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robbuckland.com
I'm really over the moon about this new CD. It's been a long 8 years since my last CD "Towards the Light" (now available in re-issue from quartzmusic.com), a lot has happened in my life, and the new CD really marks so many things for me. The music on the disc is without doubt some of the most engaging and inspiring that I have the pleasure of performing, and I know you will really enjoy listening to the disc. I'm particularly happy with "The Quiet Zone" section of the CD - the last 20 minutes of the disc make up this beautifully soulful and chilled selection of music - there's so much noise and rushing around in our lives these days, I really wanted to use the Equivox soundworld to create an oasis of calm at the end of the disc, almost a CD in itself. Barbara Thompson's "Rhythm of the Gods" is a wonderful showcase for the variety of sounds and instrumental colours available to the Trio, and Jason Rebello's stunning piece "Integration" has defined the sound of the Equivox Trio. The three solo showcase pieces give each of us the opportunity to use our instruments in creative and unconventional ways…..a disc with real variety and contrast, but always with rhythm, melody, harmony and a real honesty in performance. Do email and let me know what you think of the disc - I'd love to hear your thoughts. There will be some sound clips from the CD on the site very soon, so check them out too! Last weekend was the 6th RNCM Saxophone Day. Another hectic and successful day of workshops, classes, masterclasses and concerts for Saxophonists everywhere. The evening concert featured the RNCM Saxophone Orchestra in a challenging programme of new works written by staff and students of the RNCM - the RNCM students did a fantastic job with some very demanding repertoire - my thanks to them all for the huge amount of work that they put in to get the group to arguably it's highest level yet. Andy Scott, Mike Hall and I are so very lucky to be working with these young professionals at the start of their careers. Christian Forshaw brought his "Sanctuary" project to the second set of the concert - a haunting and spellbinding collection of music for his beautiful, plaintive Saxophone, Soprano Voice, Percussion and Organ (the CD of this project is available from quartzmusic.com - one of the best selling classical albums of the last 2 years...check out christianforshaw.com), and the finale, Tim Garland and the Lighthouse Trio, was without doubt one of the best concerts I have ever had the privilege to witness - the artistry of these three musical geniuses (Tim on Saxes and Bass Clarinet, Gwilym Simcock on Piano, and Asaf Sirkis on Percussion) was incredible to behold. The interaction and creativity between them was almost magical....humbling and inspiring at the same time. (Check out timgarland.com for more info about dates and recordings. Move heaven and earth to see these guys play). I'm currently preparing for the premiere performance of Louis Andriessen's "To Pauline O" (originally for oboe). I am giving the first performance of this version for Soprano Saxophone in the presence of the composer as part of the Equivox Trio's gig at the Cornerstone Festival in Liverpool next week (see forthcoming events). It's about the hardest Soprano Piece I've played to date!! Also on the stand at the moment is the Cyber Bird Concerto by Takashi Yoshimatsu, which I am performing three times with the Chinese National Symphony Orchestra in Beijing over the Xmas period. I'm so looking forward to working in China, a first for me, and exploring Beijing. I have just finished an arrangement of some Piazzolla for me and the strings of this great orchestra, and we will also be playing some Massanet as encore pieces for these concerts as well, giving a real cross section of what the Saxophone can do. The Equivox Trio is touring throughout the spring, and Sax Assault is touring during the same period, so check out the diary dates in on my forthcoming events page. I hope to see you at a concert soon…do come and say hello! As well as the new piece I wrote for the RNCM Saxophone Orchestra to premiere on Sax Day this year, I'm in the middle of a new piece for the Equivox Trio, which will hopefully be part of our spring tour programmes. Congratulations to Andy for winning the Wind and Brass Category of the British Composer Awards for his wonderful "Dark Rain" Double Saxophone Concerto. As many of you know, Andy is a truly inspirational composer, with a really unique and honest style, drawing on influences from all areas of the musical spectrum with ease and flair, and he really deserves this recognition on the national stage. I wish him every success - he is destined for great things, and it's been a pleasure and privilege to call him a friend for the last 21 years. All the best mate! (check out andyscott.org.uk). Finally, with the Saxophone grapevine being what it is, I know there are all sorts of stories flying around about the Apollo Saxophone Quartet - so here are the facts! We've been playing together almost constantly for 21 years now, but many of the other individual projects that we are involved in at the moment are really taking off, and need all of our energies directing towards them right now, so we have decided to take a well earned break from the ASQ for a couple of years to allow each of us time to fully pursue the other areas of our lives that have taken second place to the ASQ for so long and then to return to the ASQ after a sabbatical. We still have plans and ambitions for the Quartet in the future, and indeed, our NEW CD "Three Quartets - the music of Barbara Thompson" has just been released (on the Celestial Harmonies label - visit www.harmonies.com for info). There are several exciting projects waiting for the ASQ to pick up when the time is right…watch this space! Keep the emails coming - it's great to hear from you all. Be safe, stay healthy and happy, and keep on blowin'!
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