Indian sitar star comes to Eelswamp

One of the most acclaimed exponents of the sitar

Purbayan Chatterjee

Friday, 12th December at Eelswamp, 6 pm

"absolute poise and artistic control ...

"possibly the most outstanding sitar player of the younger generation"

Rajendra Teredesai

Winner of the 'President of India Award'

Performed in Royal Festival Hall, London

Sydney Opera House

Salle Gaveau, Paris

Konzerthaus, Berlin

Esplanade, Singapore

Purbayan Chatterjee is one of the most celebrated sitarists in India. He quickly rose to prominence by winning, at the age of 15, one of the highest awards in his country, the 'President of India' Award. Purbayan was described by Rajendra Teredesai, one of India's most respected musicians, as "possibly the most outstanding sitar player of the younger generation." His music, "is high on aesthetics, lyricism and understated technical brilliance."

Purbayan Chatterjee is a world-class performer. He has performed in many of the most important music venues in the world, including the Queen Elizabeth Hall, the main venue at the Royal Festival Hall in London, the Sydney Opera House and the Konzerthaus in Berlin. 

Purbayan has recorded nine CDs one of which won the Palm IRAA Award for the Best World Music Album of the Year. 

Sandip Ghosh, tabla, will accompany Purbayan in the program.

Indian classical music is one of the oldest and most developed forms of music in the world. It has been played in its current form for many centuries. Some ragas can be traced back to the middle ages. While the music is not written down, as is western classical music, it is nonetheless highly sophisticated with a grand conception, structure, movements and complex rhythms.

Indian classical performers face a greater challenge than western classical musicians: they must be both performer and composer at the same time. A good performance requires a constant flow of inspiration. Despite its vast population, only a few highly accomplished performers appear at any generation. We are fortunate to have one such performer coming to visit us. 

Program: Full evening ragas, such as Puria Danashree and Yaman . A full raga contains at least four movements and starts with a slow, unaccompanied pulse (alaap) proceeding to a rousing duet.

Reservations: 1,000 baht per person. Limited to 40 people.

Email asiachart@hotmail.com for reservations. For more information call 038 069681 during office hours. Due to limited number of places payment must be received before the day. 

Directions to Eelswamp: can be found at the bottom of this page: http://eelswamp.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-music-room-at-eelswamp.html. If you haven't been here before I strongly urge you to find the venue before the day of the concert.

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Veniamin Zhukov plays Beethoven and Liszt

Two different programs on November 22nd and 24th, encore program on 25th

Veniamin Zhukov

Moscow Conservatory

"Veniamin possesses a very strong, captivating vision of music, delivering it with huge, raw power which casts a spell over the audience and keeps them speechless long after the performance." Andrey Gugnin

Saturday 22nd November, 5pm

Beethoven: Hammerklavier Sonata op. 106

Liszt: Sonata in B minor
only a few seats remaining

Monday 24th November, 6pm

Beethoven: Diabelli Variations

Liszt: Fantasy and Fugue on the theme B-A-C-H

Liszt: Reminiscenses de Norma de Bellini
only a few seats available

Encore performance on Tuesday 25th, 6pm
Selection of works from previous two concerts

The Beethoven: Veniamin will play Beethoven's two monumental works for the piano, The Hammerklavier Sonata and the Diabelli Variations. They are both late works. The Hammerklavier has been described as,"Beethoven's technically most challenging piano composition and one of the most challenging solo works in the classical piano repertoire." Musicologist Donald Tovey called the Diabelli Variations "the greatest set of variations ever written". That's a slight exaggeration. Bach's Goldberg Variations are equally great. But without doubt, the Goldbergs and the Diabelli are the paragon of the variation form. It is a mark of Veniamin's ambitious musicianship that he will present these two works on the same tour. 

The Liszt: Liszt only wrote one 'sonata', in 1853, when he was in his forties. The music was well ahead of its time. It was received with scorn and derision at its first performance (Eduard Hanslick: "...anyone who finds it beautiful is beyond help."). However, over the decades, the Liszt Sonata gradually gained acceptance. It is now regarded as one of the greatest piano works of the nineteenth century. It is also one of the most profound works in nineteenth century piano literature.

The Fantasy and Fugue on the Theme B-A-C-H was originally written for organ and transcribed for piano. The title refers to the motif based on the four notes B-flat, A, C and B. It is a tour de force of dazzling virtuoisty.

The Norma Reminiscences, subtitled, 'Grand Fantasie for Piano' were written in 1844 while Liszt was still in his superstar-touring mode. It is based on Bellini's opera, Norma, set in Roman Gaul. The opera tells the story of a tragic love affair between a druid priestess, Norma and her Roman lover, Pollione. All of the six themes in the paraphrase depict the heroine, Norma. This is a work of 'extended and brilliant treatment' in the words of Eric Bromberger.

Veniamin Zhukov is a final year student at Moscow Conservatory. He is a close friend of Andrey Gugnin and they have performed together.

Veniamin, left and Andrey Gugnin, right, performing in the Moscow Conservatory

Veniamin is a pianist of unrivaled technique and musicianship. I need only persuade you with this dazzling performance:

Reservations: 1,200 baht for one concert. 2,000 baht for both. 
Special price for the Encore Performance for those who have attended either 22nd and/or 24th performances: 500 baht

Email asiachart@hotmail.com for reservations. For more information call 038 069681 during office hours. Due to limited number of places payment must be received before the day. 

Directions to Eelswamp: can be found at the bottom of this page: http://eelswamp.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-music-room-at-eelswamp.html. If you haven't been here before I strongly urge you to find the venue before the day of the concert.

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An Evening of Indian Music and Fine Indian Dining

Saturday, 13th December, 6.30pm

'Indian by Nature', Eelswamp's Indian classical music partner,

presents

Purbayan Chatterjee, sitar   

  

and

Sandip Ghosh, tabla

Saturday 13th December, Indian by Nature, Thapraya Road

Sitar maestro Purbayan Chatterjee and tabla master Sandip Ghosh will give a dinner performance at Pattaya's premier Indian restaurant, 'Indian by Nature'.

These two eminent musicians are the top of their league, having performed all over the world in such prestigious venues as the Royal Festival Hall in London, the Konzerthaus in Berlin and the Sydney Opera House. Purbayan has recorded twelve CDs many of which have hit the top of the charts.

Purbayan is one of the most versatile musicians in India. He is a master of several genres, ranging from pure classics to jazz/blues fusion. The musical duo will give a performance of light classical works featuring popular Indian melodies and captivating rhythms.  The performance is sure to entertain, whatever your musical taste may be.

The program will be preceded by a buffet dinner of delicious Indian food:

click on the menu to see an enlargement

Join us for a night of musical enchantment and gourmet Indian cuisine at Indian by Nature on Saturday, 13th December. 

Performance schedule

1. 6.30 doors open for meet and greet/welcome drink

2. 7pm buffet dinner commences

3. 8.15pm performance begins

4. 9.15 intermission and dessert buffet

5. 9.45 - second session.

Reservations: 2,500 baht per person. 

Payment: directly at Indian By Nature from 4.pm.

Bank transfer:  Siam Commercial Bank

Ardas Co. Ltd: 5352754169 fax proof of payment to 038 252197.

Indian by Nature

Address: 306/64-68 Thapraya Road, Chateau Dale Complex, Pattaya, Chon Buri 20150

Phone: 038 364 656

Fantasy and Mystery

Two piano programs by

Sergey Sobolev

11th, 13th and 14th October

only at Eelswamp

Graduate of Moscow Conservatory 
and 
Royal College of Music, London

1^st Prize Nikolai Rubinstein Competition, Moscow

2^nd Prize International Liszt Competition, Weimar
3rd Prize International Scriabin Competition, Moscow

4^th Prize Tchaikovsky Competition, Moscow

Laureate, International Santander Competition
Laureate, Queen Elisabeth Competition, Brussels

Two separate programs

Fantasy and Rhapsody

A program of musical fantasies and rhapsodies from the 18th to 20th centuries

Saturday, October 11th, 5pm sold out. 

Repeat Program: Tuesday, 14th October, 6pm:  places still available

Schubert, Fantasie in C major, Op. 15 (D. 760), The Wanderer Fantasy

Chopin, Polonaise-fantaisie in A-flat major, Op. 61

Mozart, Fantasia in C minor, K396

Brahms, Rhapsody no. 1 in B minor, Op.79, no.1

Scriabin, Fantasie in B minor, Op. 28

Liszt, Hungarian Rhapsody no 9 in E flat major, 'Carnival in Pest'

Watch and listen to this remarkable performance by Sergey at the Liszt Competition, Weimar. 

Mystery

Mysterious music of late Liszt and Alexander Scriabin

Monday October 13th, 6pm

Scriabin

Poeme Satanique, Op. 36

Trois Morceaux, Op. 52: Poeme, Enigme, Poeme Languide

Deux Danses, Op. 73: Flammes Sombres and Guirlandes

Sonata no. 9, "The Black Mass", Op. 68

Two Poemes, Op. 32

Sonata No.5, Op. 53

Liszt

Aux cypres de la Villa d'Este. Threnodie (1) from Années de Pèlerinage III

Mosonyis Grabgeleit, S.194 

Mephisto Polka, S. 217

'Danza sacra e duetto finale' from Verdi's Aida S. 436

La Lugubre Gondola no.2, S. 134 "The Lugubrious Gondolier"

Bagatelle Sans Tonalité, S 216a

Sursum Corda from Années de Pèlerinage III

Over the last two decades of his life, Franz Liszt's style underwent a remarkable change: from the flamboyant and grandiose to the contemplative and profound. His late period style influenced nearly all the composers that followed him, from the impressionists, such as Debussy and Ravel, to Stravinsky and Scriabin.

Alexander Scriabin was a Russian pianist and composer who lived from 1872 to 1915. He is also one of the great transformationalists in classical music. In his early years his compositional style was influenced by Chopin. But Scriabin developed a unique style that mirrored his eccentric personality. Scriabin was a master of the miniature, many of which are only a minute or two in length. We will hear seven of these miniatures from his middle and late periods. Scriabin's ten piano sonatas are among the greatest compositions of his period and demonstrate the transition from the romantic to the mysterious. We will hear two sonatas: his pivotal fifth sonata and his mysterious, ninth, sonata.

A graduate of both the Moscow Tchaikovsky State Conservatory and the Royal College of Music in London, 32 year-old Sergey Sobolev is a veteran of the competition circuit with six major trophies on his mantlepiece. But more than a mere musical gladiator, he is a highly polished musician with a discerning taste and a remarkable technique. Sergey and I spent many (enjoyable) email exchanges devising and refining the two programs that we will hear in October in order that they be both thematic and accessible to the audience. I urge you to mark your calendar and attend both of these events.

Reservations: 1,200 baht for one concert. 2,000 baht for both. Email asiachart@hotmail.com or call 038 069681 office hours. Due to limited number of places payment must be received before the day. If you are unable to attend we will make our best effort to sell your place after 30 places have been sold.

Directions to Eelswamp: can be found at the bottom of this page: http://eelswamp.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-music-room-at-eelswamp.html

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Trinity Trio play Brahms and Mendelssohn

Friday, 29th August, 6pm

Trinity Trio

Winner of the 8th Pettman/ROSL Arts International Scholarship, London, 2013

Tina Kim, piano

Stella Kim, violin

Sally Kim, cello

Brahms, Trio no.1 in B major, op.8

Originally composed when Brahms was twenty, the composer made a substantial revision to the work in his fifties.  Brahms claimed that the revisions “did not provide it with a wig, but just combed and arranged its hair a little.” That is an understatement. The later version contains substantial thematic revision and in the words of Bromberger, "his youthful impetuosity is wed to an enormously refined technique".

Mendelssohn, Trio no. 2 in C minor, op.66. 

This work was composed and published in 1845, two years before Mendelssohn's untimely death at the age of 38. The C minor trio is less popular than the enigmatic Trio no. 1 in D minor, but is just as ebullient, virtuosic and rich in texture. Having heard the D minor so frequently, it will be a refreshing change to hear the C minor.

The members of the Trinity Trio are students at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. They formed the trio in order to compete at the prestigious Pettman/ROSL competition last year in London. They won first prize and, as a result of their success, performed throughout the UK at such venues as St Martin-in-the-Fields, St. James’s Piccadilly, and the Edinburgh Festival. The trio is sponsored by Pro Musica, the Bangkok based orchestra led by Tasana Nagavajara. Tasana met the trio on his recent visit to New Zealand. We can be sure that the trio will give a first class performance.

Reservations: 1,000 baht per person. Email asiachart@hotmail.com or call 038 069681 office hours. Due to limited number of places payment must be received before the day. If you are unable to attend we will make our best effort to sell your place after 30 places have been sold.

Children: This program might be suitable for children aged 8 years and above.

Directions to Eelswamp: can be found at the bottom of this page: http://eelswamp.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-music-room-at-eelswamp.html

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Another favourite from the Beethoven Competition

Marijan Đuzel, piano

2008: 1st prize Croatian Young Virtuoso and Zlatko Grgošević Competitions 

2009: 2nd prize European Piano Teachers Competition
2010: Winner, INA Cultural Scholarship (INA is Croatia’s largest oil company)

2012: Debut with Zagreb Philharmonic performing Beethoven’s Fifth Concerto, The Emperor

2013: Performed twice in Musikverein in Vienna(Brahms and Gläserner Saal).

Marijan was a semi-finalist in the International Beethoven Competition held last year in Vienna. Of all the competitors I watched during the competition, Marijan and Andrey Gugnin were the two most inspiring contestants. We were very fortunate to have Andrey perform for us in March this year and are equally fortunate to have Marijan come to Thailand, exclusively to play for us at Eelswamp 

Two programs: 

1st Program: Sunday July 6th, 5pm

Albeniz: Evocacion - a short fandango from Book 1 of Iberia

Schubert: Sonata c minor D 958 – the first of the last three sonatas

Beethoven: Bagatelles op. 126 – last published piano work of Beethoven - sublime music

Sulek: Sonata – a great work by 20th century Croatian composer

2nd Program: July 8th, 6pm –  Barton’s Birthday Celebration

Haydn: Sonata no. 20 in C-minor - the only one of Haydn's 62 sonatas written in this key

Bartok: Im Freien – interesting collection of short pieces by the Hungarian composer

Josipovic: Jubilis – a short piece by Croatian composer and President

Beethoven: op. 111 – the great, last, sonata of Beethoven

Reservations: 1,200 baht for one concert. 2,000 baht for both. Email asiachart@hotmail.com or call 038 069681 office hours. Due to limited number of places payment must be received before the day. If you are unable to attend we will make our best effort to sell your place but cannot offer a refund. 

Directions to Eelswamp: can be found at the bottom of this page: http://eelswamp.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-music-room-at-eelswamp.html 

Zuniega at Eelswamp

Sunday, June 15th, 5pm

Greg Zuniega, piano

After playing with the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of 16, Greg gained a scholarship to the Tchaikowsky Moscow State Conservatory, then after being noticed by Dame Fanny Waterman, finished his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees at the Royal College Music of London, where he was presented with the prestigious Tagore Gold Medal for excellence by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and was awarded first class honours in piano concerto, German Lieder interpretation and chamber music.

Greg has performed in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Japan, China, Guam, Belgium, Germany, France and Italy and has been featured soloist of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) and the Manila Symphony Orchestra. He holds the degrees of B.S. Economics (London School of Economics) and Masters in Public Management (University of the Philippines).

Program

Haydn Sonata in F major Hob. XVI: 23
Mozart Sonata in B flat major K. 333
Chopin Ballade No. 4 in F minor Op. 52
               Waltz in A flat Op. 34. No. 1 

Liszt Rigoletto Paraphrase 

Reservations: 1,000 baht per person. Email asiachart@hotmail.com or call 038 069681 during office hours. Due to limited number of places payment must be received before the day.

Location: http://eelswamp.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-music-room-at-eelswamp.html

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Piano double

Two pianists perform works by Bach, Mozart, Ravel, Schubert and Beethoven

Sunday, 1st June, 5 pm - both performances

Maria Satomi Shoji

JS Bach, Italian Concerto

Mozart, Sonata K282

Beethoven, Sonata Opus 110

intermission

Suvida Neramit-aram
Bach, Partita no. 2
Ravel, Une barque sur l'océan, from Mirroirs
Schubert, Wanderer Fantasy

Maria Satomi Shoji is a Japanese pianist. She studied in Japan and Austria and now lives in Vienna. She performs regularly and gives master classes in both Japan and Austria. She will play three great works: 

Bach's Italian Concerto was published in 1735. It was an instant success and has remained one of the composer's greatest hits. 

Mozart's Sonata K282 is an early work, written in 1775 when the composer was 19. It is the fourth of a series known as the Munich sonatas, or the 'difficult sonatas' and is the only of Mozart's sonatas to begin with a slow movement. It is a delightful work and will be a joy to hear.

Beethoven's piano sonata opus 110 is the most substantial work on the program. It is the penultimate of Beethoven's 32 sonatas, completed in 1821. It is written in three or four movements, depending on who is analysing it. The first movement is gentle and mellifluous. The scherzo is playfully centered on two lumbering folk songs, "Our cat had kittens" and "I'm a slob and you're a slob", perhaps taking a leaf from the Quodlibet in Bach's Goldberg Variations, which elevated drinking songs to the high art of polyphony.

The sonata proceeds in a medley of slow movement and fugue. The slow movement is in the nature of a recitative - a continuous line of melody. It is pensive, brooding and mysterious. The fugue creeps out from the slow movement and takes the form of a dance, building in a slow, restrained crescendo. The slow movement returns for a few plaintive, contemplative breaths before creeping back to the fugue, this time inverted, in emulation of Bach's fugues and culminating in a robust, tumultuous, crescendo. This sonata is one of Beethoven's most sublime works. It shows the mettle of any serious pianist.

The second performer on this program is a very talented Thai pianist, Suvida Neramit-aram. She will graduate this month with a masters degree from San Francisco Conservatory and has been accepted for a doctoral degree, with scholarship, at the Butler School of Music, University of Texas at Austin.

She is a very fine Bach performer, having a very clean and even performance style. She will play three excellent works:

The Second Partita of Bach. Johann Forkel, one of Bach's most famous biographers, wrote about the Partitas:

“This work made in its time a great noise in the musical world. Such excellent compositions for the clavier had never been seen and heard before. Anyone who had learnt to perform well some pieces out of them could make his fortune in the world thereby; and even in our times, a young artist might gain acknowledgment by doing so, they are so brilliant, well-sounding, expressive, and always new.”

Une barque sur l'océan from Ravel's Mirroirs. This piece recounts a small boat as it sails upon the waves of the ocean. Arpeggiated sections and sweeping melodies imitate the flow of ocean currents. Audience members might recall Stefan Cassar gave a wonderful performance of this piece in his recital at Eelswamp in November, last year.

Franz Schubert's Wanderer Fantasy. "The devil may play it," said Schubert of his most technically demanding keyboard work. It was beyond his own ability to play. The Fantasy was composed in 1822, a year after Beethoven's Sonata opus 110 (see above). It is a titanic work, technically challenging for the performer both in texture and structure. There are four movements. But all four are based on the same theme taken from the composer's song, The Wanderer. There are no clear breaks between movements which gives the work a sense of unity. Like the great opus 110 of Beethoven, the Wanderer culminates in a fugue, in this case grand and triumphal - no doubt an inspiration to Liszt who transcribed the work for orchestra and whose own Sonata in B minor reaches a similar apotheosis.
This is a very testing work and I'm confident that Suvida will give us a compelling performance.

Reservations: 1,000 baht per person for either one or both of these performances. (Come to both performances if you can, the price is the same.)

Email asiachart@hotmail.com or call 038 069681 office hours. Due to limited number of places payment must be received before the day.

Location: http://eelswamp.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-music-room-at-eelswamp.html

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Bach - Beethoven Cello Fest - 9th - 12 May

Complete Beethoven Cello Sonatas
Bach Cello Suites 

and

a Solo Piano Recital

Four programs by two talented French musicians

visiting Thailand at my invitation
First performance of Complete Beethoven Cello Sonatas in Thailand

Performing all five Beethoven Cello Sonats from their newly recorded CD

"They deliver us a crystal-clear version of the Beethoven's sonatas, full of liveliness, in a burning range of colors. 
Here is a beautiful discovery to make, to get off the commercial beaten track and realize that Beethoven's language is always to be renewed." 

Jean Lacroix, Belgian musical critic at Revue Générale

Alexandre Vay, cello

Co-soloist, Munich Radio Orchestra

Alexandre studied cello at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Lyon where he graduated with first prize. He was selected to be part of the European Union's Youth Orchestra in 2006, which was directed by Vladimir Ashkenazy. Alexandre then obtained a masters degree at Karlsruhe University. Alexandre was mentored by several famous cellists, including Janos Starker and Gary Hoffman. He has collaborated with Dimitri Papodpoulos for many years and together, they won third prize in the prestigious Max Reger Chamber Music Competition. 

and 

Dimitri Papodopoulos, piano, 

Professeur de Piano, Conservatoire de Musique de Genève

Dimitri was born in Princeton, New Jersey, to a Greek father and Syrian mother but grew up in France. His father was a mathematician and Dimitri started his academic career following his father's footsteps with a degree in mathematics. He then moved to music, graduating with first prize from Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse in Lyon.

Dimitri has won many prizes on the competition circuit: 1st prize Saint-nom-la-Bretèche, 1st prize Vulaines-sur Seine, 1st prize Lagny-sur-Marne, 2nd prize Incontro Internazionale Giovanni Pianisti Roma and in Germany,1st Steinway Forderpreis 2010 Dusseldorf.

Most recently Dimitri was appointed Professeur de Piano at the Geneva Conservatory after a highly competitive application process. His appointment commences in September.

Friday 9th and Sunday 11th May Complete Beethoven Cello Sonatas  All five sonatas, Mozart and Handel Variations and The Ghost Trio Beethoven around the time of  composing the 5th Cello Sonata in 1815 Discover Beethoven's masterpieces for the cello!  The cello sonatas comprise one of Beethoven's greatest collections of chamber music. They span all of his creative periods: early, middle and late period. They contain quirky structures (nos. 1 and 2), sweeping melodies (no. 3), jaunty melodrama (no. 4) and one of the finest, devastatingly profound, slow movements written by Beethoven in any of his works (no.5).  I went to Manchester in March, last year, to listen to a program at the Royal Northern College of Music of all of the Beethoven string sonatas. I was infatuated with the violin sonatas at the time. The cello sonatas were an added bonus to the program but I wasn't drawn by them. However, on returning home, all I could listen to was the cello sonatas - so rich and satisfying they are. As many of you know, I scour the world looking for great musicians. One such musician is Dimtri. I met him after a superb piano recital in a modest church in Paris in 2010. I've kept in touch with him since then. When he casually let slip that he had just recorded all of the Beethoven Cello Sonatas with Alexandre, early last year, I resolved to bring them here. I have since heard their recording of the five sonatas and they are first class. If you don't know the cello sonatas I hope I have persuaded you. Now is your chance to take one of the great journeys of chamber music. Don't miss this. Mark your diary! Complete Beethoven Cello Sonatas Program 1: 6pm, Friday, 9th May, 2014 Beethoven early and middle period Cello Sonata no. 1 opus.5 no.1 Cello Sonata no. 2 opus 5 no.2 Cello Sonata no. 3 opus 69 Variations on a Theme from Mozart's Magic Flute, 'Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen', Op.66 Beethoven's Variations on a Theme from Mozart's Magic Flute  are based on a much loved Aria by Papageno Beethoven Cello Sonatas and Trio Program 2: Sunday, 5pm, 11th May Cello Sonata no. 4 opus 102 no.1 Cello sonata no. 5 opus 102 no.2 Handel Variations, "See the Conquering Hero" WoO 45 Beethoven's Piano Trio opus 70, no. 1, "The Ghost" joined by Tasana Nagavajara, violin    Tickets: one program 1,200 baht; both programs 2,000 baht

Saturday 10th May, 5pm Alexandre plays Bach Cello Suites Bach around the time of composing the Cello Suites - he was around 35 years old! Suite No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1008 Suite No. 3 in C major, BWV 1009 Suite No. 6 in D major, BWV 1012 Bach wrote six suites for unaccompanied cello. According to one critic, Bach's six suites for the solo cello are among the most iconic works of music ever composed. They have been played by the world's greatest cellists, on disc and on film, at the fall of the Berlin Wall and at the memorial services for everyone from the victims of 9/11 to the funeral of Sen. Edward Kennedy. And they're on the "desert island" selections of nearly all classical-music lovers. They were immortalized by the cello icon of the 20th century, Pablo Casals, who 'rediscovered the suites' and who said of them, "How could anybody think of Bach as 'cold' when these [cello] suites seem to shine with the most glittering kind of poetry." And Mischa Maisky, one of the greatest cellists of today, said that the cello suites are, "...like a great diamond, with so many different cuts that reflect light in so many different ways.”  Come and enjoy these masterpieces in the comfort and excellent acoustics of Eelswamp. Tickets: 1,200 baht per person

Monday 12th May, 6pm Dimitri - solo piano recital Piano Recital by Dimitri Papodopoulos Chopin: Two Nocturnes op.62 Schumann: Carnaval Chopin: First Scherzo Beethoven: Waldstein Sonata Chopin at the time of writing the Nocturnes Op.62 Chopin's Nocturnes Opus 62 are the last two nocturnes of the 19 nocturnes composed by Chopin. They are also of finest of this genre. Number 1 is, according to the Chopin Society,  A work of pure luxuriance; the main theme is profusely adorned with difficult chain trills. In his book on Chopin, Camille Bourniquel writes, “The last Nocturnes complete the redemption of the genre and its final liberations-they possess a unique freedom.” The second of op. 62 is one of my favourites and I have requested Dimitri to play this piece. It begins with a melody described by musicologist, Ernest Hutcheson, as "warm and luscious like the G string of a violin.”  Schuman: 'master of the short melodic gem' Robert Schumann's Carnaval, opus 9, comprises twenty short pieces, described by James Pegolotti as, "so different yet so appealing". He remarked upon Schumann's gift for "the short melodic gem". Each of the pieces provides a musical portrait. The final, rousing, march is, in Pegoletti's words, "Schumann's imagination at its peak."  Chopin at the time of writing the first Scherzo. Chopin's Scherzo no. 1 is a youthful work, written when the composer was twenty years old. It starts with powerful chords and furious virtuosity which breaks away to a Polish Christmas carol, returning to the main theme and a dazzling coda. Beethoven at the time of composing the Waldstein Sonata Beethoven's Waldstein sonata is a middle period sonata and one of his greatest piano works. I heard Dimitri play this work in Paris a few years ago and it was a superb performance. Come and hear him at this Monday evening recital at Eelswamp. Tickets: 1,200 per performance

Discounts for multiple programs

2,000 baht for both Beethoven sessions

All four events: 3,600 baht: 
1. Friday, 9th May: Complete Beethoven Cello Sontatas, part 1

2. Saturday, 10th May: Three Bach Cello Suites

3. Sunday, 11th May: Complete Beethoven Cello Sonatas, part 2

4. Monday, 12th May: Solo Piano Recital: Chopin, Schumann, Beethoven

Reservation: Email asiachart@hotmail.com or call 038 069681 office hours. Due to limited number of places payment must be received before the day.

Location: http://eelswamp.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-music-room-at-eelswamp.html 

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