Goran BregoviĆ SUN OCT 21 2018 / 7PM
and His Wedding and Funeral Band CHAN CENTRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS AT UBC
“I grew up in a neighbourhood in Sarajevo where
time was measured by the bells of the Catholic Church nearby, those of the Orthodox Church, and by muezzin’s invocation. All my life and my music is marked by the wealth of these different chants. My wish is that this privilege be the right of all children. May these three letters be my invocation for peace and may it be heard.”
– Goran Bregović on Three letters from Sarajevo
Goran Bregović and His Wedding and Funeral Band
PRESENTED BY THE CHAN CENTRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
Pre-show Reception 5:30pm, Glass Lobby Please join us before the show for some delicious baked goods, generously provided by Nana’s Bakery. Pre-show Talk 6:15pm, Royal Bank Cinema With Marija Rakovic Concert 7:00pm, Chan Shun Concert Hall Goran Bregović guitar, synthesiser, vocals Muharem Redzepi vocals, goc (traditional drum) Bokan Stankovic trumpet Dragic Velickovic trumpet Stojan Dimov saxophone, clarinet Aleksandar Rajkovic trombone Milos Mihajlovic trombone Ludmila Radkova-Traykova Bulgarian vocals Daniela Radkova-Aleksandrova Bulgarian vocals Dusan Vasic sound engineer Set list to be announced from the stage. There will be no intermission. Please remember to turn off your phones, and note that photography and recording are not permitted. Thank you! ƛ̓a tə n̓a Chan Centre for the Performing Arts ʔam̓ət ʔi ʔə tə n̓a šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmaʔɬ təməxʷ The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts is situated within the heart of Musqueam traditional territory
Goran Bregović Son of a Serbian mother and a Croatian father living in Sarajevo, Goran Bregović’s musical adventures began in the 1960s at a local music school. It was there that he started learning violin and became acquainted with the various aspects of music making. Even in Tito’s Yugoslavia, rock n' roll set the sixties ablaze. Bregović studied philosophy and sociology, but also formed a popular rock group - Bijelo Dugme (White Button). Their first album was an immediate success—the group sold millions of albums and brought together thousands of people in their public performances. But after noticing the rise of a fanatical nationalistic fever that took hold of the audience in his concerts, Bregović ultimately decided to disband Bijelo Dugme. At the end of the eighties, filmmaker and fan Emir Kusturica convinced Bregović to take part in his next project. Writing music for the film Time of the Gypsies (1988) allowed Bregović to sharpen his sense of musical dramaturgy and work around music that fascinated him. The combination of Kusturica’s images and Bregović’s notes sublimated a poignant story that left a strong mark. The twosome traveled to the US, where Kusturica made films such as Arizona Dream (1993), working with actors Faye Dunaway, Jerry Lewis, and Johnny Depp, and Bregović composed for the Godfather of punk rock, Iggy Pop. 1994’s award-winning La Reine Margot broadened Bregović’s reputation as a film composer. The following year, while the war ravaged their country, Bregović and Kusturica collaborated one last time on Underground, which won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Festival in 1995. For this film, Bregović called on the artistic collaboration of Saban Bajramovic and the Cape Verdean diva Cesária Évora. Bregović then made his way back to live concerts. His Wedding and Funeral Orchestra Orchestra (also known as his Wedding and Funeral Band in smaller iterations) mixes musicians on wind instruments with percussion, Bulgarian polyphonies, and a choir of male voices. Seated between his amplifier and computer, an electric guitar in his hand, he conducts this motley group that varies in size from 9 to 19 musicians, according to the occasion. For almost twenty years, the Wedding and Funeral Orchestra has been roaming all continents on an unending tour of over 1500 performances. When he is not on stage, Bregović has composed pieces that have become part of the contemporary music scene: an oratorio, “My Heart has become Tolerant”, an opera, “Goran Bregović’s Karmen with a Happy End”, a monologue with his big band, “Diary of an Unhappy Queen”, and now a new project for his band and orchestra entitled Three Letters from Sarajevo. Located in the heart of Europe, Sarajevo has been part of many empires: Byzantine, Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian. In the 16th century, the Sephardic Jews expelled from Spain joined Catholics, Orthodox, Muslims and all rubbed shoulders in this small “Jerusalem of the Balkans”. It is the history of Sarajevo with its multiple beliefs, identity, mixtures and complex paradoxes that inspired Goran Bregović’s new album, Three Letters from Sarajevo. 4
For this new recording, Goran Bregović unites, on the allegorical level, the three religions, using the violin as a metaphoric instrument. Asian, klezmer and classical styles coexist in three instrumental pieces performed by unique soloists from Israel, the Balkans, and Maghreb. Recorded with his Wedding and Funeral Orchestra, the album also includes vocals by Bebe, Riff Cohen, Rachid Taha, Asaf Avidan, Sifet and Mehmed, performed in Spanish, Hebrew, Arabic, English and Serbo-Croatian. Demonstrating the unique tone and multicultural influences in his work, Bregović’s concerts are known for being triumphant affairs that emphasize a true passion for music of all kinds. Equal parts contemporary composer, traditional musician, and rock star, he has carved a path all his own, inventing a music that is both universal and unmistakably his. 5
Exploring the role of the arts and artists in society. chancentre.com/connects
Pre-show Talk with Marija Rakovic 6:15pm: Royal Bank Cinema, Chan Centre
Goran Bregović’s latest album, Three Letters From Sarajevo, sends a metaphorical message to listeners that this is our last chance to learn how to live together no matter what our differences may be. This pre-show talk will outline the historical context of Three Letters From Sarajevo, and will reflect further on Bregović’s previous work and the inspiration and meaning behind his music. Marija Rakovic is a second year graduate student in ethnomusicology at the UBC School of Music. She completed her bachelor and master’s degrees in ethnomusicology at the Faculty of Music Arts in Belgrade, Serbia. Currently, her research explores polyphonic singing from the western Balkan region.
Nana’s Bakery Pre-show Reception 5:30pm: Chan Centre Glass Lobby
Join us in the lobby before the show for some authentic Balkan treats generously provided by Nana’s Bakery, which is located at 6329 Beresford Street in Burnaby. These tasty handmade delicacies will include savory filo pastries, baklava, mezze, pita bites, and traditional Balkan mixed cookies.
Kealoha
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UBC School of Music Fanfares A brass fanfare will be performed in the lobby at 6:30pm and 6:45pm. This new piece has been commissioned by the Chan Centre from UBC composition student John Stetch as part of an ongoing partnership with the UBC School of Music. Thunderbird Brass Silas Friesen Trumpet; Matheus Moraes Trumpet; Kristin Ranshaw Horn; Kevin Jackson Trombone; Takami Hayashi Tuba
Photo: Takumi Hayashi
Fearless and distinct, Edmonton-born pianist John Stetch pushes the edges of his jazz and classical training to fuse melodies from all around the world. He is a Steinway Artist, a six-time Juno nominee, and won the Prix Du Jazz at the Montreal Jazz Festival. Stetch recently released his 14th album, and was just awarded the Inaugural Pentland Prize in Composition.
Brassh “Brassh is a fun and unapologetic piece to be played in a crowded lobby - I aimed to fit the flavour of the festive Goran Bregović theme of the main concert...kind of like a minor blues for brass in the Balkans.”
- John Stetch 7
Pre-concert Dinners at Sage Restaurant Enjoy dinner before your next Chan Centre Presents performance in a location just steps from our stage. The Chan Centre has partnered with UBC’s Sage Restaurant, located across flagpole plaza in the Leon and Thea Koerner University Centre, for the 2018/19 Chan Centre Presents series. For only $39.50 per person, indulge in a delicious three-course menu of fresh, West Coast cuisine. Details at chancentre.com/sage. Bon appÊtit!
Tell us what you think! We want to hear from you. Please visit chancentre.com/feedback and let us know about your experience tonight. 8
Upcoming Events at the Chan Centre Full details at chancentre.com Oct 26 at 7:30pm: UBC Choirs Presented by the UBC School of Music Nov 2 at 7:30pm: UBC Symphony Orchestra Presented by the UBC School of Music Nov 3 at 1pm: Royal Conservatory Convocation and Gold Medal Ceremony Presented by the Royal Conservatory of Music
Nov 4 at 3pm: Igor Levit, piano Presented by the Vancouver Recital Society Nov 8 at 8pm: Gad Elmaleh: The Dream Tour Presented by Just for Laughs Nov 13 at 8pm: Joshua Redman: Still Dreaming Presented by the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts
Nov 17 at 7:30pm: UBC Symphonic Wind Ensemble Presented by the UBC School of Music Nov 18 at 3pm: Andrea Lucchesini, piano Presented by the Vancouver Recital Society Nov 21 at 7:30pm: UBC Concert Winds Presented by the UBC School of Music Nov 23 at 7:30pm: The Nameless Presented by the 45th Avenue Jazz Band, Telus Studio Theatre Nov 23 at 8pm: An Evening with The Tallest Man on Earth Presented by Live Nation, SOLD OUT
Joshua Redman: Still Dreaming
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The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at UBC Joyce Hinton Co-Managing Director Cameron McGill Co-Managing Director Carl Armstrong Events & Customer Service Manager Wendy Atkinson Programming & Rentals Manager Lloyd Balser Head Audio Technician Kara Gibbs Marketing & Communications Manager David Humphrey Production Manager Rebecca Isaac Production Clerk Flora Lew Finance Manager Janice Lew Rentals & Programming Assistant Glenda Makela Financial & Programming Clerk Trevor Mangion Ticket Operations Manager Chloe Martin-Cabanne Operations Clerk Veronica Maynard Administration & Finance Clerk Caitlin McKee (on leave) Artistic Presenting Manager Derek Meehan Head Stage Technician Claire Mohun Marketing & Communications Coordinator James Perrella Assistant Head Audio/Stage Technician Andrew Riter Assistant Technical Director & Head Lighting Technician Nadia Roberts Events & Front of House Coordinator Lyndsey Roberts Ticket Office Supervisor Jennifer Sorko Artistic Presenting Manager Members of Cupe 2950 Front of House, Stage, and Ticketing Staff Valentina Acevedo Montilla Programming Assistant, Undergraduate Student Luisa Henz Artistic Presentations Assistant, Work Learn Student Taryn Plater Marketing & Communications Assistant, Work Learn Student Administration Office
T: 604.822.9197
E: chan.centre@ubc.ca
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Graphic Design by Copilot Design Media Relations by Murray Paterson Marketing Group The Chan Centre would like to thank our 2018/2019 series sponsors: The Chan Endowment Fund and the UBC Faculty of Arts
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“Goran Bregović always surprises us with his compositions - they're crammed to the brim with catharsis and joy… the group channels both unbridled optimism and utter despair into succinct, sweeping vignettes.” – Time Out Chicago
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NOV 13 Joshua Redman: Still Dreaming FEB 17 Bobby McFerrin: Circlesongs SOLD OUT MAR 2 Ladysmith Black Mambazo with Habib Koité and Bassekou Kouyate SOLD OUT APR 11 Cristina Pato Quartet APR 17 Mariza APR 27 Anoushka Shankar
ON SALE NOW!
Cristina Pato Mariza
Anoushka Shankar
Joshua Redman
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