Celebrating Diego Ghymers’ life and music

Diego0Diego Ghymers had a restlessly inquisitive and panoramic vision encompassing musical, philosophical and economic disciplines. His anthropological explorations are to be continued by the people who influenced him and who he inspired.

Following his tragic road accident in September 2015, a year later, mentors, artists, family, colleagues and friends of Diego will gather from around the world to celebrate and remember the life of an extraordinary musician in the way that he would have liked; through musical celebration, laughs, and wine.

Diego, a mercurial talent both as a composer and pianist, was a relentless advocate for improvised and contemporary music. His enthusiasm and sense of fun created a strong and lasting impression wherever he went and with whoever he crossed paths. He had a restless curiosity for making new music and an incredible generosity that he shared at every opportunity. He strove to improve the world around him, overcoming political and economic obstacles.

He was a visionary and found solutions and forged opinions expressing this struggle in his unique musical life.

 

The event will be a musical reunion of Diego`s colleagues and mentors gathering from all over Europe. It includes series of performances of pieces written in his memory, improvisations and dance, including a Soundpainting Workshop (3PM), Concert at the Theater Studio (6PM), followed by a jam session at Oliver`s jazz bar (9 PM).

Diego1

Performers:
Bobby Chen (UK)- piano
Luca Chiantore (Italy)- piano, The Tropos Ensemble
Vicente Espi (Spain) – drums
Douglas Finch (CAN) – piano
Elliot Galvin (UK) – piano
Dominic Murcott (UK) – drums
David Ortola (Spain)- piano, The Tropos Ensemble
Vanesa Santanach (Spain) – piano, performing Gio Janiashvili
Martin Speake (UK) – sax
Joe Townsend (UK) – violin
Luis Thomas (UK) – bass
Mireia Vendrell (Spain) – piano
Raisa Zapryanova (Bulgaria) – viola
Southern Cone Quintet
The London Soundpainting Orchestra, founded by Diego Ghymers, conducted by Hada Benedito (Spain), Benjamin Nid (France)
Special guest and workshop leader Walther Thompson (USA)

Facebook Event:
https://www.facebook.com/events/146246375827593/

Concert, 6PM:
Studio Theatre, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance
King Charles Court , Royal Naval College, London SE10 9JF

Jam Session, 9PM:
Oliver’s Jazz Bar
9 Nevada Street, London SE10 9JL

 

 

David Ortolà & Luca Chiantore
In memoriam Diego Ghymers: Tropes on Chopin’s Sonata Op. 35,
for two piano and electronics (very special edit version)

The tropes that Luca and David have composed together in 2015 on Chopin’s Sonata op. 35 are intimately bound to the memory of Diego, our mutual best friend. The tragic death of this unique artist, whose presence was crucial before the first public performance of Tropos Ensemble, marked the final phase of a creative process in which we tried to highlight the striking modernity of Chopin’s writing. “This is not music”, wrote Robert Schumann about the last movement of this work. We try to transmit to our audiences the same sense of breaking codes, crossing borders between beauty and incomprehensibility, bewilderment and complexity, through several references to 20th and 21th century music. Since its premiere, in October 2015, this piece has been performed in Madrid (Fundación Juan March), Rome (Università Roma Tre), Venice (Palazzo Pisani), and New York (Carnegie Hall).

David Ortolà
Ghymers Resonances #2, for piano and live electronics

Superimposed between second and third movements of In memoriam, Mireia is playing a written and more complex version of an improvised longer piece for piano and live electronics which David performed last November in Diego’s memory. Materials are mainly extracted from Diego’s compositions or David’s Efimeras, which Diego, Luca, and David played together in 2011, at the “20 years, 20 pianos” concert. This music is an emotional attempt of prolonging our idealistic enthusiastic dialogues into the uncertainties of space and time.

Trinity