Documentary About Shostakovich
Article date: 30/11/08 | Last edited: 30/11/08
“Dmitri Shostakovich - Sonata For Viola”: The deeply moving story about the life and fate of Dmitri Shostakovich goes far beyond a mere biography. This is the first and only film created by Alexander Sokurov, co-authored with another director, a great master of Soviet cinema, Semen Aranovich. The film’s main material has been artistically selected by 29-year-old Sokurov from news reels dating throughout the whole period of the composer’s life (1906 - 1975). This visual, terrible and unforgettable historical background of the Viola Sonata shows how the joy of creativity becomes a higher social disaster of historical turmoil and fragility of the individual. The film captures the composer in unique pictures of domestic war and postwar years that have been preserved in the archives. There are excerpts of his operas The Nose and Katerina Ismailova, songs, and fragments of the first, fifth, seventh, eighth and eleventh symphonies. The film includes a telephone conversation between Dmitry Shostakovich and David Oystrah, as well as unique footage of the funeral of Anna Akhmatova… Immediately after the creation of the film in 1981, it was seized by the KGB and lost. Alexander Sokurov was able to save a copy of the film, and returned it to the public in 1987. [Read More]
A. Marcello Concerto in D
Article date: 22/11/08 | Last edited: 29/11/08
Alessandro Marcello “Concerto in D” arranged for Trombone and Piano. [Read More]
Color Hearing
Article date: 18/11/08 | Last edited: 6/12/08
This post is to follow up on a comment I made on youngmusician.com.au. I also hope that it will add more fuel to the discussion started by Brendan. Many years ago I copied the following in my notebook: [Read More]
2009 Repertoire
Article date: 17/11/08 | Last edited: 19/04/09
Welcome to the Second Queensland Youth Orchestra’s 2009 repertoire page. As usual QYO2’s contribution to the “Concerts at Twilight” series will consist of four concerts. In this page you can follow my thoughts, suggest music and/or simply comment on my concert programming process. By the way, you do not have to be a QYO member to suggest or comment. All are welcome… [Read More]
Circular Breathing for Wind Players
Article date: 5/11/08 | Last edited: 21/12/08
Circular breathing can produce spectacular effects in contemporary Western music, but players have used its techniques for centuries. Technically, circular breathing is the production of a continuous sound by using the cheeks as an air sac and breathing through the nose while forcing air from the mouth into the instrument. [Read More]
