{"id":1171,"date":"2020-03-13T07:03:36","date_gmt":"2020-03-13T07:03:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/?p=1171"},"modified":"2020-03-13T07:03:38","modified_gmt":"2020-03-13T07:03:38","slug":"we-are-the-music-makers-maximum-ensemble-the-pelleas-ensemble-by-norman-warwick-graham-marshall","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/2020\/03\/13\/we-are-the-music-makers-maximum-ensemble-the-pelleas-ensemble-by-norman-warwick-graham-marshall\/","title":{"rendered":"WE ARE THE MUSIC MAKERS: Maximum Ensemble & The Pelleas Ensemble by Norman Warwick & Graham Marshall"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

ENSEMBLES OF EXCELLENCE<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maximum Ensemble<\/strong> maestros del minimalismo<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Salon Indieras,\nTias, March 2020<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Review by Norman\nWarwick<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Maximum Ensemble<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

We turned up to collect our reserved tickets at the desk in in Salon Indieras in Tias to see Maximum Ensemble, who carry the somewhat grand sobriquet of \u00b4maestros del minimalismo.\u00b4 The advertising posters had been showing four young people, carrying their musical instruments on a clouded but sunset-lit beach that might have been that at Orzola or Famera. We had wondered over our pre-show evening meal, this time at the wonderfully Spanish La Eermita where the whole meal was fantastic and served by a friendly young staff, and included a milk cake (who knew? Certainly not me) that was an explosion of the most amazing flavours. Meal and dessert for all four of us including a bottle of wine and two beers and two coffees was only sixty euros and with tickets at only 15 euros each our total spend for the evening would be 120 euros which, when broken down into reading a meal and a concert, was for only 30e per person seemed pretty damned good. So long as the concert was ok, of course, and whilst we have learned to trust the concerts that are delivered on the island, we weren\u00b4t too sure what \u00b4minimalist\u00b4 might mean in terms of classical music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00b4Might\nbe a bit modern,\u00b4 said Iain whilst his wife, Maigret Marguerita, murmured that\nshe was sure it would be lovely. My wife gave her best Mavis \u00b4I don\u00b4t really\nknow\u00b4\u00b4 Reilly impression. I kept my mouth firmly shut, hoping my friends might\nthink I maybe did have an understanding of what minimalist night mean, whereas\nopening my mouth would have only confirmed that I didn\u00b4t! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fortunately,\nwe were handed some extremely useful programme notes that clarified things for\nus somewhat. According to these notes, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Minimalism\nis an artistic movement that has become hugely popular since its inception in\nthe experimental avant-garde of the 1960s, exerting a strong influence on all\nthe arts, and permeating from classical music to other musical genres,\nparticularly pop and rock. Minimalist music has also found an important synergy\nwith the world of film and the audio-visual. Proof of this is the ease with\nwhich the so called \u00b4minimalist composers,\u00b4 attached to the genre, moved\nbetween concert music and composing directly for the screen. There have even\nbeen pieces that have leapt from one medium to the other that were not\nexpressly conceived to, nor expected by their composers, to do so.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While minimalist works often share certain\ncharacteristics, such as a steady pulse and a slow harmonic rhythm, the\nsurprising variety they present, according to each composer’s personal vision,\nis notorious. Thus, “Masters of Minimalism” the concert we would be\nseeing tonight was intended to offer a small sample of a musical current, that\nremains influential, and to emphasize the great stylistic diversity within the\ngenre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Ermesto Mateo of Maximum Ensemble
photograph by Dee Dutton of Sidetracks & Detours<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The idea for the program emerged following the writing of the book of next publication “The Modern Piano”, by the composer Ernesto Mateo, who would be here as part of the Maximum Ensemble. As in his book, Ernesto would tonight explore on stage, the characteristics of the music of composers such as Yann Tiersen, Ludovico Einaudi or Wim Mertens: music that is, music with strong classical roots and elements of modern styles such as pop-rock. For this concerto, the instrumental template has been expanded by adding two violins and a flute to the initial piano. The resulting ensemble allows great flexibility in the selection of the repertoire, making it possible to offer this musical panorama that includes important works by some of the authors most associated with the style, adding also a Canarian presence with an interesting approach by the Canarian composer Sergio Rodr\u00edguez.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maximum Ensemble was born in 2018 through the\ncollaboration of a group of students, from the Conservatorio Superior de M\u00fasica\nde Canarias, interested in modern music and alternative concert formats, and their\nteacher in the subject Repertorio with pianist Companion. Initially they\nparticipated in several concerts organized by the Equality area of the\nConservatory, performing pieces by authors from all eras; and in the\npresentation of the album,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ernesto Mateo believes his main line of work is to create\nmusical experiences that include the fusion between the classical and modern\nrepertoire, as well as collaboration with other artistic expressions such as\ndance, plastic arts and theatre, in proposals expressly designed for today’s\naudience and era.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Enthused\nby what I had read in those hand-out notes, I nevertheless believe that nothing\nis too much trouble for my reader, so I looked it up as soon as I got home and\nam happy to share what I read on  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

simple.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Minimalism <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00b4Minimal music (also called minimalism) is a form of art\nmusic or other compositional practice that employs limited or minimal musical\nmaterials. Prominent features of minimalist music include repetitive patterns\nor pulses, steady drones, consonant harmony, and reiteration of musical phrases\nor smaller units. It may include features such as phase shifting, resulting in\nwhat is termed phase music, or process techniques that follow strict rules,\nusually described as process music. The approach is marked by a non-narrative,\nnon-teleological, and non-representational approach, and calls attention to the\nactivity of listening by focusing on the internal processes of the music.\u00b4<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u00b4m sure that clears up everything for you. It clarified\nthings for me, but I had already read the concert notes and had heard the\nconcert by the time I read Wiki\u00b4s wisdom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ostensibly led by Ernesto Mateo at the piano, Maximum\nEnsemble also included Elise Bartolome on flute, Laura Diaz on first violin and\nMelina Tubaro on second.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whilst they occasionally played as a quartet, they actually\nperformed in various configurations but in whatever form they adopted the\ninstrumentalists would play with great empathy with their performing partner(s)\nto create gentle, searching and often seemingly introspective sounds of the\nkind that Ernesto explained as being regular film accompaniments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The opening selection of Ode y Hammer by Nils Frahm even\nseemed to have the instruments playing mind games with each other. The music\nwas, if not soothing, at least an aid to clarity of thought for an audience\nthat at once seemed to engage with these young musicians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Max Richter\u00b4s exploration of \u00b4the nature of daylight\u00b4 had\nbeen employed in parts in films such as Arrival and The Queen Of Scotland, and\nthe violins and flute ceded here to an eventual piano medley.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Philip Glass is a name many of us would have perhaps\nassociated with minimalist music if only because nothing is much more minimal\nthan the period of silence he once famously recorded. In fact, his Facades,\nplayed here, was a piece that sounded very familiar and was one of the\nhighlights of the evening<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There was a moody and spiritual delivery of Lalai, a\ncomposition by Barbara Heller, played here by violin with piano, and a gorgeous\nillustration of how tricks of serendipity occur and disappear whilst time moves\never on, oblivious to the adventure. With the piano representing the passing\ntime and an emerging melody between the other instruments being such a\nserendipitous act this was perhaps one of the more accessible pieces in the\nrecital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The intriguingly titled Struggle For Pleasure by Wim Martens\nseemed at first to show each instrument struggling to reach for its own\npleasure until, eventually, the musicians plainly achieved pleasure in ensemble\nmusic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was not familiar with the name of composer Yann Tierson but\nSur le fil \/ Naomi \/ La Noy\u00e9e on piano, flute and the two violins was\nseductive, moving from a tormented opening to a distressed drama and emerging\nat the other side with a beautifully languid close.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Neither had I heard the name of Arvo Part but the music of\nSpiegel im Speigel was instantly familiar with the jaunty piano opening,\nfollowed by fine violin passages and then being joined by the flute. Ernesto\ninformed us that Arvo Part is in fact \u00b4the most widely played living composer\n!\u00b4<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, the one composer involved in the playlist that I haven\u00b4t\nyet mentioned is Ernesto Mateo himself. His piece, created to be played by four\nhands at the piano, saw him invite first-violinist Laura Diaz to join him.\nTogether they delivered a mind-boggling high speed ride across the entire\nkeyboard as the two players appeared as if in competition at times and at\nothers in complete synchronicity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Maximum Ensemble take a bow in Tias
photograph by Dee Dutton
Sidetracks and Detours<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

This was a passionate feature in a concert that, although delivered to a relatively small audience, drew a standing ovation that seemed to delight the players, who delivered an ensemble encore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The excellent programme notes had been produced in Spanish,\nand I shall refer to their English translation when conducting a proposed an\ne-mail interview with Ernesto and the rest of Maximum Ensemble to bring you\nfurther information about the four highly skilled and passionate musicians who\nhad brought us constantly changing moods in a ninety minute concert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Pellius Ensemble, Heywood Civic Centre, March 2020<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rochdale\nMusic Society<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Review\nby Graham Marshall<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, on the same evening, a\nsimilar concert was taking place thousands of miles away on my old home ground\nin the North West of England. Heywood Civic Centre was hosting another in the\nseries of concerts celebrating the 40th<\/sup> Anniversary of Rochdale Music\nSociety (RMS) and their guests were The Pelleas\nEnsemble.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

We are grateful to Graham Marshall of RMS for allowing us to publish his review of the performance by The Pelleas Ensemble, enabling us to create a compare and contrast offering with that of Maximum Ensemble. In truth the two performance groups sound very different in genre, but it is good to again acknowledge how many different threads of classical music are being constantly woven around the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Anemoi Wind Quintet<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Saturday, March 7th 2020 was a rewarding day for those who love live music in Rochdale. First, there was a very attractive programme of arrangements of mainly French music performed in St. Chad\u2019s parish church at lunchtime by the student members of the Anemoi Wind Quintet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then in the evening there was the\nRochdale Music Society\u2019s concert in Heywood Civic Centre, the fourth in its\n40th Anniversary Season. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This also featured some French music,\nincluding a work specifically written for the unusual combination of flute,\nviola and harp which is the composition of the Pell\u00eaas Ensemble. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The Pelleas Ensemble<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

This concert evening was a very good\nexample of this. To begin with, they took us back to the time of the doyen of\nearly Baroque composers in France, Fran\u00e7ois Couperin, from whose large\ncollection of Trio Sonatas and Dances four dance movements had been chosen to\nbe played by the Ensemble with great precision and charm. This was certainly a\ntasty and satisfying starter on a Concert Menu of delicious European musical\ndishes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There followed the Suite Paysanne\nHongoise, an arrangement for flute and piano (on this occasion the harp) by\nPaul Anna of Hongarian peasant folk tunes in the collection of Bela Bart\u00f3k,\nwhose later music demonstrates how deeply ingrained in his musical imagination\nwere these melodies and rhythms.  There was no mistaking how deeply\naffected by the musical landscape the two performers were, for they made a very\ncolourful display of its combination of unabashed rawness and simple charms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To end the first half of the concert\nfour movements from Prokofiev\u2019s ballet suite, Romeo and Juliet, received the\nflute\/viol\/harp treatment to great effect in a performance that made up\nbrilliantly in tonal and dynamic quality and balance for the lack of a full\norchestral complement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the interval Between Earth and\nSea, a quite recent work by British composer Sally Beamish (whose 1993 work\nFive Changing Pictures was commissioned by the Rochdale Music Society) acted as\nsomething like a trou normand, refreshing the pallet before the next rich\ndish.  Definitely \u2018offshore\u2019 in its Celtic evocation of the plangent call\nof the redshank seabird, this was presented with meticulous attention to the\ncontribution each instrument was called on to make as the musical eye was\nopened on, focused on and closed to a bleak but engaging landscape. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In complete contrast, Debussy\u2019s\nClaire de lune was then a surprise addition to the programme. Played on the\nharp alone, it brought the warmth of a summer\u2019s evening to the concert, which\ncontinued with a spirited account of the advertised Prelude to the Debussy\nsuite from which it had been taken, the Suite Bergamasque. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To end their concert, the Pell\u00e9as\nEnsemble chose to tantalise their audience with an entrancing account of the\nPetite Suite by one of twentieth century France\u2019s well-known, but not as\ncelebrated as perhaps he should be, composers, Andr\u00e9 Jolivet.  Like the\nBart\u00f3k earlier on, this is a musical tapestry woven out of fragments of\nfolksong melodies. It is obviously enjoyable to play, as this performance\nfrom the long-breathed, opening extended melody that is the first movement to\nthe breathless final fling of the last amply demonstrated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Patrick Hemmerl\u00e9<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Next month\u2019s concert will be on 4th<\/sup> \u00a0April. Pianist Patrick Hemmerl\u00e9 will play a programme including Chopin\u2019s four Ballades – a real treat in store! Details on the website www.rochdalemusicsociety.org.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Editor\u00b4s note. Here at our Sidetracks and Detours \u00b4office\u00b4 at all across\nthe arts on Lanzarote we are delighted to have established a strong contact now\nwith Ernesto Mateo of Maximum Ensemble that we are confident will help us keep\nreaders informed of news of the group\u00b4s concerts, and perhaps even of\nrecordings. We also know that Graham Marshall similarly keeps us and Steve\nCooke\u00b4s English aata office aware of what is going on at Rochdale Music Society\nand we look forward to bringing you his thoughts on the Patrick Hemmerl\u00e9\nrecital.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are grateful to both Ernesto Mateo and Graham Marshall \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ENSEMBLES OF EXCELLENCE Maximum Ensemble maestros del minimalismo Salon Indieras, Tias, March 2020 Review by Norman Warwick We turned up to collect our reserved tickets at the desk in in Salon Indieras in Tias to see Maximum Ensemble, who carry the somewhat grand sobriquet of \u00b4maestros del minimalismo.\u00b4 The advertising posters had been showing four […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1179,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1171","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1171","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1171"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1171\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1171"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1171"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aata.dev\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1171"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}