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THE FOUNDATION BROUGHT THE BEST BAGPIPE PLAYERS IN THE WORLD TOGETHER AS PART OF THE OPENING OF THE XIII INTERNATIONAL MUSIC SCHOOL SUMMER COURSES
Conference of the best bagpipers
23/7/2008
Bagpipers from five different countries took part in a conference and concert on 21st and 22nd July.
A representation of the best bagpipers in the world met in Oviedo on 21st and 22nd July as part of the opening of the XIII Prince of Asturias Foundation International Music School Summer Courses.
The bagpipes, one of the most widespread and long-established folk music instruments in the world occupied centre stage in this international gathering which consisted fundamentally of two activities: a conference and a concert.
The following musicians visited Asturias as exponents of the main types of universal bagpipes: Fred Morrison (Highland and Border pipes, Scotland); Jarlath Henderson (Uilleann pipes, Ireland); Jurak Dufek (gaida, Slovakia), who also played the fujara, a traditional shepherd´s whistle; Anxo Lorenzo (gaita gallega, Spain) and Xuacu Amieva (gaita asturiana, Spain). The concert also featured the soloist, Marie Le Cam (Biniou Koz and Binou Braz pipes, France), accompanied by the French Air Force and Navy Band, the Bagdad de Lann-Bihoué, which she conducts.
A conference was held the day before the concert. These great figures of bagpipe music each described their respective instruments, after which they offered a brief musical performance. The conference was chaired by Xuacu Amieva, professor of Asturian Bagpipes and Folk Music Ensemble at the International Music School. The conference took place at 8pm on Monday, 21st July, in the Chamber Music Hall at the Prince Felipe Auditorium in Oviedo.
In addition to this, a concert was held on Tuesday, 22nd July, in which eight of the most interesting types of bagpipe styles from the six most representative countries came together. The conference was free to the public and took place at 8pm at the Prince Felipe Auditorium in Oviedo.
Summer Courses
The XIII Summer School will be held at the "Eduardo Martínez Torner" Advanced Conservatory of Music and at the Prince Felipe Auditorium, both in Oviedo, from 22nd July to 2nd August. Two hundred and sixty students, from Austria, Cuba, Chile, France, Germany, Israel, Mexico, Russia, the UK, Venezuela and Spain, have already enrolled since 9th May. In addition, the School´s website has received over 48,000 visits from thirty-five different countries.
As a novelty this year, the renowned musician, Steve Turre, who teaches at the Juilliard School in New York, one of the most prestigious music teaching centres worldwide, is to give Jazz Ensemble classes at the XIII Summer Courses, as part of the cultural exchange started up between the two institutions.
©Copyright 2008 Prince of Asturias Foundation