Inspiration: “a person … that makes someone want to do or create something” (Merriam-Webster).

The theme for ClarinetFest 2016 centers around the 5 clarinetists who encouraged the creation of so much of the clarinet repertoire. From the 18th-century Anton Stadler; from the 19th-century Heinrich Baermann, Johann Hermstedt, and Richard Mūhlfeld; and Benny Goodman from the 20th-century. All inspired the leading composers of their day to write for the clarinet. In addition to performances of some of the music they inspired, there will be opportunities to learn more about their lives and circumstances.

Not limited to influential clarinetists, other inspirations will abound at ClarinetFest 2016. If you have ideas for other inspirations that might be included, please contact the Artistic Leadership Team. ClarinetFest 2016 will highlight a greater awareness of possibilities and opportunities for clarinetists of all performance levels.

An interesting series of daily concerts will be Forgotten Gems. If there are compositions for clarinet that you believe have undeservedly slipped from the awareness of many clarinetists that should be reintroduced, please submit a performance proposal or otherwise suggest that a particular piece of music be considered for this special series.

Thank you for contributing your proposals and ideas for what promises to be one of the most memorable celebrations of the clarinet ever – ClarinetFest 2016 – August 3-7, 2016, Lawrence, Kansas USA.

The musical stages and the master classes organized by M° Luigi Bascapè, teacher of trumpet in the Conservatory of Milan are open to international citizens, students of graduated in conservatories, musical schools and academies. The registration form must arrive within 15^thMay, toghether with the receipts of payment on the postal c/c n°83229609 paid to Bascapè Luigi for the amount May of 210 euros as registration tax, deposit for accomodation in the village to the following address:

(The registration terms cannot be postponed; it would be possible to accept late registrations only after checking the disponibility in the accomodating structure in Via Parenzo, 3mins. from the beach, dialling 338 9044459 Bascape Luigi.

The participants will be accomodated in the village with full board regime and in either 3,4,5,6 beds rooms with private bathroom at the price of 51 euros a day or at a price of 44 euros in 8 to 10 beds room with shared bathroom; half litre bottle of water are included each meal.

During the classes the participants will have the occasion to study with qualified teachers and will receive a participation certificate.

Class are compulsory. The students attending wind instruments can attend, in addition, group music classes as an artistic occasion in order to enlarge their own experience in group playing and repertoire at different levels, enjoying and training themselves for a various and stimulating preparation.

The balance (including 11 days of full board accomodation, classes and tests) must be paid to Franchioli Marina the first day of the courses.

For students who will only attend the classes without accomodation balance is 100 euros.

Any additional guest will pay 560 euros for full board accomodation (self-service), they must register definitely with a 210 euros deposit paid on the same c/c (see above) and will balance the second day after the arrival in Alghero.

With this form I ask to be registered to the classes and enclose photocopy of the deposit receipt on c/c.

Charles Neidich

see also www.charlesneidich.com

Charles Neidich has gained worldwide recognition as one of the most mesmerizing virtuosos on his instrument. With a tone of hypnotic beauty and a dazzling technique, Mr. Neidich has received unanimous accolades from critics and fellow musicians both in the United States and abroad; but it is his musical intelligence in scores as diverse as Mozart and Elliott Carter that have earned for Mr. Neidich a unique place among clarinetists. In the words of The New Yorker, "He's an artist of uncommon merit—a master of his instrument and, beyond that, an interpreter who keeps listeners hanging on each phrase."

In past seasons Mr. Neidich has appeared in recital and as guest soloist all over the world, and has been making his mark as a conductor. In wide demand as a soloist, Mr. Neidich has collaborated with some of the world's leading orchestras and ensembles, including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of London, Concertgebouw of Amsterdam, the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Halle Staatsorchester of Germany, Orpheus, the St. Louis Symphony, Jacksonville Symphony, Pasadena Symphony, San Diego Symphony, New City Chamber Orchestra of San Francisco, Athens Chamber Music Festival, Tafelmusik, the Juilliard, Guarneri, American, and Mendelssohn String Quartets, and the Peabody Trio.

In addition to performing as soloist, Mr. Neidich has, in recent seasons, added conducting to his musical accomplishments. He recently led the Cobb Symphony Orchestra and Georgia Symphony in performances of the Franck Symphony in D Minor and the Mozart's Clarinet Concerto (also playing the solo clarinet part). Mr. Neidich continues to serve as conductor of the Queens College Chamber Orchestra in Queens, New York City, with whom he has performed the works of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven in historically informed interpretations.

Recently, Mr. Neidich participated in a series of concerts celebrating Elliott Carter's Centennial: an Elliott Carter Docu-Concert at Vanderbilt University; an all-Carter concert at Merkin Hall in November 2008 with the New York Woodwind Quintet; and at Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall as part of Carnegie Hall's "Making Music" series in December 2008.

Mr. Neidich commands a repertoire of over 200 solo works, including pieces commissioned or inspired by him, as well as his own transcriptions of vocal and instrumental works. A noted exponent of 20th century music, he has premiered works by Milton Babbit, Elliott Carter, Edison Denisov, William Schumann, Ralph Shapey, Joan Tower, and other leading contemporary composers. With a growing discography to his credit, Mr. Neidich can be heard on the Chandos, Sony Classical, Sony Vivarte, Deutsche Grammophon, Musicmasters, Pantheon, and Bridge labels. His recorded repertoire ranges from familiar works by Mozart, Beethoven, Weber, and Brahms, to lesser-known compositions by Danzi, Reicha, Rossini, and Hummel, as well as music by Elliott Carter, Gyorgy Kurtag, and other contemporary masters.

A native New Yorker of Russian and Greek descent, Charles Neidich had his first clarinet lessons with his father and his first piano lessons with his mother. Mr. Neidich's early musical idols were Fritz Kreisler, pianist Artur Schnabel and other violinists and pianists, rather than clarinetists. However, the clarinet won out over time, and he pursued studies with the famed pedagogue Leon Russianoff. Although Mr. Neidich became quite active in music at an early age, he opted against attending a music conservatory in favor of academic studies at Yale University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, cum laude, in Anthropology. In 1975 he became the first American to receive a Fulbright grant for study in the former Soviet Union, and he attended the Moscow Conservatory for three years where his teachers were Boris Dikov and Kirill Vinogradov.