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HAPPY HOLIDAYS HAPPY SPRING
It is difficult to express in words our gratitude to Wei Chen for the ART on an ancient Chinese instrument, GuZheng, she had shared with us yesterday at the Music in Cultural Contexts Section, on April 17th 2024.
The recital was well attended by several FWC sections, mostly from the Music Section and Hiking. In addition to the two beautiful pieces, Meditation on Love, and Mongolian Dance, there was a lively discussion on a variety of topics, including the instrument, and ways to playing Guzheng. We ponder the question, Simone had asked, WHAT IS MUSIC.
Everyone enjoyed the gathering and refreshments, brought by the participants. The gathering was hosted by Jarka and Tom Wilcox.
WHAT'S UP
Our next meeting is May 15 at 11:30 AM at the Faculty Club. We will have time to socialize and plan our exciting 2024-2025 Music Section Season.
Please calendar the OJAI MUSIC FESTIVAL, June 6-9, 2024 in beautiful Ojai just an hour from LA.
LACO Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, with Jaime Martin at the helm, has moved its home headquarters from Royce Hall (UCLA) to The Wallis Center for Performing Arts, Beverly Hills. Please consider subscribing to their Sunday at 4 PM Orchestral Series featuring women composers. Plenty of places to sip and meet, and celebrate the New Season and the New Beginning! Many other venues are being suggested and added to our list, such as Santa Monica College Broad Stage, The William Turner Gallery (Bergamot Station), LACMA, UCLA's Hammer, The Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum (in Topanga), UCLA's Nimoy Theater, Make Music Topanga (Topanga Canyon), and more. HAMMER Museum has its own Summer jazzPOP 2024 series of concerts on Thursdays starting at 8 PM. Consider stopping by for unforgettable vibes, bites, chats, and drinks. Our jazzPOP aficionado Daniele (see the photo below) recommends The Beth Schenck Quintet on August 8th.
MAY 15th at the UCLA's Faculty Club.
Here we are, having productive planning of the 2024-2025 Season.
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| From left: Daniele, our new member, WELCOME DANIELE!! Zorana, Chair, Lorraine, Co-Chair, Rochelle, zoom coordinator and VP Sections Anne-Marie, President FWC Wei is our special artist-in-residence |
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| Beth Schenck, at Hammer, August 8th at 8 p.m. |
But we are thrilled to announce rich, engaging, and wonderful programs and events in the Year 2024!
Our first in-person concert and meeting will be held on April 17th at 12 noon at the home of Jarka & Tom Wilcox. We are honored to have our Music Section member Wei Chen with us who will be performing two pieces, "Meditation on Love," and "Mongolian Dance." The pieces will be played on the GuZheng, a Chinese plucked zither (see photo below).
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| GuZheng, a photo credit by Wei Chen |
The performer and our featured artist is Wei Chen.
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| Wei Chen |
Our Section, Music in Cultural Contexts, is truly multicultural, diverse, including other sections in the yearly events and programs. In this in mind, the Section will expand the interests to include INTREPID TOURIST experiences by our members. For example, I will be traveling to Sicily, Wei will be on the expedition ship at the Antarctic Peninsula, and Jarka will brief us about her recent journeys to Georgia, Africa, and Indonesia.
Our first zoom Music Section meeting in 2024 will be February 21st at 12:30 PM. Rochelle Caballero will be our zoom hostess and facilitator. The program will indeed be very special. At the meeting we will be introducing Wei Chen, who at the time, will be on the expedition ship at the Antarctic Peninsula. Will try to briefly connect with her at the time of our meeting.
The main theme of the February meeting is inspired by a recent William Blake exhibit at the Getty Museum. The title page of the presentation of the meeting is given below:
SOUND - IMAGE - POETRY
We will hear Patti Smith and Allen Ginsberg read a few poems by Blake, as well as David Axelrod music.
A special reading will be from Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream -- Act II, Scene 1" by Rochelle Caballero, Audrey Jackson, and John Kirkwood (members from the Play-Reading Section). Blake has a beautiful watercolor from the play, A Midsummer Night's Dream, by Shakespeare:
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| Oberon, Titania, and Puck, with Fairies Dancing by William Blake, about 1786 |
We will all enjoy the 2024 OJAI MUSIC FESTIVAL with music director Mitsuko Uchida, June 6-9.
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| The Ojai Music Festival, June 6-9, 2024 has been traditionally held in the Libbey Bowl, an open-air setting |
Here is the famous Bowl in the park, awaiting for us to experience music program with Mitsuko Uchida as Music Director for the 78th Ojai Music Festival 2024.
Stay with us, visit us as often as possible, let us HEAR YOUR VOICES and SOUNDS, wherever you are!
We heard some incredible sounds and programs hosted at and organized by the UCLA's Clark Memorial Library. This video shows you a bit of the interior of this unique treasure Library.
Here are the details awaiting you when you arrive at the Library.
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| During the intermissions, take your time and browse through the collections of the Clark Library |
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| Guess what this artifact is all about? A million dollar question Please let us know if you have ever used it and your experiences |
The Zodiac Trio was featured on January 7th 2024 with a demanding program both for the performers and for the audience, especially in the piece composed by Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992), QUARTET FOR THE END OF TIME in 8 movements. As always, program notes were written by Bruce Whiteman 2023.
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| Rico Higuma, piano, Vanessa Mold, violin Wolfram Koessel, cello, and Kliment Krylovskiy, clarinet |
OUR NEXT MUSIC SECTION SESSION WILL be FEBRUARY 21st via zoom, and here's it is:
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| SOUND IMAGE POETRY |
Hope to see you all in February, until then STAY HEALTHY, HAPPY, ENGAGED, CURIOUS!!
The 2023 FWC Music Season has been a year to remember, and to be grateful for so many things.
Wishing for another heathy, happy, more peaceful, and productive music-year filled with wonderful and surprising events, brilliant programs, and invited guests.
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| "Silent night," first performed in Oberndorf, Austria in 1818, has been one among our Christmas favorites, and we traditionally sing at our own SING-A-LONG Holiday Fiesta This time it was on November 15th, 2023 (see group photos below) |
AT-A-GLANCE
This is the time when we start planning our next Season. YOU are the essential part of the planning, so do email me your ideas for programs, favorite themes, performances you have attended on your trips, locally and abroad. While we await for the printed publication of our newsletter UPDATE (January through March 2024), I am updating you with details, photos, and links. I hope this is fun to look at and be reminded of hundreds of hours we have spent together.
JANUARY 2024
January 7 at 2 PM at the Clark Memorial Library. For details, visit their web page. The venue is exquisite, and so are the programs. Their music hall seats up to 60 people. General admission, at $40 per person, includes open seating, program notes, a post-concert reception with delicious appetizers and wine, and an informal meeting with the artists. Next PROGRAM: Zodiac Trio with Cellist Wolfram Koessel.
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| The interior of the W. A. CLARK Memorial Library (btw, concerts are not held in the Library) |
January 21 at 2 PM. Gustavo Dudamel leads Richard Wagner's (1813-1883) Das Rheingold Project, celebrating Frank Gehry and 20 years at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. We are attending the concert on Sunday January 21 at 2 PM.
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| LA Phil's Gustavo Dudamel leads the Rheingold Project Walt Disney Concert Hall |
February 21, 12:30-2:30 pm will be our own designed program via zoom, hosted by Rochelle Caballero.
The program has been inspired by the exhibit currently on display at the Getty Museum. William Blake (1757-1827) was a true visionary, engraver, poet, printer-maker, painter, and thinker. Tentatively, I call this program S I P for Sound + Imagery + Poetry because Blake encapsulates all this, as we will see from his "Songs of Innocence and of Experience," and his other extensive works.
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| Oberon, Titania, and Puck, with Fairies Dancing About 1786 Blake took the subject of this watercolor from A Midsummer Night's Dream by Shakespeare: "Hand in hand, with fairy grace,/ Will we sing, and bless this place |
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| The Laughing Song from Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience |
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| Plan to be here in June 2024 Can you guess the PLACE??? |
Our exceptional group of members with invited guests of the Music in Cultural Contexts, celebrated our friendship, love for and dedication to the ARTS, and doing the right thing. We do that through the music Sing-a-Long program, Potluck feast, photoshoots, wonderful conversations, and so much more.
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| The ladies in front: Amelita (Chair Readers; Zorana (Chair & Founder Music Section); Jarka (the Hostess) From left: Monique, Mary Ann, Melissa, Dorota, Wei, John, Jon, Simone, Glorya Margaret, Marion, Marianne, Bernie Photo credit: Milos Not in the photo: Tom (co-host), Michele, Roger (Glorya's husband) |
Our signature event goes back to 2016 when we started the tradition of Sing-a-Long gatherings. It has been so popular that we decided to include husbands/partners, sister sections, and birthday attendees.
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| The welcoming feast is now served on two tables, and includes international dishes, several cakes, some of them birthday cakes, and healthy veggies |
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| Everyone gathers around the piano -- we sing traditional holiday carols so much FUN, and we look forward & cheer to the 2024!! |
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| Milos and Marianne in conversations at the Nov 15 gathering |
Museum visit inspire me to design programming around some of the exhibits I have recently attended:
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| Hokusai (1760-1849) at the Santa Ana Bowers Museum |
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| William Blake (1757-1827) at the Getty Museum |
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| MADE IN L.A. at the UCLA Hammer's Museum |
Hello Everyone, especially to our own group of members of the FWC Music in Cultural Contexts!
This event and program has certainly been a wonderful gathering to kickoff our 2023-2024 Music Season.
Thank you all for attending, hosting, bringing refreshments, and kudos must go to our featured guest cellist Janice Foy!
Here are a few photos of that event, October 18, 2023 at Jarka and Tom's residence.
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| From left: Jaime, our birthday guest, Gerry, Joy, Tom, Amelita, Milos, June, Zorana (chair) Janice (the cellist), Mike, Simone, Andrea, Glorya, Louise, Melissa, Roger, Asya, Lorraine |
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| Jarka and Milos chatting during the pre- concert interludes |
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| Lots of going on during the gathering, including chess, snacking, and more |
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| Zorana Ercegovac, Chair of the Music in Cultural Contexts shares a tale with Amelita Dolorico, Chair of the Book Section |
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