Ashok Klouda performs Tchaikovsky in Muswell Hill

21 Haziran 2024

Ashok Klouda performs Tchaikovsky in Muswell Hill on 6th July
Cello star to play with Fortismere Community Symphony Orchestra
alongside the maker of his cello

We often have one possession that we treasure above all else – a letter from a loved one, a photograph, a family heirloom … For Ashok Klouda, that possession is his cello, and on Saturday, 6th July he will be playing it in a very special concert where the maker of that cello will be performing with him.

In 2012, Ashok’s musical career was taking off following a glittering debut at the Wigmore Hall. Having previously been loaned a Stradivarius cello by the Royal Academy of Music, he now needed to find his own long-term instrument. Visiting the workshop of respected luthier (the technical name for someone who makes stringed instruments) Tibor Semmelweis, one particular cello caught his eye.

“The minute I drew the bow across the strings, I could feel there was something special about it,” said Ashok. “I was struck by what a warm, nuanced tone it had – it was like a wise, old, cultivated soul. That’s the type of description people so often give to the tone of fine old Italian instruments, but in my experience, it is extremely rare to find a modern instrument with such characteristics. Needless to say, I knew I had to find a way to have it!” That was nearly 12 years ago, and during those years the cello and Ashok have performed together all over the world.

So why is the Fortismere Community Symphony Orchestra concert on 6th July such a special occasion? That is best expressed by the person who made this amazing instrument, Tibor Semmelweis, who himself will be playing violin in the concert:

“It is a wonderful and emotional feeling being part of this concert with Ashok playing the Rococo Variations, accompanied by our Fortismere Orchestra. We both have this incredible connection with the instrument – me as the one who created it, and Ashok who has learned to realise all its acoustic potential through regularly bringing it to life. It is a very fun and exciting partnership, and unique in all my experience of the world of music.”

Ashok and his wife Natalie used to live locally in North London and still keep strong links to the area, as Directors of the Highgate International Chamber Music Festival (2nd – 8th December 2024).

Tickets to hear Ashok Klouda play Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme with the Fortismere Community Symphony Orchestra are available online from www.fortismeremusiccentre.co.uk or on the door.

 

More information:

Fortismere Music Centre is based at Fortismere School and provides music-making opportunities for students, parents, staff and the wider community. The Fortismere Community Symphony Orchestra is an ambitious, amateur orchestra that performs large-scale works three times a year at St Andrew’s Church, N10.

Ashok will be playing Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme with the Fortismere Community Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Thomas Gregory, on Saturday 6th July at St Andrew’s Church, Alexandra Park Road, N10 2DD. Tickets are £13 in advance from www.fortismeremusiccentre.co.uk or £16 on the door.

Concert programme:

Ligeti: Concert Românesc
Khachaturian: Masquerade Suite
Tchaikovsky: Variations on a Rococo Theme
Borodin: Polovtsian Dances

Conductor: Thomas Gregory
Leader: Alexander Casson

 

kaynak: Fortismere Music Centre