Slowind

Slowind is a woodwind quintet made up of soloists from the Slovene Philharmonic Orchestra: Aleš Kacjan (flute), Matej Šarc (oboe), Jurij Jenko (clarinet), Metod Tomac (horn), and Paolo Calligaris (bassoon). Each year the quintet organises the Slowind Festival devoted mainly to contemporary music, of which they are leading exponents in Slovenia.

The Slowind Quintet received the Župančič Award of the City of Ljubljana in 1999 and the Prešeren Award in 2003.

Background

In 1987 Kacjan, Jenko, and the bassoonist Zoran Mitev established a trio and won the first prize at the National Musicians Competition of Yugoslavia (1987). In 1995 Calligaris replaced Mitev and with the addition of Šarc and Tomac, the trio was expanded to a quintet. Since 1999 they have been running their own concert series, featuring international guest artists such as Arvid Engegard, James Avery, Bernhard Wulff, Jürg Wyttenbach, Vinko Globokar, Heinz Holliger, Steven Davislim, Christiane Iven, David Wilson-Johnson, Robert Aitken, Alexander Lonquich, Ensemble SurPlus (Freiburg i. Br.), Accroche Note (Strasbourg), Salvatore Sciarrino, Pascal Dusapin, and others.

Programme

The repertoire of the Slowind ensemble includes both classical and 20th-century contemporary music, primarily recent works by modern composers. A number of prominent Slovene and international composers have dedicated works to Slowind (Vinko Globokar, Uroš Rojko, Lojze Lebič, Volker Staub, Martin Smolka). The quintet often presents seldom heard works from chamber literature. Many of the leading composers of the 20th century have had their Slovene debut on Slowind's repertoire (Luciano Berio, Edgar Varese, Elliott Cartet, Giacinto Scelsi, Iannis Xenakis, Karlheinz Stockhausen). The Slowind Quartet has issued several CDs and a DVD.

Venues and international cooperation

The members of quintet give regular concerts in Ljubljana in the hall of the Slovene Philharmonic or in the studio of Radio Slovenia. Slowind Quintet has performed at music festivals such as Ars Musica, Brussels (BE); the International Contemporary Music Festival, Opatija (HR); Musicora, Paris (FR); Roaring Hoofs Festival, Mongolia; Biennale, Bern (CH); Klangspuren, Schwaz (AT); Musica Danubiana; and Slovene Music Days, as well as at concerts in Berlin, Munich, Rome, Florence, Budapest, Paris, Milan, and Vienna. The quintet has toured the United States numerous times since 1999, it also ventured to Canada in 2002 and 2006, and to Sweden in 2007.

Slowind Quartet is a partner in the LIEU (EUropean Instrumental Laboratory) project, led by the Ensemble Aleph from Paris, and dedicated to the diffusion of contemporary music. Since 2009 some 50 musicians have been involved and more than 25 works have premièred in some 30 events in 8 European countries (Germany, Finland, France, Greece, Latvia, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Slovenia).

External links

Slowind

Contents

Background

Programme

Venues and international cooperation

See also

External links

Operated by

Financed by