OMNI on-Location in Los Angeles

This morning saw the release of a second OMNI on-location video (following up on Monday’s three-guitar arrangement of Joaquín Rodrigo’s “Concierto de Aranjuez”). This time the video was produced in association with The Romero Sessions, which has accumulated its own video library. As might be guessed, the guitar was made by Pepe Romero (Guitar No. 378); and the performance was filmed at The Romero Shop in Los Angeles.

Irina Kulikova preparing for the final (homophonic) cadence in her arrangement of the Prelude from Bach’s BWV 1007 (screenshot from the Omni Foundation YouTube video)

The guitarist was Irina Kulikova. She performed her own arrangement of the first movement (Prelude) of Johann Sebastian Bach’s BWV 1007, the first of his solo cello suites in the key of G major. She clearly appreciated the differences between her instrument and the one that Bach had in mind.

Thus, rather than attempt a strictly note-by-note account, she took advantage of her instrument’s capacity for homophony. Mind you, the underlying flow of arpeggiated chords was never undermined; but Kulikova decided that the final cadence in the coda could make room for a brief homophonic progression to provide a bit more emphasis to the conclusion. While this might have annoyed many “Bach purists,” Kulikova seemed committed to wrapping up her performance by reminding listeners that her instrument was, after all, a guitar!