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Cedar
- The CEDAR is unique, when young it appears to be like any other conifer, only in maturity does it diverge to reveal the entirety of its' elegance. - Marc Sinclair |
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I wrote the String Quartet, "CEDAR" in late 1994 while living in Biggleswade in Bedfordshire. The first movement took several weeks to complete, with the help of Lorna Chapman who supplied a key section when I was totally stuck.
John Verity, who lived nearby, thought that I should talk to Jan Kaznowski for help, He was at that time, leader of the Bedford Symphonia and worked for the local school music service. Later I learned that Jan had arranged the strings for the Benny Hill number one, "Ernie", which impressed me more :-) I went round to Jan's home in Bedford with my score and was delighted when Jan and his dinner guests produced instruments and gave an impromptu first performance. I knew then, that I wanted to complete the project. 
I called a few days later and arranged to record the piece. Jan had suggested a hall with a wooden floor for the best acoustic, and I found a local school hall that was perfect. The recording took place on a cold Saturday in March, which meant we had to turn the noisy central heating on in between takes, so that we didn't freeze! Jan, Caroline, John and David were great, John Verity recorded the session from a stereo pair of mics directly to DAT (how about that for DDD!) The resulting CD SINGLE can be purchased online from CDBaby- next day delivery in the US! only $7.00 
From the sleeve notes - Marc Sinclair, a professional vocalist, bassist and songwriter for many years is striking by his inspiring energy for being truly alive. His passion and imagination are unavoidably apparent throughout his musical career. This work embodies his primitive thrill with the sound of the string quartet. This Live performance is led by the infectiously enthusiastic Jan from within the Bedfordshire based Kaznowski String Quartet. The Musicians were Jan Kaznowski - Violin Caroline Waters - Violin John Shayler - Viola David Knight - 'Cello. Recorded at Langford Lower School in March 1995 Engineered by John Verity, mastered by Henry Smithson at Sounds Good The CD Single contains the three tracks Cedar 1 [3:03] -(Sinclair / Chapman) 
Cedar 2 [2:02]-(Sinclair) Cedar 3 [2:46]-(Sinclair) Total [7:51] 
Digital Download Download Cedar tracks from Payplay as an MP3 or WMA Or Apple iTunes , MusicNet, Yahoo Music, Rhapsody, Napster, MSN Music and MP3tunes. Or Buy the CD Single - CEDAR - securely online with CDBaby |
The Kaznowski String Quartet Jan Kaznowski was born in Norfolk, in a musical family. His father was a Polish refugee and a cellist. Jan started the violin at the age of eleven with Alexander Kirk, a peripatetic teacher, who had been a founder member of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Jan later studied at the Royal Academy of Music with David Martin and Sidney Griller, and at the Warsaw Conservatoire with Zenon Bakowski and Tadeusz Gadzina. He studied anthropology at Queens College Cambridge, before becoming a member of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and the orchestras of English and Welsh National Operas. Jan is now head of the string faculty for Bedfordshire Music teaching the violin and viola. He is also the director of the county chamber music course which involves a hundred or so children twice a year. He has lead the Bedford Sinfonia for twenty years, and also leads a quartet which has a repertoire that includes quartets by all of the major 19th and 20th century composers. He regularly appears as a soloist having performed concertos by Dvorak, Beethoven, Elgar, Mozart, Saint Saens, Mendelssohn and Bruch as well as Berlioz's 'Harold in Italy' and the Brahms double concerto. Jan plays a violin made for him by a contemporary Czech maker, Tomas Pilar, in 2002; which is a copy of Fritz Kreisler's Guarnerius 'del Gesu' violin made in 1733. Caroline Waters was born in Jersey and studied at Chethams School of Music, Manchester, with Nannie Jamieson and Malcolm Layfield; she then went on to the Royal Northern College of Music where she studied with Richard Deakin and won a number of prizes for performance. Caroline gives solo recitals and plays regularly with the string quartet; she has also toured with a number of orchestras and ensembles throughout the UK and abroad. John Shayler was Head of String Teaching for Bedfordshire County Music Service for 30 years, up until his early retirement in 2002. He plays and teaches violin and viola, and, as well as coaching on County orchestral and chamber music courses, is conductor of Bedfordshire Youth Opera. John has also been a mentor for the Professional Development department of the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music for the last 8 years. He is a long-standing member of the European String Teachers' Association, is a member of the ESTA Council, and has recently been appointed as their International Liaison Officer. He has given masterclasses around Britain, and in Arezzo, Italy. David Knight received his musical training at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama where he studied the 'cello with Stefan Popov. He graduated in 1987 and was awarded the Libotton Memorial 'cello prize. He has played orchestral, operatic and chamber music ensembles, both professional and amateur, throughout the south of England and the Midlands whilst pursuing a teaching career, joining the Bedfordshire County Music Service full time in 1991. He teaches throughout the county and works with students on County Youth Orchestra and Chamber Music courses and is principal cellist of Bedford Sinfonia. As a conductor, David studied with Alan Hazeldene and Lawrence Leonard. He has supervised music for local operatic companies and is Music Director of the Milton Keynes Sinfonia. Sheet Music I have had a few requests for the sheet music, especially parts, for Cedar. I really do like the idea of this, and have prepared parts for those who have contacted me. I have made the first movement available online as the score, and parts. If you would like all three movements please get in touch. |
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| Marc Sinclair 2007 |
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