May 16, 2017
This is as good as it gets as a composer – two of my favourite collaborators bringing my music to life today – a joyous day of recording at St Michael’s, Highgate:
With Peter and Roderick
April 28, 2017
Rehearsing with Michael Finnissy, Linda Merrick and the Kreutzers at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. Today, premieres of thrilling new clarinet quintets by Paul Pellay, Adam Gorb and Finnissy, + my quartet ‘Star Factory’:
Photo by Peter Sheppard Skaerved
April 12, 2017
Having a fantastic time in my home country. Great to work with violinist Mareike Neumann and flutist Dante Montoya from Detmold-based ‘Ensemble Horizonte’, and the Macedonian pianist Kristina Svetieva. Tonight they are playing my TRI-O and music by Tairi, Combier, Mittmann, Krishino and Pande Shahov, as part of the Days of Macedonian Music 2017 festival.
Ensemble Horizonte
March 20, 2017
Truly a privilege to be able to work with these three amazing musicians, collaborators and friends – today with Peter Sheppard Skaerved, Clifton Harrison and Neil Heyde, after recording my quartet ‘Fibers AND Coils’:
Here is an outtake:
Recorded at Saint John the Baptist church, Aldbury.
Sound: Jonathan Haskell
February 16, 2017
Peter Sheppard Skaerved and I will be playing John Cage’s ‘Atlas Eclipticalis’ at Tate Modern, as part of the Robert Rauschenberg exhibition:
https://www.tate.org.uk/context-comment/audio/john-cage-something-nothing-performance
Here are a couple of photos from last night’s dress rehearsal – taken by Malene Skaerved:
February 7, 2017
Violinists Darragh Morgan and Victoria Mavromoustaki will be performing my duo Colours/limits (part of Čekori), and music by Sally Beamish, Luciano Berio, Gavin Bryars, Takemitsu and Bartok:
January 2017
Back at Bath Spa University and Goldsmiths this week – two concerts featuring works by Douglas Young, Jeremy Thurlow and Edward Cowie, alongside Shostakovich No.13 and Beethoven Op.135:
https://www.bathspa.ac.uk/news-and-events/events/20170125-string-quartet/
December 19, 2016
Great day recording Paul Pellay’s new clarinet quintet, written for Linda Merrick and us. Listen to outtakes here:
November 8, 2016
Ana Gaceva
The wonderful Macedonian pianist and my close collaborator Ana Gaceva is giving a recital at the Meridian Festival of Contemporary Music in Bucharest, organised by the Romanian section of the ISCM. The programme includes my piece Ripple Effect, which she premiered in 2011.
Full programme here:
http://cimro.ro/meridian-2016/
November 3, 2016
Rehearsing in the Robinson College Chapel, Cambridge. Photo by Peter Sheppard Skaerved
Tonight we are playing in Cambridge (Robinson College Chapel). The concert explores Virginia Woolf’s interest in string quartets and features new work inspired by her writing. Programme includes new pieces by Jeremy Thurlow and Elliott Schwartz, Priaulx Rainier’s string quartet and Beethoven’s op.135:
https://www.cambridgelivetrust.co.uk/tickets/events/weaving-threads-virginia-woolf-string-quartets
October 26, 2016
On the way to the European Bioinformatics Institute, where our collaboration started – tonight, we are presenting it with Charlotte Jarvis and Nick Goldman – music by Peter Sheppard Skaerved and myself. More about the project here: http://www.trandafilovski.com/music-of-the-spheres-at-dilston-grove/
Photo by James Read
October 16-22, 2016
Just back from China, where we have had the most inspiring time, in residency at the Tianjin Conservatory of Music. A week of concerts, workshops, masterclasses and discovery – organised by our host, George Holloway (head of composition).
The two concerts focused predominantly on British music:
Programme One:
Mihailo Trandafilovski – ‘Fibers AND Coils’ (2015)
George Holloway – ‘Birds in Flight’ (2012)
Laurie Bamon – ‘All the Summer Sea birds’ (2016)
Sadie Harrison – ‘Broken Wing’ (2015)
Richard Beaudoin – ‘You know I’m yours’ (2016)
Giacinto Scelsi – ‘Arc en Ciel’ (1973)
Michael Finnissy – ‘Nobody’s Jig’ (1981)
Programme Two:
David Matthews – 8th Quartet Op 75 (1998)
Benjamin Britten – ‘Elegy’ (1930)
George Holloway – ‘Tullochgorm’ (2016)
Michael Finnissy – ‘Civilisation’ (2012)
Holloway – ‘From Nothing to No One’ (2006)
Robert Saxton – ‘3rd Quartet’ (2009-11)
But, for me, it was the work with the students that proved most memorable – just wonderful to work with such talented, open, and humble musicians. Here are some comments by the students:
[gview file=”http://www.trandafilovski.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Kreutzer-Student-comments.doc”]
And, some photos that capture the atmosphere:
July 16, 2016
Tonight: keynote session at the Performance Studies Network Fourth International Conference, at Bath Spa University – Neil Heyde’s lecture entitled ‘Inventing an Ensemble Identity’ leading to a concert by the Kreutzer Quartet. The programme includes a new piece by Laurie Bamon, Michael Finnissy’s ‘Nobody’s Jig’ and ‘Civilisation’, and my piece ‘Fibers AND Coils’ (link below). Plus, interviews with all composers, led by Peter Sheppard Skaerved and Roger Heaton.
June 1, 2016
My new piece for two violins – premiere at the British Museum on June 17th:
Article by Angelina Dimoska in Macedonian daily newspaper “Nova Makedonija”:
Да се пишува ангажирана музика значи да се има став
Full programme for the event
May 16, 2016
Article about some of my current projects on the Macedonian Composers’ Association website (in Macedonian):
Богата активност на Михаило Трандафиловски изминатиов период
May 5, 2016
Great day with students at Goldsmiths:
Photo by Peter Sheppard Skaerved
April 2016
A recent review of my Innova CD on LaFolia.com; the article also features two other Kreutzer Quartet CDs, with music by David Gorton and Gloria Coates:
April 1, 2016
Fantastic day at Wilton’s Music Hall – improvising with Peter Sheppard Skaerved, for a film directed by Malene Skaerved – watch this space for more on this project.
Audio and more photos from the day here: http://www.peter-sheppard-skaerved.com/2016/04/21176/
March 10, 2016
Congratulations to the brilliant PSOGO Quartet (Julian Velasco, Mark Main, Jordan Lulloff, Joseph Herbst) who have been selected to perform in the final round of the prestigious 2016 NASA (North American Saxophone Alliance) saxophone quartet competition. As part of their programme, they will give the first performance of my recent piece BLAZE-glow, written for them, and based on this image by Mark Sullivan, to whom the piece is dedicated:
Mark Sullivan: Flamenco Lights
January 28, 2016
Our first concert with the brilliant American viola player Clifton Harrison, who has just joined us. Here we are, at Goldsmiths, with composer David Matthews. The programme, celebrating living composers, also included music by Michael Finnissy, Sadie Harrison, Richard Beaudoin and my piece ‘Fibers AND Coils’. More info here:
January 19, 2016
‘Music of the Spheres’ at the Festival of Genomics tomorrow:
http://www.festivalofgenomicslondon.com/
Charlotte Jarvis – Music of the Spheres at Dilston Grove – photo by James Read
December 7, 2015
Back at our musical home, Wilton’s Music Hall, with music by Bartók, Kodaly, Schubert, and new pieces by Richard Beaudoin and Sadie Harrison:
https://www.wiltons.org.uk/whatson/109-schubert-bartok-kodaly
October 10, 2015
Just published by CEM (Macedonian Centre for Musicology):
New book by Angelina Dimoska and Tina Ivanova – profiles of seven Macedonian composers: Jana Andreevska, Pande Shahov, Miroslav Spasov, Nikola Kodjabashia, Rober Sazdov, Vanja Nikolovski Gjumar and myself. Here is a link (Macedonian only):
October 2015
New CD by Ensemble ConTempora, released by SOCOM – live performances from this year’s DMM festival. On the CD is my piece “One, Changing” for mixed ensemble, as well as music by Goce Kolarovski, Ana Pandevska, Valentina Velkovska-Trajanovska, Darija Andovska, Kokan Dimushevski and Jana Andreevska:
‘Magnets, Lava, Crystals’ on CD: http://www.innova.mu/albums/mihailo-trandafilovski/five
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/trandafilovski-five/id1022501197?ign-mpt=uo%3D4
Download mp3: http://www.clarinetclassics.com/shop/magnets-lava-crystals/
August 28, 2015
Released today by innova Recordings, and available for order/download on iTunes, Amazon and other music services:
Here are some amazing people who made this album possible:
Performers/collaborators – my Kreutzer Q colleagues (Peter Sheppard Skaerved, Morgan Goff, Neil Heyde), Roger Heaton, Evie Heyde, Roderick Chadwick, Aidan Oliver, New London Chamber Choir,
Mark Sullivan (cover and booklet images),
Vladimir Martinovski (poet),
Recording/producing – Jonathan Haskell, Graham C. Williams, Simon Weir,
Special thanks to Minjas Zugik for his generosity and vision,
the fabulous Wilton’s Music Hall (in which three of the pieces on the CD were premiered),
and the coolest label around, innova Recordings (Philip Blackburn, Chris Campbell, Steve McPherson).
June 12 – July 5, 2015
Charlotte Jarvis’ thrilling collaborative project: science, art and music in a unique coalition. The performance and installation cycle includes two new pieces for string quartet: ‘Bubble Sequence’ by Petter Sheppard Skaerved and ‘Fibers AND Coils’ by me:
Dilston Grove exhibition
More about the project:
http://www.onthemedia.org/story/storage-potential-dna/
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/06/28/the-molecular-music-written-in-dna.html
http://www.peter-sheppard-skaerved.com/2015/06/music-of-the-spheres-at-cgp-londondilston-grove/
June 19, 2015
This weekend, we are playing works by women composers in Munich, centered around the unique voice of Gloria Coates:
[gview file=”http://www.musica-femina-muenchen.de/wp-content/uploads/mfm-Konzertprogramm_21-06-2015_pdf_web.pdf” width=”70%” save=”0″]
May 21, 2015
Coming up next week: Macedonian contemporary music in Belgium – ConTempora playing two concerts in Mons and Liege.
Programme includes my TRI-O, for flute, violin and piano:
May-June 2015
We are back with three concerts at our favourite Wilton’s Music Hall this spring to present Beethoven’s amazing middle period quartets – alongside new music by Roger Redgate, Edward Cowie and Robin Holloway:
The Kreutzer Quartet presents Beethoven’s Middle
With Edward Cowie at Wilton’s
May 2015
Very excited about going back to my clarinet quintet ‘Magnets, Lava, Crystals’ with close collaborator Roger Heaton – tomorrow at the Michael Tippet Centre. Also works by Webern, Beethoven/Matthews, Cowie and student composers:
April 23, 2015
This Kickstarter campaign has just been launched by Artists & Engineers. Please have a look and support if you can!
I am so EXCITED to be taking part in this awesome project, led by the artist Charlotte Jarvis:
April 2015
Another brilliant performance of my piece One, Changing (ConTempora/conductor Sašo Tatarčevski) and a fantastic premiere of Ripple Effect (2) by Ana Gaceva (with Bitola Chamber Orchestra/conductor Zsolt Nagy), at this year’s Days of Macedonian Music Contemporary Music Festival (brochure here). Such a privilege to share my music with collaborators/friends from my home country. Here are some rehearsal/concert photos (courtesy Maja Argakijeva) that capture the atmosphere:
ConTempora/Sašo Tatarčevski
With conductor Sašo Tatarčevski
Ana Gaceva/Bitola Chamber Orchestra
Ana Gaceva/Zsolt Nagy/Bitola Chamber Orchestra
February 24, 2015
Wonderful atmosphere at the closing concert of European Composers and Songwriters Alliance’s ‘Creators Conference’, at the BOZAR centre in Brussels:
Photo credit: John Stapels.
The programme included my Diptych (Violin concerto no.2), as well as works by Jean Luc Fafchamps (Belgium), Mate Balogh (Hungary), Pertti Jalava (Finland) and Lynne Plowman (UK).
January 2015
My piece Diptych has been selected for a performance at the final concert of ECSA’s ‘Creators Conference’ next month:
It will be performed by the European Contemporary Composers Orchestra (conductor Thomas Van Haeperen) and violinist Peter Sheppard Skaerved, at the BOZAR Centre in Brussels.
November 23, 2014
Some photos from a terrific week in Malmö, Sweden – working with composers Simon Söfelde, Alfred Jimenez, Dante Hidemark Boström, Josef Söreke, Jonatan Sersam, Ismael Palacio, Cecilia Damström, Martin Jeff Dalin Volsing, David Riebe, Stefan Klaverdal and Anna-Lena Laurin. Inspiring collaborations leading to two concerts at the Connect Festival for New Music:
October 2014
Just released: new album with selected pieces performed at the DMM festival in Skopje, earlier this year. On the CD is my recent TRI-O (for violin, clarinet and piano), played by my wonderful Macedonian colleagues Vladimir Kostov, Marija Vrshkova and Katerina Bachevska, as well as music by Pejovski, Temkov, Petrovic, Andovska, Bakrnchev and Shahov:
October 29, 2014
In the midst of performing some of the most intense music we have encountered: Michael Hersch’s mammoth string quartet Images From a Closed Ward :
October 22, 2014
Fantastic day in Aldbury – we have just recorded Edward Cowie’s 3rd String Quartet (outtakes here: In Flight Music) and Sadie Harrison’s exquisite …under the circle of the moon… for two violins. This photo was taken at the end (literally!) of the recording day – Peter seen here breaking a string:
Photo by Sadie Harrison
October 7, 2014
The wonderful Joanna Jones is giving a talk at the Pharos Trust’s Contemporary Music Festival tonight – and screening her Re-Veil-Le – a symbiosis between her artwork and my Violin Concerto No.2, Diptych:
September 30, 2014
This is EXCITING – last night in Skopje, a new ensemble for contemporary music was launched, featuring some of the most original and exciting Macedonian performers – congratulations Socom, Bojana Petrovic Aleksova, Sasho Tatarchevski, Marija Vrskova, Vladimir Kostov, Katerina Bachevska, Igor Ivanov , Bojan Taleski and all others involved!
On the programme were pieces by Jana Andreevska, Darija Andovska, Bojana Petrovic Aleksova, Alek Pejovski, Valentina Velkovska-Trajanovska, Zivojin Glisic and myself.
Summer 2014
Currently finalising the edit of a film of my cello duo (S)pacing, written for the fantastic Neil and Evie Heyde. An Optic Nerve production: director-Colin Still, sound-Graham Williams. More info soon …
Here is a photo from the session last month:
July 29-30, 2014
Photo by Peter Sheppard Skaerved
Short lunch break in front of Saint John the Baptist church, Aldbury, where we have just recorded some wonderful transcriptions of Beethoven, Scriabin and Schumann by David Matthews. Here is an outtake from the session – David’s quartet version of Scriabin’s Prelude op.75:
http://www.peter-sheppard-skaerved.com/2014/07/alexander-scriabindavid-matthews-prelude-op-75/
May 25, 2014
The start of a new project – at the European Bioinformatics Institute, with Joana Seguro, Mira Calix, Charlotte Jarvis, Nick Goldman and Peter Seppard Skaerved. More info soon!
Photo by Peter Sheppard Skaerved
May 2014
New Kreutzer Quartet release on Move Records: music by the Australian composers Don Banks, Nigel Butterley, Richard Meale and Felix Werder:
April 11, 2014
Excited about two concerts tonight by Macedonian friends and colleagues: Marija Vrškova, Vladimir Kostov and Katerina Bačevska performing my TRI-O in Skopje (Macedonia), and Ana Gaceva playing Ripple Effect in Minsk (Belarus):
April 9, 2014
I will be talking about some of my recent pieces at the Academy of Music in Macedonia, as part of the Days of Macedonian Music 2014 festival:
[gview file=”http://www.trandafilovski.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/DMM-2014-workshops.pdf”]
March 14, 2014
Photo by Marius Skaerved
“The collapse of the old certainties” – Webern, Stravinsky, Kodaly, Suk and Foulds at the National Portrait Gallery:
February 6, 2014
Kreutzers at Goldsmiths
Great first day of our new Goldsmiths residency – workshop with students of Roger Redgate during the day, followed by a concert including some key 20th century works as well as Finnissy and Matthews:
http://www.gold.ac.uk/calendar/?id=7215
January 2014
Re-Veil-Le by Joanna Jones and my Diptych for violin and strings – live recording from our concert in Dover last October – performers Peter Sheppard Skaerved and Longbow. Film by Dominic de Vere.
January 16, 2014
With Roderick Chadwick
Outtakes from yesterday’s recording session at St Michael’s Church, Highgate, with the wonderful Roderick Chadwick and Peter Sheppard Skaerved:
http://www.peter-sheppard-skaerved.com/2014/01/mihailo-trandafilovski-arc-en-ciel/
December 13, 2013
Photo by David Gorton
Colourful and enjoyable evening in the Enlightenment Gallery of the British Museum, presented by Peter Sheppard Skaerved, with Diana Mathews (viola), Lucy Railton (cello) and Julian Perkins (harpsichord). The photo on the right shows us performing some wonderfully realised Dowland/Byrd/Randall arrangements by David Gorton; also on the programme were pieces by Matteis, Walther, Sadie Harrison, and the premiere of my recent violin duo ARC-EN-CIEL.
November 2013
Front Cover Image: Ostinato by Mark Sullivan.
My clarinet quintet Magnets, Lava, Crystals has just been released by the Clarinet Classics label. Written for the astonishing clarinetist Roger Heaton and the Kreutzer Quartet, this piece was first performed at Wilton’s Music Hall in London in December 2011. The recording can be downloaded here: http://samekmusic.com/product/magnets-lava-crystals/. The download also includes a high definition video by Simon Weir combining filmed excerpts from the recording session with a conversation between Roger and myself concerning the genesis and technical aspects of the piece.
May-November 2013
Kreutzers, Bridget McRae and Jeremy Dale Roberts
This was an amazing series to be a part of. Each of the six concerts featured one of the op.18 quartets alongside other works by Beethoven and his contemporaries, plus premieres by Jeremy Dale Roberts (broadcast on BBC Radio 3’s ‘Here and Now’), David Matthews, Sadie Harrison, David Gorton, Edward Cowie and Michael Finnissy. With guest artists Bridget McRae (Solo Cellist of the Munich Chamber Orchestra), Emily Beynon (Principal Flute of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra), Aaron Shorr (Head of Piano, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland), Chris Redgate (Oboe, Evelyn Barbirolli Fellow at the Royal Academy of Music), Diana Mathews (viola, well known to Wilton’s audiences for her collaborations with the Quartet) and members of the New London Chamber Choir. More about the series here: Beethoven Begins
October 12, 2013
Such a privilege to be a part of this unique project, organised by the brilliant Dover Arts Development (DAD) and culminating with a fantastic concert last night, devised and led by Peter Sheppard Skaerved. The photo above shows a stage from Joanna Jones’ new work RE-VEIL-LE, one of the commissioned pieces, made into a beautiful film by Dominic de Vere, alonside which Longbow ensemble performed my piece Dyptich. Also on the programme were two wonderful, complementary works by Nigel Clarke (music) and Malene Sheppard Skaerved (poetry), entitled Dogger, Fisher, German Bight, Humber, Thames, Dover, Wight. Here are some more photos from the event and audience responses: Transit: Pulp & Rags: The Grand Finale, and you can see the full programme below:
[gview file=”http://www.trandafilovski.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/DAD_PR_14pp_web.pdf”]
September 25, 2013
Photo by Ohsuga Kaori
I have just started rehearsing with the Tokyo-based collective mmm… (Reiko Manabe-flute, Kaori Ohsuga-piano, Shungo Mise-violin, Daryl Jamieson-composer). The photo above shows our first Tokyo-London rehearsal over Skype! Concert coming up on 3rd October and includes my new piece TRI-O, written for them, as well as music by Arturo Corrales, Elo Masing, Alex Mincek, Marco-Antonio Pérez-Ramirez and Daryl Jamieson. Very excited to work with them and be a part of their innovative series of concerts. Here is the flyer:
[gview file=”http://www.trandafilovski.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/mmm_no.5_flyer.pdf” save=”0″]
June 27, 2013
Amazing day yesterday – recording my piece Diptych (Violin Concerto No.2), written for the virtuoso Peter Sheppard Skaerved and dedicated to our friend Richard Bram. I could not be more grateful for the opportunity to work with such brilliant, open and committed musicians: Aisha Orazbayeva, Preetha Narayanan, Alice Barron, Midori Komachi, Diana Mathews, Shulah Oliver, Evie Heyde, Valerie Welbanks, and Rachel Merloo. You can hear outtakes from the recording session here:
And this picture is Peter’s response:
May 31, 2013
Photo by Thor Brødreskift
With Roderick Chadwick and Michael Finnissy:
May 7, 2013
Photo by Peter Sheppard Skaerved
Another great day recording Reicha with my Kreutzer Quartet friends in Aldbury (listen to outtakes here: Reicha Op.49 No.2). It has been such a privilege to able to play some fantastic instruments for our Reicha recordings: the ‘Kustendyke’ and the ‘Regent’ Strads. Peter and I finished the day with a short conversation about the experience of playing these instruments, about composing, and colour – and it was simply an amazing experience to record a couple of my violin pieces on the ‘Regent’ (seen in the photo on the left): In the Hills (from Čekori), and Fragments-Light, the first piece I wrote for Peter and the Enlightenment Gallery in the British Museum. You can hear this dialogue and the recordings here: Mihailo Trandafilovski – Interview and Performance.
