Jordi Savall and Carlos Núñez and Friends Thursday, May 10, 2018 at 8:00pm This is the 834thconcert in Koerner Hall
Carlos Núñez, Galician bagpipes, pastoral pipes (Baroque ancestor of the Irish Uilleann pipes) & whistles Pancho Álvarez, Viola Caipira (Brazilian guitar of Baroque origin) Xurxo Núñez, percussions, tambourins & Galician pandeiros Andrew Lawrence-King, Irish harp & psalterium Frank McGuire, bodhran Jordi Savall, treble viol (by Nicholas Chapuis, Paris c. 1750) lyra-viol (bass viol by Pelegrino Zanetti, Venice 1553) & direction
PROGRAM – CELTIC UNIVERSE
Introduction: Air for the Bagpipes
The Caledonia Set Traditional Irish: Archibald MacDonald of Keppoch Traditional Irish: The Musical Priest / Scotch Mary Captain Simon Fraser (1816 Collection): Caledonia's Wail for Niel Gow Traditional Irish: Sackow's Jig
Celtic Universe in Galicia Alalá En Querer Maruxiña Diferencias sobre la Gayta
The Lord Moira Set Dan R. MacDonald: Abergeldie Castle Strathspey Traditional Scottish: Regents Rant - Lord Moira Ryan’s Mammoth Collection (Boston, 1883): Lord Moira's Hornpipe
Flowers of Edinburg Charlie Hunter: The Hills of Lorne Reel: The Flowers of Edinburg Niel Gow: Lament for the Death of his Second Wife Fisher’s Hornpipe Tomas Anderson: Peter’s Peerie Boat
INTERMISSION
The Donegal Set Traditional Irish: The Tuttle’s Reel Traditional Scottish: Lady Mary Hay’s Scots Measure Turlough O’Carolan: Carolan’s Farewell Donegal tradition: Gusty’s Frolics Jimmy Holme’s Favorite
Carolan’s Harp Anonymous Irish: Try if it is in Tune: Feeghan Geleash Anonymous Scottish: Dumbarton’s Drums Beat Bonny Traditional Scottish: The Reel of Tullochgorum
Celtic Universe from Brittany to Basque Country Breton Gwerz: O Soñjal Kunplitzekoa Basque lullaby: Austxo txikia negarrez Biribilketa
Irish Landscapes Turlough O’Carolan: The Lamentation of Owen Roe O’Neil The Hills of Ireland The Morning Dew Apples in the Winter The Rocky Road to Dublin The Kid on the Mountain Morrison’s Jig
Celtic Universe Northern and Southern Europe Ireland, Scotland, the French Brittany, and Galicia Conception of the program: Jordi Savall & Carlos Núñez In this program, Jordi Savall wishes to celebrate once again the Celtic musical traditions by playing with musicians of great talent in tribute to the Celtic world from the north and south of Europe, especially Ireland, Scotland, French Brittany, and Galicia. With the great musician Carlos Núñez, accompanied by two magnificent musicians, Pancho Álvarez and Xurxo Núñez, Savall will establish a surprising dialogue, together with his usual accomplices: the famous harpist Andrew Lawrence- King on the Irish harp or the psaltery and Frank McGuire, one of today’s best players of bodhran. This music, full of life and happiness, is extremely modern, keeping all its great expressive and poetic power. As long as there are musicians who will make those pieces relive, they will continue to be a valuable witness of their essential function of identity and social, political, and cultural cohesion. They also become a universal message of harmony and beauty. This concert is a fervent tribute to the art of transmission thanks to the talent of all those musicians who, throughout history, have created this wonderful heritage. Here is the homage to all of them, who were able to pass this marvelous music on from generation to generation and keep it fully alive. Worldwide, Carlos Núñez is considered an outstanding musician. His charisma, energy, and pioneering spirit have made him a very popular musician of Celtic music. His style and the sound of his flute or his gaita (bagpipes) are famous everywhere. After their first collaboration a few years ago, when Carlos Núñez contacted Jordi Savall to play on his record Un Gallego en Bretaña (A Galician in Brittany), Savall invited Núñez to play on a tour throughout North America and their concerts will be unforgettable. These dialogues between Celtic historical traditions and oral heritage, between the old and the modern, between the Galician and Britton ballads, as well as Irish and Scottish folk songs (created in Europe or in America), will be the celebration of a true merger. Both musicians, Savall and Núñez, will honour Celtic music around the world, putting in the spotlight oral traditions and historical sources. Referring to the foggy northern lands of Ireland, Scotland, Brittany, and Galicia, the musical anthology of these concerts represents the atmosphere of people and community lives. It is sometimes suggested by slow and moving accents or a certain sadness and nostalgia; sometimes by the grace of traditional dances such as the frenzied jigs and reels, the joy and vitality of all these peoples. These concerts give tribute to these men and women who, since ancient times, have been able to withstand the forces of nature and all the many difficulties and tragedies of life itself, thanks to their ability to stay faithful to their origin and their culture.
Jordi Savall For more than 50 years, Jordi Savall, has rescued musical gems from the obscurity of neglect and oblivion. A tireless researcher into early music, he interprets and performs the repertory both as a gambist and a conductor. His activities as a concert performer, teacher, researcher, and creator of new musical and cultural projects have made him a leading figure in the reappraisal of historical music. Together with Montserrat Figueras, he founded the ensembles Hespèrion XXI, La Capella Reial de Catalunya, and Le Concert des Nations. Savall has recorded and released more than 230 discs covering the Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, and Classical music repertories, with a special focus on the Hispanic and Mediterranean musical heritage, receiving many awards and distinctions such as the Midem Classical Award, the International Classical Music Award, and the Grammy Award. Guest artists apparing with his ensembles include Arab, Israeli, Turkish, Greek, Armenian, Afghan, Mexican, and North American musicians. In 2008, he was appointed European Union Ambassador for intercultural dialogue and, together with Montserrat Figueras, was named “Artist for Peace” under the UNESCO “Good Will Ambassadors” program. Savall’s prolific musical career has brought him the highest national and international distinctions, including honorary doctorates from the Universities of Evora, Barcelona, Louvain, and Basel; the order of Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur (France), the Praetorius Music Prize awarded by the Ministry of Culture and Science of Lower Saxony, the Gold Medal of the Generalitat of Catalonia, and the Léonie Sonning Prize, which is considered the Nobel prize of the music world.
Carlos Núñez Carlos Núñez is one of the world’s top bagpipers and an internationally acclaimed headliner on the Celtic/world music scene. As a teenager, he was discovered by Irish legends The Chieftains in his native Galicia, the Celtic region in north-west Spain. He even became an honorary member of the band, and they recorded a Grammy Award-winning album together, Santiago. Sony Music has released his 10 albums to date, which have sold one million copies since his debut in 1996, with several gaining Platinum and Gold status, and received multiple Latin Grammy nominations. The albums feature a wide variety of artists such as The Chieftains, Ry Cooder, Jackson Browne, and many more. Carlos Núñez’s open view of Celtic music includes a historical perspective. In his third album he invited his long-time friend, Jordi Savall, to perform with him in a Breton Baroque piece. Although this is the first Savall tour with Núñez, both have performed together in Europe on special occasions, most recently in Galicia’s Santiago de Compostela Cathedral, leading a 24-piece Medieval orchestra and playing repertoire from the Way to Santiago pilgrimage. They were joined by Hespèrion XXI, as well as folk musicians or a Fado singer, heirs of a Galician-Portuguese Medieval Cantigas tradition. Carlos Núñez is also classically trained on the recorder and often plays with orchestras around the world. He has performed at Carnegie Hall, Boston Symphony Hall, Musikverein in Vienna, and the Royal Albert Hall in London.