nickibopp
New Member
- Joined
- Aug 2, 2006
- Messages
- 17
!ninjaaaa
Ahem, just bringing this to your attention once more - it's tonight! I met up with the lads last night and I think this is going to be one to remember, if you missed Herbie on Tuesday here's another chance for some more madness!
Nicki
Stockhausen's MANTRA for two grand pianos
Cork Orchestral Society is excited to announce news of a landmark performance in Ireland on 13th November. Karlheinz Stockhausen passed away on the 5th of December 2007, only months before his 80th birthday. As a tribute to the one of the most important musical innovators of the Twentieth Century, the Pestova/Meyer Piano Duo will travel to Ireland to present his rarely performed masterpiece MANTRA (1970) for two pianos and live electronics using the new Cork School of Music's state-of-the-art facilities. Xenia Pestova gave a talk on the project at the Belfast Sonic Arts Research Centre's ICMC conference in August and this concert will be the only live performance by the duo on the island of Ireland.
MANTRA is an exciting and highly virtuosic work that calls for an unconventional approach to piano playing. The pianists are required to play antique cymbals and woodblocks, as well as use their voices. The two grand pianos are processed electronically in real-time to create two "super-instruments" with scintillating and beautiful sonorities that approach the exotic sound worlds of the prepared piano of John Cage, high-energy electric guitar distortion, and mysterious Morse-code radio signals. Eve O'Kelly, Director of the Contemporary Music Centre commented "This is a very interesting work which is rarely performed, and a wonderful opportunity to hear these talented young performers".
The concert comes to Cork through pianist Pascal Meyer, who performed as part of Cork Orchestral Society's Our mEUsical Partnerships, a series featuring Europe's finest young musicians, in 2006. Meyer brings with him as his duo partner Xenia Pestova from New Zealand. The project is made possible with funding from the Luxembourg Ministry of Culture and the Creative New Zealand Arts Council, in collaboration with the Philharmonie Luxembourg and CIRMMT.
The concert will take place in the Curtis Auditorium at Cork School of Music and will begin at 8pm - tickets, at €25/€20 (concessions €15-
will be available at the door. For more information (including venue info & membership benefits) please visit www.corkorchestralsociety.ie.
(ENDS)
For more press info please contact [email protected], 087 3900 267
Listing details:
Performers: Xenia Pestova & Pascal Meyer
Programme: MANTRA by Karlheinz Stockhausen
Date/Time: Thursday 13th November 8pm
Venue: Cork School of Music, Curtis Auditorium
Tickets: €25/€20 (concessions €15-
available at the door
Reviews for previous performances of MANTRA by the Pestova / Meyer duo:
(translated)
"Virtuosos and atmospheres skilfully contrasted by the musicians whose verve is outlined with a vitality, a humour and a flawlessness throughout. ...The magic of Mantra is that, though Stockhausen's work relies on precise mathematical formulas and makes demands that may seem draconian ... the composer never loses sight of the emotional power of the music message, and thus develops a language of universal beauty. The artists will present this programme again in Geneva, Cork and Girons. We wager that those audiences will show an equally positive reception." Luxemburger Wort
"Mantra ... smacks of a masterpiece. Resonances dilate and time distorts across a halo of sinusoidal waves, accelerating to the point of overtaking itself in the eternal beginning-again of the final toccata. Models of clarity and of intelligence, Pascal Meyer and Xenia Pestova meld their touches and temperaments with a rare cohesion. Above all, during this 70-minute trance, they bespeak endurance, with a concentration intact for the entire length of this Mantra." Le Temps
Editorial Information:
The Technology
The Pestova / Meyer duo's approach to the piece is original due to the fact that they will be using digital technology for the electronic processing, resulting in a contemporary reinterpretation of a classic piece on the verge of technological obsolescence with a simple set-up and arguably superior sound quality. The hardware and software were especially designed by Mark T. Marshall (McGill University) and Jacob Sudol (UCSD). This equipment was tested during a career development residency at the Banff Centre in February 2007, and in the presence of Karlheinz Stockahausen's sound projectionist Bryan Wolf in Kuerten, Germany at the Stockhausen Courses in July 2007. Final testing and modifications were carried out with Stockhausen's former assistant Jan Panis in Luxembourg in January 2008.
The Performers
The Pestova/Meyer Piano Duo was formed in Amsterdam in 2003, when the two pianists were studying at the Conservatory of Amsterdam in the class of Håkon Austbø. Both musicians share a strong interest in contemporary music and are committed to programming new and non-standard works in their critically acclaimed recitals. Their most recent collaboration features Magnus Lindberg's explosive work Related Rocks for two pianos, percussion and electronics with United Instruments of Lucilin in Luxembourg and Riga. Upcoming engagements include the two-piano concerto Dialoge by Bernd Alois Zimmermann with the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra and performances of MANTRA in the 2008-2009 concert season.
Luxembourg-based pianist Pascal Meyer studied at the Conservatory of Luxemburg with Jean Hilger, at the Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory in St. Petersburg with Leonid Tamulevich and obtained his Master's Degree at the Conservatory of Amsterdam, where he studied with Jan Marisse Huizing, Håkon Austbø and Jan Wijn. During masterclasses, he has worked with other masters such as Benjamin Rawitz, Evgeny Moguilevsky, Ton Hartsuiker, Robert Nasveld, Nicole Henriot, Bernhard Wambach, Claude Helffer, Pavel Gililov, György Nádor, and Lazar Berman. Pascal was a Prizewinner of the Luxemburgish National Competition For Young Soloists in 1997 and 1999, each time winning the gold medal with the unanimity of the jury. He was also a finalist of the Silvio Bengali Piano Prize in Italy in 2001 and was awarded the Fonds Stelmes Prize in 2004. Pascal has performed recitals in Luxemburg, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Germany, Ireland, Slovakia, Tunesia and Japan both as soloist and chamber musician, with various orchestras such as the Philharmonic Orchestra of Luxembourg, and as a member of the acclaimed modern music ensemble United Instruments of Lucilin.
Following childhood music education in both piano and composition in Russia, Xenia Pestova moved to New Zealand with her family and went on to study in the UK, the Netherlands, France and Canada. Now a Canadian Resident, she is a Doctoral candidate at McGill University in Montréal. Xenia's teachers include Håkon Austbø, Louise Bessette, Judith Clark, Sara Laimon, Philip Mead, Yvonne Loriod-Messiaen, and masterclasses with Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Peter Donohoe, Ruth Harte, Roger Muraro, Murray Perahia, Charles Rosen and Bernard Wambach. In addition to solo recitals in Canada, Europe and New Zealand, Xenia enjoys collaboration with other musicians and has performed as ensemble pianist and soloist with the United Instruments of Lucilin (Luxembourg), McGill Contemporary Music Ensemble (Canada), and Stroma (New Zealand). She has commissioned, premiered and broadcast many new pieces and worked with
composers including Cornelis de Bondt, Denys Bouliane, Andre Douw, Ross Harris, Toshio Hosokawa, Tristan Murail and Ichiro Nodaira. Prizes include a unanimous First Prize at the 2004 Xavier Montsalvatge International Competition for the Performance of Contemporary Piano Music in Girona, Spain, and a Special Mention at the 2003 Messiaen International Contemporary Piano Competition in Paris.
Ahem, just bringing this to your attention once more - it's tonight! I met up with the lads last night and I think this is going to be one to remember, if you missed Herbie on Tuesday here's another chance for some more madness!
Nicki
Stockhausen's MANTRA for two grand pianos
Cork Orchestral Society is excited to announce news of a landmark performance in Ireland on 13th November. Karlheinz Stockhausen passed away on the 5th of December 2007, only months before his 80th birthday. As a tribute to the one of the most important musical innovators of the Twentieth Century, the Pestova/Meyer Piano Duo will travel to Ireland to present his rarely performed masterpiece MANTRA (1970) for two pianos and live electronics using the new Cork School of Music's state-of-the-art facilities. Xenia Pestova gave a talk on the project at the Belfast Sonic Arts Research Centre's ICMC conference in August and this concert will be the only live performance by the duo on the island of Ireland.
MANTRA is an exciting and highly virtuosic work that calls for an unconventional approach to piano playing. The pianists are required to play antique cymbals and woodblocks, as well as use their voices. The two grand pianos are processed electronically in real-time to create two "super-instruments" with scintillating and beautiful sonorities that approach the exotic sound worlds of the prepared piano of John Cage, high-energy electric guitar distortion, and mysterious Morse-code radio signals. Eve O'Kelly, Director of the Contemporary Music Centre commented "This is a very interesting work which is rarely performed, and a wonderful opportunity to hear these talented young performers".
The concert comes to Cork through pianist Pascal Meyer, who performed as part of Cork Orchestral Society's Our mEUsical Partnerships, a series featuring Europe's finest young musicians, in 2006. Meyer brings with him as his duo partner Xenia Pestova from New Zealand. The project is made possible with funding from the Luxembourg Ministry of Culture and the Creative New Zealand Arts Council, in collaboration with the Philharmonie Luxembourg and CIRMMT.
The concert will take place in the Curtis Auditorium at Cork School of Music and will begin at 8pm - tickets, at €25/€20 (concessions €15-
(ENDS)
For more press info please contact [email protected], 087 3900 267
Listing details:
Performers: Xenia Pestova & Pascal Meyer
Programme: MANTRA by Karlheinz Stockhausen
Date/Time: Thursday 13th November 8pm
Venue: Cork School of Music, Curtis Auditorium
Tickets: €25/€20 (concessions €15-
Reviews for previous performances of MANTRA by the Pestova / Meyer duo:
(translated)
"Virtuosos and atmospheres skilfully contrasted by the musicians whose verve is outlined with a vitality, a humour and a flawlessness throughout. ...The magic of Mantra is that, though Stockhausen's work relies on precise mathematical formulas and makes demands that may seem draconian ... the composer never loses sight of the emotional power of the music message, and thus develops a language of universal beauty. The artists will present this programme again in Geneva, Cork and Girons. We wager that those audiences will show an equally positive reception." Luxemburger Wort
"Mantra ... smacks of a masterpiece. Resonances dilate and time distorts across a halo of sinusoidal waves, accelerating to the point of overtaking itself in the eternal beginning-again of the final toccata. Models of clarity and of intelligence, Pascal Meyer and Xenia Pestova meld their touches and temperaments with a rare cohesion. Above all, during this 70-minute trance, they bespeak endurance, with a concentration intact for the entire length of this Mantra." Le Temps
Editorial Information:
The Technology
The Pestova / Meyer duo's approach to the piece is original due to the fact that they will be using digital technology for the electronic processing, resulting in a contemporary reinterpretation of a classic piece on the verge of technological obsolescence with a simple set-up and arguably superior sound quality. The hardware and software were especially designed by Mark T. Marshall (McGill University) and Jacob Sudol (UCSD). This equipment was tested during a career development residency at the Banff Centre in February 2007, and in the presence of Karlheinz Stockahausen's sound projectionist Bryan Wolf in Kuerten, Germany at the Stockhausen Courses in July 2007. Final testing and modifications were carried out with Stockhausen's former assistant Jan Panis in Luxembourg in January 2008.
The Performers
The Pestova/Meyer Piano Duo was formed in Amsterdam in 2003, when the two pianists were studying at the Conservatory of Amsterdam in the class of Håkon Austbø. Both musicians share a strong interest in contemporary music and are committed to programming new and non-standard works in their critically acclaimed recitals. Their most recent collaboration features Magnus Lindberg's explosive work Related Rocks for two pianos, percussion and electronics with United Instruments of Lucilin in Luxembourg and Riga. Upcoming engagements include the two-piano concerto Dialoge by Bernd Alois Zimmermann with the Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra and performances of MANTRA in the 2008-2009 concert season.
Luxembourg-based pianist Pascal Meyer studied at the Conservatory of Luxemburg with Jean Hilger, at the Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatory in St. Petersburg with Leonid Tamulevich and obtained his Master's Degree at the Conservatory of Amsterdam, where he studied with Jan Marisse Huizing, Håkon Austbø and Jan Wijn. During masterclasses, he has worked with other masters such as Benjamin Rawitz, Evgeny Moguilevsky, Ton Hartsuiker, Robert Nasveld, Nicole Henriot, Bernhard Wambach, Claude Helffer, Pavel Gililov, György Nádor, and Lazar Berman. Pascal was a Prizewinner of the Luxemburgish National Competition For Young Soloists in 1997 and 1999, each time winning the gold medal with the unanimity of the jury. He was also a finalist of the Silvio Bengali Piano Prize in Italy in 2001 and was awarded the Fonds Stelmes Prize in 2004. Pascal has performed recitals in Luxemburg, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Germany, Ireland, Slovakia, Tunesia and Japan both as soloist and chamber musician, with various orchestras such as the Philharmonic Orchestra of Luxembourg, and as a member of the acclaimed modern music ensemble United Instruments of Lucilin.
Following childhood music education in both piano and composition in Russia, Xenia Pestova moved to New Zealand with her family and went on to study in the UK, the Netherlands, France and Canada. Now a Canadian Resident, she is a Doctoral candidate at McGill University in Montréal. Xenia's teachers include Håkon Austbø, Louise Bessette, Judith Clark, Sara Laimon, Philip Mead, Yvonne Loriod-Messiaen, and masterclasses with Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Peter Donohoe, Ruth Harte, Roger Muraro, Murray Perahia, Charles Rosen and Bernard Wambach. In addition to solo recitals in Canada, Europe and New Zealand, Xenia enjoys collaboration with other musicians and has performed as ensemble pianist and soloist with the United Instruments of Lucilin (Luxembourg), McGill Contemporary Music Ensemble (Canada), and Stroma (New Zealand). She has commissioned, premiered and broadcast many new pieces and worked with
composers including Cornelis de Bondt, Denys Bouliane, Andre Douw, Ross Harris, Toshio Hosokawa, Tristan Murail and Ichiro Nodaira. Prizes include a unanimous First Prize at the 2004 Xavier Montsalvatge International Competition for the Performance of Contemporary Piano Music in Girona, Spain, and a Special Mention at the 2003 Messiaen International Contemporary Piano Competition in Paris.
