Indri Brincat il-Pupa - Appreciation. (original) (raw)

Chapter 1 - The Maltese Musical Context

The first chapter of my PhD thesis describes the Maltese musical life during Maestro Carmelo Pace’s lifetime, focusing on matters that are of particular importance for understanding his creative development and the nature of his musical output—the island’s musical traditions, musical infrastructures, and the challenging conditions in which Maltese composers attempted to sustain their careers. As so little information is generally available about twentieth-century Maltese music, it seemed indispensable to provide an account of these circumstances in order to create a context in which Pace’s work were conceived in the twentieth century.

MUSICIANS ON THE MALTESE ISLANDS PRIOR TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE MID-­‐NINETEENTH CENTURY BANDS

Festi San Gorg (Gozo), 2016

From the 1850s wind and brass bands started mushrooming in all the towns and villages of the Maltese Islands. This brought great changes to the Musicians of traditional instruments who previously had defined roles within the Maltese community and who played music that was improvised or unwritten. This was a paper read in the Seminar EXPLORING THE TRADITIONS AND ARTISTIC CONTRIBUTION OF LOCAL BANDS (Gozo, 2015).

Jan Edmund Jurkowski as a composer compared to other composing guitarists in Poland after 1944

Edukacja Muzyczna, 2022

Associated with the Silesian musical circle, Jan Edmund Jurkowski played a significant role in the history of post-war guitar music in Poland. His activity as a teacher, music event organiser and designer of string instruments (as the creator of the eight-string Polish guitar) is widely known, as it has been repeatedly discussed in various publications. What is less common is the knowledge of his creative work, which – while not very prolific (14 preserved compositions and 3 compilations) – occupies a prominent place in the development of Polish guitar literature. The present text offers an insight into his creative legacy, both in terms of pieces intended for the guitar as well as performing ensembles consisting of different instruments, presenting it against the backdrop of other guitar composers working in Poland after the II World War. It demonstrates the importance of his achievements as a composer in the history of Polish guitar music, for he was the first guitarist in Poland to receive formal education in the field of composition.

Ali Doğan Gönültaş, Anatolian singer and musician. Bio and links

The thrill of his expressive voice, the dreamy melodies of his pieces and his deep background, are shown in all their glory in the magnificent debut album Kiğı, for which the Anatolian artist settled in Istanbul, has been working for more than ten years of field research. His studies in archaeology and media have made for a profound approach to research and analysis of sources, as well as an ability to translate that background into a very captivating artistic and communicative language. Prior to this courageous work, Kiğı, Ali Doğan has worked for ten years with the fascinating band Ze Tije, worked in archaeology in Anatolia, composed music for film and to this day, continues to make music-themed television. In addition to the concert with his line-up of trio, Ali Doğan can provide a workshop on rhythm and forms in Kurdish Music. “Ali’s concert was a moving journey, specifically to Eastern Anatolia, but also symbolically – to any place where music seems to be above all divisions. The multitude of rhythms and languages specific to this region was not only pleasant and interesting, but also very moving. Remarkable precision, instrumental proficiency and an unforgettable voice […].” Ula Nowak, radio journalist, JAZZKULTURA (Poland); host of the program “Świato-czułość | WorldSensitivity”, about his concert in Vienna in September 2022.