Kevork Andonian’s, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Music, has let us know that he had his composition Rhapsody played at Carnegie Hall recently, at a concert sponsort by the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU), which has a mission to preserve and promote Armenian identity and heritage through educational, cultural and humanitarian programs. A string quartet version of this piece for string orchestra was played.

The AGBU New York Special Events Committee (NYSEC) presented “A Debut Concert” featuring 16 AGBU Scholarship Program Performing Arts grant recipients at Weill Recital Hall of New York’s famed Carnegie Hall on Saturday evening, September 20, 2008.

Proceeds of the ticket sales of the sold-out concert were used to fund future artists through the AGBU in the form of scholarships.

September 2008 Newsletter

‘As you say, sometimes that atmosphere of quiet focus and concentration and care can really produce something a cut above - and, at least, I felt we did it this time - something special in clearly such a special place.
And for this part-time performer - thank you for making my first time performing in Italy such a thoroughly satisfying experience’. (Thomas Adès, August 2008)

Emma Kirkby and London Baroque at Castelluccio

Our 20th anniversary festival was celebrated in style! It is hard to choose the highlights – each concert and event had its outstanding feature, from jazz to baroque, from Beethoven to Stravinsky to Adès, not forgetting the Etruscan and contemporary art exhibitions. We would, however, like to mention a few exceptional events and share some special moments with you.

Incontri’s first jazz concert with Dianne Reeves was one such moment.

Dianne reached us at the end of a long summer European tour, and yet her energy and artistry on the night was in no way subdued. Quite the opposite. She gave it her all, giving us the full breadth of her extraordinary voice and communicative powers, in the usually austere Terme building in Chianciano, transformed for the occasion into a rather trendy jazz space by our wonderful team of assistants. The fusion and swing of the quartet who accompanied her were greatly admired and clearly a source of inspiration for Dianne, as she sailed through the program without a break. The public was enthusiastically responsive, participating loudly and dancing on the sidelines, as though their bodies were dying to release all traditional restraints.

The much anticipated participation at two concerts of composer/pianist Thomas Adès was another high point. Media attention was very prominent, as his profile is as close to rock star status as you can find in the contemporary classical music milieu. The challenge of playing one of his most adventurous chamber works was immense, with much mind-stretching, early preparation, then many long and sweaty rehearsals on site, all rewarded by a gratifying performance at the close of the festival. Tom is as exceptional a pianist as he is a composer, witnessed in the illuminating Stravinsky violin and piano program with Anthony Marwood. Working with him was sheer pleasure, as he is accommodating, sincere and affable, with a quick wit and great charm.

I was so delighted to see a full house join us in our journey and rediscovery of Beethoven through the cycle of cello and piano sonatas. We played through them chronologically, with an hour’s interval in which the public could savor some Tuscan antipasti and wines in the Castelluccio garden, at dusk. By the time we returned for the second half, everyone was sufficiently prepared, courtesy of the multiple sips of different wines, to fully enjoy the dramatic extremes of emotions expressed in the two opus 102 sonatas.

It is impossibile not to mention other memorable occasions, if only briefly.

Dame Emma Kirkby’s pure and sophisiticated voice, heard in a sublime program of baroque music in Castelluccio’s ancient courtyard, allowed one to travel back in time, look up at the stars and experience something no concert hall can provide.

The ‘best of Incontri’ concerts included artists who were returning from past visits, like Anthony Marwood, Ani Kavafian and Pascal Rogé, to celebrate our twentieth birthday and to remind us of their superb talent. Intimate chamber music masterpieces came to life in their hands, finding different colors, textures and angles to express, like being enchanted by a reading of a familiar fairy tale.

A word about the exhibitions should include mention of the Etrsucan digs which are carried out every summer in the necropolis below Castelluccio. Twelve years’ work have brought to light artefacts and tombs that date from the VIIc BC to Roman times: and this year the subject of the show was art from the Hellenistic period.

At the same time, the Castelluccio Granary hosted a show, Collages on paper, by the well-known Croatian artist Jagoda Buic, whose work can be admired in most museums and galleries in America and Europe.

The evenings were all perfect climate-wise. Perhaps the most perfect of all was during the gala evening at La Foce, with the garden looking its most magnificent best, and people reluctant to leave. There was only one summer thunderstorm, which coincided with the concert with the Schola Choir in the cathedral at Città della Pieve. An aspect of the Incontri which we are heartened by every year is the participation of talented children, bringing with them a unique element of joy, hope and freshness to our festival. This celebrated boy’s choir was looked after beautifully by kind patrons and ‘amici’ who brought them, dry and fed, to impress a plentiful and appreciative audience.

Antonio Lysy

Jeff Kryka has forwarded his comments on the 2008 ASCAP film and television scoring workshop mentioned in the September 11th blog. Here is what he has to say:

“I was admitted into the 20th Anniversary of ASCAP’s prestigious Film
and Television Scoring Workshop with Richard Bellis. There were around
300 international applicants for this workshop, but only 12 finalists
including me. The workshop is a free, month-long series of lectures
and field trips that are conducted mainly out of ASCAP’s LA office (in
the DGA building in Hollywood) and covers all aspects of the film
scoring business. Each participant was given a 3-minute clip from a
recent film (mine was the finale from Hidalgo) which we were to write
an original score for. The workshop culminated in a scoring session at
20th Century Fox’s Newman Scoring Stage with the 60-piece Hollywood
Studio Symphony who recorded our 3-minute cues, which we conducted
ourselves.

We also made trips to Todd-AO, John Debney’s studio, and Remote
Control (Hans Zimmer’s studio, meeting him as well as James Newton
Howard… both hot off the recent success of The Dark Knight)

After the workshop was over I was informed by Mike Todd, the head of
ASCAP’s Film and Television Scoring, that I was the recipient of two
scholarships offered by the ASCAP workshop:

1) THE ASCAP FOUNDATION DAVID ROSE SCHOLARSHIP
This scholarship was established with a gift from The Rose Family
Trust to honor television and film-scoring great David Rose. David
Rose’s best-known works include the instrumental standards, “Holiday
for Strings” and “The Stripper,” music for Bonanza, Little House on
the Prairie and decades of work with radio and television star Red
Skelton. The scholarship will be awarded annually to a qualified
college-level student working toward a career in scoring for film
and/or television who is participating in ASCAP’s Film & Television
Scoring Workshop.

2) THE RMA L.A. GRANT
Each workshop participant is evaluated by the RMA L.A. orchestra on
the evening of the recording session. The RMA awards a grant towards a
recording demo for the participant with the highest average score on
the following criteria: podium procedure, composition, and general
musicality.

I have posted my cue from Hidalgo on my website (www.jeffkryka.com) it
can be listened to here: http://www.jeffkryka.com/Composer/Listen.html”

Photo courtesy of April Rocha

Jeff Kryka–a graduate student in composition with the Department of Music, has recently participate in an ASCAP workshop on film scoring, as reported in Variety You can read about the daily activities of Jeff and the other composers at the workshop on Variety’s website at: http://www.variety.com/index.asp?layout=ev_ascap

Clarinet Professor Gary Gray has let us know that on Monday, June 30th of this year, he was honored to be able to give a clarinet recital at the annual convention of the Music Teachers Association of California, held this year at the Marriott and Convention Center in Riverside, California. He performed works by Burgmüller, Poulenc, Arnold, and Gershwin, accompanied by pianist Debra Burnett. The photo below was taken of Debra and Gary immediately after the performance.

We have heard from student Matt Sandler, who is this year’s official blographer for the Music Department’s Summer Chamber Music Institute for high school students. Here is what he has to say:

“With the UCLA Summer Chamber Music Institute well on its way, this year’s participants have been on a whirlwind musical adventure thus far. The students have come from near and far (even from Alaska!), and the SCMI faculty, led by Dr. Jennifer Snow, has helped make the most out of their first few days as true Bruins! After an intense audition process before the summer session, the students came prepared to delve into the intricacies of chamber music. However, they soon found that chamber music entails quite a bit more than what they had originally expected…from breaking the molds of common performance practice in Dr. Snow’s chamber class, to exploring personal and interpersonal movement with Dr. Mark Carlson and Professor Wookey, and much, much more.

Brass students in the Summer Chamber Music Institute

In daily practice, the students are working incredibly hard to perfect pieces for their final concert on Sunday, July 13th (at 11:00 am in Schoenberg Auditorium). Works that would normally require weeks have taken these students simply a matter of days…which is certainly a testament to their unrelenting work ethic. And all the while, the fantastic SCMI staff has been helping them along the way – with Ikumi Hiraiwa as the director’s assistant and piano faculty, Dr. Chelsea Howell leading the woodwinds, Dr. Meghan Turner coaching the Brass, Dr. Carter Dewberry assisting the strings, and UCLA students Sumner Arano, Lorry Black, Paula Karolak, and myself as coaching assistants.

Professor Jens Lindemann, coaching. Really.

Additionally, the SCMI students have been fortunate enough to work with many esteemed UCLA faculty members (Professors Sheridon Stokes, Neil Stulberg, Gary Gray, Jens Lindemann, Mark Carlson and Brian O’Connor) in small master classes geared toward refining individual and collaborative performance. As aspiring musicians, the students certainly took full advantage of picking these masters’ brains!

Professor Gray with class

Luckily, it hasn’t been all work and no play. The students have enjoyed some down time exploring UCLA’s campus and Westwod, eating from Diddy Reese, and living the college dorm life. Not to mention, tomorrow night, we’re all headed out to see a performance of the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl!

With about half the week still to go, we all have much in store. But, the resulting concert will surely not be one to miss!

When? Sunday, July 13th. Schoenberg Hall. 11am.

Why come? Because you love chamber music!”

Over the 4th of July weekend, Professor of Trumpet Jens Lindemann performed at the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, collaborating with Professor Don Neuen’s Cathedral Choir in a great rendition of “America the Beautiful.” You can watch the piece performed online at the Crystal Cathedral’s website at: http://www.crystalcathedral.org/hour_of_power/index.php.

Find the clip of the trumpet player in the vibrant blue jacket and click on that to enjoy the performance.

We have heard from Music Department professor Gary Gray that he was guest artist and faculty at Margaret Thornhill’s Claremont Clarinet Festival, which was held from June 9th - 15th at Pomona College. MM Student Tanitra Flenaugh from UCLA also participated.

Gary Gray, left, with Margaret Thornhill, Director of the festival, and Michele Zukovsky, 1st clarinetist with the L.A. Philharmonic after master classes.

UCLA MM student Tanitra Flenaugh with “the guys”–other clarinetists from the festival.

Gary also tells us that he will be giving a master class and concert at the Music Teachers Association of California convention this upcoming weekend (June 28th and 29th).

Music Department visiting professor Gloria Cheng, who has taught for us in several areas, has a new interview on YouTube in which she discusses differences between playing for performance and for recordings, as well as her well-known interest in contemporary music. You can see, and listen to, the interview at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHQ0HX3yl3E

The Department of Music’s Professor Antonio Lysy would like us to know about the 20th Anniversary of a music festival in Italy with which he has been associated for many years. Incontri de Terra in Sienna will take place from July 25th - August 3rd in Siena Italy, and will feature some of the world’s best known musicians and composers.

Please visit the festival website at: http://itslafoce.org/2008_season. There is a full calendar of the summer’s concert activities and much information about the festival itself.

And of course, we hope to have some photos later on this summer from Prof. Lysy of this year’s festival activities.