Flute Alors at the Recorder Festival

I have written about this group, Flute Alors! before.
The musicians as individuals and as a group have been winning accolades in music competitions and for their concerts. The concert at the recorder festival was no exception. To add a little spice, the concert was billed as audience choice. We voted on a choice of two options of pieces for two parts of the concert and pulled names from a hat for two other pieces as to which musician played which line. It certainly keeps them on their toes.

Each of these players possess a dazzling technique (my fingers wish they could move that fast) as well as a facility with a variety of musical styles. I have subscribed to their Montreal series so will be treated to more of their musical offerings over the year. Their website will tell you a little more about them. And for a musical treat
A promotional video for their CD, Kaleidoscope (in French)
and one more

Montreal Recorder Festival

Renaissonics, originally uploaded by susanvg.

Four days of musical adventure, from lectures on playing Renaissance music to concerts, to classes... Astonishing concerts by the Renaissonics, Ensemble Caprice with two violinists from Rebel and a new find for me - Horacio Franco. Virtuosity, originality and wonderful, personal interpretation of the music

And the festival is about connecting and reconnecting with people who love music the way I do. My Toronto friends come to stay and we enjoyed the festival together. And this time I reconnected with a teacher who had once come up to coach us on playing Renaissance dance music. It's always good to learn and relearn. Each time you are exposed to ideas the understanding is deeper and more can be integrated. As a result of the weekend of workshops I have new goals and musical ideas to work on. It's amazing how you can feel tired and rejuvenated at the same time.

So here are my new resolutions
- spend some time improvising on simple melodies or chord progressions
- spend some time practicing patterns for ornamentation so they become part of my repertoire
- play around with music more
- play more Renaissance music and look at the words and phrases - let the recorder speak the text
These are thanks to John.

But mostly - play, play and play as music is a language that transcends other languages and lets us speak from the heart.

If you haven't heard the Renaissonics click here and select a piece.