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LECTURE SERIES -- SIERRA NEVADA CLASSICAL
GUITAR FESTIVAL 2008
Jan de Kloe,
Classical Guitarist and Scholar
Lecture:
"Symbolism in the Bach Chaconne"
Summary
While it is known that
in Bach’s time composers and scientists included encrypted messages in
their works, Bach was an absolute master at this technique. When analyzing
the famous Chaconne from the d minor sonata BWV1004 for violin which is
also part of the guitarist’s standard repertoire, we discover the meaning
of this tombeau written at the occasion of the death of his first wife
with references to their children and containing many other hidden
meanings. This lecture goes over the beginning of the
composition to explain the compositional process and we will understand
why the German scientist Leibniz called music "the secret calculations of
the mind."
Bio:
Jan de Kloe adopted
Belgium as his home country after a youth in The Netherlands. He studied
at Conservatoires of Brussels and Liège and performed as a soloist in
various European countries and the USA. He studied guitar in summer
courses with Julian Bream, Turibio Santos and Robert Horna. He is a
regular contributor to guitar magazines and published about Juan Bermudo,
Frank Martin, François de Fossa, Agustín Barrios, Oscar Esplá, and Isaac
Albéniz. His editions contain Mazurkas by Chopin, the violin concerto and
songs by Fernando Sor, duets by Haydn/de Fossa and a Sonata by Weiss. For
the Guitar Foundation of America, Jan lectured on medical issues for
musicians (New Orleans), newly discovered works by De Fossa (Buffalo), he
gave a workshop on cross-string ornamentation (Oberlin), and 'Oscar Esplá
and the guitar' (Los Angeles). He twice received the American Music
Publishers Association's "Paul Revere" Award for Graphic Excellence in
Music Engraving.
Dr. Thomas
Kies, Anthropology Instructor – Truckee Meadows Community
College
Lecture:
"Persisting Traditions from Colonial Encounters to Globalized
Economies: A Case Study of the Luthiers of Paracho, Mexico"
Summary:
This lecture will include photos and insights into the guitar
building culture and its effects on society in Paracho, Mexico. A question
and answer session will follow.
Bio:
Thomas
J. Kies received his doctoral degree in anthropology from the University
of New Mexico (2006). His present research focuses on handcrafting guitar
artisans in Paracho, Mexico. Thomas is currently an Instructor of
Anthropology at Truckee Meadows Community College in Reno,
Nevada.
Benz Tschannen, Luthier, Fallon,
Nevada
Lecture:
"How To
Select A Classical Guitar"
Summary:
This lecture will include discussion of desirable
characteristics of classical guitars. There will be a sample "blind"
listening session where attendees can listen to different types of
guitars without viewing them. There will be a discussion of
customization options available when custom ordering a guitar or adding on
to an existing guitar. An
interactive session will include wood samples, work in progress and demonstrations of
previous work.
Bio
:
Born in Switzerland in 1949, Benz first
learned the arts of how to use hand tools, chip carving, and woodturning
as a young boy from his father.
The forest behind the house where he grew up provided him with
Hazelnut, Cherry, Linden, and Maple woods for his many boyhood building
and carving projects. To this
day Benz relishes in working with many woods for their acoustic and visual
appeal in his guitars.
Benz earned his masters in Music at the
Conservatory in Bern, Switzerland in 1973. He taught classical guitar at
Music Schools and Teacher College for five years. He then moved to the United States
where his Ramirez guitar was stolen.
This event moved him in the direction of his second career as a
custom woodworker building fine furniture and cabinets. He has been called "a genius with wood".
Because of his interest in both
disciplines, Benz began putting his two areas of expertise together. In 1981 he started his first
instrument as a personal project.
By 2004 he became a full time luthier.
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Nevada Guitar Society Home Page
SIERRA
NEVADA GUITAR SOCIETY Telephone: (775) 321-8584
Larry Aynesmith,
Founder, Sierra Nevada Guitar Society (A Non-Profit
Corporation)
Email: sierraguitar@yahoo.com
Web:www.sierraguitar.org
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