Classical guitarists Mark Ashford and Amanda Cook combine to offer Spanish Nights for Amici Concerts on Friday, September 13 at 7.30pm (doors 7pm) at Boxgrove Priory, Church Lane, PO18 0EE.
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00:00Good morning, my name is Phil Hewitt, Group Arts Editor at Sussex Newspapers. Lovely to
00:06speak again to Amanda Cook. And Amanda, a classical guitarist, you are combining with
00:10Mark Ashford, also a classical guitarist, for a very special concert coming up at Boxgrove
00:15Priory on Friday, September the 13th at 7.30pm, Spanish Nights. Now, why Spanish Nights? What's
00:23so special about the music of Spain, would you say?
00:26Well, it's lovely to talk to you, Phil, again. And just, yeah, I mean, the thing about Spanish
00:32music is, is that it just plays such a key part in the history of the classical guitar.
00:39And we're focusing on sort of later 19th and early 20th century, when the guitar was really
00:45transformed into a more serious concert instrument. And as a result of players that were coming
00:53on the scene, composers were asked to, and inspired to write for the instrument. So larger
01:00scale, more virtuosic works were being written. And for example, with Francisco Taurega, he
01:06collaborated with a guitar maker at the time, Torres, to create a larger bodied instrument,
01:13because there was a smaller instrument in the body size and the neck length. So with the larger
01:19body, you know, you could have more volume, more projection, and more capacity for colour to allow
01:24these sort of new techniques as well, that were being introduced into compositions, to really
01:30project to larger audiences in concert halls, rather than moving away from the sort of salon
01:36history of the guitar, where it was more of a post dinner entertainment.
01:41Sounds fantastic. And the exciting thing, one of the many exciting things about this is that
01:45it's effectively a new duo, isn't it? But you and Mark go back quite some time. Why the duo and why now?
01:52Well, we've, yeah, we've known each other since we were teenagers meeting at summer schools back
01:57then. And we've been working together for about 10 years in the Vida Guitar Quartet.
02:03And so, you know, we know each other, you know, really well, working in that group so closely.
02:09And now, yes, and then we've just come up with this idea to create this duo program.
02:16Mark was approached, asking if he could put together a program of Spanish music.
02:21And so that was, you know, a really exciting opportunity for us to create a mixture of
02:27solos and duos, which isn't really often done. Often there'll be a focus just on a guitar duo
02:31or a soloist. So I think audiences seem to be enjoying that mixture, you know, Mark producing
02:38solos, I will do some solos, and then we'll intersperse that with some duos.
02:43And in your wider career, you're saying this is just simply another option, isn't it? Another way of
02:47playing, another way of collaborating. Exactly, yeah. I mean, as guitarists, we sort of,
02:52we love and are known for, you know, doing varieties of, you know, combinations of solo,
02:58working with other instrumentalists as well. The guitar's versatility, you know, really lends itself
03:03to that. So, and guitar duo is a beautiful combination, you know, offering you a wider
03:08range of colour and a range of works. So we're really enjoying this Spanish program that we've
03:15put together. Fantastic. So Spanish Nights at Box Grey Priory are Mark Ashford and Amanda Cook on
03:22Friday, September 13th. Amanda, really lovely to speak to you again. Thank you. Thank you.