This major concert work cosists o five movements.1st movement: La Laguna del ShimbeSituated high up in the Andes mountains in Northern Peru are the Huaringas a group of lagoons in isolated and mysterious surroundings. The water has healing powersand for centuries traditional healers have settled there in small villages. From far the sick come to the Huaringas to be treated in nightly rituals in which the hallucinating juice of the San Pedro cactus gives the prophet a look inside hispatient. The biggest lagoon is the ?Laguna del Shimbe? one of the countless wells of the immense Amazon stream.2nd movement: Los AguarunasFurther downstream in Northern Peru we come across the rain tribe of Los Aguarunas. It?s a proud beautiful andindependent race which has never succumbed to domination not even from the Incas. They live from everything the forest has to offer: fish fruit plants ... . They also grow some crops and live as semi-nomads. They take their fate into their ownhands and after having made contact with modern civilisation they have integrated new elements into their lives without betraying their own ways.3rd movement: MekaronMekaron is an Indian word meaning ?picture? ?soul? ?essence?. The Indians are theorigina inhabitants of the Amazon region. They either live in one place as a group or move around a large region. They all have their own political system their own language and an intense social life. At the same time they are master of music andmedicine. ?Everywhere the white man goes he leaves a wilderness behind him? wrote the North American Indian leader Seatl in 1885. As a result of these contacts with the whites the disruption of most Indian societies began. (In this century alone 80 tribes have vanished completely).4th movement: KêêtuajêThis is the name of the initiating ceremony of the Krahô tribe in the Brazilian state of Goias in which young boys and girls enter adult life. They are cleansed with water painted with redpaint and covered with feathers after which the ritual dance holds the entire tribe spell-bound.5th movement: Paulino FaiakanIn 1988 the Indian chiefs Faiakan and Raoni Kaiapo came to Europe to protest against the building of the Altamira dam inBrazil. As a result of the dam the Indians would be driven from their traditional land and enormous artificial would be created. The project was supported financially by amongst others the European Community. In February 1989 the Indian tribesaround Altamira held a protest march for the first time in their history together. Amongst other things they paid tribute tot Chico Mendez who murdered in 1988 was the leader of the rubber syndicate and a fierce opponent of the destruction of theBrazilian rain forest. Brazilian and world opinion was awakened. The building of the dam was -albeit temporarily - stopped.

‘Music’ by John Miles was one of Blackstone’s favourite numbers. With completely different notes but holding on to the same form and atmosphere the latter has tried to write an attractive composition for both young and old.Gate 11 refers to the ever agitated and noisy scenes at an airport especially during check-in. Yet there are also passengers who wait patiently letting their thoughts range at will looking forward to meeting a loved one at the end of their journey.

The word ‘tsunami’ is of Japanese origin. When you look it up in a dictionary you will find that it means ‘a great sea wave produced by submarine earth movement or volcanic eruption’. A megatsunami is the superlative of this awesome expressionof power that nature can create and has catastrophic consequences. When Carl Wittrock completed this composition not many such big earth movements had occurred but since then we have become all too familiar with the disastrousconsequences which a tsunami may have. On the 26th of December 2004 a heavy seaquake took place near the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Tidal waves 10 meters in height ravaged the coastal regions of many countries for miles around. The tsunamitook the lives of thousands of people and destroyed many villages and towns. There are more areas which run the risk of being struck by a tsunami such as the island of La Palma one of the Canary Islands. This island is based on oceaniccrust at a fracture zone and as such is one of nature’s time bombs. The consequences of a natural calamity like a megatsunami are immense. In the case of La Palma the tidal wave will move in the direction of South America where it may reach 50km inland destroying everything on its way. In his composition Wittrock describes an ordinary day which will have an unexpected ending. Right from the beginning there seems to be something in the air the music creating an oppressiveatmosphere of impending disaster. Themes are interrupted broken off suddenly followed by silence suggesting the calm before the storm. Suddenly a short climax (glissandi in the trombone part) indicates the seaquake and the megatsunami isa fact. Hereafter follows a turbulent passage symbolising the huge rolling waves. After nature’s force has spent itself resignation sets in and the composition ends with a majestic ode to nature.

In a four-part composition Rieks van der Velde takes us to the richly varied area surrounding the university city of Cambridge. The Dutch composer was especially inspired by the atmosphere of Cambridgeshire the county which lies north of London. 1. The Journey. Although on arrival the area looks peaceful and friendly the ruggedness of its inhabitants and landscape have an unmistakable influence on the music. In the course of the tour which starts with an Allegro movement we are shown the vitality energy and freshness of the Cambridgeshire countryside. Short themes swift and sudden motifs and rhythmical patterns supported by the drive ofpercussion instruments give expression to this image. The first part is concluded by two 'Calmo' movements in which the music expresses how the cathedral in the city of Ely comes into sight and is gradually approached. 2. Visit to Ely Cathedral. The famous Norman cathedral church of Ely which was built in 1109 has attracted tourists from all over the world apart from being a place of worship and heritage site. A cornet solo introduces the contemplative mood of the composition at this point. The mystical atmosphere of the cathedral runs through this lyrical part like a continuous thread. 3. The Pub. The thirst caused by this intensive journey makes a visit to the local pub a definite must. These ?public houses? which may be open until the early hours of the morning offer all kinds of entertainment. Drinks are served liberally and the atmosphere is lively. 4. The Journey Back. Time has flown: In other words the moment of departure has come sooner than one would have wished. In a flashback which recaptures elements of the first part of the composition we say goodbye to Cambridgeshire in a fitting manner. Two scintillating final measures bring us abruptly back to the present.

Everybody is familiar with the zoo. Remember all those animals? Big ones small ones. Water dwellers air-bound birds long legged hoppers creeping bugs. All animals seem to have their own peculiarities. Now Carl Wittrock (who also composed the world-famous master piece 'Lord Tullamore') invites you to join him in a musical exploration of the animal kingdom. An invitation you must not reject! In his 'A view at the Zoo' Wittrock presents ten distinctly different animals as compositions of music. You may be familiar with some of those animals such as the white swan or the butterfly but there are also more exotic breeds like the lion the monkey or theelephant. The composition as a whole is built around a structure of shorter fragments reminiscent of 'The Paintings Exhibition' by Moussorgsky. The parts are decorated with recognizable illustrations of the different animals. At each composition Wittrock looks for something that can fascinate both musicians and listeners. In this he succeeded extremely well.