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Conference
Music
Page 1
Moscow Chamber Orchestra
The Moscow Chamber Orchestra was created in 1956 by renowned conductor and violist Rudolph Barshai, and has been an inspiration to important Russian composers such as Dmitri Shostakovich, who entrusted the first performance of his 14th Symphony to the orchestra. The appointment of Constantine Orbelian as Music Director of the MCO in 1991 brought the orchestra into a new era of international activity and acclaim. Under Orbelian’s direction, the MCO performed at the 50th Anniversary Celebrations of the United Nations in San Francisco and has made extensive international tours Finland, Sweden, Korea, Japan, South Africa, South America, Canada, and the United States. Maestro Orbelian and the MCO now perform more than 120 concerts per year, including three Carnegie Hall appearances in 1998 and 1999, and a sold-out subscription series in the Great Hall of Moscow’s famed Tchaikovsky Conservatory. It is also under Orbelian’s leadership that the orchestra was accorded the honor of “Academic” in its official Russian title (Russian State Academic Chamber Orchestra). It has often been noted that the
Moscow Chamber Orchestra under Orbelian’s direction has a special “luminous”
sound and that they play “with one voice.” As London’s The Daily Telegraph
put it, “The musicians channel all of their emotion into the music and
give performances of such passion and musicality, producing music making
of both subtlety and verve.”
Christopher Parkening
For more than a quarter century, Christopher Parkening’s concerts and recordings have received the highest worldwide acclaim. The Washington Post cited “his stature as the leading guitar virtuoso of our day, combining profound musical insight with complete technical mastery of his instrument.” Parkening is recognized as the heir to the legacy of the great Spanish guitarist Andrés Segovia, who proclaimed that “Christopher Parkening is a great artist—he is one of the most brilliant guitarists in the world.” Parkening has played at the White House, appeared with Placido Domingo on “Live From Lincoln Center,” participated in Carnegie Hall 100th Anniversary celebration, and performed twice on the Grammy Awards. Parkening has appeared on many nationally broadcast television programs and was also featured soloist with composer/conductor John Williams on the Sony Classical soundtrack of Stepmom, a Columbia Pictures film. Voted “Best Classical Guitarist” in a nationwide readers’ poll of Guitar Player Magazine for many years running, he was placed in their Gallery of Greats along with Andrés Segovia, John Williams, and Julian Bream. He has been a frequent guest soloist with the finest orchestras in the United States. In honor of Parkening’s 25th year as a recording artist with Angel/EMI, a two-CD collection of favorites, “The Great Recordings,” was issued in celebration of his prolific artistry. To mark his 30th anniversary, Parkening is planning a series of new released on the Angel/EMI Classics label. In the fall of 1998 a multi-media CD was released as a tribute to Andrés Segovia entitled Christopher Parkening Celebrates Segovia. Christopher Parkening and his wife,
Theresa, reside in Southern California. At the heart of his dedication
to performance, recording, and teaching is a deep commitment to the Christian
faith. He is also a world class fly-fishing and casting champion who has
won the International Gold Cup Tarpon Tournament (the Wimbledon of fly-fishing)
held in Islamorada, Florida.
R. Carlos Nakai
To become the world's premier Native American flutist, R. Carlos Nakai had to rely more on research and innovation and less on his Navajo-Ute heritage. While the Diné had a strong flute-playing tradition, it was lost when they migrated from the Northwest Plains of Canada to the Southwest over five centuries ago. While Nakai may not have been “born to the flute,” it was curiosity about his heritage that led him to it. During the late 1960s while researching American Indian music and traditional instruments, the wooden flute piqued Nakai's interest; but it wasn't until 1972 that he took it up seriously. Previously Nakai had devoted his musical energies to classical training on the cornet and trumpet. In his usual determination to have a thorough knowledge of the instrument, Nakai crafted his own. He later learned from a flute-making teacher that rather than the oak Nakai was using, cedar is the only wood that works well. He also discovered that when it comes to flute making, there are no standard dimensions. The finger holes and air column are based on hand and finger measurements and are never the same. As a result, each flute has a different sound and pitch which makes the tonality of the instruments random. Nakai views each flute less as a musical instrument than “as a sound sculpture--a piece of art that also creates sound.” Part of Nakai's philosophy is to ensure that the native flute does not become a “museum piece” of a bygone culture. Through his original compositions and other musical collaborations, Nakai intends to show the instrument's versatility and capabilities. A native Arizonan, Nakai's southwestern
surroundings as well as his culture, heavily influence his work. He points
out that “A lot of what I've been taught culturally, comes from an awareness
of the environment. ...How I feel is based on my impressions of being in
certain spaces at certain times. Thinking back...on personal tribal stories
and the history of my culture figures into how I organize my music.”
Paul Winter
Award-winning saxophonist, bandleader,
composer, explorer of the world's musical traditions and founder of Living
Music, Paul Winter has been motivated for the past thirty years by the
vision of a musical-ecological community and has followed a steady course
towards his unique “Earth Music,” a vital celebration of the creatures
and cultures of the whole earth. His musical realm has long embraced the
traditions of many of the world’s cultures, interweaving widely diverse
instruments and elements with the extraordinary voices from what he refers
to as “the greater symphony of the Earth,” including wolves, whales, eagles,
and several dozen other species of “wilderness musicians.”
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