Since this past Wednesday, August 14th, the Campus at Canadian Mennonite University has been resonating with the sounds of strings.
The Rosamunde Summer Music Festival and Academy is now on. Students from as young as five all the way up to 65 have been learning intensively from some of the finest string players in the country.
The Academy and Festival wrap up on Friday and all this week Rosamunde is offering performances to the public, by both students and the faculty.
Today August 20th and on Thursday, August 22, it is the faculty will take to the stage at the Laudamus Auditorium at CMU to show their stuff. Music of Biber, Bach, Ravel, and Schubert amongst others will be heard, as well a music by Canadian composers Kelly-Marie Murphy and Carmen Braden.
Rosamunde is a highlight of the summer for both faculty and students. Gwen Hoebig is the Concertmaster of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. She has been on faculty for several years, as she says, “What keeps me coming back is the students and my colleagues, just because I love working with them so much...and the students because it does give you such an energy and such a buzz. I just love working with young people. A number of my students are here, and it gives them an outlet, and a different outlook on what they are doing.”
Faculty member cellist Roman Borys goes on to say, “The young players have all sorts of energy, and you quickly forget that you are tired, you have a cup of coffee and get right in there and they are making beautiful sounds, and they are enthusiastic. It is just fun!”
The faculty performances tonight and on Thursday will highlight music that is close to the heart of many of the performers. Examples of this include Canadian composer Kelley-Marie Murphy’s piece Give me Phoenix Wings to Fly which was written for the Gryphon trio. Two members of the trio are on the Rosamunde faculty, cellist Roman Borys and violinist Annalee Patipatanakoon.
Violinist Gwen Hoebig recorded Vaughan William’s The Lark Ascending with the WSO (Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra) in a classic recording, and she will be performing this stunner of a piece on the Thursday concert with pianist Leanne Regehr Lee.
Hoebig’s stand partner at the WSO, Associate Concertmaster Karl Stobbe will be performing Eugene Ysaye’s extremely virtuosic 2nd Sonata for solo violin. Stobbe has released a remarkable recording of all Ysaye’s solo sonatas and knows these works intimately.
Other works on the faculty programs include Schubert’s dramatic and exhilarating String Quartet no 14, his Death and the Maiden Quartet. There will also be a performance of Ravel’s Duo for Violin and Cello as performed by Gryphon Trio members Annalee Patipatanakoon, and Roman Borys, as well a fantastic Canadian work written by Carmen Braden. Members of the faculty will be performing her piece The Raven Conspiracy
This week of concerts by both faculty and students of the Rosamunde String Academy is sure to be something special. It will also be a wonderful way to get a sneak peek into the future of string playing here in the province. Thanks to the zeal, enthusiasm and talent of the students and faculty, the future looks bright indeed.
For more details on Rosamunde student and faculty performances this week click here
