August 2011
Argentine adventure
I've spent most of this month in Argentina, staying at the gorgeous apartment of my friends Tom Jewell and Bruce Woolverton in the Palermo Alto section of Buenos Aires. I've been trying to focus on the ballet that I am writing, but there have been several wonderful distractions that have intervened with my progress. First and foremost was the 9th World Symposium on Choral Music in Puerto Madryn, a small coastal town about half way down the country. Due to the June eruption of Puyehue, the Chilean volcano, all of the flights in and out of Puerto Madryn were cancelled. Everyone attending the conference had to commute by bus between BA an PM - this was an 18- to 24-hour bonding experience for most, on busses with 'beds.'
The symposium itself was quite eventful, and deserves an entire blog entry all to itself. In my opinion, it was a bit chaotic, understaffed, and in the wrong city for a choral gathering (some examples: only one church was in use for the concerts, and my roundtable panel occurred in a room next to a roller rink). That said, it was fantastic to meet up with good friends from around the world (like the crazy monk, Eduardo Malachevsky), and to make new connections with others. I was looking so forward to spending time with Voces Nordicæ, my friends from Stockholm, but due to the rescheduling of the symposium around volcanic ash and the busses, I nearly missed them completely. Luckily, I was able to spend quite a bit of time with the MADZ, the University of the Philippines Madrigal Singers, and their director, Mark Anthony Carpio. It seems like a trip to Manila is in my near future.
Although the symposium was trying at times, it was certainly a rewarding way to spend a week. I made several new friends (too numerous to list here), and a number of directors around the world have expressed interest in my work. This was great - both as a composer and as director of The Esoterics. The 10th World Symposium will be in Seoul; I truly hope that The Esoterics and I can be a part of this event in 2014.
Argentine adventure
I've spent most of this month in Argentina, staying at the gorgeous apartment of my friends Tom Jewell and Bruce Woolverton in the Palermo Alto section of Buenos Aires. I've been trying to focus on the ballet that I am writing, but there have been several wonderful distractions that have intervened with my progress. First and foremost was the 9th World Symposium on Choral Music in Puerto Madryn, a small coastal town about half way down the country. Due to the June eruption of Puyehue, the Chilean volcano, all of the flights in and out of Puerto Madryn were cancelled. Everyone attending the conference had to commute by bus between BA an PM - this was an 18- to 24-hour bonding experience for most, on busses with 'beds.'
The symposium itself was quite eventful, and deserves an entire blog entry all to itself. In my opinion, it was a bit chaotic, understaffed, and in the wrong city for a choral gathering (some examples: only one church was in use for the concerts, and my roundtable panel occurred in a room next to a roller rink). That said, it was fantastic to meet up with good friends from around the world (like the crazy monk, Eduardo Malachevsky), and to make new connections with others. I was looking so forward to spending time with Voces Nordicæ, my friends from Stockholm, but due to the rescheduling of the symposium around volcanic ash and the busses, I nearly missed them completely. Luckily, I was able to spend quite a bit of time with the MADZ, the University of the Philippines Madrigal Singers, and their director, Mark Anthony Carpio. It seems like a trip to Manila is in my near future.
Although the symposium was trying at times, it was certainly a rewarding way to spend a week. I made several new friends (too numerous to list here), and a number of directors around the world have expressed interest in my work. This was great - both as a composer and as director of The Esoterics. The 10th World Symposium will be in Seoul; I truly hope that The Esoterics and I can be a part of this event in 2014.