ESME, the English-Speaking Music Ensembles of Munich, Germany, have started rehearsals for the winter season. After a brief review of the summer concert, we join the orchestra and the singers for their first rehearsals. The artistic manager of ESME tells us about the pieces that will be performed this season.

A musical weekend and ‘A Summer Night’s Delight’

Once again, ESME orchestra, big band and choir members came together for a magnificently memorable rehearsal weekend. From May 16-18, fifty members travelled to a new venue – Haus Sudetenland in Waldkraiburg – which provided a great setting for a weekend of music.

During the weekend, the singers picked up their repertoire for the summer concert, having appeared just one week before on stage performing their collection of 15 songs for spring. Orchestra and big band members concentrated on their chosen pieces for the upcoming summer concert.

In the orchestra, there was a chance for the string section to do some particularly intensive study with the help of a sax player on loan from the big band – namely, Sarah Ready, who also happens to be an accomplished violinist. The singers also benefited from a workshop on breathing and voice production led by professional opera singer Regina Schörg.

The success of the weekend was due in no small measure to our conductors, Eric Weddle (singers), Andi Partilla (orchestra) and Joe Noelliste (big band). We will be very sorry to lose Joe, who is going back to the US soon for his doctoral studies in church music.

As usual, there was also a chance for games and socializing during the weekend, with the aim of helping members of the various ensembles get to know each other a bit better. One innovation this time around was a game that lasted the entire weekend, the winner being the one with the most clothes pegs at the end, which created a certain amount of competitiveness.

A highlight of the weekend was a spontaneous singalong around the grand piano on Saturday evening. Pianist Tar Viturawong kept the hits coming into the wee hours of the morning.

We left on Sunday afternoon, tired but cheerful, and already looking forward to the next ESME Weekend Away in October 2014.

 

As a result of the hard work put in by conductors and performers during weekly rehearsals and at the ESME Weekend Away, preparations for the 2014 Summer Concert are going well.

‘A Summer Night’s Delight’
Saturday 12 July 2014
19:00
Carl-Orff-Saal, Gasteig

with the ESME Orchestra, Singers and Big Band and their respective conductors: Andreas Partilla, Eric Weddle and Joseph Noelliste

Tickets are available from München Ticket
and there are concessions for children and students

The programme will feature a selection of music from three continents and spanning four centuries including:

Eric Whitacre – Cloudburst
Leonard Bernstein- Make our Garden Grow
Moses Hogan – Elijah Rock

Hans Zimmer – Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
Astor Piazzolla – Libertango
Jean Sibelius – Karelia Suite

Jerry Jeff Walker – Mr Bojangles
Charles Trenet  – Beyond the Sea
Burton Lane – On A Clear Day (You can See Forever)

Photos by Daniel Plappert
Graphics by Jeannine Meier

 

 

 

 

Rehearsals for the ESME 2014 Spring and Summer Season are now well underway, having begun in the depths of winter.

The Singers along, with their conductor Eric Weddle, are busy preparing for their Spring Concert, Spring Serenade, on Friday 9 May at EineWeltHaus in Munich.

Andreas Partilla and the Orchestra are working towards the Summer Concert on Saturday 12 July in the Carl-Orff-Saal, Gasteig.

The Big Band has a new leader, Joseph Noelliste, and they are preparing for a number of events including the Summer Concert and Lions Club Summer Ball.

The first concert of the year is the Spring Concert featuring the Singers and a number of ensembles both vocal and instrumental.

Spring Serenade             Friday 9 May 2014 @ 20:00

EineWelt Haus, Großer Saal
Schwanthalerstr. 80 RGB
80336 München

The concert will include music for all tastes from Monteverdi to Mozart, The Beatles to James Bond.
There will also be the opportunity to hear the first public performance of ‘Angel of Sound’, a piece composed for the ESME Singers by Tar Viturawong.

Tickets can be reserved through ESME Ticketing and collected and paid for in cash at the venue an hour before the concert.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 2013 ESME winter season ended with a sold out concert “Snowflakes and Sleighbells” at the beautiful Münchner Künstlerhaus on December 1.

This concert was the debut of our two new conductors, Andreas Sczygiol (singers) and Andreas Partilla (orchestra), and was considered a great success by the audience and performers alike.

Highlights of the concert included the world premiere of our own Daniel Wytrykus conducting his orchestral composition, Yggdrasil, the Big Band and singers performing Pat-a-Pan Salsa together, and the orchestra and singers doing the joyous holiday classic, Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus. The Big Band worked overtime to provide hoppin’ tunes for the after party as well.

 

‘Twas the season so we braved a brisk, chilly hour to sing Christmas carols at the Bogenhausener Weihnachtszauberwald. The enthusiastic audience and ample Glühwein kept us warm, though. We returned for a second performance just before Christmas.

We’re always hoping to attract new performers through our various performances, and word is out that our winter concert may have enticed a few audience members to do just that. Here’s hoping we see some new faces as we start the 2014 season!

Eric Weddle will conduct the singers for the spring and summer concerts and Andreas Partilla will conduct the orchestra. The Big Band welcomes Joseph Noelliste as their new band leader.

This season’s repertoire is as eclectic as ever, ranging from Dvorak to Marvin Gaye. The spring concert will be on Friday 9 May at EineWeltHaus and all three ensembles will be returning to the Carl-Orff-Saal, Gasteig for the summer concert on Saturday 12 July.

There will be an interesting array of musical challenges ahead for all of us in 2014!

Rehearsals for the Summer Season start soon ­— details can be found in the
2014 Summer Season Rehearsal schedule as well as the ESME Events calendar.

 Happy New Year and we look forward to seeing you all soon!

 

Photos by Thomas Hafner, Julia Priestley

 

There was a certain tentative feel to the start of ESME’s 2013 winter season, with both the singers and orchestra being faced with brand new conductors. But each of our new leaders quickly established a great rapport with his respective ensemble – Andreas Partilla with the orchestra, and Andreas Sczygiol with the singers. (Massive confusion about names is avoided thanks to Mr. Partilla’s preference for the nickname “Andi”). And with the winter season being relatively short, this was a good thing – there is quite a lot of work to cover before the big concert.

             

The Big Band was kept busy working in a new trumpeter, pianist and singer, plus a second guitarist – not to mention an alto saxophonist just back from a world tour! Despite being without a leader for most of this season, they have continued to put in dedicated rehearsal time in anticipation of sharing the stage in their inimitable fashion with the singers and orchestra for the holiday performance.

Weekly rehearsals for all three ensembles included the usual mixture of deep concentration and laughs, that special ESME synthesis which inspires so much loyalty among its members. What other musicians in Munich have as much fun as we do?

The orchestra were particularly excited to be working on a premiere of a new work, Yggdrasil, by none other than our own Daniel Wytrykus (violin), and equally enjoyed engaging with the musical humour of Disney’s Jungle Book. The singers have been inspired this time around by the challenge of modern pieces as well as perennial favourites like the Hallelujah Chorus. Meanwhile, the Big Band are grooving to some of Stevie Wonder’s greatest hits. ESME’s eclectic repertoire continues to set us apart from other musical organisations.

A highlight of this season was once again the Weekend Away, held from 8-10 November on the premises of the Humboldt Institute language school in Bad Schussenried. The opportunity to put in longer hours on our various pieces for the upcoming concert, as well as the chance to socialize with other ESME members, make this event really special.

 

There was even time to play a few group games – though the “get the pillow out of the basketball net” activity was not actually part of the planned programme, but rather a spontaneous affair! (Note: no bassoons were harmed in the making of this picture.)

      

 

Everyone is now busy with final preparations for “Snowflakes and Sleigh Bells”, our seasonal offering to be held on December 1st at the Münchner Künstlerhaus in Lenbachplatz. It promises to be a very special evening for performers and audience alike, and a great start to the holiday season. Hope to see you there!

 

 

To put you in the right mood for the Winter Concert we are pleased to present:

A Tale of Songs

A tired Sir Duke falls asleep at the Darkest Midnight in December reading The Jungle Book. He is awakened in the Morning by Solveig’s Song and sets off for the Hall of the Mountain King. He approaches the throne and says, “Sire, a boon; I Wish A Gaelic Blessing.”

Without speaking, the king leaves his throne and leads Sir Duke to Yggdrasil, a giant tree growing in the middle of the hall. The tree is ringed by crowds of goblins, trolls and other mountain creatures, all chanting, “Locus iste – this place – is a magical place!” The King approaches the tree, raises his arms and invokes a strange incantation: “Riu, Riu, Chiu!”, which in the ancient tongue of the mountain means something like “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!”

Turning to Sir Duke, the Mountain King explains: “We call this wide hall where our magical tree grows Broadway. Every year at this time, we come and pray to Yggdrasil, hoping that he will tell us Santa Claus is Coming to Town, so we can have Christmas here – Christmas on Broadway.”

Sir Duke looks confused. “You mean Santa doesn’t visit every year?”

“No,” replies the King sadly. “I long for my people to have a proper Christmas. If you can bring Santa to us, I will grant you your Gaelic Blessing. And on that day, I The King Shall Rejoice!” He turns to address his subjects. “On that day, will you be able to Handel it?”

“Lord, I Trust Thee! Hallelujah!” they chorused.

Sir Duke vows that if it is within his power, he will see that Santa will visit the Hall of the Mountain King, by The Twelve Days After Christmas at the latest.

The Mountain King sends Sir Duke on his way, but not before offering him some chips and homemade Pat-a-Pan Salsa.

Will Santa’s Sleigh Ride to the Mountain Kingdom be successful? Come to the ESME “Snowflakes and Sleigh Bells” concert on Dec 1 and find out…

Photos by Anne Janssen, Christian Brandel and Daniel Plappert
Graphic by Jeannine Meier
Story by Kristin Fehlauer

www.esme-ev.de