- FANS' NEWS - 10-

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OCTOBER 2009

Another day, another concert!, Fort Lauderdale, October 08 and 09

He played absolutely outstanding...., Fort Myers (FL - US), October 7

Awsome concert of David in Orlando (FL - US)!!, October 6

Classical crossover –international variety and excitement, October 03

Incredibly expressive and emotional, October 03

Germany - Bonn - September 26

SEPTEMBER 2009

With regard to the DVD... Live in Berlin, September 2

*****

Germany - Bonn - 26th September 2009

*****

2nd October2009

   With regard to the DVD... Live in Berlin

   which I ordered after the PBS concert

   here in Chicago....in September...

   I have played it and played it... and

   I do love it ...and think he is the most

   precious being on the planet...

    ... but I wish... that the camera would

    stay  on his face and hands... entirely  throughout the concert...when editing for 

   the DVD... that is where the magic is

   ... a few shots of the audiencce... the

   other performers... is nice... but the

   whole of the experience... are his fingers and his adorable face.. and his

  angelic expressions....

    I can only hope that future DVDs..

    will be of this nature..

              Thank you

                  Mickey Augustine

                    ...in Chicago.

    watch his face and hands... is

*****

Switzerland, Zurich, October, 3

Incredibly expressive and emotional

David played in the in Tonhalle in Zurich, a very beautiful old venue, with columns, a wonderful stage with an organ in the back.  The stage was decorated with fresh !! flowers which spread a lovely flavor. He played with the Zurich chamber orchestra, he already played with 3 times last February in Zurich and Como!

The orchestra began with the Mendelssohn Ouverture "Hebrides", played fantastically!!

David was welcomed with a lot of applaus. He performed the Mendelssohn Violin-Concerto in E-Minor, one of my favourite pieces. This time the 3rd Movement was my favourite one, he played it incredibly expressive and emotional. This time the audience didn't have the opportunity..lol...to clap between the movements, because there is no short break between the 1st and the 2nd. The audience was thrilled by David's playing and he had to come back on stage several times.

David came back on stage for a second piece, the Sarasate Zigeunerweisen!! I have heard him playing this piece very often and cannot get enough of it, unfortunately it is very short. He played it with surprising facility and virtosity....he had to give an encore and played Paganini's "Carneval in Venice", a very funny piece and he is always going to leave the stage playing the last beats.

 Finally the orchestra played again and played the Beethoven 1st Symphonie, a very well-known piece. This orchestra has an excellent female concert-master, who played outstanding. It was a pleasure to listen to her.

After the concert he has given autographs to the crowd, standing in the foyer of the concert-hall.

Ausdrucksstark und emotional

David spielte in der Tonhalle in Zürich, einer wunderschönen alte Konzerthalle mit vielen Säulen, einer wunderbaren Bühne mit einer großen Orgel im Hintergrund. Die Bühne war mit frischen !! Blumen geschmuckt und diese verbreiteten eine schönen Duft!.

David spielte mit dem Zürcher Kammerorchester, mit dem er bereits im Februar 3 Konzerte in Zürich und Bologne gegeben hat.

Das Orchester begann mit Mendelssohn Ouvertüre "Hebriden", fantastisch gespielt!

Danach wurde David mit riesigem Applaus begrüßt!!! Er spielte das Mendelssohn Violin-Konzert in E-Moll. Eins meiner Lieblingsstücke der Violin-Konzerte. Mein Lieblingssatz dieses Mal war der 3., den er unglaublich ausdrucksstark und emotional spielte. Diesmal hatte das Publikum auch keine Gelegenheit zwischen dem 1. und 2. Satz zu klatschen, da beide Sätze ineinander übergehen....Das Publikum war von David's Spiel begeistert und er musste mehrmals auf die Bühne zurückkommen....

Nach der Pause kam David noch einmal zurück und spielte eines seiner Paradestücke, die Zigeunerweisen!!! Ich habe es schon so oft von ihm gehört und kann von diesem Stück nicht genug bekommen, leider ist es nur sehr kurz. Er spielt es mit einer bewundernswerter Leichtigkeit und Virtuosität.......er musste eine Zugabe geben und spielte von Paganini "Carneval in Venice", an sehr lustiges Stück bei dem David während der letzten Takte immer die Bühne verlässt!

Zum Schluss war das Orchester wieder an der Reihe und spielte von Beethovens 1. Sinfonie, ein ziemlich bekanntes Stück. Die Konzertmeisterin dieses Orchesters spielt einfach klasse und es war eine Freude zuzuhören.

Nach dem Konzert gab David noch geduldig Autogramme, die Menschenmenge kann man in einem meiner Fotos bewundern.

Birgit

*****

Classical crossover –international variety and excitement

The very best of the classical crossover artists can readily prove that they are some of the most talented musicians around- and David Garrett is one of the very best.

Whether he is rocking the Hard Rock Café with “Little Wing” and “Kashmir” or nailing the final movement of the Mendelssohn violin concerto in the Tonhalle, Zurich, David’s artistry is breathtaking. Combining my two passions of classical music and travel, I was fortunate enough over recent months to get to a number of very different concerts on two continents.

At the traditional and beautiful old concerthall, the Tonhalle in Zurich, David Garrett, playing with a classical orchestra, stepped up to the well-known and well-loved Mendelssohn Violin Concerto. The final movement was stunning in its depth, emotion and sheer virtuosity. There is a crop of new recordings of this work on CD, and David’s interpretation is pure, note-perfect and true to the emotion and strength of the work. This is not crossover – this is pure classics but with the accessibility that draws a more experimental audience, with under-tens carrying violins joining the over-seventies, and lots in between.

The evening began with Mendelssohn’s well-known Hebrides Overture which would have been a perfect introduction to those visitors coming to the work for the first time. Readily accessible, tuneful and dramatic, this work was the perfect foil for David’s glittering virtuosity which followed.

To deal with the problem of audiences leaving during the interval that has happened when David has only performed in the first half, the Tonhalle designed the bill to include David playing Sarasate’s “Zigeunerweisen” to start the second part. He has been performing this work since he was ten and it has not lost its fresh qualities over time. It was not quite the blockbuster that I remember so vividly from the Proms in the Park in 2008 but it came pretty close. I hope this will be included on his classical CD due out next month – amateur recordings and Youtube clips are simply not enough.

The final piece was Beethoven’s First Symphony – a shorter, livelier work which is surprisingly less frequently performed than the Fifth or Sixth but which is dramatic and fun. A super evening of classical music well suited to the 21st century. And in keeping with the modern celebrity fanaticism, the traditional concerthall had staged an autograph session for David as his back catalogue and current CDs were all on sale. The old fashioned hall was filled with long,long lines of waiting fans (just like the queues for the Ladies in the interval !!!!!)...

Tabitha

*****

Das Violinkonzert von Mendelssohn ist für mich eines der schönsten überhaupt und er hat es mit einer unglaublichen

Ausdruckstärke und Virtuosität gespielt.

For me the violin concerto by Mendelssohn is one of the most beautiful ones. He played with an incredible intensity and virtuosity

that's why we are always so enthusiastic about him

ukue

*****

US - Orlando, October 6, 2009

Awsome concert of David in Orlando!!

He was absolutely great...also the band!!!!!

There was a security control at the entrance (like at the airport) and they looked into your bag, I was afraid they would take my camera, but they did not. The audience was allowed to take photos (without flash) and I did!!! LOL

The Hard Rock Life is a venue with a bar in the back and restaurant. The audience was eating shrimps, chips and pizza during the concert......shock....I was very surprised. And they served drinks....There were younger and older people in the audience, everybody was totally thrilled and they were yelling and clapping a lot!!

Birgit

*****

And so to Florida. The same virtuoso but a world apart. David was at the Hard Rock Café in Orlando, with his American band and playing a selection that included his favourites from the “David Garrett” CD which is doing so well in the US, plus more pure rock works which will certainly find their way into recordings in the near future.

I was surprised that the audience arrived late, and carrying all sorts of refreshments. Popcorn and drinks were perhaps less unusual than pizzas and shrimp, and in spite of the unusual surroundings and accompaniments, the crowd were wildly enthusiastic and very vocal.

David began by walking from the back of the auditorium as he played “Carmen Fantasy”. The spotlight followed him as he took his place amid the band and the evening flashed by with tracks such as “Smooth Criminal” and “Kashmir” as well as “Nothing Else Matters” and “Who wants to live forever”. Between each track, David gave a personal introduction, charming his fans with his memories and jokes.

This was an evening of pure rock, flavoured with tracks that approached the classical such as Brahms Hungarian Dance No 5 and the upbeat last movement from Vivaldi’s “Summer”. The band were more integral to the performance and didn’t take the back seat as much as the European team. “Rock Prelude” began with a crazy and brilliant drum solo from Jeff Lipstein and the versatile guitarist Marcus Wolf was also regularly featured.

I have seen audiences go wild for David in both Germany and the UK but the Americans leave us all behind when they get started. David was a huge success, whether he was playing the softer pieces or letting rip with “He’s a Pirate” and in the number when he starts off with the band in the Jimi Hendrix “Little Wing” before leaving them to it, the whole evening was pulsating.

Personally, “Volare” and “Chelsea Girl” are less to my taste, but “Thunderstruck” and “Rock Toccata” are totally memorable. David’s violin technique is still to the fore and showcased excellently, even though he is not backed with a full orchestra on these occasions. And he has surrounded himself with truly outstanding musicians, just keeping John Haywood on keyboards from his other team.

There are no plans for a UK tour, sadly, and heaven knows when David will fit us in as he takes the USA by storm and keeps his German fans happy.

But then, what can be better than mixing tourism with classical music – if he will not come to us, then the perfect solution is to go along to hear him “Somewhere” (if I may quote Leonard Bernstein and David Garrett).

Tabitha

*****

The concert last night was FANTASTIC! It was the first time I’ve been to one of David’s concerts and I had a blast! I cannot wait to see him again!

RCS

*****

US - Fort Myers - October 7, 2009

He played absolutely outstanding....

The audience was totally different to the concert in Orlando! Here the people were much older...I would say at least 60+, of course a few younger ones. It surprised me to see that the concert hall was still 1/3 empty 10 minutes before the concert was due to start. People seem to stay outside the hall until time of beginning and go in very late. So the concert started with a delay of 15 minutes!

David played the same pieces as in Orlando... Again you could first hear his violin but not see him, he appeared from the back!! The audience was yelling, when they saw him. He played absolutely outstanding.....I would have loved to filmed a lot, but the security control was very strict here and I was happy to take so much photos!!!

My feeling was, the audience was much quieter than in Orlando, but not less enthusiastic. They did not shout "thunder" that loud....maybe because of their ages....they were afraid to lose their choppers....(lol)...

There was a long queue lining up the merchandise stand, they sold soooo many of his CDs and T-Shirts.....and again a lot of people were taken backstage after the concert, PBS sold a lot of backstage meet-and-greets!

Birgit

*****

October 08 and 09 - Fort Lauderdale

Another day, another concert!

1- Such a different audience in the USA!

Orlando: Eating, drinking during the concert, some people in beach-clothes, all ages, airport-security-control

Ft. Myers: Much older audience, drinking during the concert

Fort Lauderdale: young audience, elegant dressed, like they have all parked their yachts in the canals of Fort Lauderdale and appeared to the concert.

David played a super concert in Fort Lauderdale. I cannot say which was the best one of the ones I have attended, one concert I loved this piece, the next concert, the other!!! But all of his rock-pieces were so awsome!!!! The sound-mix was excellent!!!

The band is outstanding, Marcus Wolf at the guitars........a dream!!! This time they gave us a program with his biography in.

David has got standing ovations at the end......

***

2- Davids second concert in Fort Lauderdale was super as all the others.....Every concert is a bit different, every concert has another audience.....

Late begin as usual....lol.....some people in the audience were walking out after a few minutes and came back minutes later.....probably on the toilet.....they walked in front of the stage.....hm....very strange!

When David was playing his 3rd piece "Pirates of the Caribbean" the e-string ripped! He had to go backstage to fix a new one and his band played "Litttle Wing" in that time. Afterwards David started again with the Pirates piece.....

Birgit

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