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CONTACT
John L. Walker
PO Box 10164
Blacksburg, VA 24062
540-553-0564
email: [email protected]
FEES
Because of the ensemble’s unique repertoire, fees may vary slightly, depending on the number of musicians involved.
Concert $4000.00
Concert and Master Class $4400.00
School Performance $1500.00
(Travel costs may be additional).
AVAILABILITY Throughout the year.
TECHNICAL Adequate lighting; 20’ x 20’ stage; tuned piano, music stands and straight-back chairs without arms.
AUDIENCE All ages.
ABOUT
Founded in 2014, the Cayambis Sinfonietta is a nine-member group that consists of a distinctive blend of winds, strings, percussion, piano and voice, making it one of the most versatile ensembles in the mid Atlantic region today. In addition, the group’s repertoire comprises many exclusive works written for the ensemble by leading composers from throughout Latin America whose music has been evaluated and approved by the Cayambis Music Press editorial committee, thus ensuring that the programs that the Sinfonietta takes to the stage are of the highest quality.
Directed by John L. Walker, the mission of the Sinfonietta is to promote awareness of and inspire heightened appreciation for the richly unique pastiche of styles, colors and rhythms that characterize Latin American classical music. In addition, a major objective of the ensemble is to engage in innovative outreach activities that will reach both traditional and non-traditional audiences.
Although the Sinfonietta serves as the performance arm of Cayambis Music Press, it relies on the generous support of community members to ensure the continuance of its concerts and programs. With this in mind, we’ve established a convenient method by which you may make a secure contribution to the Cayambis Sinfonietta Fund. Thank you for your support!
EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS
Our dynamic school program provides students with a unique opportunity to learn about the typical characteristics of Latin American classical music, such as its rhythms, textures and influences. Based on Pablo Moncayo’s Huapango, this specially prepared program runs approximately from 30 to 45 minutes and can easily be tailored for elementary, middle school, high school or even college students.
We are also pleased to work with students from master class settings to panel discussions.
SPECIAL PATRONS
We would like to recognize the following businesses who generously supported our recent inaugural concerts.
- Azario Salon and Day Spa, Roanoke, VA
- Bridge Kaldro Music, Christiansburg, VA
- Elite Style Salon, Blacksburg, VA
- Elizabeth Roberts, CPA, Blacksburg, VA
- First Bank of Virginia, Salem and Blacksburg, VA
- Indigo Farms Seafood, Floyd, VA
- Theodore Sipes, Blacksburg, VA
- South Main Chiropractic, Blacksburg, VA
- Susanna Lilly, Townside Realtors, Blacksburg, VA
- Justin Tebbenkamp, DDS, Blacksburg, VA
And to these individuals, who graciously donated to our cause.
- Elisabeth Austin and Chris Bibeau
- Kent Holliday
- Dr. Chris Baluzzo
- Phyllis Garnett-Deakin, DVM
Thanks! We appreciate your help!
The Cayambis Sinfonietta recommends the following compositions:
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A Few Words from the Players
Hello! I’m Dolly Hsu, a pianist from St. Louis, Missouri. I was thrilled to be able to join the Cayambis Sinfonietta in their recent concerts. As a pianist it’s always fun to play chamber music, but especially when it involves any newly composed contemporary music.
Although the piano’s role in this music has a percussive function, the piano is also required to produce saturated tone colors. In addition, the intensity of the dynamics and articulations needed to be adjusted once the ensemble had begun to rehearse. Not long after beginning, however, the music began to reveal its essential narrative quality.
I really enjoyed practicing my music for the Cayambis Sinfonietta’s recent concerts that featured premieres from some of Latin America’s finest contemporary composers. I had to make my bassoon “whisper” (bisbigliandi is the performance direction in René Silva’s work) with the intensity of a harpist’s tremolo, figuring out how to fit 14 notes into six beats, and pondering my pronunciation of traditional texts of the indigenous South American Pemon people. This was all very special when we put it together! I think that the music we made is truly fresh to American ears. I hope that in the future you have an opportunity to come and experience it with us! --Amy Gillick, bassoonist.
I was very excited preparing the music for the Sinfonietta concerts! I played on two of the works commissioned for this group, and I was anxious to put them together with the rest of the ensemble. As a saxophone player, there is not much repertoire for sax and mixed ensembles, as most of the music written for saxophones is for saxophone quartet and the occasional wind quintet. The only other time saxophonists get the opportunity to play with a wider range of instrumentation is in wind and jazz ensembles, which have a much different dynamic than smaller chamber ensembles, especially when working with strings and voices. With that being said, I was especially interested in the colors that we were going to create, but equally terrified of the intonation issues that might have been part of the rehearsal process.--Robert Deis
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