The Orgelpark presents compositions by Dutch composer Daan Manneke with some regularity. On the occasion of his 85th birthday, exactly one month ago today, two concerts will take place in the afternoon around the music of the jubilee. In the first concert (14.15 hours) the choir Studium Chorale, pianist Ralph van Raat and organist Evan Bogerd give acte de présence.
The second concert is (apart from one organ choir) entirely dedicated to the performance of the Grote Archipel. This work is a six-part piano cycle, which Manneke has dedicated to six pianist friends, namely: Ralph van Raat, Geoffrey Madge, Kelvin Grout, Hannes Minnaar, Jelena Bazova and Daniël Kramer. These six pianists are very different in terms of playing style, preference and tone formation. That is why he composed one piece of his own music for each of them, which together form The Great Archipelago. The Great Archipelago is described by Daan Manneke as a tribute to the province of Zeeland: Luctor et Emergo.
Not that the individual six parts explicitly sketch a musical portrait of a Zeeland island. On the contrary. Daan Manneke describes it as follows: ‘Over time I have designed a composition concept that has fascinated and inspired me for many years. Archipelago concept: ‘islands’ located close together, each with its own way of existence. Through exchanges and connections, they can more or less lose their individuality. This mutual influence, a kind of osmosis, can in turn generate new shapes and dynamics. But conversely, an island can turn in itself, sometimes unite, decay or even disappear completely.’Uitvoerenden
Studium Chorale o.l.v. Hans Leenders
Ralph van Raat, piano
Evan Bogerd, orgel en harmonium
Grote Archipel
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Composers in the crosshairs of our attention