it but... http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

As I have told Alex, by the time of this performance, my feet may be on Netherlandish soil, but my brain (lost) amidst the Atlantic ocean, and certainly my stomach left behind in New York—#hardly the kind of circumstance that would challenge in popularity such a song as "I Left My Heart In San Francisco". http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif

I expect to thrive on sheer excitement for the weekend. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[John Craton]

Italians have their pasta nera, pitch-black pasta, with squid ink mixed in the semolina—#virtually no perceptible taste to it but... #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif
Yes, the Basques do the same in making a gravy to pour over the squid. It supposedly doesn't effect the taste (never had the nerve to try it myself, though it was our exchange daughter's favorite dish), but the whole jet-black mess looks as unpalatable as anything I've ever seen that wasn't on the side of the road. To each his own, I suppose....

[Bob A]

Had it in a now defunct Cuban restaurant years ago. Nothing to fear but fear itself. The black beans and rice with onion/garlic sauce was also tasty, but somewhat windy, after.

Someone on the board has a tag line that reads "Red meat isn't bad for you. Green, fuzzy meat is bad for you". Just another variation on a theme.

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello all,

Well friends, I don´t think food will cause much of a problem over here. There is always a (last) possibility to visit a Greek restaurant in Groningen. # http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

As things are developing now, I think it´ll be an all mandolin weekend for Victor since a second mandolin concert (actually the first one of Victor´s Dutch weekend) is arranged for him to attend.

# # # # # # # # # # I am happy to announce here that on the Friday evening

# # # # # # # # # # # # # # Sebastiaan de Grebber and Sarah Beernink

# # # # # #will give a concert in the Concert Hall of the Centre of Arts ‘De MUZERIE’ in ZWOLLE.

The programme of the concert includes original works for solo mandolin as well as for mandolin and piano by composers like Silvio Ranieri, Raffaele Calace, Carlo Munier and Niccolò Paganini.


If you are planning Europe, please know you´re invited! (http://www.mandolineorkest.nl/agenda/enagenda.htm)


Best,

Alex.

[vkioulaphides]

[QUOTE]"There is always a (last) possibility to visit a Greek restaurant in Groningen."

No, no, I do believe in "when in Rome, do as the Romans": when in Holland, I plan to do —as much, of course, as that is possible— as the Dutch. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

I look forward to it all, not least to hearing Sebastiaan live. That may be as close as I will probably ever get to a "real" mandolinist. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif After that, I will come back home, sell all my mandolins, take up basket-weaving, etc.

Or maybe not just yet... http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

[Alex Timmerman]

Well Victor, this photo I took yesterday! It hasn´t snowed so much in the last 50 years here as in this week.
If the weather stays like this, you´ll probably be eating ´boerenkool met worst´! Dutchier you can´t eat. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Linda Binder]

That looks like Wisconsin! It sounds like a wonderful time will be had. Have fun Victor!
--Linda

[vkioulaphides]

[QUOTE]"It hasn´t snowed so much in the last 50 years here as in this week."

AW, MY GAWD! #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif

Reminds me of my trip to Athens, February '04: it had not snowed like that since 1874! The Parthenon was under 2 ft. of snow, the suburbs over 3 ft. (!!!) I was stranded in London's Heathrow, where I spent 2 1/2 of my only three days off from work, got to spend less than 24 hrs. with my family... #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif

Alex, my friend... DO something! Is there a meltdown expected any time soon? Aaaaaaaaaaaaaargh...

[Alex Timmerman]

Don´t worry, today it was about 4 degrees above zero and about 60% of the snow is gone already! So no journey problems ahead #! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Bob A]

Celsius, I presume. Around here, 4 above is pretty chilly.

[Alex Timmerman]

Yes Bob A you are right, sorry I didn´t think of the different usage regarding Celsius and Fahrenheit in our countries.


Thanks,

Alex

[vkioulaphides]

*phew!* I feel better now... http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

I must say I never paid much attention to such matters until I was (relatively recently) once fogged out of Paris, and once snowed out of Athens; the former would have been perfectly expectable, if the destination had been London; the latter, if the destination had been Moscow. Argh!

But I worry no more. I am already in statu volandi... http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

[vkioulaphides]

As I am about to take off to Holland tomorrow evening to attend the world premiere of the Concerto, I would like to once again thank the MC-community for its absolutely fantastic support, enthusiasm, and encouragement.

In fact —if I may drop a hint— the U.S. premiere of the piece, during the 2005-2006 season, is already spoken for. More on that anon... http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

Talk to you all after my return, next week.

http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[vkioulaphides]

Dear friends,

I have been sort of back on U.S. soil for about 24 hrs by now. I say "sort of" because my mind is still back in Holland with Alex, his lovely spouse, and his wonderful colleagues of Het Consort. What more can I say? I had the time of my life— all two days of it! #(ha, ha)

First of all, I must inform you all that I got far more than I ever expected: the sneaky Mr. Timmerman #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif #had invited me —most persuasively— to attend a recital by young virtuoso Sebastiaan de Grebber on Friday night, in Zwolle (Alex' home base). So, I checked in at my hotel in Groningen, took the train back south to Zwolle, and had a delicious dinner with Mr. & Mrs. T. Then, off to the music school where Alex teaches, in whose recital hall the performance was to take place.

What I did NOT expect (as Mr. T had delicately concealed this "detail" from us all) was that Sebastiaan would premiere the Rhapsody that I had composed for him, on commemoration of and congratulation for his study with Ugo Orlandi in Italy— and the subsequent launching of what promises to be a brilliant career.

So, dear friends, there I was: not one, but two premieres on one single weekend! Both went terrifically: Sebastiaan played the Rhapsody in a manner of virtuosic bravura that made me expect to see smoke and flames emanating from his Embergher; the Consort gave a lovely, well-balanced, well thought-out, well prepared performance of the Concerto in an acoustically wonderful (wood-paneled) hall in Groningen on Saturday night.

It was a wonderful time, and one whose memory will remain with me for a lifetime. I met so many kind, enthusiastic young musicians that it would be impossible for me to single any one out; they were all terrific.

I spare you TOO much verbiage —ha! as if I ever did! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif — and warmly, albeit parenthetically, recommend the picturesque Netherlands as a travel destination. Nice country, nice people, nice things to do over there...

Cheers to all my friends on this side of the pond, and to all my new friends in Holland!

[Jim Garber]

Thanks, Victor, for the wonderfully descriptive report. Alex, did you record either of these premieres?

Jim

[Linda Binder]

Welcome home Victor! Thanks Alex et al. --Victor's voyage has been a treat for all of us.
--Linda
now awaiting further info on the US premiere of Victor's Concerto!

[vkioulaphides]

Thank you, Jim and Linda.

As for the U.S. premiere of the Concerto, ehm... I suppose I "am at liberty" to disclose that it will be given by the august and venerable Providence Mandolin Orchestra; conductor Mark Davis gave me the green light —quite fortuitously so— the day before I departed for Holland. The contact between yours truly and the PMO was made by kind MC-colleague Robert Margo, to whom I am grateful for doing so.

This is all I know for now. Obviously, we are talking about the next, i.e. the 2005-2006 season; the exact date will be decided later. The immediately next step will be preparing practice-parts for all the members of the PMO to work on over the summer; Mark should convey the total number required to me in the next few days. The parts (so I think) are not terribly difficult but, of course, any new, unfamiliar piece needs to be put together from the ground up.

By the way: The Dutch have a wonderful reputation for candor, a cheerful, unaffected kind of bluntness that leaves nothing unsaid. On Friday night, at Sebastiaan's recital, I chatted with some of the young members of the Consort. They were all wonderfully polite, spoke excellent English, and treated me with a perfect blend of friendliness and respect—#I am, alas, twice or more their age!

I asked them —silly me!— whether they found the parts themselves or the ensemble issues involved particularly challenging. After looking at each other to make sure that they were not being somehow rude or impertinent, the replied in perfect unison: "Both." http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[JimD]

Congratulations Victor -- two premieres!

Please keep us informed about the Providence performances. I recently had the opportunity to here the PMO -- they are a fine group. I hope I can make it to the American premiere of your Concerto.

[Eugene]

What a fine tale. #Welcome home and congrats.

[Bob A]

Vernal bouquets for all involved - the blushing composer (TWO World Premiers!), the hardworking ensemble, the reknowned impresario. We eagerly await the recording, should one become available.

[Daymando]

Dear friends,
-//-
It was a wonderful time, and one whose memory will remain with me for a lifetime. I met so many kind, enthusiastic young musicians that it would be impossible for me to single any one out; they were all terrific.
What a treat to hear of the successful ventures, Victor - both in music and in journey! It's always a treat to live vicariously when otherwise impossible to participate in kind. Congrats all around! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/coffee.gif

-Allen.

[vkioulaphides]

[QUOTE] "Vernal bouquets for all involved... We eagerly await the recording, should one become available."

Thank you, Bob. At the conclusion of the Saturday premiere, Marianne Timmerman (Alex' wife and the Consort's mellifluous chitarronist) handed me the most gorgeous bouquet of fresh-cut, multicolored Dutch tulips!

(Alas, of course, U.S. Customs would have taken a far less poetic view of the matter, had I attempted to bring them back with me.)

Parenthetically, the chitarrone is a most wonderful instrument: sweet, round-toned, very, very melodious... Too bad it's a rarity!

A recording, while far from tangible at this point, may yet happen... But that remains for the future, a different location, a different performance, etc.

Incidentally, the hall where the premiere took place had a pipe-organ on one side (with all the wooden chests, ranks, pipes, etc. involved), and a concave, wood-paneled wall on the opposite; a bit like being inside the hull of some old, Dutch expeditionary ship. The seats were elevated on (presumably hollow) wooden grandstands. I need not point out the obvious, when I speak of acoustics that made me feel I was literally inside the bowl of a giant mandolin!

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello friends,

To give you an idea of the concert hall at the Music school in Groningen here a picture taken just before the concert.

More about the weekend tomorrow.


Greetings,

Alex

[vkioulaphides]

Ahh... what memories! #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

Thank you, Alex!

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello Victor,

And there is more to come and soon! If only I can free myself from the ties I got into trying to review Sebastiaan´s concert..... #

Alex # #

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello all #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif !

I completely agree with Victor! We all had a wonderful weekend! #

It is fascinating how things can work out...
When I waited for Victor at the Zwolle train station I was thinking about how things can become true. Years back in one of my very first post here at the Mandolin Café I was answered by a person named vkioulaphides who, seemingly, flew over the pond every now and than. Impressed by his knowledge and eagerness to learn more about the mandolin, I remember writing back that whenever he had to switch planes at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport he could just phone me so we could meet (one of the possibilities to meet and talk by with international friends and one of the distance plus-points of a small country like mine). If at that time someone had told me that Victor and I would actually meet this soon and that two brand new works with mandolin would be involved, I would not have believed it. But there he was cheerful as always and on Dutch soil!

So I´d like to give some more info about the weekend we had.
The Friday evening concert by Sebastiaan and Sarah was quite special. #Not at the least because We organized it because of Victor´s visit and - not having heard Sebastiaan ´in concert´ after his concert at the November 2004 EGMA Symposium in Trossingen where he played i.e. Raffaele Calace´s Concerto No.1 for mandolin and piano Op. 113- you can imagine my eagerness to hear him perform Calace´s 2nd Mandolin Concerto Op. 144 and to be at the première of Victor´s brand new work, the Rhapsody for the same instrument combination.
I knew the work of course; we had discussed the technical and musical issues of it and - more recently - also because Sebastiaan and Sarah had played it for me. But it was going to be special; witnessing such a fine and substantial composition during a concert is always breathtaking. #
Really my own very first impression of the Rhapsody was that - like the Diferencias´ for solo mandolin and the Concerto per orchestra a pizzico´ this was a again a work of beauty and originality, something that - as I can say now - was even more underlined by the excellent performance of it by Sebastiaan and Sarah at the première ànd - taking the many reactions in account after the concert - immediately recognized as a wonderful new work by the listeners.
I am sure Victor´s eight and a half minute Rhapsody will become a standard work in the repertoire.

Besides these works the programme included Calace´s first Prelude for solo mandolin and - the only not original work for mandolin - the ´Cantabile´ by Niccolò Paganini.

The Concert opened with Silvio Ranieri´s ´Souvenir de Varsovie´, a well chosen work to start with that leaves room for both musicians to musically introduce themselves to the audience. The work is build up around a cheerful theme with two variations (Tema Kracowiak) in G- major ending with a con fueco ´Dance Polonaise´ and a last 3rd variation titled ´Alla Mazourka´. The whole work however starts of with a melancholy intro of a ´Chanson Triste´ in g-minor by the piano to be joined by the mandolin repeating the melody in tremolo style and so setting the tone and balance between both instruments for the rest of the concert. Great and effective writing, that allows the mandolin to go as soft as possible.
The contrast of musical expressions created by the musicians already at the very start of the concert was just amazing. Sadness, happiness and cheer virtuosity; it was all there and had captured the attention of the listeners at once!

This atmosphere of curiosity and of excitement was even more felt during Sebastiaan´s execution of Calace´s first Prelude for solo mandolin Op. 45. #A work that because of it´s difficulty seldom is heard live up to today, but one that is exceptionally charming. #It starts of with ´shouting´ fff chords and small answering ppp sixteenth passages, resolute and free to execute chords sequences, fast diatonic and chromatic scales and with trills and glissandi before it reaches the beautiful three note chords in tremolo- and duo style of the first Largo. This part of the Prelude develops into a long arpeggio section of which the chords mostly are build up of three notes moving towards nervous trills and a chromatic descending scale before the second Largo section starts. Again with a beautiful melody accompanied in duo style and left hand pizzicatos. Important here are the effective double note glissandi and the three long fff four note tremolo chords that force the listener to suddenly remember and hear the opening chords again. This time however, it´s also the beginning of working towards the abrupt and extremely loud repeated fff G-major chord-ending of the Prelude that is brilliantly introduced by a most impressive crescendo progression of four note chord arpeggios.

All in all a brilliantly executed ´tour the force´ with lots of techniques and moods to express all the mandolin´s possibilities in a Neo Romantic idiom.


What followed was the well-known ´Cantabile´ composed by Niccolò Paganini. That was really a nice work to hear after the virtuosic and forceful character of the Calace Prelude. Here the capability of the mandolin - like the violin - to enchant and touch upon ones deepest feelings was felt in the beautiful cantilene melody. Played with a fluency normally only reached with the bow on the violin, Sebastiaan - accompanied with great musical understanding by Sarah - reached the limits of what is possible with his long Ranieri plectrum. It was almost beyond believe how good the tremolo melody could be heard, even in the softest passages. #

Sitting beside Victor I wished more of my Mandolin café friends could have heard this.


Than Victor´s Rhapsody was scheduled and one could feel a certain sense of excitement going round in the concert hall. Most likely caused by the info given at the backside of the programme about the composer and the presence of the latter. Few seconds before the music began the audience silenced waiting what this new composition would sound like...
It will probably be quite strange and idiotic but nevertheless I´ll try to give you an idea of what I felt during the performance of the Rhapsody.

The work opens with a low G sixteenth up beat directly followed by a tremolo-ed low G together with an awaiting ´what now to happen´ chord in the piano´s very first beat. The mandolin seems to get awake trying to find it´s way out of the four bar Maestoso through slow starting scale passages and chord fermatas that allow it to look for where to escape.
In the following bars of the ´Disteso´ a beautiful melody in tremolo style is accompanied by the piano with chords set in an every now and than dissonating and jet blending downward movement. Wonderful writing for both parts, I must have been thinking, since I remember being very focussed at the piano part just before the Adagio.

Here the music changed tempo and rhythm, and broken chords in a soft ´campanella´ playing style by the mandolin had taken over. Sometimes even with a tremolo melody on top of it. Very delicate. After a glissando and a smallish mandolin cadenza that ended in what perhaps could be described as a sudden irritation and unwillingness to proceed, leaving the piano with the melody the mandolin had just sung.

Quite suddenly, through a short connection bar the music became more dance like and the mandolin joined in again with open accompanying strings and three note arpeggio chords. The piano with it´s long sounding broken chords every two bars, sounded having to sing it´s own melody against the mandolin. Not for long though, since the mandolin´s campanella sound caused by the use of open strings, high registered melody line and sudden accents forced the piano, so to speak, to follow in a leggiero and obedient mood. The dance tune in the mandolin on the other hand, had by now developed a vigorous allegro idiom and culminated into a virtuoso Vivace. The melody was completely played on the G string and was accompanied by it´s own open, in this case, third strings as well as supported by light staccato chords in the piano. An interesting aspect of such writing for the instrument combination we have here, is that the mandolin has no problem what so ever, to be heard. Quite the contrary! One is impressed by its power! A wonderful and inventive four bar chord arpeggio with open 1st, 2nd and 3rd strings and a by bar descending diatonic scale from d to G on the 4th string, acted like a bridge and took the listener back to the opening theme of the Rhapsody. So near the end of the piece, it was placed an octave higher and played with much more convincing force!
The closing eight bars show again the open character of the work ànd Victor´s fine understanding of writing for this combination. The work ended with a full bar tremolo on the g´´´ note and a short accentuated chord in both instruments. The only time the composer asks for double forte...

The audience was absolutely thrilled and the applause Sarah, Sebastiaan and Victor (and likely all the persons present) received was heart warming. A truly wonderful composition and I hope it will not take long for you can all hear it!


The next piece on the programme was Calace´s 2nd Mandolin Concerto. I know it quite well and can say a lot about this great composition for which I also made an arrangement for mandolin solo and (plucked) Chamber Orchestra and that we (The CONSORT) played ´in concert´ and have studied with several mandolinists. #
It is really one of my favourite mandolin works. And one of Sebastiaan´s.

I will not go into details of the wonderful performance of it given by these two young musicians, but I don´t think I am exaggerating when I say that I never have witnessed such virtuosic supremacy before.
It was best illustrated by Victor who - back in his chair again - said afterwards: “Look smoke is coming from his fingerboard; we have to call the fire brigade!”

After a well-deserved and enthusiastic applause Carlo Munier´s Capriccio Spagnola was played as an encore. Again a dazzling execution of one of the standards in the mandolin literature at an unforgettable concert!


I wonder Victor, how did you succeed in getting back to your Groninger hotel... #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif .



Well, many greetings, and when time permist in the coming days I´ll hope to post some more about the following day, when the 2nd première, Victor´s ´Concerto per orchestra a pizzico´, was performed in Groningen.


Many greetings,

Alex

[vkioulaphides]

[QUOTE]"...[the] Cantabile... by Niccolò Paganini: Here the capability of the mandolin - like the violin - to enchant and touch upon ones deepest feelings was felt in the beautiful cantilene melody. Played with a fluency normally only reached with the bow on the violin, Sebastiaan - accompanied with great musical understanding by Sarah - reached the limits of what is possible... It was almost beyond believe how good the tremolo melody could be heard, even in the softest passages. "

How true! Dear friends, if I was dazzled by Sebastiaan's prodigious fluency and speed, his astonishing prestidigitation, I must admit that I was even more affected by his magical touch in this piece— hardly a "difficult" work to play. But, what IS really "easy" vs. "hard"?

Please forgive me if I am waxing entirely too sentimental, but I simply love this piece; it was one of the very first pieces I heard as a small child, on LP, in recordings by the great David Oistrakh. It has haunted me ever since; that's a good 40 years...

I have no words by which to describe how beautifully, how fluidly, how convincingly Sebastiaan and Sarah played this piece. It bordered on the sublime, and will remain with me as an indelible memory of what the mandolin can actually do in the hands of a master. (It has also made my own practice since my return to New York somewhat, ehm... frustrating! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif )

As for the Rhapsody's future —John, may I say this in public?— *blush* ... the work has been consigned to Wolfhead Music (as directed by our own operaguy, a.k.a. John Craton) for publication later on this year. While it may take us, common mortals, a wee bit more than the 8 1/2 minutes it took Sebastiaan to play through it, http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif I hope that many, many friends of the mandolin will try their hand at it.

[John Bertotti]

Alex that is a post worthy of any New York paper. (hint, hint) Congratulations to all. John

[vkioulaphides]

In my hopelessly old-fashioned habit of writing a little "souvenir" piece from every trip I make to a new place, I just finished such an impressionistic vignette: the view of Groningen's open-air marketplace from my hotel's esplanade. Ever-generous Jim Garber has once again offered to post it on the usual site as a free download.

So, friends, beware! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif As soon as I have proofread my latest tidbit —or, to be classier, dare I call it an objet d'art?— it will be yours to print and pick.

Cheers to all!

[vkioulaphides]

Ah, the Tree of Friendship continues to bear fruit. (http://www.paperclipdesign.com/vk/)

This is a little souvenir-piece I conceived while in Holland; it is inspired, in unabashed impressionist fashion, by the open-air market place of Groningen. (As soon as I get home, I will post a digital image of the very view from my hotel's esplanade; that should make the music self-explanatory.)

Early morning; drizzle, incessant, relentless drizzle; gray sky, fleeting, ghost-like shadows of the medieval St. Martin's steeple coming through the vague, opaque glare. Eventually, the town comes alive: countless shops-on-wheels, selling everything from vegetables, cheeses, fried fish —which I tried, much to my delight!— to casual clothing, and trinkets of all sorts.

Mingling about, the lively, cheerful, animated Dutch folk, doing their routine shopping while also indulging in what is clearly a cherished social function: the participation in the open-air market, the see-and-be-seen aspect of the town's social life. The air abuzz with a thousand different conversations, like the tolling of innumerable, little bells, chiming cheerfully in the charming Netherlandish tongue...

I only ask that you please not try to "analyze" this tidbit: there is hardly —if any— "harmonic elaboration"; one could fairly subtitle this a Brouweresque "Splash in G". Play it light, play it fast, let open strings ring freely, "see and hear" what I saw and heard on that unforgettable weekend. #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

As always, countless thanks to Jim Garber for graciously offering the webspace and personal effort to make these friendly gifts possible.

[margora]

Victor: just got home and played through the new piece -- a LOVELY piece, very evocative. Small suggestion: 4 bars from the end, after I pluck the A harmonic, I let the pick rest on the E string and then do the left hand pizz on the A string. That way I don't inadvertently sound the E string whne doing the left hand pizz. This is obviously not an issue in bars 2 or 10 but you could do something analogous in bar 15, just before the Allegro. Make sense?

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello Victor,

What a marvellous characterization of the Dutch and the market place under the famous Martini tower in Groningen! And what a nice idea to perpetuate our great weekend with such a nice piece. Really wonderful! I´m sure we all will have a go at it!


Cheers,

Alex

[vkioulaphides]

Robert, thank you for your —as usual— kind words about this modest, little vignette; and yes, the technical point you bring up is exactly how I play this.

And, thank you, Alex! Oh, but... who IS that wizened character standing next to you in the picture? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Now, as "a picture is worth a thousand words":

[vkioulaphides]

P.S. In the interest of accuracy —call me crazy if you will— the image attached is of the continuation of the market place in Groningen's #Vismarkt, i.e. NOT the Grote Markt itself. I found the images of the exact view that inspired this piece hopelessly dark and/or blurred. So, I opted for a compromise, so as to give you all an idea of the market place itself. Still, for the sake of clarity, the image posted above is not of the Grote Markt proper, nor is the steeple in the furthest background the famed Martini Tower.

This is probably the last installment to this thread. The "Tree" will now have to bear fruit privately: Ik moet nederlands leren om de “Geschiedenis van de Mandoline” te lezen. #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif Alex, did I get at least this phrase right? *blush* A wonderful text and one that has served me well as reading-material on New York's notoriously maddening subway. Reading it as I do (in my non-existent Dutch), about 100 times slower than I read German, and 1000 times slower than I read English, it is guaranteed to last me until the end of the year! #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif #Thanks for everything; I sign off with a big smile on my face. #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[Alex Timmerman]

"Ik moet nederlands leren om de “Geschiedenis van de Mandoline” te lezen" is a perfect Dutch sentence Victor. I am sure we´ll speak Dutch next time we meet, since my Greek will still be very dormant http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif.

As I have mentioned already to you and, through this message, now to all the others at this board, the video on which the Mandolin Chamber Orchestra Het CONSORT is playing the 3rd movement of your Concerto per orchestra a pizzico is now ´on line´.

I have made a new Topic for it. To go there, just click on this line. (http://www.mandolincafe.net/cgi-bin/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST&f=6&t=24247&st=&&#entry264342)


Enjoy!

Alex.

[vkioulaphides]

[QUOTE]"I am sure we´ll speak Dutch next time we meet..."

Ehm... I seriously doubt THAT, my friend; I do thank you, however, for the grammatical reassurance. At the very least, I will be a bit less of The Village Idiot next time I am trying to navigate my way around the Netherlands. #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

But the rustling Dutch language is not about to roll off MY tongue any time soon. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif Let's stick to our English lingua franca...

[Jim Garber]

Ah, the Tree of Friendship continues to bear fruit. (http://www.paperclipdesign.com/vk/)
After a little coercion, I convinced Victor to put some small notes of explanation to go with the links to his tunes. Just click on the link above.

Jim

[vkioulaphides]

Many thanks, Jim. I hope readers/listeners/players find the brief "program notes" helpful. I am afraid, however, that those will tie in particularly well with my previous post, namely on the subject of the Village Idiot. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Alex Timmerman]

Hello Victor and others,

The fruits are still fresh and tasty!

I like to inform you all about two concerts this month #given by The Dutch Mandolin Chamber Orchestra HET CONSORT and that Victor´s Concerto per Orchestra a Pizzico will have two so-called ´country´ premières.

We will give the 1st concert this Sunday, the 18th of September in the ´Old´ Church in the centre of JEANTES, a city in the North of France. The concert will start at 17.00 hours and the entrance is free.

The mandolin soloist in one of Calace´s concertos will be SEBASTIAAN DE GREBBER. Besides this and Victor´s work the programme includes compositions by Gioacchino Antonio Rossini, Raffaele Calace, Arrigo Cappelleti and Luca Mereu.

You are all invited to listen to the music and to view the church´ famous wall paintings made in 1962 by the Dutch artist Charles Eyck (1897-1993) .
For an impression of the wall paintings you can visit this site (http://www.terascia.com/print.php?sid=518) or - much nicer #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif - come to the concert.


The second concert is very special to us, since we are invited by the city of Ala, a wonderful city in the North of Itali, to give an evening concert in the Giacomo Sartori Teatro.
That concert will be on Saturday the 24th of September and start at 20.30 hours.
Again the soloist of the evening will be Sebastiaan de Grebber.
Besides Victor´s work, one or two compositions by the important composer Giacomo Sartori, who was born in Ala, will of course be included in the programme. More information (for our Italian cafe members) can be had from the Teatro G. Sartori, Via Sartori, 38061 ALA, Italia - Tel +39 (0464) 671633.

For more info on the city of Ala, you can visit this Webpage (La Storia). (http://www.comune.ala.trento.it/noteStoriche.htm)

If we are back I´ll hope to update you with some photos of the events!


Best greetings,

Alex

[vkioulaphides]

How very, VERY exciting! I hope that both French and Italian audiences like the piece, and that it does not start another Quarrel of the Buffoons! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/laugh.gif

Well, Alex... when I finally acquire that private jet I've been thinking about, I will make sure to attend ALL performances of my works, regardless of location. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

Until then, however, I will simply have to wish you all the best from afar. Het Consort is SUCH a wonderful ensemble and you, my friend, work wonders with them! You deserve all the success and applause there can be, world-wide.

Bocca al lupo!

P.S. Sorry, folks, the French equivalent is, ehm... ever so slightly scatological. I'm afraid the cyber-censors will come down on me, hard and fast... (HA!)