We’re back to share some news with you!
We are looking back on a successful first edition of the Academy of Improvising Strings last May, with 27 string players from all over the world. It was quite something organizing this, together with Tim Kliphuis, for the first time, and we are very excited it has been such a creative and positive weekend with jams and workshops throughout. We hope to have given a new impulse to (beginning and advanced) improvisors and teachers to incorporate improvisation in their work.
The 2020 edition is in the making, dates to be announced soon, so if you are interested in signing up, please keep an eye on the website: www.improvisingstrings.com
Tim Kliphuis’ book ‘Improvising for Strings’ (the teacher groups worked with it during the weekend) is available here: https://www.timkliphuis.com/music-shop/improvisation-for-strings
The summer kicked off in Germany, with the three day Festival Rudolstadt, Germany’s biggest world music festival with about 90.000 visitors every year. What a groovy, friendly festival with a variety of bands and artists. Besides our scheduled concerts – where we got to inaugurate the town’s renovated concert hall – we had fun busking on the streets for so many folk music lovers.
After that, we left to southern France to play with Mario Forte, a New York based violinist and composer and winner of last year’s Seifert Competition. Apart from his own creative projects in jazz and contemporary improvised music, he works alongside greats such as John Zorn and Richard Bona. Together we took the time to explore new ways of approaching our repertoire and developing artistic direction, as well as working on groove and energy. This resulted in three experimental concerts where literally anything could happen. It has been an intense and fruitful experience for all of us and we are happy and grateful to Mario for working with us.
Another exciting collaboration you might have already
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpPfTRI8OK0
If you want to see this project live: September 21st we play in the September Me Festival in Amersfoort. There is a very interesting line-up for the string quartet addicts among us, because also the wonderful Ragazze Quartet and Matangi Quartet will be playing there.
We are taking time to compose and arrange new music at the moment, which will be recorded later this year. Exciting concerts are coming up, at one of which we will perform an exciting version of Bach’s third Brandenburg Concerto with string orchestra. Be sure to keep an eye on our agenda! In the meantime, if you have any ideas, suggestions, places to play or if you want to support us in any way, let us know.
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