Comments on: Cygnus Ensemble at the Library of Congress

By: Robert Besen

Robert Besen — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 22:09:09 +0000

What is getting its World Premiere is the performance of all three quartets together as a single work. The Third Quartet was premiered by Daedalus in December 2009. I will bring this to the attention of The Phillips so it is corrected. (I’m the quartet’s manager.)

By: zeno

zeno — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 21:58:13 +0000

hmm … a point of clarification:

“Fred Lerdahl’s Third Quartet, a Pulitzer Prize finalist written for the quartet, will have its world premiere at the Phillips, rounding out a cycle of three works written over the course of more than thirty years intended both as individual pieces and as a unified set to be performed together.”

By: zeno

zeno — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 21:46:42 +0000

I believe that the mention of a mini-residence, above, refers to the Cygnus Ensemble returning to the Library of Congress on March 7 to perform works by the late DINA KOSTON, CHESTER BISCARDI, DAVID CLAMAN, FRANK BRICKLE, and MARIO DAVIDOVSKY (the world premiere of his Ladino Songs).

Violinist Miranda Cuckson herself also returns to D.C.’s Phillips Collection (with pianist Aaron Wunsch) on Sunday afternoon April 15th for a 2oth c. recital including folk song transcriptions by ROSS LEE FINNEY (for those who haven’t seriously procrastinated on their taxes).

Those readers here who are only somewhat familiar with the D.C. new music scene should also note two other Phillips Collection concerts : the Daedalus String Quartet performing all three quartets of FRED LERDAHL (April 22) and MICHEL VAN DER AA and soloists from the International Comtemporary Ensemble (May 10).

(Lerdahl’s Third SQ, like Harold Meltzer’s work ‘Brion’, was a Pulitzer finalist.)

http://www.phillipscollection.org/programs/music/2011-12.aspx#February