Concert Archive – 2010

Rising Beats on the Infinite Horizon

November 28, 2010 at 8 pm

The Historic Theatre at The Cultch
1895 Venables St., Vancouver

Rhythm: it’s the heartbeat of music the world over, a powerful means of connection between different cultures and traditions. The Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra explores this nexus and its vast musical potential, in the major concert event of its 2010-2011 season. Rising Beats on the Infinite Horizon features the 22-member VICO with special guest percussionists Curtis Andrews, Jonathan Bernard, Joseph “Pepe” Danza, Daniel Tones, Niel Golden, Jason Overy and Boris Sichon, and New York City-based oud player Baruch al-‘Ajam. The programme includes three world premieres by acclaimed BC composers: Gypsy Chronicles, commissioned from John Oliver with funding from the Canada Council, Earthy Airs by Moshe Denburg, and I Dream of Fountains (in a new arrangement for intercultural orchestra) by Joseph “Pepe” Danza. Also on the bill is Kusumamaya, a tabla concerto byNiel Golden.

This is fusion music on a grand scale, performed by some of Vancouver’s finest musicians on tar, zheng, erhu, santur, oud, tabla, darabuka, mrdangam, congas, frame drums, marimba, vibraphone, flute, oboe, clarinet, violin, viola, cello and bass. Audiences at Rising Beats on the Infinite Horizon will not only hear this extraordinary instrumental combination making exciting new music; in the intimate ambience of the Historic Theatre at the Cultch they’ll also be able to watch it happen, up close and personal. The programme will combine and contrast modern and traditional, written and improvised repertoire, showcasing the talents of Canadian composers and musicians as well as the musical cultures of the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

Imagined Worlds 2010:

The Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra (VICO) welcomes internationally acclaimed guest musicians from Japan and Taiwan for two major concerts over the last weekend in May (Asian Heritage Month in Vancouver). This is fusion music on a grand scale, collaborative art that breathes new life into centuries-old sounds from all over the world, creating global music for a global stage.

Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra
in collaboration with Vancouver Pro Musica & Vancouver Community College
presents

Imagined Worlds: Japanese Interventions
Saturday May 29, 2010 at 8 pm

Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra
Jin Zhang, conductor
with special guests
Curtis Patterson (koto), Bruce Huebner (shakuhachi) from Tokyo
& the Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra of Taiwan

Vancouver Community College Auditorium, 1155 East Broadway at Glen Dr.

Imagined Worlds: Japanese Interventions will feature world-renowned Tokyo-based musiciansCurtis Patterson (koto) and Bruce Huebner (shakuhachi), who will join the 22-member VICO to perform the world premiere of two Canada Council commissions by Vancouver composers Jin Zhangand Farshid Samandari, as well as a new arrangement by Mark Armanini of the traditional Japanese piece Chidori No Kyoku (Song of the Plovers) – all written especially for the unprecedented instrumental combination of koto and shakuhachi with the tar, dizi, xiao, zheng, sanxian, oud, pipa , erhu, santur, bansuri, tabla, marimba, flute, oboe, clarinet, violin, viola, cello and bass of the VICO. The evening will also include a guest appearance by the Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra of Taiwan.

Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra
Sunday May 30, 2010 at 7 pm

Chih-Sheng Chen, artistic director
with Heidi Krutzen (harp) and members of Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra

Vancouver Community College Auditorium, 1155 East Broadway at Glen Dr.

The VICO is proud to sponsor the celebrated Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra in its first ever concert appearance in British Columbia. Established in 2000 and now a strong musical force in Taiwan, the LgCO represents a new generation of Chinese orchestral music developed over the last half century. The orchestra is headquartered at the prestigious National Concert Hall in Taiwan, presenting both the complete ensemble of over one hundred musicians and smaller chamber ensembles throughout the year. In Vancouver, the LgCO will present a chamber ensemble of 16 instrumentalists, conducted by artistic director Chih-Sheng Chen, performing a programme featuring the latest works by Taiwanese composers as well as two pieces by Vancouver composers Mark Armanini and Lan Tung. Harpist Heidi Krutzen and members of the Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra will also make guest appearances. www.littlegiant.idv.tw/index.htm

The VICO is thrilled to have the opportunity to collaborate with these talented artists, and to mark Asian Heritage Month in Vancouver by bringing international guests together with some of our city’s finest world music practitioners, to create new contemporary music that reflects the cultural diversity of the society and the world in which we live.

The VICO extends heartfelt thanks to the following funders and sponsors, whose support has made these concerts possible:

 

World Tea Party – 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic & Paralympic Games

Presented by Centre A as part of the Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad:

Centre A
Vancouver International Centre for Contemporary Asian Art
2 West Hastings, Vancouver, BC

Feb 20, 2010, 4-6pm: Musical Fusions (Middle Eastern – Canada)
with Gordon Grdina, Oud; and Navid Goldrick, Santur

Feb 21, 2010, 2-4pm: Musical Fusions (Indian-Persian – Canada)
with Neelamjit Dhillon, Tabla; and Reza Honari, Kamanche

Feb 22, 2010, 6-8pm: Musical Fusions (China – Canada)
with Gelina Jiang, Sanxian; Song Yun, Erhu; and Mark Armanini, Bass Guitar