The man behind the clarinet

Word-renowned clarinettist Dimitri Ashkenazy will be in Paphos on Thursday for a chat with fans and to play a few pieces before returning on Saturday for a concert with soloists of the Cyprus Symphony Orchestra (CSO).

The Technopolis 20 Cultural Centre’s garden will be the location for Thursday’s glass of wine and informal meeting. Those attending will be able to get to know the man and the musician and learn about his experience with many internationally known musicians and orchestras. He will also give a glance into what is in store for us on Saturday when he takes up his clarinet and performs a number of pieces.

On Saturday the cultural centre will again be the location where Ashkenazy will perform with four soloists from the CSO, first concertmaster Wolfgang Schroder and first violin Sorin Alexandru Horlea on violins, sub-principal of viola section Vladimir Tkachenko and principal cellist Jakub Otcenasek.

Ashkenazy began playing the piano at the age of six and then switched to the clarinet. Since completing his studies, he has gone on to perform widely, both as soloist and chamber musician. In addition to the major concertos for the clarinet, his repertoire extends to include contemporary works such as Peter Maxwell Davies’ Strathclyde Concerto No.4, which he has performed with the composer himself conducting in Spain, Germany, Hungary and the UK, and Krzysztof Penderecki’s own transcription of his Viola Concerto with the composer himself conducting both in Poland and on tour in Spain.

The programme will include the String Quartet in G Minor by Claude Debussy and the Clarinet Quintet in B minor, Op.115 by Johannes Brahms.

Dimitri Ashkenazy
Discussion and talk with the clarinettist. October 4. Technopolis 20 Cultural Foundation, Paphos. 7pm. €10 including a glass of wine. Tel: 70-002420. Live performance by the clarinettist and soloists from the Cyprus Symphony Orchestra. October 6. Technopolis 20 Cultural Foundation, Paphos. 7pm. €15. Tel: 70-002420

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