Poetry and friends

Yesterday Inge, a dear friend, and I met up, talking, visiting a gallery where her teacher has an exhibition and listening to her explanation that is was all about the translucency of the background which is a very difficult thing to get right. She has been studying with him for a really long time and she really wants to get it right having developed quite a sharp eye.

Sitting in front of a text is a quite a different activity. And I am not sure I do get it right. It is a good thing in dark times to seek the light in poetry, in friends one hasn't seen for a long time. So I look
forward to this afternoon's event when Joris Iven presents his new book. And then there is also another consolation: José Meyvis playing in the teachers performance tonight. The Music school is right across from me and in summer I would just have to open the windows to hear the lovely sounds above the heavy city traffic. So today will be a day of friendship and culture. It might even be a day of healing.

Op droeve velden - On saddened fields -

The evening about world war I was part poetry and piano recital and part peace action, organized by Frank De Vos in cooperation with the district of Hoboken. In 2016, 2 million German troops stood against 3 million of the allied forces. My great-uncle Edo as a young boy in Flanders fields. Poison gas as first used on April 22, 1915. From 1915 to 1918 not only one and a half million Armenians were killed by the Turkish regime but also thousands of ethnic Greeks and Assyrian Christians.
At the piano was the amazing Billy Pletinck playing the piano, hammering it when needed, caressing when suited. The organization was flawless and during the music pictures from that time were shown in a slide shows. about the Hoboken war experience. After each piece of music a poet read his or her poem. I honor the poets of that evening and the master of ceremony Roger Nupie. Basically this was a multi-disciplinary activity: Music, photography by Hartmut De Martelaere and Goddie Caubergh and ten poets: Peter Holvoet-Hanssen presented an evocation of "The occupied city", the beautiful book by Paul Van Ostayen about the occupation of Antwerp in the forties of last century.
The poets: Cecile Van Houten, Eric Vandenwyngaerden, Annmarie Sauer, Erwin Steyaert, Erick Kila, Ann Van Dessel, Bert Bevers. Only at the end I saw how the hall was filled and that several friends were in the audience. It was a classy and wonderful night. And yes war is wrong: Make Love Not War!

Swansong: The presentation in den Hopsack packed to the rafters

Finally the day came of the presentation of Rose Vandewalle's Zwanenzang/Swansong came. The day before, Jean Demey who was going to lay while Viv who read the Dutch text and I would read. Of course I read the English version since it is my translation. The only thing Jean asked was that I read the 33 poems calm and sober, leave five counts between the different poems. So at the evening Jean brought his black and shiny contrabass guitar and installed himself between the two readers a bid behind them. I loved what he did: a bit Ravi Shankar and a lot of Jean, but intimate, withheld, sober as he  had told me to read. Viv is a different person she taught in the Lemmen's Institute speech and diction. She would accentuate certain words, and thus created a different flow. Being on the stage I have no pictures to show... But the audience was quiet, listened and appreciated the introduction of Bert Jans from Dodo Press and the flow of Rose's work in the music and the different ways of reading. A friend, Bart Stouten was so sweet: he explained me why my translations into English are good. He said he felt I questioned the words at a deeper level in both languages and thus would find a better match between them. I must admit I was a bit flattered... The evening was warm and caring and every one had a good time.

Praying for forbidden fruit by Bart Stouten

Bart forever kind and forever the professional organized a book presentation  unlike any other I have seen and especially heard. The Introduction by Luc Coorevits, was clear and to the point and he was right when he said it was a totally different approach to writing this real novel. In this picture Bart seems to be quietly relaxing, kind of knowing that everything would be fine. It was after all the master who was the master of ceremony. Publisher Friday (Vrijdag) brought another good book out. Once home I started reading and it is quite captivating. Working for Klara, the classical radio in Flanders Bart knows the field of music extremely well. He will find new young talent as Wout Goris and Wolfram Ghesquière, a truly intimate performance with Wofram's lyrics  brought to us in a fragile, husky voice by Wout. I preferred his English ballads over the Dutch ones although those  found a way to touch me.

 Here as a surprise for the evening Bart reading from the book and young Vlad Weverbergh on bas sax intoning, improvising along the reading. I had enjoyed Vlad's work a couple of times before, he seemed as playful yet even more mature as a musician. In other words. What a beautiful, rich evening.
Thanks to all  who made it happen.

Mozert: an homage to gerard Mortier

Gerard Mortier was the Belgian opera innovator. He passed away and the concert was to pay homage to his life and work.

The first violin and the director were great, very expressive. The choir had wonderful voices. I also admired  Anne Cambier: with a reach of two octaves. The technique she has in singing is exceptional. People totally enjoyed the performances of the young orchestra and of the more seasoned voices. It was a great evening with neighbors and friends and lovers of music.

Bluegrass: Kingman pickin in the vines

The bluegrass festival off the route 66 near Kingman in the Stetson winery was delightful. With several people from Chloride present we enjoyed the atmosphere and the music. We started out at 10 am with gospels performed by the The Central Valley Boys. Peter Hicks on the violin was remarkable. They performed several songs in  the traditional style as a sign of respect to Vern Williams. So we  were treated with Oh Suzannah! and Bald knob Arkansas.

After this really fitting Sunday  morning Gospel bonanza the Snap Jackson & the knock on wood players gave us a brilliant set. The banjos stirred up memories of Tony and Norris playing and the ballads made me think of Dave... Americana, Bluegrass, souls blends in to a fresh new sound. The musicians have fun on stage and so did the audience.

The last set we listened to was performed by The get down boys out of Los Angeles. The rhythms and their own songs are just excellent. I also appreciate that they support new movements in Bluegrass. The sound people are musicians in their own right and went up on stage at one point.... In this set the vocal harmonies were just stirring and moving. Also note the mountains in the background...

Strauss Happening in the Singel in Antwerp

Richard Strauss evolved from a decadent modernist at the end of of the nineteenth century to melodic walser melodies and bittersweet opera's like "der Rosenkavalier", a comedy about life and customs in Vienna. He was a German nationalist loving the German culture, yet abhorred the barbarians of the fascist regime under Hitler. The day started out with the "Filharmonie"  performing "Ein Heldenleben". But let me start at the real beginning: The first violin enters the stage and bows, then the others filter in and the tuning begins: fine tuning, listening in the wondrous chaos of sound to one's own instrument and hearing the sound you are looking for.

 The ritual has to be performed: The conductor comes, shakes hands with the first violin and greets the second violin. Silence, serenity and goose bumps when the whole orchestra in harmony resounds.  Ein Heldenleben: I am naive in music, know nothing yet I am floored, touched, moved, fascinated, feel the vibrations of this large orchestra in my body and bones, feel anger at the military tones and am moved to tears. The instruments are flutes, clarinets, hobos, horns saxophones, wood flute, cello, in the percussion section drums and other kinds of instruments... After that I had to go out be outside and let it all sink in. The day want on as grandiose as it started. the Fauré Quartet was a it more lighthearted and The Arabian dance made me smile. They Quartet was followed after a break by soprano Elizabeth Watts and Roger Vignoles at the piano. I like her attitude, the  kind of irreverence going a along with great voice technique. Then there was a male choir and after that a mixed choir. The songs were irreverent, fun, playful things. And the day ended around 10 pm after having seen a silent movie from 1926 about der Rosenkavalier while the orchestra performed the whole opera... What a day... only possible thanks to the collaborative effort of deSingel, deFilharmonie and the Royal Conservatorium Antwerpen, AP Hogeschool.

Twenty years after the genocide in Rwanda

 Kris Berwouts and Ivan Godfroid (right), both are Central Africa specialists. Twenty years after the genocide in Rwanda they are sharing their knowledge and feelings about what happened there and and what the situation in the region and in Rwanda itself is to date.

The basis for the discussion is Ivan's poetry book 'Omgewoelde aarde' (Disturbed earth). The book is in three sections. The first one with the motto: During the day Imana (god) roams over the earth, at night he comes to sleep in Rwanda. En deep expression of the beauty and peacefulness of the country. The second motto is: to where the river runs also the rocks roll. The unrest, the uneasiness, the doom is present. Every noise could be the last thing one hears... Foreboding and the reality of it. the third section opens with the motto: It is not the pain of the moment which kills but it's constant memory. The Oratorium for Rwanda was played and the contrast between the joyful strong rhythmic music we are used to hear with the deep inwardness and silence was chilling. Jean De Mey performed a beautiful and haunting improvisation rendering the screams and pain of those mad hundred days in 1994 in which 800.000 people were slaughtered in one hundred days. Rwanda is hauntingly beautiful country, machetes are still the tool of choice and are seen everywhere. Hope lies with the new post genocide generation. Yet overpopulation could destabilize the whole region including the North-east of Congo. Every twenty years the population doubles. Every twenty years there is less land per person to live off and  the seeds of new conflicts lay dormant, for now.

RuhrKunstOrt - Horst Weichbrodt-

The opening of  the show by Horst started with an interview for the local media, relaxed, everybody knows each other except me who is trying to figure out the relationships, the qualities of of each and everyone. Horst had asked not to ave a formal introduction to his  art but to read a few poems written by Native Americans. So Trevino Brings Plenty was heard, and also Sherman Alexie and MariJo Moore.
Horst sculpting is based on found objects, material along the banks of the Rhine or the Ruhr. He said: I work with cheap materials. yes, it is a kind of Arte Povera. The light effects in his work stem from incorporating glass marbles.
 Sometimes the sculptures light is in one tone, sometimes the marbles are multicolored. Of course besides the poetry not only read in English but also in the German translation by Fred Schywek, there were didgeridoo players, really fun and a Kurdish trio and of course good musicians then tend to jam together: a extra treat. The audience would spill out on the sidewalk and look in... My favorite piece is the Crow.

Lightnight poetry and music in RuhrKunstort

RuhrKunstort is an artist work place in the Ruhrort part of Duisburg. There is always something going on. The night of the winter solstice it was poetry and music: Fred Schywek, poet of the Lower Rhine read eleven poems some personal, one poem commemorating another poet. His poetry is strong, lyrical and idiosyncratic...

 Here are Fred and Ilona Vildebrand practicing a little tribute to Brel and the city Amsterdam. She read three poems and sang with verve several songs the audience enjoyed. The small place was packed with thirty some odd people. The audience was warm and inquisitive, talked to the poets, asked questions shared what they felt about the readings. I was astonished how many people from the former DDR (East-Germany) were there and felt it was necessary to tell a foreigner like me that that is where they came from. I guess it is necessary to understand the limitations they had and the peculiar education they had under a communist regime. I myself read some poems in English and Dutch and of course the German translation by Fred. People came up and discussed the native American quotes by MariJo Moore I had read. They were especially fascinated by the bear quote...

A nice pleasant evening, which brought light in the darkness.

Jubilee concert

 Twenty years ago a group of people founded the "Vrienden van het Concervatorium". So all of us were treated to a free concert to honor the occasion. Mendelson's Piano trio nr. 1 op. 49 in d Violin, cello, piano, 4 movements. Just wonderful. I love the darker tones of a cello, so I was happy.

After a nice speech by the chairman the second part was Psalm op. 42 - Wie der Hirsch schreit. The choir of the young students did a great job. I know I am partial to choirs and the harmony and strength of the human voice. There must have been about seventy singers and the young orchestra. I found it moving and fitting for this Christmas time. It brought joy and lightheartedness in the final dark day's of the year. Culture rounds the hard edges of daily life. Thanks to you all.

The last performance of VENN: Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui

This is the last scene from the last performance of VENN. Yes I attended the performance again. I didn't know how I would react since the element of surprise would not be there. I must admit that I liked it even better than the first time, seeing more, recognizing some of the movements which touched me deeply. Also the music and voices went deeper into me. Seeing the intimacy of certain parts when a person becomes a shoe, a chair, a shower, a coat for the other. The violent scene when a woman gets beaten up without being touched really got under my skin at the second viewing. The waxing and waning of the gestures of a few dancers to the a full stage and the massiveness of the group movement was exhilarating, gave energy.

The gestures preceding the spoken word where beautiful and they contended that there was more communication with fingers and wrists and arms than when people started to speak... I must admire the students of the dance school of the Koninklijk Conservatorium in Antwerp. Some of them are just in their first year, others, with the heavier roles, are in their last year. So no the preparation starts for the final exam, which I hope to see as well. Art is balsam to the soul...

To all of you thanks.

Eating cherries around midnight - Bart Stouten

The book presentation was last week, yet I was so impressed I couldn't quite write it all down. It is like receiving a beautiful parcel and not daring to open it for fear the charm would disappear. But now it still holds. The title is wonderful. So was the presentation. It is a book with memories of how music came to be important in Bart's life. Yet also the sadder memories like the loss of his parents and twin sister were honestly spoken about. One could feel the lingering pain and uneasiness. One could feel the honesty. Interviewer, Anna Luyten and interviewee both bared part of their souls, without making the audience feel they are voyeurs, even when speaking about love and loss. Although knowing Bart for a while, I learned more about him. The book are memories beginning with his first piano lesson, when he fell in love with which instrument, the place of music in general in his life. He also is a longtime Zen practitioner. Of course the radio voice from Klara, Flemish classical music radio channel, provided some excellent music: Bach played on the accordion by Bart Wils was wonderfully moving. Now I am looking for a chunk of free time to relax and eat the cherries. Of course, the Permeke auditorium was well filled with all kind of interesting and interested people. A zen like experience, closed with a glass of wine and the chatter of friendly voices.

Sequenza: afterthoughts

With a book title like Sequenza it was to be expected that the presentation would equal a musical orgy for the crowd of lovers of Marleen de Crée's poetry. Of course we had the symbolic empty chair for Liu Xiaobo, Nobel laureate for Literature still in a Chinese jail. Such a symbolic gesture is something we try to do for different writers when they are in prison for using their freedom of expression. The surprise for me was Vlad Weverbergh in the moving, masterly way he performed Sequenza IXa by Berio. Not easy music, but listening made easy by the clarinetist. Marleen and I read her formidable poetry: she in Dutch and I in English. Frank De Vos, our den Hopsack troubadour, offered a moving new song: Waving at 12b, conceived in the room his mother was slowly leaving this world in. The friends and fans of Marleen were a great audience, listened very attentively and afterwards even spoke about the differences between languages, loyalty to the original, rhythms... And then the party started and a good time was had by all. Yesterday the first poem of the book, today the last in both languages:

over de bruggen schuift
de schaduw voor ons uit.
wij kunnen hem niet horen.
hij snijdt tot op het been.
we slaan de armen om het kind.
het hinkelt in de sterren
als waren wij nog niet geboren.
we leggen onze stemmen neer
voor het licht de ogen sluit.
onder de bruggen stroomt het lied,
slingert het in zachte plooien,
zingt, huivert en fluistert weer
in schaduwen die ons niet
toebehoren. daar zijn we samen
daar gingen we heen.
* 

over  the bridges glides

the shadow before us.

we cannot hear it.

it cuts to the bone.

we put our arms around the child.

it plays hopscotch in the stars

as if we hadn’t been born yet.

we lay down our voices

before the light closes the eyes.

under bridges flows the song,

meanders in soft folds,

sings, shivers and whispers again

in shadows which don’t belong

to us. there we are together

that is where we were going.

Schubert for docters without borders

Christopher Stokes, the General Director of Doctors without Borders - an international and independent medical and humanitarian organization - held a moving introduction about their work in Syria. They help people in life threatening situations in case of armed conflicts, epidemics or natural disasters. They are neutral and have no ties to political, economic or governmental authorities. 89 % of their funds comes from private donors. This was the third edition of a fund raiser organized by Les Lux. They invited Lucas Blondeel on the piano, German Judith Ermert on the cello and bas-bariton Werner Van Mechelen. Songs, a sonata, impromptus on the piano, all that was offered in the gorgeous baroque Amuz church with excellent acoustics. I must compliment the organizers Aly Talen, Inez Vanoverschelde and Frank De Vos with a job well done. German romantic music with lyrics by Mayerhofen and Goethe was soothing to the soul and might bring hope and help to many people in need.

The first hospitals Doctors without Borders build for the Syrian refugees was in a  cave, a farmhouse and near the Turkish border where by then five refugee camps had sprung up. By now 70.000 people have died, hospitals are created in cellars and every one needing medical assistance is helped. It was a beautiful evening and drinking a glass of champaign for a good cause was a novel way of advocacy to me.

Cicatrizado - Poetry in Hoboken

Cicatrizado is the successor to the first volume Yawn on stone, hopefully to be followed by a third project. All is flawlessly organized by Frank De Vos, who developed the concept. Hartmut De Maertelaere took the pictures of trees with scars which inspired the poets. The district of Hoboken, Belgium is the publisher of the books. Eighteen black and white images of a knot, a scar on a tree, a detail, a feel of a bark of a tree lead to insights and moods and metaphors, to rhythms, all different.
All poets present read their work and the cellist Judith wonderfully played six Bach pieces in the beautiful Hoboken castle in the snow. I was impressed by a poet I didn't know: Ann Van Dessel. She writes the poem as the observer who sees the trees who see what humans do. 'They put their roots towards our feet' and 'they carve breath in our hands'. It was a pleasant gathering, a great initiative. The poems and pictures can be still be seen in the Hoboken park.  

Nabucco - Giuseppe Verdi

José, a friend of mine offered me a ticket to the opera, one of the best seats in the house, since she fell ill. Not being well versed in classical music I decided to go and listen to the introduction the opera gives before the performances. I learned this opera is written in a new and revolutionary way: working in dialogs between voices, between instruments, between soloists and choir and the orchestra and the singers. Also that the dramatic action is driven by the characters who define the plot. The first tones of the orchestra pulled at my heartstrings, moved me, but still I didn't fathom the ride I would be on. The performance by the Symphonic Orchestra and Choir of the Flemish Opera, the instruments and voices enchanted me. The British director however deserves my greatest praise: Daniel Slater. He used the libretto and the opera with a totally contemporary eye: no costumes, but contemporary iconic clothing referring to the Arab spring, the Occupy movement, the Israel-Palestine conflict, the golden calf in Wall street, power and religion.
The opening scene the choir is seated among graffiti-sprayed walls listening to Zaccaria their backs turned to the audience, occupy masks on the back of their heads, tents like I have seen in several cities. Zaccaria is a rebel rouser and we see how the group responds, takes over his defiant attitude. Verdi in the 21st century. The choir eloquently, beautifully speaks out against persecution. I became part of the thoughts and feelings, had tears running along my cheeks. To me this contemporary direction by Slater is a voyage through war and conflict, power hunger, subjection and liberation and the possibility of forgiveness, peaceful futures for all. The 'bad Character' Abigaille sang with reckless abandon, grabbing the crown when Nabucco is overcome by madness, his singing in those moments faltering, inward turned, whereas his finale having chased Abigaille and the golden calf of Babylon having been destroyed, was powerful. To my untrained ear all did a great job, the choir however stole my heart. I absolutely loved the very last gesture: Nabucco with the flick of a hand not accepting the crown... A long applause and bravo!!! After all the old testament violence, we leave the opera with hope. Hope that Occupy and other peaceful movements will build a new sense of community.

Zygomatik: Piet Verbist in quintet

The zygomaticus major is the muscle in your face from kind of your temple to your mouth. The zygomaticus minor is the one going to  the lower part of your face: together they make all expressions. So actually Zygomatik is a great name for a very expressive Jazz cd. Piet Verbist is the leader of the group, performing on Sunday morning as a quintet. Words that come up while thinking of the concert are:
Full
power
unpretentious high quality
expressive
jazz funk
rock
Above and Beyond brings the fragility of bow on strings, from lust to lost, the drums gather and accent the delicacy of the quintet. Their names: Herman Pardon on the drums, Bram Weyters piano, Vincent Brijs and Matt Renzi (San Francisco) bass and tenor sax...
The 4th piece had a genteel start, hands on drum, almost oriental, in a beautifully structured time and improvisation and thereafter we fall into Piet's magnificent: PMS Alert! read: Piet's Manic Scream Alert! Belief me it was like a rush, soft and wild in the discipline of a musical structure. Great stuff!

Futures envisioned in song and dance: Hola!

Agencefuture got it's start years ago in London. After a doctorate about the images of the future on the BBC, Maya wondered how the future was imagined in the real world. She and photographer - camera man and fervent cyclist Bram set out in the world on recumbent bikes to go in search of the images other people hold. Their latest venture was the Maono project for which they made a wonderful road book for each of the participants to fill out or to be inspired by.
A wonderful result of the cooperation between development aid, research into the future and working together with artists in the Democratic Republic of Congo is the song 'Hola' which has been written and composed and performed as part of the project. Joy and peace, creativity, understanding and a good dose of perfectionism and respect are the ingredients of this heartwarming song.

The square and B B King

I am sitting in a trendy square and am amazed at how young the city has become. Just here and there a graying beard, a white head. Just two, three ample gray haired women. The 30/40 year old are mainly skinny, Sancere sipping and speaking about a new partner be it in love or in business. Also relationships turned sour are a frequent subject. Good advice, or advice meant as such, is balanced by hard edged principles, used as a dam against more hurt. And then from somewhere a line of music:

If you don't know
what to do
listen to T-Bone Walker
if you don't now
what hit you
when you're under
a bad spell
can't hide the thrill
listen
listen
to B B King