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Monday, 12 April 2004
Many strings (Shoghaken Ensemble and League of Crafty Guitarists) ::
Saturday I saw the Shoghaken Ensemble, an Armenian folk ensemble, in Santa Cruz. In a pre-concert talk given by Harold Hagopian, the group’s producer and manager, he mentioned that he rarely interfered with his artists’ musical decisions, but he insisted that they play a piece featuring the kanon, a lap harp with 72 strings played by Karine Hovhannisyan. I saw why; I enjoyed the concert overall, but this piece stole the show for me—from the first notes, I was enthralled, my jaw on the floor, at such a display of virtuosity on such a beautiful-sounding instrument.
Sunday I saw the League of Crafty Guitarists in Redwood City. I felt I’d learned what a 54-string guitar (9 players times 6 strings) sounds like; they played together so seamlessly that it was like one instrument. There were many magic moments when the overtones combined in ways to create an impression not unlike an orchestra.
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Last month (April, 2004) I got to see the California Guitar Trio, another set of Robert Fripp-influenced guitarists, in Saint Cloud, a small town northwest of Minneapolis. My new roommate had bought tickets as a surprise for my birthday... It took about 90 minutes to get to the beautifully restored theatre in St. Cloud, where I found we had front row tickets, just to the right of centre. Although the audience was small, they were enthusiastic and the Trio played really well. (I really enjoyed their 18-string version of the final movement of Beethoven’s 9th) (And the Dick dale tune, although I do think they should have played it left-handed...) At the encore, they unplugged their guitars and came off the stage to stand directly in front of me to play their final tune! My roommate turned to me and wished me a happy birthdat; the Trio did the same. Wonderful! After the show I met with them and asked them to say hi to Robert ;-) They signed the CD I’d brought with me (with birthday greetings!)...
Needless to say, the drive home was pretty good! (And happy birthday to you, Doug!)
- Colin
– Colin Mansfield, Sunday, 30 May 2004, 09:49 PDT
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