This month, members of the BCGS were treated to a concert by rising star Luke Bartlett, whom we regard very much as one of our own. Luke has been attending the BCGS regularly since the age of 14 and we have watched him flourish and his hairstyles changing from one visit to the next. He is approaching his Finals Performance at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff, was selected as an IGF Young Artist 2024, is a Julian Bream Scholar and has recently won a prize for Voice and Guitar at RWCMD. The BCGS has provided Luke with a small scholarship towards his studies at University and he has richly rewarded us with his ongoing support for the society and to witness his considerably talent unfolding.

It was clear form the outset that he had put considerable thought into his concert. In Fantasia by Alonso Mudarra, Luke used Segovia-like fingering to achieve warmer tones, with beautiful campanella over-ringing to achieve Mudarra’s aim of imitating “the harp playing of Ludovico.” He impressed in the Scarlatti Sonata K.208 with his cross-string trills and is ornamentation. His stand-out piece was the Fantasia-Sonata, Op. A-22 which was written for Andres Segovia by Catalan composer Joan Manen, a rarely performed piece. Luke achieved many rich textures in this dramatic piece, bringing out all of the voices. It had a fast section, lots of slurs and rasgueados, percussive and complex rhythms and ended with a slow soulful section. His concentration did not falter despite the loud ticking of the wall clock and a member of the audience knocking over a water bottle. The Sarabande for Guitar, written by Francis Poulenc for Ida Presti, was impressionistic and played with haunting delicate tones and fading into silence at the end. This was followed by Tango de la Casada Infiel (Homenage a Garcia Lorca) by Vicente Asenscio. Luke mastered the complexities of this discordant and sad piece with ease and made it sound beautiful. Luke ended the concert with his own arrangement of two rarely heard pieces from Herbert Howell’s Lambert’s Clavichord: I. Lambert’s Fireside and V. Sargent’s Fantastic Sprite. Luke elegantly caught the intended renaissance flavour, the first piece slow and reminiscent of Dowland, the second much faster with a slightly Celtic influence.

Luke rewarded the audience with a beautiful rendition of Heitor Villa-Lobos’s Prelude No. 3 as his encore. All pieces were played on Luke’s Kim Lassarangue guitar with impressive volume and he was able to demonstrate the full dynamic range of this instrument.

The audience thoroughly enjoyed this high-quality performance and wish Luke well in his Finals Performance, the Sir Ian Stoutzker Prize Final and of course the rest of his career.

Programme

Susani opened the programme with Sor’s well-known single-movement Sonata Op. 15. Here he displayed brilliant control, with effortless, nimble runs, wonderful tension and passion in the development, and tasteful late-classical humour in this refined performance.

Next, we heard Susani’s own composition Fantasia in Forma Lirica (Omaggio a Pasolini), commissioned in honour of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Pier Paolo Pasolini, a famous Italian intellectual and poet. The work is inspired by Pasolini’s lyrical poem Poesia in forma rosa. The performance’s delicate opening harmonics soared up into the church, and Susani used the sustained acoustic of the venue to great effect throughout, with powerful rasgueados at the climax.

This was followed by a piece of profoundly different character: Marek Pasieczny’s Tate Sonata. Susani commissioned this work from Pasieczny after the two met in Poland in 2016, and the four movements are based on paintings and installations in the Tate Modern. In the first movement, Ad un tratto (“suddenly, without warning”), Susani captured the eerie atmosphere of the painting which inspired the movement, representing the moment the viewer perceives the disturbed, unsettling face of the subject. In Furioso (inspired by a painting with groups of coloured horizontal lines with sudden shifts), Susani used the colours of the guitar to excellent effect, guiding the imagination through a convincing auditory description of the painting. Ostinato is inspired by a visual installation in which the light in a room refracts through a slowly a rotating purple and yellow glass disc, which translates in the work into the sound of an insistent, constant open B string grounding a kaleidoscope of surrounding notes. The last movement,Variations and finale was inspired by a large-scale Jackson Pollock work. Vigorous splashes are represented by Bartok pizzicatos, with streaks of rasgueados, spatters of high bright notes and the plinks of strings played to the left of the fingers on the fingerboard, swirls of bass, and clusters of runs mimicking drips running down the canvas. Susani’s almost synaesthetic performance transported the listener along this rich visual experience.

After an interval, we heard Susani’s own arrangement of a short Simple Fugue in D Major by Handel – perhaps simple on the original organ, but less so on the guitar! Susani’s arrangement and performance captured the playful nature of the piece, with clear voice separation and skilful damping of strings allowing the polyphony to shine through.

Next, Susani played another of his compositions: Dialogo (Omaggio a Lauro), which was commissioned during the pandemic lockdowns for a documentary celebrating the influential Venezuelan guitarist composer Antonio Lauro. Susani uses the notes in the open, re-entrant a d f# b tuning of the Venezuelan cuatro (which Lauro played) as a recurrent unifying device. The work’s complicated structure is broadly divided into contiguous prelude, interlude and postlude sections, and is filled with nods to the Venezuelan syncopated rhythms that characterise Lauro’s famous parlour-style waltzes.

Dialogo was followed by the UK Premiere of Pierrot, or Harlequin? by Stephen Goss (Susani’s composition teacher), which Susani commissioned for the 2023 Homenaje guitar festival that he organises in his home town of Padova in Italy. The thematic material is based on the interactions of the stock characters from Venetian commedia dell’arte: Harlequin (the clever, cocky trickster) and Pierrot (his sensible, staid counterpart) compete for the affections of the flirtatious, fickle Columbine. Goss gives each character their own distinctive motif, and interleaves these throughout the piece, allowing the listener to follow the comedy as it unfolds “on stage”. Which character wins the heart of Columbine (or perhaps neither?) is left to the performer on the night in 3 possible endings. After a delightful back and forth, Pierrot won the day for us.

Susani closed the programme with his work The Blue Madeleine, dedicated to David Russell. Familiar Dreams – Arioso with its overlapping overringing harmonics and repeating circular patterns, was followed by an evocative Aria. The concert finished with the joyful last movement Cypresses, where burbling arpeggios and gusting runs remind us of wind through the trees.

This was a wonderful concert with a focus on the contemporary, inviting us to use our hearing to see and feel as well as listen. Giacomo Susani’s masterful playing made inventive use of all the guitar’s many colour devices and used the full dynamic range of the instrument to bring across these challenging works to the audience.

It was hard to believe that they have only been performing together as a duo for only a few years. Their beautifully crafted phrasing and understanding of each others playing produced seamless performances of the various works.
Their programme of compositions by Shingo Fuji (Rhapsody Japan), Pierre Petit (Toccata), Roland Dyens (Comme des grands), Isaac Albeniz (Evocacion & Cordoba) and Mario Gangi (Suite Italiana) was chosen to illustrate their concept of popular sources merging into the classical musical language.

The duo exhibited a beauty of sound and richness of tone while at the same time emphasising the phrasing and depth of polyphony. This together with their dynamic power created a perfect fusion of the two guitars.

They completed their generous programme to much acclaim with an exquisite performance of Stanley Myers Cavatina.

Better call duo – Classic guitar
Meaningful Pop on Spotify

Guitar Foundation of America

Date: 17 – 22 June 2024

Website: 2024 Convention & Competitions (guitarfoundation.org)

The Guitar Foundation of America is a course and a huge convention and will take place on 17 – 22 June 2024.  It is sited peripatetically around the USA (last year New York) and this year it is in Fullerton, LA.  If you really want a big event with 4 concerts a day, lectures and multiple performance competitions then this is the event for you.  Steve Goss will also be running an academic programme in parallel. 

Royal Greenwich Guitar Festival

Date: 8 – 10 July 2024

Website: ROYAL GREENWICH GUITAR FESTIVAL

This course runs at Greenwich (now the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance) London, on 8 – 10 July 2024.  You will be able to see the famous chapel and painted hall.  I had the privilege of living there for a while many years ago (when it was a Naval college), on the edge of the Thames and dining in the painted hall every day.  You will then also have London if you extend your stay.

Guitare en France

Date: 20-27 July – 2024

Website: Home | Guitare En France (guitarenfrance.org)

 ‘Guitare en France’ (formerly held in Ligoure) takes place in the Château de Celon (XVe siecle), near Argenton-sur-Creuse, a picturesque town named ‘la Venise du  Berry’. A gem of a venue in a peaceful environment surrounded by silence, make it an ideal place for an intensive yet convivial course.

Our mission is to provide an all-round guitar experience to a limited number of guitarists of all levels (Grade 5 and above) and to foster artistic  growth and creativity  in a non competitive environment.

Run by Eleftheria Kotzia www.eleftheria.info 

Ham Farm Festival

Date: 26-28 July

Website: HAM FARM FESTIVAL – Home

Not a course, but a festival of music, run and organised by Francisco and Emily in Bristol. Well worth attending and WAGO will be playing on one of the days.

Ammerdown

Date: 11-17 August 2024

Website:    Guitar Summer School – Guitar Summer School

This is the replacement venue for the Dillington Summer School which will now take place at Ammerdown Retreat Centre – Sanctuary of Peace in Somerset (near Bath).  Chris Stell, Mark Eden and Debbie Adamson-Brattland are the tutors.  Due to the change in venue this year, the dates of this course unfortunately clashes with the IGF Bath Summer School.

IGF Bath Summer School

Date: 13 – 17 August

Website: Bath Summer School 2024 Classical – International Guitar Foundation & Festivals (igf.org.uk)

This course runs at Bath Spa University Campus and is led by BCGS’s musical director, Francisco, so well worth attending.

This year’s tutors include Irina Kulikova, Judicaël Perroy, Laura Snowden, Sam Brown (Lute), Declan Zapala, Francisco Correa, Tom Kerstens and Stephen Goss.

There’s also a classical singing track, and the source runs the same time as the Popular styles (Blues, Rock, Folk etc.) so there’s opportunity to interact with musicians from other genres.

West Dean

Date: 17 – 22 August

Website: Classical Guitar Festival | West Dean

This course runs at West Dean College (near Chichester).  Our BCGS Patron Berta Rojas will be a tutor on the course together with Andrew Gough (Course director), Gerald Garcia, Alison Bendy and others.  This course has an open day on Sunday 18 Aug to which anyone can attend for a small fee. Why not run straight from Ammerdown or the IGF into a week at West Dean?

Classical Guitar Masterclass by Craig Ogden

Date: Fri 30th Aug – Sun 1st Sept

Website: For now, see the brochure at https://www.hawkwoodcollege.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2024-Brochure-Web.pdf pp. 26-27

An opportunity to study with one of the best classical guitarists of our
generation. Craig Ogden will give expert insight on effective practice strategies. There will be ensemble work, concerts and tutorials.

Cawsand

Date: 6 – 8 September

Websiite: Cawsand Bay Guitarfest 2024

This course is run by Alison Smith and has Craig Ogden and the Vida Quartet as concerts and tutors. This will run 6 – 8 Sep 2024 in the beautiful Cornish coastal town of Cawsand and Kingsand.

Guitars by the Sea

Date: 18 – 20 October 2024

Website: https://www.brightonguitargroup.co.uk/gbts

Location: Brighton, UK

We are very pleased to announce that Mark Eden, well-known from the internationally recognised Eden-Stell guitar duo, will be leading the ensemble tutoring this year at GBTS 3.Young emerging artist Kia Robeson will give an evening recital this year, and also contribute to the ensemble tutoring during the course.

Ullapool Guitar Festival

Date: 4 – 6 October 2024

Website: ullapoolguitarfestival.com

Location: Ullapool, UK

Hillscourt Guitar Weekend Break

Date: 15 – 17 November 2024

Contact Raymond Burley at raymond3325@gmail.com

Location: Rednal, UK

The themes are:

• March: Classical and Early Romantic Etude. Play an Etude by a composer like Sor, Carcassi, Carulli, Giuliani, Aguado, Diabelli, Regondi… if it says study, estudio or etude, play it!  
• April: A piece by a British Composer (bonus points if it’s Steve Goss!)
• May: Latin America  
• June: A modern etude (20th or 21st century). Think Villa-Lobos, Brouwer, Garcia, Nuttall…  
• August: “The Rest of the World” Showcase. We hear so much music from West European, North American, and Latin American composers. So this month, play something from Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Oceania, Polynesia, anywhere but the usuals!
• September: 21st century composition
• October: Music from Spain 
• November: Baroque Night

Anthony Mulholland
Meditation from Thais – J Massenet (arr. B Mermikides)

Steve Moran
Suite Antigua – B. Cataluyud

Robert Gough
The Frog Galliard – John Dowland

WAGO
Hiking Boot Blues – Ivan Andrews

Francisco Correa
Pasillo Uno – Daniel Saboya

Tony Lewis and Tim Rigley
Après Un Reve – G. Fauré (arr. Steve Erquiaga)
Bajo La Palmera – Isaac Albeniz
Shenandoah – Trad. (arr. Duo Canella Dubes)

INTERVAL

Kurt Tipler
The Fair-Haired Boy – Trad. (arr. David Russell)
Three Little Drummers – Trad. (arr. David Russell)

The Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond – Murray Neil (arr. David Russell)

Alan Montague
Manzanares del Real – Torroba

Paul Bradshaw
Julia Florida – A. Barrios Mangore

Thorben Louw
Prelude and Gavotte en Rondeau from the Lute Suite in E Major BWV 1006a – J.S. Bach

BCGS Ensemble
The Earl of Essex, His Galliard – J. Dowland (arr. H. James)
Adagio from Folguedo – Celso Machado
Cancion – Manuel de Falla (arr. Julian Masters)

Among the sizeable crowd that filed into the Redmaids’ Performing Arts Centre on a recent November evening, one would imagine that there was no shortage of knowledge and experience of the classical guitar. However, it’s unlikely that any had seen anything quite like the performance to which Laura Snowden treated us.

A rapidly rising figure in the six-string world, Snowden mixes tradition with daring innovation. Her programme for BCGS included some of the most renowned and challenging repertoire for our instrument, opening with none other than Sor’s Introduction and Variations on a Theme by Mozart before taking on the entirety of Villa-Lobos’ Five Preludes. These were exquisitely played, her precision and range of timbres a real treat for the audience.

She then showed her proficiency as a composer and arranger, and how freely she moves in and out of convention. It may have come as news to many present that she is a fine vocalist as well as a fantastic guitarist, and in pieces such as her own The Changing Sky she makes use of her voice as a means of accompanying the guitar-playing – it’s rare in any genre to see it done that way around! Another composition The Watering Can employs poetry and spoken word, while her arrangement of the well-known Irish song Carrickfergus begins with a beautiful vocal rendition of the opening verse before evolving into a complex and sophisticated guitar piece.

Her passion for Celtic folk music was prominent throughout the second half of the concert, and she spoke about how she had performed in this style separately to her classical work before later seeking to bring them together. Other arrangements in this style included The Parting Glass and Robert Burns’ Breton Fantasy on Ye Jacobites.

Two particularly touching inclusions were her Song for Maria, a piece written by Snowden in dedication to her younger sister, and Home, a composition inspired by the ambience of her old teacher’s house. This particular teacher was none other than the late great Julian Bream, so it is entirely fitting that his legacy continues to be honoured in the wonderful playing and compositions of his student.

Snowden has a relaxed and engaging manner on stage, and converses with the audience with genuine warmth and humour. She thanked the audience very profoundly for their reception, complimenting them on their positive energy, and even made the effort to thank several concert volunteers by first name – a touch of class which not every concert performer of her calibre might show.

The concert was superbly bookended with classical guitar staples, the first half ending with Mertz’s Tarantelle and Barrios’ Vals Op. 8 No. 4 appearing near the end of the night. All in all, it was a superb evening’s entertainment and BCGS can only thank Laura Snowden for her unique and mesmerising performance. We would also like to thank Redmaids’ for hosting, and most importantly all those who came out that night to attend. We hope to see you at future events!

Review by Ciarán Elster

The BCGS is proud to sponsor Luke Bartlett in his studies in Guitar at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama under Helen Sanderson. He is currently finishing his second year and is visiting us this evening to present and share the music he has been working on.

The first piece, Little Snow, by composer Angel Lam, was commissioned by the Guitar Foundation of America in 2021. Luke contrasted the quietly melodic first section nicely with the tense and surprising second section, showing great control of harmonics, string bends and tremolo. Next, Daniel Bacheler’s renaissance arrangement of Monsieur’s Almaine requires control of a different kind, with stately lute quality and a clear tone that Luke provided admirably.

Farewell to Stromness from Peter Maxwell Davies’ Yellow Cake Revue is well known to many. Fewer realise how hard the piece, originally for piano, is to play on the guitar. Again, Luke showed a careful understanding of a modern Scots lament. The next piece, Folia de España in Giuliani’s theme and variations, was a step back in time, and unfamiliar to many present. A wonderful piece with high technical demands needing all the player’s attention.

Luke ended with Six Balkan Miniatures by Serbian-born composer and classical guitarist Dušan Bogdanović. This collection was a delightful eye-opener for us, a collection of dances and songs full of energy, regional idiom and lyricism, foregrounding the development in Luke’s technique.

Luke first came to the Society aged fourteen. The progress he has made as a musician and a stage presence, is as impressive as it is delightful. Congratulations Luke, and thank you for an evening of such variety and musicianship.

Programme

Little Snow                                                                                     Angel Lam (1978 – )        

Monsieur’s Almaine                                                                    Daniel Bacheler (1572 – 1619)

Farewell to Stromness                                                                Peter Maxwell Davies (1934 – 2016)

Six Variations sur les Folies d’Espagne, Op. 45                     Mauro Giuliani (1781 – 1829)      

Six Balkan Miniatures                                                                 Dušan Bogdanovi (1955 – )

1. Jutarnje Kolo (Morning Dance)
2. Žalopojka (Lament)
3. Vranjanka
4. Makedonsko Kolo (Macedonian Dance)
5. Široko (Wide Song)
6. Sitni Vez (Tiny-knit Dance)

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