Euskadiko Orkestra, news

Jorge Drexler records with the Basque National Orchestra

Today, Friday 4 May, Jorge Drexler is at the Basque Orchestra's headquarters in Miramon to record a song with the Orchestra for his next music project.

An enormously original project: the Uruguayan singer will accompany the launch of his new CD and its appearance on the shelves with a brand new application of his own creation for tablets and smartphones. Users will be able to interact with a song and create almost never-ending versions of it. The Orchestra will contribute by recording the song in sections.

At an informal meeting with the media, Jorge Drexler explained that the project involves a group of three songs "editable by the listener", the second of which, "Madera de deriva" was recorded with the Basque Orchestra. In this case users will find a combinatorial sound structure, while in the other two songs they can mix the words or poetry according to a series of coordinates established by the author. Artistically speaking, this project drives Drexler yet another step ahead. The initiative has its precedent in Raimond Llull's "Ars combinatoria", a project still at the development stage, the results of which will be presented in September.

The originality of the project lies in that, for the first time since 1920, it surpasses the phonogram, a non-editable file, to replace it with a live file, composed on software, to create intelligent songs.

The recording is conducted by the composer and director Fernando Velázquez. Velázquez previously conducted the Orchestra on the recording of the original sound track of El Mal Ajeno (For the Good of Others), by Oscar Santos, in 2010, among other collaborations. He will also arrange and conduct the next KlasikAT, a coming together between the Basque Orchestra and the pop rock group, Ken Zazpi.

Presentation of Basque National Orchestra 2012/2013 Season

Basque Deputy Minister of Culture Antonio Rivera, BNO General Director Iñigo Alberdi, and BNO Principal Conductor Andrés Orozco-Estrada presented the Basque Orchestra's 2012/2013 concert season at BNO headquarters in Miramón. The Deputy Minister spoke optimistically about the Orchestra's success and its committed effort to reach out to new audiences. Before wrapping up his presentation, Rivera thanked Andrés Orozco-Estrada in the name of the Basque Government for his excellent work at the helm of the Basque National Orchestra. Iñigo Alberdi went through the long list of events planned for this season - including both concerts and activities in other areas - all aimed at keeping the Orchestra on its upward path. Andrés Orozco-Estrada, who will be ending his term as principal conductor in June 2013, said that the Basque National Orchestra has been a fundamental part of his career and that he will make the most of the time he has left with the BNO.

"Musika irekia" ("música abierta" or open music) is the motto chosen for the Basque National Orchestra's new concert season. "Open music" is meant to express the character and personality of the Orchestra, an organization whose raison d'être lies squarely in the promotion of culture and education and whose music is geared to different styles, formats and audiences. Based on its core activity, the Season Concerts, the Basque National Orchestra changes like a chameleon to deliver its "open music" in all shapes and forms. It is the orchestra of the Miramón Matinées, Music Room events, KlasikAT concerts, Music Laboratory and online concerts. It is also the orchestra that wants to open its music to the disadvantaged and more vulnerable audiences; it is the orchestra that passes on a legacy of Basque and universal music through its recordings; it is the orchestra that supports up-and-coming musicians and creates synergies with other areas of art; it is the orchestra that travels, sharing its music with other places and people.

The Basque National Orchestra is an enormous open space in constant evolution. It is dynamic, innovative and accessible, an organization that studies and designs every idea with a specific audience in mind, and for the enjoyment of all. It is also a necessary place for coexistence, a place for sharing ideas, a confluence of messages through various media, both real and virtual. Its goal is to reach society as a whole, adapting to the interests of individuals. It is always music, open music, music that enables everyone in our society to find his or her own space.

Thirty years, over 3000 performances and more than 3 million spectators ... and counting!

Diego Matheuz, orchestra conductor trained under Venezuela's so-called "system", to debut in Spain with the Basque National Orchestra

In the coming days the Basque National Orchestra will take one step further in the 2011-2012 Concert Season. The orchestra's 10th programme will feature several highlights - the Spanish debut of Diego Matheuz, an up and coming young talent from the "Venezuelan system", which has been triumphing in Europe, and the world premiere of Mario Lavista's Tres cantos a Edurne as part of the Tesela project. The concerts will take place in April on the 14th in Bilbao, 16th and 19th in Donostia-San Sebastián, 17th in Vitoria-Gasteiz and on the 18th in Pamplona.

Following in the footsteps of Gustavo Dudamel, Diego Matheuz, aged 27, is a product of the internationally acclaimed Venezuelan system, a network of children's and youth orchestras that has been an important source of new musical talent. Gustavo Dudamel, star of the educational network founded 36 years ago by José Antonio Abreu, is now music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra. Following his steps, Diego Matheuz has taken the leap to Europe at the hand of Claudio Abbado and is now musical director of the legendary Teatro La Fenice in Venice. Guest conductor for some of the best orchestras in Europe, Matheuz has conducted throughout Europe, as well as in China and Japan. This will be his first time in Spain, conducting for the Basque National Orchestra. As of today, April 11, Diego Matheuz will join the Basque National Orchestra to prepare and conduct the five scheduled concerts. The programme will feature Tres cantos a Edurne by Mario Lavista, the viola arrangement from Concerto No. 1 for Cello and Orchestra by Saint-Saëns, and Sheherazade, the symphonic suite by Rimsky-Korsakov.

Tres Cantos a Edurne, third edition of the Tesela project. The concerts will open with a premiere performance promoted through the Tesela project. With the exclusive collaboration from the BBVA Foundation, Tesela is a project aimed at commemorated the 30th anniversary of the Basque National Orchestra by commissioning composers of international renown to write pieces for the BNO. Tres cuentos a Edurne, by Mexican composer Mario Lavista, is a piece of religious music consisting of three short parts played one after the other without interruption. Much like a pictorial triptych, each part has its own expression and feeling, yet all three parts share a common thread.

The Basque National Orchestra's CD Kadenza, dedicated to Sof�a Gubaidulina, on its way to the Gramophone Awards

The UK-based Gramophone Magazine, one of the world's most prestigious classical music magazines, has selected Kadenza as one of the Editor's Choice top 10 CDs in the magazine's April edition. Every year critics for the magazine shortlist a series of CDs for the Gramophone Awards. The Gramophone Awards - often called the Oscars of the classical music world - are the most significant honours bestowed on the classical record industry.

In this issue, "Kadenza" shares nomination with a recording dedicated to Rautavaara and produced by the Helsinki Philarmonic Orchestra; a disc that gathers Tchaikovsky's works, recorded by the Orchestre National du Capitole of Toulouse and conducted by Tugan Sokhiev; and a monographic dedicated to Lutoslawski and interpreted by the BBC Symphonic Orchestra, conducted by Edward Gardiner. It is undoubtedly about first-level publications by world-class orchestras and conductors.

Kadenza is the result of a new commitment by the Basque National Orchestra to world-class contemporary music, in this case represented by Sofia Gubaidulina (Chistopol, Tatarstan, Russia, 1931).

Accordionist Iñaki Alberdi and cellist Asier Polo are the stars of this disc, together with a chamber group of the Basque National Orchestra. One of the highlights of the disc is the hard work by these two soloists, together with Gubaidulina, under the baton of Jose Ramon Encinar.

Recorded under the Dutch label ET'CETERA, this CD contains four tracks (Seven Words, In Croce, Kadenza and Et exspecto), offering the perfect sampling of Sofia Gubaidulina's work.

Kadenza was presented to the media on December 20, 2011 at Iesu church in Donostia-San Sebastián. The event featured a live performance by Iñaki Alberdi, Asier Polo and a chamber group of the Basque National Orchestra, playing several cuts from the disc.

Kirmen Uribe debuts with the Basque National Orchestra

From 5th to 9th March the Basque National Orchestra will perform concerts from its eighth Concert Season programme. Under the title "Viñetas del Nuevo Mundo" (Vignettes of the New World), Kirmen Uribe will debut on stage with the Basque National Orchestra reading excerpts from his novel Bilbao-New York-Bilbao, winner of the 2008 National Literature Prize. Perched on the BNO music stands will be music by Copland, Barber, Bernstein, Aita Donostia and Dvorak. The concerts will take place at the Kursaal in San Sebastián on March 5th and 8th, at the Baluarte in Pamplona on March 6th, at the Palacio Euskaldunain Bilbao on March 7th and at the Teatro Principal in Vitoria on the 9th.

Music and literature come together to create a work of art in its own right, a unique piece that goes beyond the mere fusion of artistic disciplines. "Viñetas del Nuevo Mundo" not only the links the New World of the American continent, but also the world of literature and music as it comes alive on the stage.

As far as the music is concerned, the programme also embraces the idea of a journey, a connection between the Basque Country and the United States presented through the work of Kirmen Uribe, a kind of soundtrack underscoring the words of the poet. Much like the selected excerpts, the music offers infinitely nuanced sounds that reflect the figure of a person searching for an identity. The soundtrack is a mix of Copland's Fanfare for the Common Man, Itsasoan from Rapsodia Bascongada by Aita Donostia, Bernstein's Candide Overture, Barber's Adagio for Strings and Dvorák's Symphony From the New World. A reading with a dramatic twist by Kirmen Uribe and elaborate lighting will draw attention to the idea of a journey between the two sides of the Atlantic.

On previous occasions the Orchestra has included dramatic works in its Season Concert programmes, including Honneger's King David, Shostakovitch's Baba Yar symphony with Xabier Elorriaga as narrator, and Vita by Aragüés, featuring poems by Bernardo Atxaga recited by Andoni Alemán. However, this is the first time a programme has been designed around excerpts from a novel read by the author himself. Kirmen Uribe has done a number of multimedia projects combining poetry with different artistic disciplines. Most noteworthy are Bar Puerto, a combination of poetry, music, video and oral history, and a book and CD entitled Zaharregia, txikiegia agian the product of a series of recitals in New York.

Dutch conductor Lawrence Renes will be in charge of the musical direction of the show. After his debut as guest conductor for the BNO's 2010 concert season, Lawrence Renes will be joining us again.

The Basque National Orchestra presents its "Music Room" activities for this season

The Music Room is the place to find all of the activities designed by the Basque National Orchestra's Education Department. These activities include the now firmly entrenched Family Concerts, hosted in Vitoria-Gasteiz and Donostia-San Sebastián, and all of the events that fall under the category of School Activities. This season's School Activities include Concerts for Schools, Visits to the Orchestra Headquarters, School Workshops and Open Rehearsals. The BNO will also present a second season of Sinfokids.

All of these events will add up to over 30 musical encounters this season, with the Basque National Orchestra at the core. We should point out that last season more than 7500 boys and girls took part in the various events. Over the course of its 30-year history, the Basque National Orchestra's education activities have reached an audience of more than 146,000 people.

Family Concerts. The objective set for the new season of Family Concerts is to spotlight human values and cheer. The season kicked off this past December in Donostia-San Sebastián with "La viola no está sola" (The viola is not alone) and continues this Saturday, February 4, with "Historia de un soldado" (The Soldier's Tale). In Vitoria-Gasteiz the season will get under way this Sunday, February 5, at the Teatro Principal with "The Soldier's Tale". The show is a re-creation of Stravinsky's classic "The Soldier's Tale" (L'histoire du soldat), featuring puppets and shadows created and directed by Santi Arnal, and performed by the company Per Poc and a group of instrumentalists from the BNO. In March the percussion group Stick Dance Quartet will present "Una Caja de sorpresas" (A box of surprises), showing us how just about any object can be turned into a musical instrument. This concept is aimed at audiences of all ages, but the Vitoria-Gasteiz performance will be specially designed for tots. In May, the sound of the full Orchestra will ring out in all its glory in "Sheherazade y otras voces" (Scheherazade and other voices), with perfomances in Donostia-San Sebastián only. And in June the series will be back in full swing with "40 urteko algara", celebrating Txirri, Mirri eta Txiribiton, the clowns that have put smiles on Basque faces for 40 years, bringing audiences moments of joy and laughter with their fun-loving antics. Before all of the concerts, except for "Una caja de sorpresas" in Vitoria, there will be a Music Appreciation Workshop, designed to promote active listening. Again ths season, the Family Concerts series is a co-production between the BNO, the Vitoria-Gasteiz City Council and the Kursaal Foundation.