Ben Zander is a visionary, playing the Dvorak cello concerto with him was like hearing it for the first time.” Yo-Yo Ma “These fortunate young people will experience an intense musical and emotional engagement, which will remain with them for a lifetime.” Sir Simon Rattle (June 2012) The Conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra Benjamin Zander ‘The Art of Possibility’ Workshops in the interpretation and performance of music for musicians and listeners Sunday 12th to Thursday 16th August 2012 Sunday 12th August 3pm - introduction & tea party Monday 13th to Wednesday 15th 10am to 5pm each day Thursday 16th August 10am to 1pm King's Hall, Newcastle University, Armstrong Building Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU For further information and to register: [email protected] www.avisonensemble.com Tel: 0191 226 0799 “What we play is life” Louis Armstrong Music workshops with Benjamin Zander A series of fascinating and enlightening workshops illustrating the ‘hidden language’ of music and the impact of its use on both performers and listeners Interpretation: Finding the key • Impulses • Direction • What belongs to what? • Tempo • Rubato • The Shenker Principle • Character • Full self expression • Revealing the human soul Discover what makes a masterful performance Understand what makes a performance BORING! (and how to avoid it!) Whether you are a player, student or listener – come and discover new possibilities in music for yourself • Allow music to powerfully penetrate your life • Understand how music works; listen to it with new ears • Learn the relationship of music to life These workshops are informative, entertaining and can be powerfully moving experiences for both audience and performers alike Benjamin Zander is the conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra. Born in London into a musical family, he became a protegé of Benjamin Britten and a student of Imogen Holst. He studied with the great Spanish cellist, Gaspar Cassado, later becoming his teaching assistant before becoming a professor at the New England Conservatory of Music. Ben has collaborated in performances with many of the world’s greatest musicians, among them Rostropovich, Oscar Shumsky, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Martha Argerich, Yo-Yo Ma, and Jaqueline du Pré. He has conducted international tours to Russia, Israel, Europe, the Far East and South America. He is currently recording the complete symphonies of Mahler with the Philharmonia Orchestra. Previous course press reviews: Spellbound by Master Musician – Northern Echo Benjamin Zander does not believe in using just words to explain the finer points of his own unique approach to music. With boundless energy and enthusiasm, he jumps, waves his arms about and keeps up a commentary that inspires pupils at his masterclasses with the same vigour. One of the world’s leading musicians and conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, Mr Zander’s approach is based on showing people a new way of expressing or experiencing music. “They come in with a certain way of playing, and my job is to point them in the direction of new possibilities, to make them aware of what the music is really about,” he said. In his classes, he takes musicians through a piece, showing that technical competence is not the only important ingredient – expression and interpretation can produce a performance that keeps the audience spellbound. Mr Zander is regarded as one of the most exciting interpreters of music today. He has worked with many of the world’s leading musicians and has been a professor at the New England Conservatory of Music, Boston, USA. The classes are designed not just for the benefit of musicians, but for observers, who are invited to watch Mr Zander at work. The Audience moved to tears several times – Stage Pass Magazine Zander is a charismatic man who entrances musicians and non musicians alike, bringing about some stunning transformations, partly through his insights into the composer, but mainly through the way he helped the performers work through their inhibitions. With his guidance they moved their focus away from technique and themselves, making more of communicating the emotional content of the music. His belief is that rather than being the fault of the music, it is mundane performances, (often the fault of conductors), that are ultimately responsible for classical music of being inaccessible. A good concert can be an incredibly moving event, as the masterclasses constantly revealed, the audience being moved to tears several times. .