Skilled musicians of the Zagreb Guitar Quartet, together with the exquisite singer Klasja Modrušan, again showed their virtuosity in front of the Zadar audience and confirmed their status as one of the world’s leading groups among the classical guitar field.

Photo gallery from the ezadar.hr portal.

Festival official report:

Institut HAZU u Zadru rijetko je korišten javni prostor iako predstavlja jedno od najreprezentativnijih gradskih zdanja. Vrt vile obitelji Tamino izgrađene 1912., danas Zavod HAZU, sinoć je kao koncertni prostor naprosto zablistao. Publika je na terasi uz pogled prema Zadarskom kanalu i otocima u toploj ljetnoj večeri uživala uz iskusan ansambl mladih glazbenika i nositelja niza međunarodno priznatih nagrada – Zagrebački gitaristički kvartet.

U interpretaciji djela Piazzole, Ville-Lobosa, Ginastere, Machada, Merlina i Josipovića, Kvartet nas je vodio kroz zvuke klasične glazbe inspirirane strastvenim latinskim plesnim ritmovima. Samba i tango u suvremenom klasičnom ruhu izvrsno su pristajali Zagrebačkom gitarističkom kvartetu, a ukrasila ga je sopranistica Klasja Modrušan u Bachiani no. 5 Heitora Ville - Lobosa i Sambi Vocalis Ive Josipovića.

Saturday, 19 July 2008 - 9:00 PM

Courtyard of the HAZU Institute, Address: Obala kneza Trpimira 8 (map)
FROM SAMBA TO TANGO

ZAGREB GUITAR QUARTET
KLASJA MODRUŠAN, soprano

A. Piazzolla, H. Villa-Lobos, A. Ginastera, C. Machado, J. L. Merlin, I. Josipović

—

Upcoming concerts:

3 August - Rovinj
8 August - Osor

In the latest issue of Vijenac, Alenka Bobinsky reviews the Quartet’s Zagreb Guitar Days concert:

Like musicians touched by a magic wand, they delight in playing chamber music. Albeit all are true virtuosi, it occurs to none of them to impose with their personal qualities.

Baroque and Rococo program during the first half of the concert, arranged and performed brilliantly enough to please even the most highbrow critic and the most passionate music conoisseur.

Complete mutual understanding of the young guitarists, absolutely coordinated openings and closings, splendidly played pianissimos and passionate, yet style congruent fortissimos left not a trace of doubt that the Quartet understood the literature they took up. It was the Baroque we love and long to hear, the Baroque sounding at moments as if played on the most precious harpsichord.

Read the entire text here (in Croatian).

ZAGREB GUITAR QUARTET
Tomislav Vasilj, Krunoslav Pehar, Melita Ivković, Mak Grgić

Program:
Georg Friedrich Händel: Suite no. 5 in E major, HWV 430
Prélude-Allemande-Courante-Air

Jean-Philippe Rameau: Gavotte et 6 doubles

Joaquín Turina: Cinq danses gitanes, op. 84
Fiesta de las calderas. Circulos ritmicos. Invocacíon. Danza ritmica. Seguiriya

Sephardic Songs: Hora ali, Ocho kandelikas, Simhat Tora

Celso Machado: Folguedo

(All compositions are arranged for four guitars by Ante Čagalj, except piece by Machado which is dedicated to the Zagreb Guitar Quartet)

Watch the clip from Slovenian television RTS featuring the Zagreb Guitar Quartet: Kulturna Zakladnica - AS - 20 05 2008.wmv

Zagreb, Croatia
Zagreb Guitar Days (festival)
Venue: Galerija Kranjčar
Address: Kaptol 26
Tickets: phone +385916354824

ZAGREB GUITAR QUARTET

Georg Friedrich Händel: Suite no. 5 in E major, HWV 430
(Prélude-Allemande-Courante-Air)

Jean-Philippe Rameau: Gavotte et 6 doubles

Johann Sebastian Bach: Prelude and Fugue in C major, BWV 531. Prelude and Fugue in G major, BWV 541
—
Tomislav Uhlik: Quartetto concertante
(Allegro alla marcia - Larghetto - Allegro)

Joaquín Turina: Cinq danses gitanes, op. 84
(Fiesta de las calderas. Circulos ritmicos. Invocacíon. Danza ritmica. Seguiriya)

Celso Machado: Folguedo

(All compositions are arranged for four guitars by Ante Čagalj, except pieces by Uhlik and Machado which are dedicated do the Zagreb Guitar Quartet)

It is the opening event of this year’s Zagreb Guitar Days Festival.

Guitar Days Festival 2008: http://www.antecagalj.com/index.php
Festival history: http://www.antecagalj.com/hr/?page_id=8

Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=15745396994&ref=mf
Last.FM event: http://www.last.fm/event/600800

***

For those who will not be able to come, the quartet will perform another concert, with shorter program:

Zagreb, Croatia
Venue: Scena Travno
Address: Božidara Magovca 17
Tickets and info: http://www.kdz.hr/index.php?p=contact

ZAGREB GUITAR QUARTET

Georg Friedrich Händel: Suite no. 5 in E major, HWV 430
(Prélude-Allemande-Courante-Air)

Jean-Philippe Rameau: Gavotte et 6 doubles

Joaquín Turina: Cinq danses gitanes, op. 84
(Fiesta de las calderas. Circulos ritmicos. Invocacíon. Danza ritmica. Seguiriya)

Celso Machado: Folguedo

(All compositions are arranged for four guitars by Ante Čagalj, except piece Machado dedicated to the Zagreb Guitar Quartet)

The leading internet portal in Zadar Croatia, eZadar.hr, features the text with two photos, as well as the photo gallery.

April-14: Ljubljana (Slovenia), Šentjakobsko gledališće, Krekov trg 2, 8 pm. Free entrance.

April-16: Rijeka (Croatia), Filodrammatica, Korzo 28/I, 8 pm. Free entrance.

April-17: Zadar (Croatia), Hrvatska kazališna kuća Zadar, Široka ulica 8, 8 pm.

Program:

Georg Friedrich Händel: Suite no. 5 in E-major, HWV 430
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Gavotte et 6 doubles
Johann Sebastian Bach: Preludes and Fugues: BWV 531 & 541

Tomislav Uhlik: Quartetto concertante
Joaquín Turina: Cinq danses gitanes, op. 84
Celso Machado: Folguedo

Tomislav Vasilj - guitar, soprano guitar
Krunoslav Pehar - guitar, alto guitar
Melita Ivković - Seven-string guitar
Mak Grgić - guitar

will hold two performances in Zagreb:

# 2008-February-29: Zagreb (Croatia), Croatian Composers Society, Berislavićeva 9, 7 pm. Concert for Croatian-Austrian Society (Kroatisch-österreichische Gesselschaft zur Förderung kultureller und wirtschaftlicher Beziehungen)

# 2008-March-12: Zagreb (Croatia), Croatian Passion Heritage Celebrations (Pasionska baština), Church of St Catherine, 8 pm.

Program:
Ave Crux, spes unica!

Georg Friedrich Händel: Suite No. 5 in E-major, HWV 430 (Prélude-Allemande-Courante-Air)
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Gavotte et 6 doubles

Johann Sebastian Bach:
Contrapuncti 1 & 4 from Die Kunst der Fuge, BWV 1080
Preludes and Fugues: G-minor BWV 578, C-major BWV 531, G-major BWV 541, G-major BWV 550

The Passion Heritage Celebrations is a cultural association formed in 1992 which promotes good values as the basis of European and Croatian culture. It is held before Easter and the program includes many musical and theatre shows, as well as fine art exhibitions (info phone 242 15 37).