Robin Hill plays Bach's Prelude from Cello Suite No.1

This piece has long been one of my favourites. I have been playing and performing it for many years and always find it optimistic and uplifting.
This particular performance was unplanned, I was actually being filmed with a band for a future project (watch this space...) when the director, Oliver Hill, (my eldest son!) insisted we film a solo piece. I'm delighted he did.
The guitar is actually a flamenco guitar made in 1963 by Manuel Reyes.

Robin Hill plays Prelude from Cello Suite No.1 by J.S.Bach from Robin Hill on Vimeo.

Robin Hill's Guitar Gymnasium Podcast No 2 - The Hill/Wiltschinsky Guitar Duo Part 1

After the more technical podcast No.1 on right hand technique which can be found here, Podcast No.2 looks at the history of the Hill/Wiltschinsky Guitar Duo with some musical examples and also some inside information on the murkier side of the music industry...

Robin's Book, 'The Guitar Gymnasium' can be found here.

During the podcast Robin mentions the duo's first album, which originally started with the Bach Invention No.8, there is a reissue of it here.

And here are the sleeve notes from the initial release:

Colin Cooper - Sleevenotes Hill/Wiltschinsky debut album on Hyperion Records

The brilliance of Ida Presti and Alexandre Lagoya set standards of duo guitar playing that have seldom been equalled. The form is a difficult one. Accuracy and precision are of course prime essentials, but the best duos are welded together by something more: a unity of purpose, a spirit of excitement and even adventure, an ability not only to play as one instrument but also to think as one musician.
Robin Hill and Peter Wiltschinsky, on the evidence of this recording, have that rare capacity. Their performances are alive, zestful, invigorating. It will make new friends for their exuberant playing, and new friends too for the guitar duo form, in which so much can be accomplished.
Some of the pieces are familiar; some not so familiar, though they deserve to be. All are hugely enjoyable. Hill and Wiltschinsky demonstrate their very wide range by adapting their style successfully to every new requirement, from the English lute tradtion of John Johnson to the 20th century French composer Pierre Petit. The Bach Invention that opens the recital could scarcely have been better chosen; light, airy, fast, it nourishes as it dazzles - perfection in 44 seconds (but length is never a prerequisite of great music). And has the Queen of Sheba ever made so exhilarating an arrival?
It gives me a lot of pleasure to be able to introduce this remarkable record - as much pleasure as I think it is going to give those who listen to it.


Podcast No.2:

Samba, Bossa Nova and the Joy of Latin Homework

It has been very nice to have Robin home for a few weeks but he has not been idle.

He has been working hard on an alternative show which he has been asked to organise, featuring himself, plus an extensive band.

The pieces are varied, ranging from original compositions to arrangements of standards, which have all been given the 'Hill' treatment. There's everything from latin/jazz to swing and even some rock.

One piece, an original composition, is called Brasilia.

This is in a bossa nova style featuring guitar, bass, flute, clarinet, alto & tenor sax, trumpet, trombone, Latin American percussion and even a cuica. All resulting in a rather fabulous latin/jazz feel.

'Dolor de Muelas', which has recently been nominated for an award, is a piece in a samba style which has also been given the 'Big Band' treatment.

Arrangements have also been done for a number of well known pieces such as 'Can't Buy Me Love', 'Bach Prelude', 'Fragile', 'Here Comes the Sun', 'This Masquerade' 'Classical Gas' and many more, all naturally heavily featuring the guitar.

Amongst this musical extravaganza will also be a few pieces from Robin's solo guitar repertoire.

The whole show will be taken for a test drive before too long, and we will be searching for various musicians at some point.
But be warned, Robin is known for writing rather tricky trumpet parts, you only have to listen to 'Celebration' in the sidebar to see what I mean...
You can read more about Force Ten here.

Paul Griffin is responsible for hitting the very high notes on the trumpet. Based in New York, Paul was the product of a very musical background. His father Chris was one third of Benny Goodman's 'Biting Brass' trumpet section, and Paul himself played at John F. Kennedy's funeral.

I wonder if we can coax Paul back out on the road. That would be some show....

Robin Hill and Peter Wiltschinsky 'Arrival'

"Nothing is more beautiful than a guitar - save perhaps two."
Frederic Chopin

Here are the sleeve notes to the CD we have just released, 'Arrival'.
Written by the Editor of Classical Guitar Magazine, Colin Cooper:

"The brilliance of Ida Presti and Alexandre Lagoya set standards of duo guitar playing that have seldom been equalled. The form is a difficult one. Accuracy and precision are of course prime essentials, but the best duos are welded together by something more: a unity of purpose a spirit of excitement and even adventure, an ability not only to play as one instrument but also to think as one musician.

Robin Hill and Peter Wiltschinsky, on the evidence of this recording, have that rare capacity. Their performances are alive, zestful, invigorating. It will make new friends for their exuberant playing, and new friends too for the guitar duo form in which so much can be accomplished.

Some of the pieces are familiar; some not so familiar, though they deserve to be. All are hugely enjoyable. Hill and Wiltschinsky demonstrate their very wide range by adapting their style successfully to every new requirement, from the English lute tradition of John Johnson to the 20th century composer, Pierre Petit. The Bach invention could scarcely be better chosen; light, airy, fast, it nourishes as it dazzles - perfection in 45 seconds. And has the Queen of Sheba ever made such an exhilarating arrival?

It gives me much pleasure to introduce this remarkable record - as much pleasure as I think it will give to those who listen to it."

Colin Cooper

What more can I say?
Follow this link, or click on the picture in the side bar, to have a listen.
Next week I shall tell you a little about each piece of music, and also, the strange, and at times rather intriguing, history of this particular recording.

Robin Hill plays Agustin Barrios

The final track to discuss on 'Virtuoso' is track 16, 'Villancico de Navidad' , by Agustin Barrios.
I saved this one until the end to get you all in a festive mood as it is an arrangement of a Paraguayan Christmas song.

Agustin Barrios (1885-1944) was born in San Bautista de las Misiones, Paraguay, and was a guitarist and composer.
In 1910 he left Paraguay for a week of concerts in Argentina but was so successful that he was away for 14 years playing in Brazil, Chile and Uruguay.
I do hope that Robin doesn't do the same thing...

By 1934 Barrios travelled to Europe where he gave concerts in Brussels, Germany and Spain, and in 1936 he returned to Latin America where he taught in the Conservatorio Nacional de Musica, San Salvador.

Barrios composed over 100 works, many attributed to obscure European composers, as he believed they would be taken more seriously.
He's not alone in this practice, somewhere out there is a piece of music played on two guitars, by the composer 'Anna Naneek'.
I'll give you a clue, my maiden name was Keenan, and so far, only one person has spotted this...

Barrios is thought to be the first classical guitarist to make a record, in 1910, and also to have played a complete Bach Suite (Lute Suite No.1).
He was quite a character and in the later stages of his career he reinvented himself as 'Nitsuga Barrios Mangore', the Paganini from the jungles of Paraguay, and appeared on stage in full South American Indian costume!

Thankfully, as Robin is from Huddersfield, I can't think of any national dress that he may choose to wear on stage, and anyway my needlework skills would probably not be up to it.

Xodo da Baiana - Dilermando Reis

'Xodo da Baiana' by Dilermando Reis is another piece on Virtuoso, track 19, with a truly South American feel.

Dilermando Reis, (1916-1977) was a Brazilian guitarist born in Sao Paulo. He studied the guitar from an early age with his father, Francisco Reis, and by the age of 15, Dilermando was already known as the best guitarist in Sao Paulo.

By 1933 Reis had moved to Rio de Janeiro, where he lived for most of his life, and was prolific in recording over 40 albums.
He enjoyed many kinds of music and recorded pieces from composers as diverse as Bach, Barrios, Tarrega and Gnatalli, among others.
However his first love was for the traditional Brazilian style of music, featuring mainly waltzes and choros full of melodic invention, syncopated rhythms and pleasing modulations.

He was equally prolific as a composer with over 100 of his own compositions, many of which have become standards of Brazilian guitar playing.

'Xodo da Baiana' is typical of his style.
The use of pizzicato in the opening section is highly effective and overall the piece combines melodic and rhythmic invention.

Track 5: 'Arrival of the Queen of Sheba' - Handel and Cecilia Bartoli's 'Maria'

George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) began composing at the age of 9 having already shown considerable musical talent on the harpsichord and pipe organ.

He had a turbulent relationship with his father who insisted he studied law in 1702. However, after his father's death, Handel abandoned law for music.

He lived for some time in London, at 25 Brook Street, which is currently the 'Handel House Museum'.
I know that this is well worth a visit, as Robin went a few years ago, and thoroughly enjoyed a personal tour by a very knowledgeable guide. He came home inspired by his visit and full of numerous anecdotes. He was doubly delighted to find that Jimi Hendrix had lived in the house next door!

Handel was a composer that was, and is, held in high esteem by fellow composers.
In 1824 Beethoven is quoted as saying:

"Handel is the greatest composer who ever lived. I would bare my head and kneel at his grave."

Bach:

"Handel is the only person I would wish to see before I die, and the only person I would wish to be, were I not Bach."

Mozart:

"Handel understands effect better than any of us. When he chooses, he strikes like a thunder bolt."

Really you can let the music speak for itself.

Robin originally recorded his own arrangement of 'Arrival of the Queen of Sheba' with Peter Wiltschinsky on their album, 'Virtuoso Music for Two Guitars' on the Hyperion label.
I was interested to find that details of this album are held in the 'International Guitar Research Archive', in the Oviatt Library on the campus of California State University.

Today's version of the 'Arrival of the Queen of Sheba', which comes from the oratario, 'Solomon', is a solo guitar and orchestra arrangement. The piece is eminently suited to performance on the guitar with its rapid scales and arpeggios, the original dialogue between two oboes being replaced by guitar and recorder.

When you have finished downloading this piece, I strongly recommend you go over to iTunes and download Cecilia Bartoli's new album, 'Maria'.
It's fantastic, and you can read all about Cecilia's passion for the Spanish mezzo-soprano, Maria Malibran, here, in an article by Rupert Christiansen.

Birthday to Bach

Today we were invited into school for 'birthday assembly'.
As you can imagine, it is very exciting for a small boy to stand in front of the school, and show two of his newly acquired birthday gifts, especially as your parents are able to watch.
Son number one obviously gets his stage presence from his Dad, as he didn't appear at all phased by proceedings, even when he had to talk to the headmistress about his toys.
Maybe those 'performing' genes are inherited, we'll have to wait and see...

There was one thing we were both very impressed about.
Each week a piece of classical music is selected, and played to the children as they go into assembly, and again when they leave.
They are all told what the music is, and, encouraged to listen to it as they wait.
What an excellent way to expose young and impressionable minds to some wholesome and nourishing music.

This weeks choice was Aria, from Bach's Goldburg Variations.
A particularly calm and serene piece and ideal to maintain order amongst a throng of under 7's.
We are both very familiar with this piece and it was a delight to sit and listen as all the children filed in and out.
It wasn't a version we are familiar with though and I'm afraid I don't know who was performing it on this occasion.
However, I do know it wasn't Glenn Gould, as the characteristic humming and singing along, present on all his recordings, was absent.
I really had to restrain myself from adding them myself, and, I later found out that Robin was having the same problem.

Classical Music and Growing Children...

A much happier man!
The second and last guitar concert on the QM2 went very well.



Despite feeling like he had someones toenails glued to two finger ends the concert was a success and the audience enjoyed it.
Robin had a lot of very positive feedback which is always nice.
He decided to relax back in his room afterwards by practicing the Bach Prelude from Lute Suite No.4!!
I suspect he also went out later for a meal and a few well deserved drinks...

Meanwhile here in the UK, Nic Fleming has been reporting that, 'Beethoven can help crops grow more quickly.'
It can in fact be classical music in general. I have a strong suspicion that the same applies to children.
You wouldn't believe the number of shoes I have just had to buy.
I think I'm going to have to get Robin to do 'silent practise' on his return in an attempt to slow down their growth rate...

Everybody's Doing It...

We listened to three pieces today, which were all connected with trains, and all fantastic.
The first was Arthur Honegger's 'Pacific 231'.

Honegger was actually born Oscar Arthur Honegger but never used his first name.
He was one of 'Les Six', the name given to a group of six composers working in Montparnasse, Paris.
The other five being, George Auric, Louis Durey, Darius Milhaud, Francis Poulenc and Germaine Tailleferre.

Honegger was widely known as a train enthusiast and once said, "I have always loved locomotives passionately. For me they are living creatures and I love them as others love women or horses."

Pacific 231 gained him early notoriety in 1923 and is well worth listening to.

The second train related piece was from the Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos.
Villa-Lobos was deeply attached to the music of Bach and believed similarities existed between Bach's compositions and Brazilian folk music.
He explored this theory in a series of nine suites, 'Bachianas Brasileiras'.
The final movement of Suite No.2, 'Little Train of Caipira' represents the train journey that local farmers made in the Sao Paolo area.

The third piece is a very different style but equally as enjoyable.
It is by the American jazz guitarist and composer Pat Metheny.
It's called 'Last Train Home' and is played on a Coral Sitar which is a cross between and electric guitar and a sitar.
The result is a fantastic and unique sound and beautifully played.

The Theme Was....

I won't keep you waiting any longer, the piece I posted yesterday, with a few extra notes added, was the last page of Bach's 'Prelude from the 4th Lute Suite'.

We had a lot of people who appeared to be studying it, but no one identified the piece, so, I can keep the prize!
That's the beauty of being in charge - you get to make the rules.

Guitar Widow did however make a good point.
You're never too young to start learning.
This is true and many exceptional players learn from a very early age. It isn't always the case though. Some come to their chosen instrument mid to late teens and still reach excellent standards.

We've always made instruments available for our children to pick up and play with. In fact a ukelele was purchased soon after the birth of son number one and he frequently sat in his cot playing with it.
The result is that both children look, and feel, very at ease holding a guitar. It's completely natural to them.
I should point out that it was made very clear to them that Daddy's guitars were STRICTLY out of bounds....

The downside for children of professional musicians, is that they see and hear every day, the amount of practice and commitment required to reach a high standard.

For young children this can seem very daunting and I feel they can have a fear that they are expected to practice the same amount, and produce the same results, in a short space of time.
Obviously this isn't the case, and we have tried to reassure them, that a little practice every day is a good starting point.

Musicians generally mature and improve with age.
I doubt you'll ever hear a musician say they are taking early retirement. It takes years of experience to truly master any instrument.
I remember seeing Segovia play when he was well into his 90's.
So I'd better prepare myself for many more years of travel!

Meanwhile the children continue to play with ukelele/guitar/piano/drums and eventually they may settle on one they wish to pursue.
But do you give them formal lessons?
I feel that learning how to read music is as important as learning French/Spanish/German - whatever. It's a skill that will never be wasted and may well bring great pleasure at some stage of life.
So, yes, I think they should learn the basics.
But I would never force a child to take up an instrument.
It has to come from within but maybe a little gentle persuasion is required to get them started...

Bob Dylan to Bach

We decided to take a little time out yesterday and do a few family things.
It was great and we had a lovely day.
Some of that time, was spent in a car, and anyone with small children will realise that the two don't necessarily sit comfortably together.
We had prepared for this.
Robin had downloaded the music from 'The Simpsons Movie', which kept them amused for a while, guessing which part of the film was being depicted. 'Spiderpig' proved the most popular.

By the time we'd heard that a few times it was our turn.
We had a good sing-a-long to Bob Dylan's, 'Mr. Tambourine Man', and I must say that Robin sounds more like Bob Dylan than Bob Dylan does...

Then there was the recently purchased book for just these occasions.
'I'm Bored!' by Suzy Barratt and Polly Beard is a great book packed with ideas for most situations.
Whilst sons fell asleep in the back of the car Robin and I had a great time playing all the games for car journeys! (This was as much to distract Robin from thoughts of the guitar he was missing as anything else...)

I hadn't realised quite how much time I spend dealing with the computer over the day.
When I went to blog last night, I thought I'd check the emails first, only to find that there were 198 waiting.....
Some were spam and some needed dealing with but consequently I never got around to blogging last night.
Still, it's good to keep you all guessing!

Meanwhile, Robin is now back behind his guitar, and relishing playing through some Bach.

Karl Maddison 1971-2007

I want to thank 'Paul' for his comment yesterday and 'taking up the baton' as it were, with the backward Bach.
He pointed me in the direction of Hoffnung and it is well worth a visit to the site.
What an interesting man he was.
An artist, cartoonist, caricaturist, broadcaster and not to mention musician.
He actually played the bass tuba and was a member of the Morley College Orchestra.
It was from this position, at the back of the orchestra, that he took full advantage of observing his fellow players, with hundreds of musical cartoons following.

Such was his ability to motivate, that he persuaded many of the days foremost composers, such as Malcolm Arnold, Francis Chagrin, Joseph Harowitz, Aaron Copeland and Sir William Walton amongst others, to compose witty pieces for a concert at the Royal Festival Hall in 1956.

His work continues to amuse people around the world today.
For someone who died at the age of 34 he certainly accomplished much.
It's quite ironic that I should discover this today as Robin has been to the funeral of a friend and colleague who has also died at a tragically young age.

Karl Maddison was such a nice man and a talented musician, who worked as a sound engineer with Robin on many occasions, and in more recent times, they collaborated on various projects together in Karl's own studio, Mad Dog Music Studios.
We have known Karl since he was 17 and watched him develop into a fine man and excellent musician.
His tragic death has affected us both deeply.

Centenary Celebrations for the Scouts and Backwards Bach...

The life of a musician is certainly varied.
This morning Robin found himself taking part in centenary celebrations with the Scout Association.
It was 100 years ago today that Baden-Powell formed the scout movement and the event was marked by scouts in 216 countries and territories renewing their vows at 8am this morning.

As son number one is a cub his local pack had arranged to join in the occasion with a dawn hike up the nearest pike.
The group started their walk at 6.30 in order to be at the top in time to acknowledge the dawn of a new century for scouting.
You can read more about 'Scouting's Sunrise' here.

You can see that it was worth the walk for a lovely view.


On the monument at the top of the pike they found this.
It's nice to see that the graffiti artists of 1885 took a little more time than their modern day counterparts.



Both Robin and son were home again by 10am.
As we relaxed with a cup of coffee Robin showed me the Bach piece that he'd put into his Sibelius programme.
We made a discovery.
You can play the pieces backwards!!!
To save you the trouble of inputting all those notes, if you are lucky enough to have Sibelius that is, I can tell you it sounded pretty good.
I'm sure the same couldn't be said for most compositions but it works with Bach!

Robin Hill's 'Unofficial' Desert Island Discs

Today I decided that I would quiz Robin on the choices he would make for the long running BBC Radio 4 programme, 'Desert Island Discs'.

Each week a guest is invited to choose 8 pieces of music, a book, and a luxury item, which they are allowed to take with them to a desert island. The castaway is also issued with a copy of the Bible and the complete works of Shakespeare.
The whole concept of the programme is a wonderful one, and we frequently listen in. Whoever the guest may be, it is always interesting, and I guess that's why it has been running since 1942!
Currently the show is presented by Kirsty Young.

As I started questioning, Robin wasn't fooled, and within seconds he had worked out what I was up to, but I must say, he was very obliging!
So here are Robin's choices - in no particular order:

1)Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No.5 in D Major.
Performed by 'Akademie fur Alte Musik Berlin'.

Robin initially heard this piece performed by Jack Loussier, and the jazz version so intrigued him, that he was inspired to explore the original.
He loves the piece because it is like a hugely uplifting musical kaleidoscope , with intricate contrapuntal conversations between three soloists (violin, flute and harpsicord). The first movement culminates with a highly virtuosic cadenza for the harpsichord and a triumphant return of the main theme.

2) What is Hip?
This track is by 'Tower of Power', and has to be the ultimate 'funk' tune, superbly played by the tightest band in the universe.

3)Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf.
Robin's favourite is actually 'Peter's theme' performed on strings.
As a small boy he avidly watched a T.V. programme called 'Zoo Time' with Desmond Morris.
Although he didn't realise it at the time, the theme music for this programme was from Prokofiev's 'Peter and the Wolf', and it just goes to show how we are profoundly affected by music from a very young age.

4) Armando's Rhumba.
This is by Chick Corea and the piece was dedicated to his father 'Armando'.
Robin has long been a fan of Chick Corea and has in fact made several arrangements of his pieces for various combinations of instruments.
We also have a couple of letters from Chick himself who is equally complimentary about Robin's music!

5)Rodrigo's Concerto Madrigal.
Joaquin Rodrigo composed many pieces for the guitar and this is one of Robin's favourites, particularly the movement, Giradilla (Presto).
The recording he most enjoys is that of Pepe and Angel Romero as it is the most incredible feat of virtuosity by two of the best players on the planet.
Hill/Wiltschinsky have performed this piece but sadly not recorded it.

6)Because.
Robin chose 'Because' from The Beatles 'Love' album as it is the version with the backing harmonies only. It's very poignant to hear distant birdsong from the trees outside Abbey Road studio, and shows incredible insight into the harmonies The Beatles were capable of, and how well they could sing them when not being deafened by screaming Beatlemaniacs.

7)The Boho Dance.
The Boho Dance is from Joni Mitchell's album 'The Hissing of Summer Lawns' which was released in 1975.
Robin is a huge fan of Joni Mitchell and this is just one of many of her works that he feels are masterpieces.

8)Handel's Rinaldo:Aria: Lascia ch'io Pianga.
Robin's all time favourite recording of this is by Cecilia Bartoli with 'The Academy of Ancient Music' conducted by Christopher Hogwood.
Robin heard her perform this at The Bridgewater Hall in Manchester and it's hard to imagine a finer interpretation.

All hapless castaways are also allowed a book and one luxury item.
The book Robin chose is by the American novelist John Cheever, and really, it could be any collection of his short stories.
They offer perfect insight into American life and life in general.
(and whoever it is who borrowed our copy could you please return it....!!)

Finally, the luxury item, and I don't think there will be any surprises here.
One of his Miguel Rodriguez guitars of course. Although he has been rather cheeky and asked for a huge supply of strings - I'm not sure if that will be allowed.

One final note.
Whilst these are definitely all favourites, if I had asked Robin on another day, we may have had a completely different list of pieces. But then that's the beauty of music.