CAZALLA SINGING WEEKS 2006

two courses for choral singers in a former monastery in the hills north of Seville

This is an invitation to choral singers with good reading ability to join two separate weeks of music-making in Andalusia. The event will take place at La Cartuja de Cazalla, a former monastery in the Parque Natural Sierra Norte. We rehearse daily in English in the ancient church with leading choral conductors, and give a public concert at the end of the week. The general aim is to create an intense musical experience in a relaxed and convivial setting

La Cartuja de Cazalla is an arts centre created from an old Carthusian monastery in a remote area of the Andalusian sierra north of Seville. It has hotel accommodation (you can also camp in the grounds), a church with an excellent acoustic where we will sing, numerous practice rooms for small groups and two swimming pools fed by a spring. It is in the Parque Natural Sierra Norte, a landscape of gently rolling hills clad in dense evergreen oaks. The wildlife includes imperial and Bonelli's eagles, griffon vultures, black storks, golden orioles, hoopoes, Egyptian mongooses, badgers and wild cats.

WEEK I ~ 5 to 12 August 2006, directed by Carlos Fernández Aransay

This week is intended mainly for singers in their 20s and 30s. It will explore two lesser-known areas of the Hispanic repertoire. The first is music of the XIX and XX centuries, where fine choral works by composers such as Sor, Barbieri, Eslava, Albeniz, Granados and Falla have been unjustly neglected. The other is music by modern Latin American composers such as Piazzolla, whose nuevo tango speaks fluently of 'love and lust, pain and passion'; Guastavino, the most quietly distinctive voice in Argentinean music; and Ginastera, who fused folk rhythms and colours with modern compositional techniques and was one of the most important and original South American composers of the XX century. The precise programme will be chosen when the size and composition of the group is known.

WEEK II ~ 12 to 19 August 2006, directed by JanJoost van Elburg

Singers of all ages are welcome at this week. The music will be from what Spaniards call El siglo de oro, that glorious and prosperous time that began with the re-conquest of Granada and the discoveries of Columbus, when Spain became the most powerful country in Europe and all its wealth from the New World flowed through the port of Seville. We will concentrate on music by composers connected with the city and its cathedral, who include Francisco de Peñalosa, Francisco de la Torre, Cristóbal de Morales, Pedro de Escobar, Francisco Guerrero and Alonso Lobo. We will also sing a Magnificat by Domenico Scarlatti, who (as Domingo Escarlatti) lived most of his life in Iberia. The precise programme will be chosen when the size and composition of the group is known.

ARE THEY FOR ME?

If you enjoy Spain and take your singing seriously, then the answer is probably yes. The standard is somewhat higher than the average workshop course; most of the participants will sing and perform regularly in a choir and some will have singing lessons. Good reading ability (and perhaps the willingness to study the music in advance) is important, but no one is expected to be perfect. Participants are of all ages and nationalities and come alone, with a friend or partner, or in a group. Both of the directors are experienced conductors of amateur choirs and the atmosphere is very relaxed, informal and convivial.

THE DIRECTORS

Carlos Fernández Aransay is an authority on the music of the Hispanic world. He directs Coro Cervantes, the professional London choir specialising in Iberian music, and has conducted the London Symphony Orchestra in a recording of the Spanish composer Antón García Abril. He teaches at conservatoires in Mexico and Peru, and has just returned from a tour of South America in which he conducted orchestras in Cuba, Venezuela, Argentina and Uruguay. He is Assistant Secretary of the Iberian and Latin American Music Society.

JanJoost van Elburg is a singer and conductor; among his current appointments are the Amsterdam Lelikoor, the Reading Bach Choir and the Oxford-based Batholomew Consort, which was formed for him by singers inspired by his teaching at a Lacock Early Music Week. As a singer he has performed with many ensembles, including the Tallis Scholars, The Dutch Broadcast Choir, Cappella Carolina, Cappella Colonensis in Cologne, and his own ensemble Via Spatiosa.

TIMETABLE

Each week begins with supper on the Saturday and ends after the final concert on the Friday. Every morning there will be two rehearsal sessions and another in the early evening.  Non-singing partners are welcome to join the party. Tuesday will be a half-day: the official timetable will end after the morning rehearsals.

THE MUSIC

We will assemble all the music you need for both weeks. To receive it in advance, please add the cost (Week I: £10; Week II: £15) to your deposit.

GETTING THERE

Cazalla is 75km north of Seville, the nearest airport and main railway station. From Seville you can take a bus, a train (a spectacular single track journey through the Sierra Morena), or if you are in a hurry, a taxi. We can give you the contact details.

ACCOMMODATION

La Cartuja has single rooms (Euro252 per head per week including breakfast), double rooms (Euro200), suites for four people (Euro131) and a casita sleeping seven (Euro93). There is some space for camping in the grounds. Five minutes' walk away there are villas tourísticas offering a similar range of accommodation. Please indicate your preferences on the registration form. The Cartuja serves a light meal at midday and dinner (Euro15 including wine and coffee) in the evening. Charges for accommodation and meals are paid direct to La Cartuja.

WHAT IT COSTS

The fee for the course is paid in two parts: a deposit of £160 on registration (this will be returned in full if you have to withdraw before 1^st July; after that you may hold it over to another course) and Euro200 (about £136) on arrival. In the Netherlands you may pay the deposit by sending Euro235 to account 83.52.00.205 (A van der Beek) at Fortis Bank. For further information at any time, contact avdb@cantax.freeserve.co.uk.

FOR A REGISTRATION FORM FOR THE CAZALLA SINGING WEEKS 2006, CLICK HERE.