The Classical Reviewer: Paul Macalindin’s book Upbeat – The Story of … youth orchestra that is often very moving but essentially uplifting
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Wednesday, 17 August 2016
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The Classical Reviewer has been involved in music for many years, as a classical record distributor, as a newspaper concert reviewer and writer of articles relating to music as well as reviewing for Harpsichord and Fortepiano magazine.
Paul Macalindin’s book Upbeat – The Story of the National Youth Orchestra of Iraq published by Sandstone Press leads us on an engrossing account of the founding of a youth orchestra that is often very moving but essentially uplifting
He assisted in the cataloguing of the scores of the late British composer George Lloyd and has co-authored a memoir of his friendship with the composer.
It was in 2008 that conductor, Paul Macalindin www.facebook.com/macalindin , was sitting at a window table in his favourite Edinburgh pub, The Barony, reading an old copy of the Glasgow Herald when he saw the headline ‘Search for UK maestro to help create an orchestra in Iraq.’
Having a particular interest in British music, he regularly undertakes talks on Elgar.
22/08/16 18:42
Sandstone Press http://sandstonepress.com/books/upbeat have recently published Macalindin’s own story from 2008 - 2014 with all the stresses and triumphs along the way.
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Sandstone Press Ltd Hardback ISBN: 9781910985090 318 pages 62 colour photographs
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It was a 17 year old Iraqi pianist, Zuhal Sultan https://twitter.com/zuhalsultan who conceived the idea of creating a national youth orchestra of Iraq. Born in Baghdad in July 1991, Zuhal, the youngest of a scientific family of two boys and two girls, she started piano studies at the age of six with the help of a private tutor. At the age of nine she received a scholarship to study at the Music and Ballet School of Baghdad. After the
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2003 Iraq War, Zuhal was left without a piano teacher but continued to teach herself, as well as the younger students in her piano class. Despite all these difficulties, she joined the Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra when she was fifteen and has performed concerts both at home and abroad. The result of reading the article in the Glasgow Herald started Paul Macalindin on an incredible journey. From his first meeting with Zuhal via Skype through the first two week summer course in Suleymaniyah, Kurdistan in 2009, subsequent summer schools, the orchestra’s appearance at the 2011 Beethovenfest in
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The Classical Reviewer: Paul Macalindin’s book Upbeat – The Story of … youth orchestra that is often very moving but essentially uplifting www.valentinalisitsa.com play when listening to the car radio. It was her incredibly fluid playing in t... Brahms recordings to treasure from Riccardo Chailly and the Gewandhausorchester on a new release from Decca It is often said that Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) came late to the symphony, yet he wrestled with his first symphony from as early as 1862,... Playing of passion and nervous energy from Yundi in a new release of Beethoven Sonatas from Deutsche Grammophon There is no shortage of recordings of Beethoven’s Piano Sonatas. The competition from older artists such as Schnabel, Kempff and Brendel, no... Surrey Opera’s fine new production of George Lloyd’s Iernin is a triumph I was fortunate to have been present at Surrey Opera’s www.surreyopera.org p roduction of George Lloyd’s opera Iernin www.georgelloyd.co...
Bonn, appearing at the Edinburgh Festival/fringe in 2012 that culminated in a concert at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London with Julian Lloyd Webber, an appearance at Aix en Provence in 2013 to a failed
22/08/16 18:42 Followers (20)
US trip due, initially to funding and immigration difficulties and then the rise of ISIL. It is difficult to imagine the difficulties that Paul Macalindin, his brave young players and the tutors gathered from a number of countries had to overcome. The author certainly opens our eyes. First and foremost was the problem of security, or lack of, in an unstable part of the world. Auditions to join the orchestra had to be conducted by video. There were cultural, ethnic and language difficulties as it was vital that the orchestra should be inclusive and draw its members from all parts of Iraq including Arab, Shia and Sunni and Kurds. Venues were often grand but lacking in reliable air-conditioning, something essential in the summer heat. Accommodation for the orchestra was sometimes appalling. Instruments were often damaged or of poor quality. There was the Iraqi bureaucracy and most of all perhaps there were funding problems. The toll on Macalindin during his time at the helm of the NYOI was considerable, emotionally, physically and financially. Nevertheless, in his book he leads us on a story that is often very moving but essentially uplifting. There is humour and above all tremendous hope and confidence in the young musicians. His is a very honest, forthright account that doesn’t pull any punches when criticising those who put up barriers and yet fulsome in praise for those many people and organisations that went beyond what might be expected to help the young players.
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The young musicians themselves often experienced great danger in pursuing their musical interests. In certain parts of Iraq it was not acceptable for females to play an instrument, in other areas to be seen with a violin, oboe or bassoon would in itself cause danger. Often the young people had to carry their instrument disguised in a small suitcase or other bag.
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Rolf Lislevand is a mu constantly draws ..
There is no doubt that many barriers were broken down as the young members of the orchestra, often already traumatised by the experiences that they had been through, began to see each other just as
Paul Macalindin’s boo Story of the N...
musicians, learning to work together to produce great music.
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Paul Macalindin’s book is an engrossing read, cover to cover, that enlarges our understanding of this
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troubled region. Above all it is a tribute to those brave young musicians that came together as the NYOI.
► July (12) A very fine Violin Concerto from Patricia Kopatchinskaja that will surely help this work to gain acceptance and a particularly musical performance of the Piano Concerto in A Minor from Dénes Várjon on Heinz Holliger’s fourth volume of his complete survey of the orchestral works of Schumann for Audite Oboist, composer and conductor, Heinz Holliger www.schottmusic.com/shop/persons/feature d/heinz-holliger continues his survey of the Com... BBC Proms – Daniil Trifonov’s Prom debut with Valery Gergiev and the LSO in an all Russian concert Valery Gergiev http://lso.co.uk/valery-gergiev-2 brought an all Russian concert to Tuesday night’s Prom (13 th August 2013) www.bbc.co.u... Proms 2013. A David Matthews premiere, Rachmaninov from Nobuyuki Tsujii and Nielsen’s Inextinguishable with Juanjo Mena and the BBC Philharmonic Tonight’s Prom (16 th July 2013) with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra www.bbc.co.uk/orchestras/philha rmonic conducted by their Chief Cond...
There is a forward provided by the late Sir Peter Maxwell Davies who sadly did not live to see the book in print.
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The future of the National Youth Orchestra of Iraq is inevitably bound up with the future of Iraq but one can only hope that the young musicians of Iraq will go forward to achieve their musical goals. Posted by Bruce Reader at 09:35
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Murray McLachlan is a tremendous advocate for the music of Ronald Stevenson in a new release from Divine Art. I first heard the music of Ronald
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The Classical Reviewer: Paul Macalindin’s book Upbeat – The Story of … youth orchestra that is often very moving but essentially uplifting
22/08/16 18:42
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