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A lunch hour musical treat like no other on Nelson Mandela Square
Lunch hour concerts on Friday at Sandton’s Theatre on the Square are undoubtedly a weekly dose healing for Sandtonites who believe in the healing properties of classical music.
July definitely ended with a beautifully arranged violin and guitar duo showcasing how extraordinarily compatible, and well-suited to be paired, the two string instruments are.
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The dynamic duo of violinist Miro Chakaryan and guitarist Paul Rabenowitz returned to the popular Sandton based theatre to present the beautiful concerto, La Vida Breve.
Chakaryan and Rabenowitz transported audience members through a tapestry of sounds from different European baroques (styles) of musical expression through wind instruments.
The pair began with a breezey harmonization of the place where a violin and classical guitar would meet to collaborate on soul-easing notes of Vivaldi’s Italian baroque. This was followed by the transcendental Passacaglia, originally arranged for the violin to be accompanied by something else.
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“The arrangement that we played is a combination of what Bacht and Vivaldi arranged,” Rabenowitz explained. “Passacaglia was originally a dance with variations. It was originally for keyboard, and then arranged for violin and viola, and now, violin and guitar.”
From Sonata in C Major, to the first movement of Cantone di Sonata no. 1 – Rabenowitz and Chakaryan showcased a true love for collaborative sound compilation. The duo often broke into smiles as they played Cantone di Sonata no. 1. Their fluidity in weaving notes together was a truly transcendental experience.
Chakaryan explained how the pair had originally come together after a fated meeting following a performance at Theatre on the Square which featured a guitar and violin working together.
“In a way, it happened so unexpectedly, so spontaneous; I saw him in the theatre, and suggested that we do this,” said Chakaryan. “I was very interested to hear violin with guitar, and play with guitarists for a long time. As I was walking out after the show, there was Paul. He asked if I wanted to play something for violin key in guitar, and I told him that this was why I was there.”
Lunch was served within the hour, and everyone’s ears had a divine, delicious experience being mystically transported along the soundwaves of La Vida Breve.
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