Kosmos at the Festival of Chichester

Internationally-acclaimed soloists Harriet Mackenzie (violin) and Morgan Szymanski (guitar) combine under the Amici Concerts banner for a Festival of Chichester concert at St Pancras Church, Eastgate Square, Chichester on Tuesday, June 30 at 7.30pm.
KosmosKosmos
Kosmos

They are promising a sparkling and colourful programme of duets ranging from Baroque gems by Vivaldi and the sophisticated Schubert Sonata in A minor to suave tangos, passionate Spanish dances and intimate solos.

Harriet said she met Morgan when she was performing a concert with Kosmos who are also performing at this year’s Festival of Chichester (Friday, July 3, 7.30pm, also at St Pancras Church).

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“Kosmos had put on a charity concert in aid of the Live Music Now! which was set up by Yehudi Menuhin, and it brings live music to people with little or no access to live music. On the scheme we had performed in prisons, care homes, special schools, care homes for the elderly and dementia sufferers.

“It had been an amazing experience, and we saw the impact that music could have on people’s lives. We wanted to support this charity for the next generation.

“Morgan was also a musician that had experienced Live Music Now! and wanted to support them, so he came to that concert and introduced himself to me.

“He really enjoyed Kosmos and I was really pleased to meet him as I’d heard about hi. Morgan was a prizewinner in the YCAT competition and was already making a big name for himself. We had an instant connection and thought it would be fun to try out some duo repertoire together.

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“We’ve had a great time performing some fabulous repertoire together and have now performed all over the UK in international festivals. We’ve arranged some beautiful works such as Vivaldi’s D major violin concerto, which works wonderfully in this combination and Piazzolla’s Histoire du Tango (originally for flute and guitar) as well as classics such as Paganini’s Cantabile.

“As musicians, I believe Morgan and I have a similar temperament and positive energy!”

As for Kosmos, they will be offering a musical journey from South America to the Middle East. Drawing on a fascinating variety of music from around the globe, the trio’s original arrangements of Jewish, Polish and Greek music glide seamlessly into hot-blooded tango, Japanese folksong and improvisation, referencing composers including Bach, Brahms and Sarasate.

“Kosmos is such fun to play in! It’s such an imaginative group. We play music from all around the world and have studied and seriously try to absorb different musical traditions.

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“Jewish Klezmer and Sephardic Music, Tango, Arabic, Balkan and now even Japanese have all featured in our colourful repertoire which we use alongside classical, contemporary composing techniques.

“Technically, Kosmos is just as hard as any of the violin concertos that I play, and there is the added challenge of improvising.

“We never play with any sheet music, and every concert is a journey around the world as well as a real party!”

www.kosmosensemble.com.

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