Korean Drumming on a Global Stage
Tuesday November 10, 2009 at 7 pm
Music of the Whole World Series 5: Presentation #2
In the second presentation of the VICO’s annual educational series, UBC Professor of Music Nathan Hesselink and members of his Korean drumming ensemble will introduce percussion instruments and provide both historical context and live demonstrations of the 20th/21st-century evolution of Korean drumming, from older agricultural happenings to the urban concert-hall stage.
Silk Road in the 21st Century – From Spain to China
Tuesday September 22, 2009 at 7pm
Music of the Whole World Series 5: Presentation #1
An educational concert delving into the latest connections between cultures all along the Silk Road – Spanish, Middle Eastern, Indian, and Chinese. Presented by the Silk Road Music Ensemble with Qiu Xia He (pipa), André Thibault (guitar, oud, flute), Jun Rong (erhu) and Stefan Cihelka (tabla).
The Intercultural View from Vietnam
Wednesday August 5, 2009 at 7pm
Music of the Whole World Series 4: Presentation #6
Vietnamese master musicians, Chi Khac and Bic Hoang, illustrated the world of Vietnamese music and instruments, and their use in intercultural ensembles.
India and the West – a History and a Future
Wednesday June 10, 2009 at 7pm
Music of the Whole World Series 4: Presentation #5
VICO composer Moshe Denburg talked about and demonstrated both the history of intercultural collaborations between India and the West, and their future possibilities.
Balinese Gamelan & Western Composition
Wednesday April 22, 2009 at 7pm
Music of the Whole World Series 4: Presentation #4
Composer Michael Tenzer, assisted by Balinese musician I Wayan Sudirana, presented an introduction to both the Balinese tradition and his own intercultural music, which combines Gamelan and Western ideas.
Planetful of Sound
Saturday, March 14, 2009 – 7:30pm
Chan Centre for the Performing Arts – Telus Studio Theatre
University of British Columbia, Vancouver
The Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra presents sounds of China, the Middle East, India and the West, in works by Vancouver composers Mark Armanini, Moshe Denburg, Lan Tung, Jin Zhang and special guest composer Joel Bons (artistic director of Amsterdam’s Atlas Ensemble): music that transcends cultural boundaries, performed on instruments from all over the world. For the first time ever at a VICO concert, the performance will include large-screen video, giving audiences an up-close view of the musicians and their instruments in action.
Planetful of Sound offers VICO musicians and composers an exciting opportunity to connect with Joel Bons, who has been breaking similar ground in Europe with his acclaimed contemporary music groupNieuw Ensemble and the Atlas Ensemble. The latter is described (very similarly to the VICO) as “a unique chamber orchestra uniting brilliant musicians from China, Central Asia, the Near East and Europe, presenting an unheard soundworld of western and non-western instruments.” Like the VICO, the Atlas Ensemble’s repertoire consists almost entirely of specially commissioned works, by such composers as Guo Wenjing, Jia Daqun, Faradj Karajev, Fabio Nieder, Theo Loevendie , Frangiz Ali-Zade, Bun-Ching Lam, Jack Body, Stefano Bellon, Artjom Kim, Javanshir Guliev and Evrim Demirel. (www.atlasensemble.nl)
Planetful of Sound will feature the North American premiere of Joel Bons’ piece Tour à Tour as well asFloating on the Sea of Serenity (Armanini), Little Suite for Erhu and Harp (Zhang), Market Place, Chapter 1: China (Tung) and Camel Hop at the Caravanserai – remix (Denburg), performed by a 22-member ensemble that includes zheng, sanxian, santur, oud, dizi, bansuri, sheng, suona, flute, oboe, clarinet, marimba, Celtic harp, percussion and Western strings. The programme will also feature a solo by visiting Taiwanese musician Janelle Yichen Chang on satar (Uighur fiddle from northwestern China).
The ABCs of Intercultural Music
A Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra educational presentation
in collaboration with the Vancouver Public Library and Vancouver Pro Musica
Tuesday February 17, 2009 at 7pm
Music of the Whole World Series 4: Presentation #3
VICO composers Moshe Denburg and Mark Armanini, led a public workshop of new pieces written by student participants in VICO’s first ever high school composers workshop. The presentation included live performance by VICO musicians, Geling Jiang, Jun Rong, and Neelamjit Dhillon, and served as a sneak preview of the ensemble’s next major concert “Planetful of Sound”.
Middle and Near Eastern Intercultural Horizons
Wednesday January 14, 2009 at 7pm
Music of the Whole World Series 4: Presentation #2
Gordon Grdina, composer and leader of Middle Eastern-Persian-Indian fusion band “Sangha”, presented a program highlighting his inter-cultural work, with the assistance of VICO musicians. The presentation included music listening, discussion and live performance.