In late June, young musicians from Iceland, Italy, Hungary and other countries gathered in Budapest to work on new music, learn from each other, and eventually perform the results of the work at harvest concerts The occasion was BUBORE Ensemble, international Erasmus+ Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) a project led by the Iceland Academy of the Arts in collaboration with the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest and the Conservatorio Claudio Monteverdi in Bolzano.
The project is led by the Iceland Academy of the Arts on the initiative of Atla Ingólfsson, composer and professor at the music department of LHÍ. The goal is to create a platform where composition students and performers from different countries work closely together on new works and have the opportunity to develop them in collaboration with both teachers and other participants. BUBORE Ensemble, is based on a previous collaboration between the Iceland Academy of the Arts and the Conservatorio Claudio Monteverdi, but this time the collaboration was expanded with the participation of the third school, Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music, which acted as host.
The Icelandic participants came from different branches of the LHÍ music department, including composition, instrumentation and singing. In addition to them, students from Argentina, Austria, Italy, Japan, Hungary, Greece, Slovenia and the United States gathered in Budapest to work on diverse musical projects and get to know different approaches to music creation and performance.
During their stay, composition students attended masterclasses under the guidance of professors from the partner schools, including Atla Ingólfsson, Luca Macchi and Gyula Fekete Instrumentalists and singer worked in three groups under the direction of students in conducting, and also enjoyed guidance and masterclasses from maestro Emir Saul, professor at the Conservatorio Claudio Monteverdi in Bolzano.
The main focus of the week was on rehearsals of the composition students' work, where performers had the opportunity to work closely with the composers on the development and performance of the works In addition, most participants rehearsed the work together Ragtime by Igor Stravinsky The program was packed and characterized by rehearsals, masterclusters, lectures, dialogue, and creative collaboration from morning to night.
Although the temperature in Budapest went around and above 40 degrees during the project, it proved to be the perfect excuse for participants to stay indoors and completely immerse themselves in the music and work. However, the students allowed themselves to take a moment between wars and spasms in the famous Széchenyi baths, learn about human life and the main landmarks of the city, such as Halászbástya and the Danube Parliament.
The project ended with a grand final concert on July 2 at the beautiful Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest, where the week's result was performed for the audience.
Atli Ingólfsson
composer and professor at the Iceland Academy of the Arts:
Composition is a profession that thrives on a special discourse of form, subject matter, completion and communication There are no universal truths but as soon as a rehearsal with the performers is established, all the poetic premises and methods of the composer are tested, and the compositional learning is therefore unthinkable without the ideas and the score being regularly applied to the poult of the performers.
Something like this was how Luca Macchi, a composition professor at the Monteverdi conservatory in Bolzano, and I were discussing when we decided that the juice from the Erasmustré was well spent on a project where composers and performers from different countries would meet and forget themselves in the exploration and staging of newly composed compositions We first put together an event where students from the Iceland Academy of the Arts and the Conservatory in Bolzano mingled and performed concerts in Reykjavík in September and Bolzano in June. It was the winter of 2022 - 2023.
Then we thought of straining the collaboration so that a larger and more varied repertoire would be created Therefore, we invited our colleague Gyula Fekete, a professor at the Lizst Academy in Budapest, to participate with their students From this, these three music universities had to meet at a concert congress in Budapest, and there eighteen instrument students from the three countries practiced brand new compositions by six composition students at BA, MA and PhD level, while at the same time the students in the orchestra management got to try to lead rehearsals.
It will not be overestimated how valuable this experience is for the composers and the performers alike The performers here walk out of the fixed training patterns of their instruments and have to show open mind, flexibility and precision at the same time, but the composers receive a harvest of their writings in the interpretation of students of many nationalities, discussions and criticism from us teachers, and of course all participants receive invaluable communion with peers from distant paths, which expands the experience, joy and solidarity. We the originators suspect that there are sown a variety of seeds of memories, friendship and professional knowledge that the young people could have for a long time to come.
Participants' voices
Vega Magdalena Lövdahl, flautist:
„My musical journey to Budapest was very educational and rewarding I got the opportunity to play at the Liszt Academy and to get to know new musical environments and musicians It was a really awesome opportunity and I learned a lot from this project“.“
Anna Elísa Axelsdóttir, singer:
„A great opportunity to get to know new music, city and people!
Amazing ride.“
Fenrir Óskarsbur, pianist:
„It was a unique opportunity to get to know various musicians and approaches from all over, and overcome the heat wave together!“
Katrín Jónsdóttir, violinist:
„A great opportunity to meet people in music from other countries and unique to play at the Liszt Academy!“
Friðrik Örn Sigthórsson, composer:
„It's been extremely fun to have this opportunity to get to know students and teachers from other countries, it gives you a different perspective on your own learning and broadens your network.“ So Budapest is also just a ridiculously nice city.“
Eberg Óttar Elefsen, trumpeter:
„Nice to meet foreign students and play interesting new works together“.“
Precious experience
This kind of collaboration is invaluable to young artists It gives them the opportunity to work across borders, to learn about different working methods and to form relationships that can become the basis for future collaboration.
For all participating students, faculty and staff, the BUBORE Ensemble was a memorable experience and a valuable road trip into the future.
More information about the project and the final concert can be found on the website Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music.
