Malcesine Dawn, BCM MidEurope booth

Malcesine, Italy was just as wonderful as last year, and twice I witnessed a lovely sunrise moment over the mountains. The sky begins to lighten very early somewhere in the 5am range, but because of the tall mountains surrounding the lake (Lago di Garda), you don't actually see the sun until right at 8am, when it very abrupty pops over the mountain and sends intense rays of light down the mountain slopes into the water. The increase in heat in that moment is also palpable. Because of the time (I suppose), church bells somewhere nearby also begin to chime right at that moment...

Here are some pictures (though no pictures can capture this sort of thing - at least not my consumer-grade point-and-shoot camera):

Just as the sun is cresting the mountain:


A few moments later - intense beams of light (close-up):


The town itself, before being bathed in light:


For comparison, here's Malcesine in the afternoon:


And a rough panoramic shot I made of dawn:
External link because it's a really wide picture

And for good measure, here's a shot of the BCM booth at MidEurope. A little more spartan than at Midwest, but as you can see, Jim, Newm, and Eric got all dolled up to make up for it. I think this is our best group shot ever...

(Special thanks to Irene, Tina, and Andrea for standing in, and for playing so wonderfully in the WYWOP this year!)

Now, off to the southern coast of Spain for a week. Ok, that probably sounded pretentious, just like Italy did. I *really* don't mean to... :)

PS No internet access until August 2nd, in case you're trying to reach me...

Labels: BCM, Malcesine, MidEurope

A few quick pics

Busy week here in Schladming - had two performance on Wednesday (SüdTiroler Jugendblasorchester performed Stampede under the amazing direction of Karl Geroldinger, and the LA Symphonic Winds played MetaMarch with gusto despite my flailing arms). Both were great concerts and great performances. This Saturday night, I have two more pieces with the World Youth Wind Orchestra Project (Suite Dreams, Dusk). Here's the group from there group picture this afternoon:



They're sounding truly wonderful - Ray Cramer is conducting it, and bringing it to life with the kind of sensitivity and passion a composer is always hoping to find. Suite Dreams, as well, is sounding extremely powerful and moving, again under a passionate conductor, Johann Moesenbichler (who also runs the entire show here!).

A few random pictures from the trip here - here's the funicular up to the world's oldest salt mine in Hallstatt:



It goes WAY up - as you can see from this picture at the top:



And here's a panorama shot from up high in the Hohensalzburg (castle in the heart of the Altstadt) - it's a link, since it's far too wide to fit on this page:

blogpix/Von_Hohensalzburg_Panaroma.jpg

Here's another shot from up on the Hohensalzburg - this is looking down on the Altstadt (Old City):



Ok, gotta go - will try more soon. Internet access next week will be extremely limited (as in none whatsoever), while I'm in northern Italy on vacation. I know that sounds pretentious. Sorry... :)

Labels: Hallstatt, MidEurope, Salzburg, WYWOP

Aufwind

On the way to Schladming, we stopped in Hallstatt, a tiny town on the edge of the Ebensee (Lake Eben). This is home to the world's oldest salt mine, dating back at least 7,000 years. It's an unbelievably scenic location. Also made a couple of trips to Salzburg. Pictures forthcoming. First, I'm about to go jump off a mountain...literally. Wish me luck!

One week until MidEurope 2007!

I'm in Austria at the moment, preparing for MidEurope where I will be the guest composer for the week! The festival is held each summer in Schladming, Austria, nestled in an Alpine valley, about an hour's drive from Salzburg. It's as idyllic as it sounds. :)

The schedule includes performances of Stampede by the Südtiroler Jugendblasorchester, MetaMarch with the LA Winds (I'm conducting this one!), and both Dusk and my brand new Suite Dreams with the World Youth Wind Orchestra Project (WYWOP), conducted by Ray Cramer and Johann Moesenbichler, respectively. In addition, I'll be giving lectures on BCM International and my work, Dusk, as well. The full schedule of events can be found here (as of right now, this part of the website is only in German, but it's easy to understand). There are plenty of concerts, masterclasses, workshops, and great food and beer!

As I mentioned last year when I visited the festival, if you are a student between ages 15 and 30, you should investigate the possibility of playing in the WYWOP next year. It's a wonderful week of music and international friendship, and would be well worth your time and money. The cost isn't extraordinary (the big expense is getting yourself to Schladming in the first place!). Just spread the word to anyone you think might be interested. Deadline is usually sometime in February or March. Ok, enough of the sales pitch. More alpine bloggage soon!