Mandolin Moments

By Barbara Conrad - Previously published in the Mandolin Journal

Performers: A big reason to come to a convention is the chance to hear some of the top players around. Where else can you hear, in the same place, mandolin stars like Chris Acquavella, Carlo Aonzo, Joe Brent and Aaron Weinstein, playing everything from baroque to jazz and original compositions? Or hear some of the best mandolin orchestras? The host Baltimore Mandolin Orchestra is a top-level one.

Aaron Weinstein - Photo by Roger Price

The visiting Providence Mandolin Orchestra, led by Mark Davis, impressed me, particularly with their North American premier performance of Sinfonia a pizzico, by our convention’s composer-in-residence, Victor Kioulaphides. Other groups we heard included the Baltimore Mandolin Quartet; the Mandoleers from Arlington, VA; an ensemble combining members of the Long Island Mandolin and Guitar Orchestra and Mandophonics from Southwest Florida; and the Philadelphia Mandolin and Guitar Ensemble.

Workshops: These headliners don’t come just to perform, but also to share their knowledge. Chris had two repertoire sessions: baroque and classical, and romantic and contemporary. He also led the Teachers and Technique Workshop Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning. Carlo gave classes on technique and on American solo repertoire; Joe and Aaron had sessions on jazz improvisation and chord melody, and Joe also led a classical tremolo workshop. Our illustrious conductor, Jim Bates, gave an enlightening class, “Taking your orchestra to the next level,” and another highly participative one on rhythm. Toni Nigrelli led her ever-popular sight-reading classes. Laura Norris and Joyce Adams demonstrated their successful Mandolin for Kids teaching program. Those were just a few of the menu items on offer.

Toni Nigrelli - Photo by Roger Price

Playing: listening and learning are important, but we come to play. From Day 1 on Wednesday we had a full orchestra rehearsal each afternoon with Jim Bates to work on our concert pieces. Mornings began with sectional practices, to go over the trickiest parts of our en masse music. Many of our morning and afternoon workshops had us bringing the instruments out again. And after the scheduled activities ended, people would join Toni’s nightly sight-reading or maybe take part in impromptu jams or readings.

An unusual evening activity at this convention was a participative playing experience called In C, by Terry Riley. Jim Bates conducted us and kept the rhythm for this “minimalist” piece, in which each person plays a sequence of 53 melodic patterns, working through the sequence at his or her own pace. This turns into a haunting, hypnotic sound, with dramatic changes of tempo and dynamics. One player described it as very freeing to play with so few constraints. I found the experience mesmerizing and absorbing and was sorry to have it end.

Performing: This is the part of playing where you have an audience. Those of us who cared to had plenty of opportunities to perform.

Noon-hour concerts (and one of the evening ones) featured several orchestras whose members were in attendance. Saturday’s open mic had soloists and larger groups, and I thought the standard of performance was high. Are we getting better, or attracting better players?

Charley Rappaport conducting members of the Pittsburgh Mandolin Orchestra and woodwinds - Photo by Roger Price

Seven of our best and bravest players, in fact, competed as soloists in the tenth annual playing competition, judged by Jim Bates, Carlo Aonzo and Toni Nigrelli. These performances were at a very high standard. Honorable Mention went to Bob Margo of Boston; third place to David Miller of Southington, CT; second place to Gordon Neidinger of Pittsburgh (one of our scholarship recipients, and a student of Charlie Rappaport); and first place to Keizo Ishibashi from Japan, currently living in New York City, who performed two pieces he had also composed.

Playing Competition Winners - Photo by Roger Price

Our biggest chance to perform is in the annual En Masse Orchestra concert program, and this year’s was one of the biggest, if not the biggest group ever, with close to 150 players on stage. The concert was held, not at our hotel, but in the Kraushaar Auditorium of nearby Goucher College. Kraushaar holds 994 people and was filled to capacity. We had a huge stage, great acoustics and lighting, and a rapt and appreciative audience. BMO member Roger Price was an excellent emcee for this event.

En Masse Orchestra, Jim Bates Concductor - Photo by Roger Price

The concert opened with a charming set by 32 local children who are participants in the Mandolin for Kids program. Led by Laura Norris, they played a short program of familiar tunes, accompanied by a singer and a guitarist. The kids sat in “pods” of four players, and Laura moved among the pods to provide direction as needed.

Baltimore Mando Kids - Photo by Roger Price

The BMO played next. This was the last concert for conductor David Evans after 30 years with BMO, 25 as their conductor. Chris Acquavella followed with a flawless set, different material from his earlier noon-hour set for us.

Baltimore Mandolin Orchestra - Photo by Arthur Benjamin

After the intermission came the main event: us! Our program was: Ben Hur overture - by Aubrey Stauffer, Lied Ohne Worte (Song without words) - by Felix Mendelssohn, Hues of Dusk - by Victor Kioulaphides, Swimming Down the Stars - by Jonathan Jensen of the BMO and Baltimore Symphony, Ceilidh (5 movements) - by Elke Tober-Vogt (with vocalist Beatrice Gilbert on the Barbara Allen movement, and local guest artists Joseph Cunliffe on tin whistle and David Johnson on percussion) Czardas d’Amour - by Gaston Jean and Maurice Saint-Paul.

Covering a wide range of ages and styles, from Mendelssohn’s 1830 piano piece, through the 1906 “Golden Age” Ben Hur to modern compositions, our music was well-chosen to provide technical challenges to stretch any level of player, and still to be generally within our capabilities and sound good to an audience. Jim Bates and our sectional leaders did a fine job of moulding us over the few days we had together. This is such a satisfying experience that you want to keep coming back for more.

The camaraderie of being in the continent’s largest gathering of classical mandolinists, the satisfaction of stretching one’s limits, the joy of hearing our instrument played so well and meeting those who can do it – these are the reasons to come to, and return to, CMSA conventions.

Swimming Down the Stars -- CMSA En Masse Orchestra 2011

CMSA