"Cinco Piezas [Five Pieces]" by Luis Gianneo (1897-1968) with soloist Joshua Bell on mandolin with the Providence Mandolin Orchestra conducted by Mark Davis shown here in the version arranged for mandolin solo & mandolin orchestra by John Craton. The movements are titled: 'Vidala-Cancion Incaica-Chacarera-Cancion de Cuna and Zapateado'.

This video shows the 1st two movements, the Vidala and the Cancion Incaica, of Gianneo's work. The concert by the Providence Mandolin Orchestra conducted by Mark M. Davis was given in the Buitenkerk in Kampen (Netherlands) on the 4th of July 2008 and organized by their Dutch hosts and collegue Orchestra the Dutch Mandolin Chamber Orchestra Het CONSORT.

Luis Gianneo, was born in Buenos Aires on 9th January 1897 into a musical family of Italian immigrants. Already showing a great talent for music at an early age young Luis started to study the piano under the guidance of Luigi Romaniello and Ernesto Drangosch, and later composition with Constantino Gaito and Eduardo Fornarini. Today Gianneo is known, both in the chamber music as well as in the larger orchestra music fields, as a prolific composer. Like his Brazilian collegue Heitor Villa-Lobos he made extensive use of native folk melodies. Motives of these folk songs are heard for instance in the "Cinco Piezas", a composition originally written for violin and piano in 1942. Mandolin aficionados treasure a 1960s LP recording by the German mandolinist Jacob Thomas that included Gianneo's setting of three of the "Cinco Piezas"; "Chacarera", "Vidala", and "Zapateado", for solo mandolin and string orchestra which were presented in a different order from the original and called the "Suite Argentina" on the album jacket. Gianneo died in Buenos Aires on the 15th of August 1968. The American composer John Craton recently made his own arrangement from the original version of all five pieces for solo mandolin and mandolin orchestra with the original order and title restored. It is this setting by John Craton of the "Cinco Piezas" by Luis Gianneo that Joshua Bell and the Providence Mandolin Orchestra performed during their tour in the Netherlands (3-7th July 2008). This particular video of the "Cinco Piezas " by Luis Gianneo was shot during the concert performed by the Providence Mandolin Orchestra conducted by Mark Davis in the Buitenkerk in Kampen (Netherlands) on the 4th of July 2008.

JOSHUA BELL, the solo mandolinist in this composition, has been concertmaster of the Providence Mandolin Orchestra since 1986. He began playing the mandolin at age 19 and has studied with Hibbard Perry, Hermann von Bernewitz, Alexi Shabalin, Carlo Aonzo, Tamara Volskaya, Ugo Orlandi and Gertrud Weyhofen. In Providence Bell directs the "l'Esperance Mandolin Ensemble", a student mandolin group. He recently participated in the world premiere of "Transmission" for mandolin solo and classical guitar, composed by Michael Bell.