Projekt: EXPO - Tour

EXPO 2000 - Hannover

with Olaf Van Gonnissen and the ensemble "Sonantas Habaneras" (conductor: Dr. Jesús Ortega) from Havanna / Cuba

As one of the selected ensembles of the country of Baden - Wuerttemberg the JGO had been invited to play at the EXPO 2000 together with a foreign ensemble from abroad. Our foreign guest was the ensemble "SONANTAS HABANERAS" from Havanna / Cuba (conductor: Dr. Jesús Ortega). They played a programm with latin-amerikan guitarmusic. The contact to Cuba reaches back to the collaboration of the JGO with Leo Brouwer, who did a workshop with broadcast- and TV - recordings in1998.

The concept of the EXPO - concerts...

The international encounter of young musicians from Germany with guests from all countries of the earth as well as the common making music on the EXPO 2000 stands in the center of the Jugendensemble-Treffens, one of the main focuses of the music-program on the world's fair, that was developed together with the German music-council . German ensembles first invite their foreign partner-ensemble to their hometown where both work for a program in a rehearse-phase, with which then they will appear on the world's fair in the daily Flaneur - and if necessary also evening-concerts. It is ensembles of any kind that participate in that program, however they have in common that they all have already prooved their high level through competition-successes and extensive concert-experience.

EXPO - Tour: Around the date at the EXPO there were further concerts in diffrent German cities: Fulda 13.06. (city of Fulda / Michael Quell), Kassel 14.06. ( music - academy / Michael Tröster), Bielefeld (Bielefelder Gitarrenforum / Hans Irmer) and Münster 20.06. (conservatory / Reinbert Evers)

SONANTAS HABANERAS

SONANTAS HABANERAS was established 1995 of his director Jesús Ortega. In the beginning the members of the ensemble were guitar - students of the Instituto superior de Arte in Havanna, today, the 15 players are guitar-teachers and professional players mainly. Some of the younger ones have achieved prices in national and international competitions. Partially, also smaller casts, duets, trios, quartets form from the ensemble.  As the entire group Sonantas Habaneras kicks in appearance on two sorts of types: Conjunto de Guitarras is when only regular guitars are used  and they call themselves Orquesta de Guitarras when they also play requintos and bass guitars.  The flexibility in the cast makes possible a big variety of programs.

The repertoire consists of works of Vivaldi, Bach, Mozart, Sor, Villa-Lobos, Debussy, Turina, Rodrigo and others. A main focus lies with the authentic Cuban music of Brouwer, Gramatges, Lecuona...

Repertoire: Sonantas Habaneras

SONANTAS HABANERAS appeared in numerous concerts in Havanna and in  the major Cuban festivals, for example the   "Festival Internacional de Guitarra de la Habana ", the " La Fiesta de la Joven Guitarra de Camagüey ", the " Festival Internacional de Música Contemporanea de la Habana "

JESÚS ORTEGA

(J. Ortega und H. Oesterreich)

The 1935 in Havanna born guitarist, composer, conductor, musicologists and teachers is the most important guitarist - musician of his country aside from Leo Brouwer. He studied guitar with Isaac Nicola and Leo Brouwer at the Instituto superior de Arte.  An uninterrupted guitaristic activity shapes his biografy since 1985.  He played solorecitals, chamber-music and the most important guitar-concerts with orchestra in international concert-halls, (Concertgebouw/Amsterdam, Kennedy Center/Washington, Metropolitan Opera House/NY among others), additionaly  to the traditional repertoire, he dedicates extensively to the Latin American, predominantly the Cuban music,. CD -, television - and radio-recordings round up the immense concert-activity.

Today, Ortega teaches at the same institute where he had studied, it now carries the name " Conservatorio Amadeo Roldán".  Numerous of his students could achieve prices on international competitions. He also reformed and  reorganized the guitar curriculum at the conservatory, established a New Music - department, he cooperates with the most important cultural institutions of his country, he is in demand as members of juries , he publishes renaissance – lute-music and he is composing, too.

Since 1995, he is director of the  ensemble Sonantas Habaneras.

Olaf Van Gonnissen

The guitarist Olaf Van Gonnissen (Frankfurter Gitarrenduo, guitar - professor in Hamburg) was the soloist in an arrangement of Rodrigos "Fantasia Para Un Gentilhombre" for guitarorchestra.

born 1954, Olaf Van Gonnissen took violiv - lessons already at the age of four, before he took up the guitar at eight. From 1970 to 1975, he studied guitar as scholarship holder of the German study-foundation at the college for music and performing arts in Frankfurt with Professor Heinz Teuchert, examination for guitar - teacher and artistic maturity-examination.

Already during the studies, Olaf van Gonnissen established the Frankfurt guitar-duet with Michael Teuchert, that performed in numerous European countries, in India, Pakistan and Africa. Tey recorded 7 CDs besides numerous radio-productions.

His pedagogic activities began 1974 teaching guitar at the academy for music in Darmstadt, where he has also has been lecturer for guitar-methodology since 1978. Since 1977, he also teaches at the conservatory in Frankfurt and since 1999 he is professor at the conservatory in Hamburg. He led chamber-music - and master-courses besides that and he lectures as well as performs old music, modern music and guitar-methodology.

Beside his solo-concerts, particularly with contemporary music, but also on the historic instruments lutes, Vihuela and baroque-guitar, he is also member of the Mutare Ensemble Frankfurt.

Repertoire - JGO:

Concerts and Tour - Schedule:

10.06.Arrival of "Sonantas Habaneras" at Frankfurt - airport

12.06. Concert of "Sonantas Habaneras" in Weinheim

Ein Klang aus dem Innersten ihrer Seele The guitarists of "Sonantas Habaneras" bewitched the public with fullness of moods, colors and sensations Whoever had expected flower - clothed Caribbeans was surprised by classical refinement and musical sensitivity made of the inside of sound. The 14 professional Cuban guitarists of the " Sonantas Habaneras " under the management of Dr. Jesús Ortega, that gave a guest performance on invitation of the "Youth-guitar-orchestra of Baden-Württemberg" and the "music-workshop Susan Groffmann" on Pentecost-Monday in the hall of the Markus- church, made music with disciplined eye-language in admirably happy agreement and joy at their full of internal-ness produced sounds. (Weinheimer Nachrichten)

13.06. Concert in Fulda (organized by the city of Fulda)

14.06. Concert in Kassel (organized by Musikakademie Kassel and Michael Troester)

15. 06. Arrival in Hannover

16.06. Concerts (open air) and sightseeing at the EXPO

Sonantas Habaneras: spontaneous performance at the Cuban Pavillon

17.06. Concerts (open air) and sightseeing at the EXPO

18.06. Concert in Bielefeld (Bielefelder Gitarrenforum) 19:00 Cecilien - Gymnasium

20.06. Concert in Münster (conservatory)

Arena of emotions with heavy rain Seventeen young musitians played their guitars like a hurricane. When theCrème de la crème of the German guitar . newcomers are at their best , even the concert - hall of the conservatory becomes an arena of emotions. No wonder, that the Jugendgitarrenorchester (JGO) one of the selected ensembles of the country of baden - Wuerttemberg had been invited to the EXPO together with the Cuban ensemble "Sonantas Habaneras". Together with the caribbean colleages the JGO showed in the final "Cuban Landscape With Rain'' of Leo Brouwer, who had initiated the collaboration of the two ensembles, how lively people dance in the rain in Cuba. (Westfälische Nachrichten)

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