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1.6.2010 Edin Karamazov: a musician with a penchant for paradox
On June 5th, at 7 pm, the Vilnius Festival invites the audience to an extraordinary recital at the National Philharmonic Hall. Serbian-born Edin Karamazov will give a recital Made in Silence, combining the lute and the electric guitar in the performance of picturesque Cuban soundscapes and the timeless music by Johann Sebastian Bach.
Serbian lutenist and guitarist Edin Karamazov began his musical career as a classical guitarist. He captured first prizes in four international guitar competitions. Under the patronage of Sergiu Celibidache he took up the Baroque lute, which he studied under the tutelage of Hopkinson Smith at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Basel, Switzerland. He made his solo debut as a lutenist in 1998, as if naturally intercepting the promotion of this ancient instrument from the legendary British lutenist Julian Bream, who was perhaps the only person concerned with the revival of the lute music. Early music represents only a portion of Edin Karamazov’s present repertoire; the musician remains committed to exploring the use of lutes in modern music and contemporary improvisational contexts.
Karamazov plays a wide variety of plucked instruments from disparate cultures and epochs, combining the music he performs into intriguing programmes. Although this outstanding recitalist has appeared at such prestigious venues as the Concertgebouw, Wigmore Hall, Berlin Philharmonie and Vienna Konzerthaus among others, he still enjoys giving impromptu performances on the street.
In addition to his solo career, he enjoys accompanying singers of different styles and backgrounds. He has collaborated and recorded with renowned early music ensembles and soloists such as Hilliard Ensemble, Hesperion XX and countertenor Andreas Scholl. Recently, Karamazov has collaborated with popular music star Sting: the two played lutes, performing songs by John Dowland. Last year Decca released his first collection of solos and vocal duos The Lute is a Song featuring opuses by Brouwer, Bach and Carlo Domeniconi performed in co-operation with singers Andreas Scholl, Renée Fleming, Kaliopi and Sting. His discography includes recordings of the music by Britten and Bach, as well as folk music, released by Alpha Records, Decca and Deutsche Grammophon.
At his concert in Vilnius, Edin Karamazov will combine the two seemingly incompatible instruments – lute and electric guitar – and present an intriguing solo programme Made in Silence that combines works by Baroque genius Johann Sebastian Bach (both originally written and arranged for lute) with Paisajes Cubano by Cuban composer Leo Brouwer. Leo Brouwer’s series of Paisajes Cubano reveals the composer’s stylistic development from modern yet melancholic Paisaje Cubano con Lluvia, inventive Paisaje Cubano con Campanas to minimalist Paisaje Cubano con Rumba , all offering the widest possible range of guitar’s technical possibilities. Along with Brouwer, the living guitar classic, the programme revisits the immortal Johann Sebastian Bach whose evergreen Chaconne for solo violin, elegant Prelude, Fugue and Allegro as well as Toccata and Fugue in D minor promise an extraordinary musical experience, backed by Karamazov’s principal pursuit: “What I want to do with my lute is sing.”
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