Day 126: Guitarist Julian Bream
36yearsago.com
Vienna 1971—A Student Journal
A year of music, study, travel, sightseeing &
friends.
Day 126
— Guitarist Julian Bream
06-December-1971
(Mon.)
TRANSCRIPT
Julian Bream. English guitarist. Fantastic concert. I
had an excellent seat and could see the
“straight-wrist limit of flexion.” He was really
fantastic. His tone and clearness in playing was
really good.
The
music was also beautiful. Bach
Gavotte, Villa Lobos
Preludes. I made a tape. I hope
it came out good.
Afterwards, went to see him and get his autograph.
He’s English and acts very nice.
REFLECTIONS
Julian
Bream, guitarist. Julian
Bream is one of the notable guitar virtuosos in the
world of classical guitar. It is always a great treat
to see top performers play “live.” I am glad that I
made it to this concert. Since I am playing beginning
classical guitar, I was interested in the performing
style of players. Usually, this meant playing with a
slightly curved fingers, or straight-fingers and
wrist. I don't remember what
flexion means. One
thing is certain, top performers such as Bream,
always have a mastery of the technique of their
instrument and the
sound of their
instrument. It is artistry.
Here is the
Wikipedia article on Bream.
YouTube
videos. How cool
is this? There are some videos of Julian Bream on
YouTube. Amazing—it preserves a bit of culture and
history to see these clips. Amazing. Here is
Julian
Bream playing Villa-Lobos Preludes 3 &
4; Here
is
Julian
Bream playing the Bach Fugue in A
minor.
English
charm. I didn't
meet many Englishmen in Vienna, except for my
roommate Jeff. It was a pleasant surprise to find out
that the charm of the English came out in Julian
Bream when I met him backstage.
Live
concerts. One of my
regrets, throughout life, is that I haven’t seen
enough live concerts and operas throughout the years.
Expense is a big part of it; concerts are expensive.
And time and convenience are the other factors.
Living in a major city with its arts establishment is
probably the only way that you can go “often” to
concerts. My advice: if you enjoy music and it is
convenient and affordable to see live music…then, by
all means, do it. It is worth it.
John
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