Atlas Academy 20 – 31 August 2014
Conservatorium van Amsterdam

From 20 to 31 August 2014 the Atlas Ensemble organized the fifth edition of the Atlas Academy at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. The Atlas Academy is a laboratory for the creation of innovative intercultural music.

Composers and musicians applied to develop a piece or experiment during the two weeks, working closely with musicians from all over the world in individual or group sessions.

The Atlas Academy offered a wide range of activities:

1 Atelier for the creation of new repertoire
Composers and musicians from all over the world come together to study and research the possibilities to create new intercultural music during two weeks of experimental sessions and workshops.

2 Masterclasses for instrumentalists
A specially designed programme for instrumentalists with lectures and masterclasses given by top soloists like Dhruba Ghosh, Lan Wei Wei, Harrie Starreveld and others.

3 Lectures / demonstrations on Middle Eastern and Asian instruments
lutes – 'ud, tar, setar, pipa
bowed strings – erhu, kamancha, sarangi, kemençe
zithers – qanun, santur, zheng, koto
wind instruments – shakuhachi, duduk, sheng, sho

4 Seminars and documentation
Lectures by invited guest speakers, among others Wim Henderickx, Christopher Trapani, Huib Schippers, addressed a variety of perspectives. The activities of the Atlas Academy were documented (audiovisual and written) with the objective to build a comprehensive digital library.

5 Atlas Festival
Performances of traditional and intercultural music took place at the Atlas Festival in Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ Amsterdam (6 and 7 September 2014).

Schedule August 2014 >

 

The Atlas Academy 2014 made possible with the financial support of the City of Amsterdam and the Art Mentor Foundation Lucerne