Behind the scenes: Monica talks about her work with sound designer Frank van der Weij, La Girò, and the concerts in the Washington, D.C. area Festival.

"Whether she was playing the violin, electric violin, adapted violin, whispering, talking, or singing, Germino conveyed her passion with tour de force virtuosity and burning vulnerability."

"Violinist Monica Germino put her stamp on the Andriessen at 75 festival in and around Washington, DC, earlier this year with a violin concerto named after Vivaldi’s muse... and a violin recital in a charged environment of electronics, art installations, and images with punk-rock bassist/ turned-sound-designer Frank van der Weij. Armed with a Joannes Baptista Ceruti (Cremona, 1802), on permanent loan from the Elise Mathilde Foundation, and a custom-made electric “violectra,” the Amsterdam-based American/Dutch musician played a major role..." READ MORE

—Laurence Vittes

Subscribers can click here to read the digital edition.

11 April 2014

Interview: Classical TV

CLASSICAL TV, April 2014

"Germino and La Giro" : interview about La Girò

AN EXCHANGE WITH MONICA GERMINO

CTV: Louis Andriessen wrote this marvelous concerto for you. Can you tell us a bit about how you and the composer came to know each other and then how he created this work for you?

MG: "La Girò is a dramatic piece with many elements at play - storytelling, a nightmare, singing and playing, even shrieking and whispering. The piece took certain twists and turns as a direct result of a long and treasured collaboration...." click here to read more about La Girò

Hear La Girò live:
April 12, 8 PM
Armstrong Concert Hall, Shenandoah Conservatory
Winchester, VA (USA)

Monica Germino, violin/voice; EDGE Ensemble; Damon Talley, conductor. Frank van der Weij, sound
music by Louis Andriessen, Derek Bermel, Ruby Fulton, Alexandra Gardner. Series curated by David T. Little. Part of the inaugural season of Shenandoah New Music.

more info / tickets for April 12

29 March 2014

USA concerts

pictured: Monica Germino and Frank van der Weij. photo credit: Elisabeth Melchior

6 - 13 April 2014, Washington D.C. area: Louis Andriessen Festival

an initiative of Armando Bayolo/Great Noise Ensemble, the Strathmore, Shenandoah Conservatory & University

7 April, 8 PM, Atlas Performing Arts Center

Frank van der Weij and Monica Germino present ROADMAPS & DIARIES II
music by Michael Gordon, Louis Andriessen, Julia Wolfe, Donnacha Dennehy & a world premiere by Kate Moore
Get tickets here

Washington City Paper, Best of DC
Caroline Jones, Arts Desk: ToDo ToDay: “Roadmaps and Diaries II”

"Despite her degrees from Yale and the New England Conservatory, classically trained violinist Monica Germino wasn’t content performing centuries-old orchestral works. So, like Dylan at Newport in 1965, she went electric, commissioning her own model of electric violin and working with experimental Dutch composer Louis Andriessen. Tonight at Atlas, she’ll present “Road Maps and Diaries II,” a program that started as a one-night showcase of new music, improvisation, and installations with frequent collaborator (and fellow Netherlander) Frank van der Weij and has evolved into a touring production of unconventional performance and feats of sound design. Monica Germino and Frank van der Weij perform at 8 p.m. at Atlas Performing Arts Center, 1333 H St. NE. $20–$28.50. (202) 399-7993. atlasarts.org.

The Washington Post, GoingOutMusic

Roadmaps & Diaries II
Classical
Sound designer Frank van der Weij joins violinist, vocalist Monica Germino in a concert that features "electroacoustic innovations" of compositions by Louis Andriessen, Julia Wolfe, Michael Gordon and more. Part of Andriessen75. At the Lang Theatre.

Broadwayworld.com, Classical Music News Desk, Monday, April 7 (8:00 PM): ROADMAPS & DIARIES II (Washington, D.C.)

"Monica Germino (violin) and Frank van der Weij (sound design), Amsterdam-based collaborators whose paths have intertwined with Andriessen's for decades, perform a revolutionary take on the solo violin recital in a raucous and reflective evening for violin, electric violin, adapted violin, voice, electronics, installations, images, & sound design. ROADMAPS & DIARIES began as a single show in Amsterdam and has evolved into an ever-changing tour..."
"This presentation features Andriessen's XENIA, a three-movement piece for violin and voice, Julia Wolfe's with a blue dress on, Michael Gordon's INDUSTRY for adapted violin and electronics (2008), and Irish composer Donnacha Dennehy's Overstrung (2010). Presented by Atlas Performing Arts Center."

8 April, 7:30 PM, The Mansion at Strathmore

Cristina Zavalloni, voice; Monica Germino, violin; Andrea Rebaudengo, piano music by Louis Andriessen, John Cage & Igor Stravinsky

12 April, 8 PM, Armstrong Concert Hall, Shenandoah Conservatory

Monica Germino, violin/voice, EDGE Ensemble in Louis Andriessen's violin concerto La Girò. Damon Talley, conductor.
music by Louis Andriessen, Derek Bermel, Ruby Fulton, Alexandra Gardner. Concert curated by David T. Little. Part of the inaugural season of *Shenandoah New Music.***
Get tickets here

Check out the entire festival for a range of great concerts, including Andriessen's La Commedia on 6 April & Bang on a Can on 11 April

READ AND WATCH: The Washington Post's Preview about the Festival

La girò

Dates

Poland

14 December 2012