Rodolfo Valente wrote a very nice and elaborate report on his stay in The Netherlands. Below you can read Valente’s experience of the performance in the Concertgebouw.

“Het Concertgebouw

Saturday, 22th October. When the big day came, the ensemble did a general rehearsal to set up the last details. In the case of vigília II, this was not only a matter of adjusting the sound of the ensemble to the acoustics of the hall, but also to decide which paths the musicians would take to leave the stage during the piece. This question was solved with the removal of a giant vase that was part of the hall decoration and a slight change in the order I had previously established for them to walk away: the contrabass player would leave earlier than I initially imagined, making the path clear for the others to follow.

I was already satisfied with the way things would happen, when Joël Bons came with a new and great idea: “Since everyone is leaving, why don't you also ask the conductor to leave the stage with a whistle?” I simply had not thought about this possibility before. But the idea sounded good, so why not give it a try? Then I decided to incorporate this instruction for the conductor in the performance. We talked to Arie and he was very nice to accept the idea. During the concert, the effect was sublime: when vigília II was at its most lyrical and introspective moment, the conductor gently blows his whistle and leaves and the audience reacts: they burst in laughter. Afterwards Joël was a little worried that the laughter provoked by his suggestion could have possibly ruined my poetical intentions.

I told him not worry. It really amused me and I could only thank him for the collaboration. It's my personal feeling that the best poetry walks most times hand in hand with humour. Also zen-buddhist monks often burst in laughter in the very moment they reach satori (understanding). In other words I could not be more satisfied with how the audience reacted to vigília II.”