Bagad Kemper
The Bagad Kemper is one of the oldest still existing, most famous and most successful Breton instrumental ensembles . Your name can be translated as " marching band (or music troupe) from Quimper ". However, both the composition of the instruments used and the songs that she performs - like other Bagadoù - are anchored in the Celtic - Breton cultural area.
Their instrumentation corresponds to that of almost all Breton bagadoù and consists of four main groups of instruments: the bombards , the binioù braz , the small drums as well as individual large double-headed drums and other percussion instruments . At the Festival Interceltique in Lorient 2012 (see the photo on the right) , for example, 54 musicians of both sexes took part in the Grand Parade, with two trophies being carried in front and presented to the audience. The musical director, known in Brittany as Penn-Soner (literally "head of the musicians"), is usually either one of the flutists or a bagpiper .
Since the 1990s, the group has increasingly opened up to other musical genres; Due to numerous joint appearances and record productions with artists from other regions and styles, she is now playing a pioneering role among the Breton Bagadoù.
History of the Bagad
Bagad was founded in October 1949 under the name Kevrenn C'hlazig ; Among the initiators was Loeiz Ropars , a professor at the University of Rennes , who was well-known in the Breton cultural scene and whose son Erwan was their Penn-Soner for two and a half decades . In 1954 it renamed itself Bagad Kemper de la Kevrenn C'hlazig before shortening its name to Bagad Kemper in 1965. Although they had won the Breton Bagadoù Championships in 1951 and 1952 (see the chapter below) , the group suffered from such a shortage of instrumentalists in the mid-1950s that they continued to perform in public occasionally, but not for four years was able to participate in this competition, in which she then had to start again in 1958 in the lowest category.
In the long time of its existence, the Bagad has appeared at all major cultural festivals in Brittany, but also throughout France and other neighboring European countries - including in German-speaking countries, for example on the occasion of an exhibition on Breton history in Austria or at the Expo 2000 in Germany - as far as West Africa and East Asia and can look back on numerous publications on phonograms .
Nowadays (2020) the Bagad has around 170 members in four individual groups, which are differentiated according to the skills of the musicians. In addition to the “elite formation”, there is a second (Bagad Glazik Kemper) and third (Bagadig Kemper) line- up as well as a “training train” in which the children and young people from Bagad's own music school are accepted as soon as they have mastered their instrument sufficiently well . These second to fourth occupations also regularly take part in marches and parades.
The fact that the number of musicians who play the instruments typical of Bagadoù has increased significantly, especially since the 1990s, is also shown by the fact that Bagad Kemper no longer represents their city alone. At the end of the 2010s there in Quimper three more, according to their origin Quartier named groups from Le Moulin Vert (Bagad Ar Meilhoù Glaz) , Ergué-Armel and Penhars.
Successes at the national championships
In Brittany there is now a highly renowned competition for the numerous Bagadoù, the annual Kenstrivadeg ar Bagadou or Championnat national des bagadoù (" National Championship of Bagadoù"). Organizer is the association Bodadeg ar Sonerion , in German "Association of [traditional] musicians". This competition took place in Brest from 1949 to 1970 and since 1971 in August during the Festival Interceltique in Lorient . The participating instrumental groups have to perform twice - the first round, which does not necessarily take place in Lorient, at the beginning of the year, the second and decisive one in summer - and are divided into one of five quality categories based on their performance, between which it is like in sport - and descent there. In the highest category, the lecture should be ten minutes in the first round and twelve minutes in the second; the groups are largely free to decide which melodies to choose and how to group them (“ freestyle ”). However, a section must contain a folk dance (“mandatory”). A twelve-person jury of musicians evaluates the playing of the individual instruments in each group, their harmony and the visual impression; The highest grade is the extremely rarely awarded 20.0. The slightly stronger weighting of the second appearance, for example, in 2018 meant that Bagad Kemper was able to move up from fourth to second place.
At the end of the 2010s, 75 Bagadoù belonged to the top four national “ leagues ”, all the others to the fifth category, which compete in competitions at departmental level for the possibility of advancing to the fourth category.
Bagad Kemper has participated in these contests for the title since it was founded. She is now the “record champion” with 22 wins in the highest category - the second best is the Bagad Brest Sant-Mark with eleven titles between 1957 and 1974 - in which she has been represented since her resurgence in 1968. Recently, however, the Bagad Cap Caval from Plomeur has become a serious new competitor; From 2008 to 2019, none other than one of these two groups was able to secure the championship, and in these twelve events Kemper had four, Cap Caval eight times the better end for themselves.
The Bagad Kemper won its titles in 1951 (in cooperation with a Bagad from Quimperlé ), 1952, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. There were also 15 runners-up in the highest and three titles in one of the lower categories, namely 1961 in the third and 1966 and 1967 in the second.
The second and third line-up of musicians from Quimper also play in this system, in 2020 in the third and fifth category, respectively.
Open to other genres of music
For decades, the Bagad Kemper's repertoire has included the entire spectrum of traditional Breton music, from the danceable plinn and jig to the worn gwerz . Characteristic for the songs in a series of four are LPs that from 1979 to 1989 under the title War On Dachenn 1-4 on the Keltia - label appeared. With Spotify , the collaboration with Denez Prigent recorded titles E Trouz ar ger ( "In the city at night"), the highest polling numbers on (mid-April 2020: over 70,000 times), followed at some distance by Laridé , a classic Gavotte from the area around the central Breton Pontivy . But as early as the late 20th century it began to go beyond this framework. So it was for the first time in 1991 at the Festival de Cornouaille to joint concerts with Dan Ar Braz and, from 1993, also L'Héritage des Celtes .
At the end of the 1990s she produced one CD each with José Ángel Hevia , and then with Carlos Núñez , two musicians from the far north-west of Spain , which was a first step towards world music . The Azeliz Iza project, which began in 2000, also broadened her musical horizons . Although it consists exclusively of historical Breton folk songs , both the instrumentation (guitars, electric bass, electrically amplified lutes) and the participating guest musicians, The singer Marthe Vassallo in particular goes far beyond the scope of the typical Bagadoù repertoire. After another joint record production with the Galician Susanna Seivane , a third collaboration with a musician, the Scottish singer Julie Fowlis, followed in 2007 .
In 2010, the Bagad Kemper in Lorient presented the two-hour project “Breizh Balkanik”, developed jointly with Erik Marchand , in which they had linked the music of Brittany with that of the Balkans . When Johnny Clegg performed in Brittany, she played with him at the Festival des Vieilles Charrues . And on the occasion of her 70th anniversary, she performed again in Lorient in 2019 with the rock band Red Cardell , with whom she released three long-playing records in 2013, 2014 and 2019.
That is why the ensemble from Quimper is considered a “pioneer in the field of creation and collaboration with artists from very different musical worlds” among the Bagadoù.
literature
- Pascal Lamour: Un monde de musique bretonne. Ed. Ouest-France, Rennes 2018, ISBN 978-2-7373-7898-0
Web links
Notes and evidence
- ↑ The current regulations of the Bodadeg ar Sonerion musicians' association combine these four main groups into only three.
- ↑ Article “ Bagad Kemper appears at Cornouaille ” from 23 July 2019 at actu.fr
- ↑ Tour destinations of the Bagad on bagad-kemper.bzh
- ↑ according to the information " Hep Diskrog " on bagad-kemper.bzh and the article " The Bagad Kemper celebrates its 70 years of work and creativity " from July 25, 2019 at francetvinfo.fr
- ↑ Alain Cabon: Le Festival Interceltique de Lorient. Quarante ans au cœur du monde celte. Ed. Ouest-France, Rennes 2010, ISBN 978-2-7373-5119-8 , p. 11
- ↑ Pascal Lamour: Un monde de musique bretonne , 2018, p. 147
- ↑ The point overview of all referees for all bands in the first category in both rounds of 2018 is printed in Pascal Lamour: Un monde de musique bretonne , 2018, p. 151/152.
- ↑ In line with the growing number of Bagadoù, the fourth highest category was introduced in 1985 and the fifth highest in 1997.
- ↑ a b The palmarès of the competition for all categories can be found in Pascal Lamour: Un monde de musique bretonne , 2018, p. 153.
- ↑ see the discography at discogs.com
- ↑ Pascal Lamour: Un monde de musique bretonne , 2018, p. 114
- ↑ see the playlist of the LP at discogs.com
- ↑ A nearly eight-minute excerpt from the performance of Azeliz Iza at the Festival de Cornouaille 2001 can be found on YouTube.
- ↑ Article " Julie Fowlis: the third 'guest star' of the Bagad " from May 16, 2007 at letelegramme.fr (with payment barrier)
- ↑ Article “ Breizh Balkanik, gangway between Bretagne and the Balkans ” from July 15, 2014 at francetvinfo.fr
- ↑ Article “ The Bagad Kemper celebrates its 70 years full of work and creativity ” from July 25, 2019 at francetvinfo.fr