Waikanae Music Society

I am sure you will agree that David Guerin's concert was an utter delight. He is such a fine musician and always gives us our money's worth.
On a rather more earthly note, has anyone lost a cushion? It was left after the Trio Victoria concert and is still unclaimed.

In October, Double Lateral - Jeremy Fitzsimons and Kristie Ibrahim on vibraphone and marimba - bring us a varied and interesting programme. The vibraphone and marimba are both mallet instruments, the difference being mainly the material used for the note bars, the Vibraphone's being aluminium and the marimba's being Honduras rosewood. Most repertoire for this combination is from the jazz idiom, but Double Lateral bring you two new commissions from New Zealand composers Gareth Farr and John Psathas.

And the source of the name? The term double lateral refers to a type of stroke used in four mallet playing where you get two consecutive notes from the one stroke. Jeremy and Kristie met practicing their double laterals at the Leigh Howard Stevens International Marimba Seminar in New Jersey in 1997. They played together at the Marimba Festival Orchestra in New York in 1998 and from 2001-2002, in the New Zealand group Strike.

JOHN PSATHAS (b.1966)	Fragment (2001) (arr. Fitzsimons from the original piano duet)
DAVID FRIEDMAN	Lunch with Pancho Villa (1999) (arr. Fitzsimons)
VARIOUS	Tango Suite (Arr. 2005) (arr. Fitzsimons)
MARK DUGGAN (b.1967)	Myotokugi (1998) (Inspired by a visit to a Buddhist temple in Japan)
J.S. BACH (1685-1750)	Prelude & Fugue No.10 in e minor (1722) (Transcribed by Scandinavian percussion ensemble Safri Duo to be played as a duet on melodic percussion instruments)
JOHN PSATHAS (b.1966)	Ukiyo (2005) for marimba, vibraphone, and CD (Programme note: Zen monks and haiku poets spoke of life in terms of a transient floating world (ukiyo), or of a dream that vanishes. Commissioned by Jeremy)
GARETH FARR (b.1968)	Theme from Duggan (1997) (Written for the Duggan TV series)
ASTOR PIAZZOLLA	Two movements from Histoire du Tango (1985) (for flute and guitar, one of Piazzolla�s most popular and enduring works)
DAVID FRIEDMAN	Air Sculpture (1999) for solo marimba
GARETH FARR (b.1968)	Dialogue for marimba and vibraphone (2005) (explores the ability of the two instruments to blend into one, also highlighting the contrasts in tone between the two)

Jeremy Fitzsimons graduated from Victoria University of Wellington with a Bachelor of Music degree with First Class Honours in 1995. While at Victoria University he formed and led the Big Band, was appointed Principal Percussionist of the Wellington Sinfonia, and played with many other ensembles.
A Fulbright Scholarship took him to the United States where he received his Masters (1997) and Performance Certificate (1998) from North-western University in Chicago. While in Chicago Jeremy was principal percussionist of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, a member of the award winning North-western University Percussion Ensemble and also attended the Music Academy of the West in California and the LHS marimba seminar in New Jersey. Jeremy was a founding member and director of percussion group Strike from 1993-2003, and has recently toured for Chamber Music New Zealand both as a duo with Bridget Douglas (flute) and concert tango group, Tango Virtuosi. He has recorded for the Morrison Music Trust label releasing a CD of John Psathas' works "Fragments" which won best classical CD at the NZ Music Awards 2004. He is currently working with the NZSO, pursuing various chamber and solo projects and enjoying being a dad.

Kristie Ibrahim returns to New Zealand after recently completing a Masters degree in Contemporary Chamber Music Performance in percussion at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Kristie was born in Swift Current, Saskatchewan, Canada. She received a Bachelor of Music degree from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia in May 2000, and is a graduate of the Leigh Howard Stevens International Marimba Seminar. During her graduate studies, Kristie was principal percussionist of the McGill Contemporary Music Ensemble, and played in the McGill Percussion Ensemble and the Contemporary Improvisation Seminar.

Kristie is a former member of NZ percussion ensemble Strike. She has performed as a guest artist with Halifax-based Blue Engine Music, the Scotia Festival of Music and has played on a number of recordings. Her orchestral experience also includes work with Symphony Nova Scotia, National Youth Orchestra of Canada, Auckland Philharmonia and the Wellington Sinfonia.

Did that get your attention? Come to this year's Annual General Meeting (Sunday 6 November at 2.30 pm) and you'll get to hear tomorrow's stars today. The AGM will be followed by afternoon tea and a special concert by violinist Blythe Press and pianist Amber Rainey. Both are studying music at Victoria University and are exceptional young musicians. We have watched Blythe grow and develop into a fine musician from when he first played at the Society's Student Musicians' Concerts, and Amber is a talented pianist from Upper Hutt. They have played together since 2003, as two of the three members of "Les Trois", the group that was national runner up in the 2003 Schools Chamber Music Contest. Their repertoire will include Mozart, Beethoven and Ysaye.

More details of the afternoon's events will be provided in the next newsletter, but make sure you mark that date in your calendar NOW.