Since storytelling is such a vast canvas from which composers often source and find their inspiration, including early times long before the terminology “programme music” became a musical catchword without boundaries in the 19th century, blogger PAUL BOEKKOOI thought of sharing a timeless anonymous story created with the help of his thumb. It somehow connects […]
The starting blocks of the 2017 Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival are already well beyond us in this, the 14th edition of an annual event. It is here where music education, performance and listening are the core dynamics – keeping hundreds of us for a period of ten days fully engrossed in this, the most […]
Page turning is a very necessary profession and especially so when chamber music is performed. PAUL BOEKKOOI herewith provides a partly serious, but as often also a tongue-in-cheek historical perspective of what can or often does go wrong on stage… “As the closing strains began I saw Liszt’s countenance assume that agony of expression, mingled […]
Mendelssohn’s Octet Op. 20 is widely regarded as his finest piece of chamber music; not only that, but it is regarded by musicians and music lovers around the world as one of the finest pieces of chamber music ever written. Why this composition from the pen of a 16-year-old boy is so great is perhaps […]
The Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival is a unique event where as if by magic the Konservatorium building is possessed by musical spirits drawing in students, artists and audience alike. Patrons come from far and wide to hear Mozart, Mendelssohn and Vivaldi alongside Bridge, Piazzolla and Bernofsky. But even when something like the well-known Mozart […]
The DECODA ensemble is the affiliate Ensemble of Carnegie Hall in New York City. A quick visit to their website will reveal that this is not just another excellent performing ensemble, but a group with a far more profound mission and vision. DECODA creates and advocates for meaningful musical experiences that are available to anyone, […]
The razzmatazz of the SICMF evening concerts in the Endler hall may well transport a listener to the likes of the Wigmore or Carnegie halls, but when the rapturous applause bursts forth before the final chord is even played, one might have to rethink this – Wembley stadium perhaps? Wait till the packed house streams […]
The 14th Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival will run from 30 June to 9 July at the Stellenbosch Konservatorium. The Konservatorium is the home of the Department of Music at Stellenbosch University and the SICMF is surely one of its most illustrious projects – a project of hope, world-class education and performance, and diversity. From […]
The Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival (SICMF) has become one of the highlights on the Western Cape live classical music calendar. It started in 2004 and has grown ever since, putting on a ten-day festival of international repute each year in July. This year, the 14th SICMF is expected to draw over 300 students. The […]
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