Calendar

Kaufman Music Center’s “alt-classical” youth ensemble Face the Music will perform at  Lincoln Center’s Rubenstein Atrium on February 28th, 2013. The program includes David Crowell,  Andrii Didorenko,  Philip Glass,   Daniel Bernard Roumain,  Joe Jordan (Student).

The only student ensemble in New York City dedicated to performing music by living classical composers, Face the Music has been praised by the New York Times for its “stunning performances” of music by contemporary composers and hailed by critics as “polished, exuberant” (New York Times) and one of “New York’s favorite contemporary-classical ensembles” (Time Out New York). Since its founding in 2005, the ensemble has taken its place as a full-fledged player in New York City’s vibrant contemporary classical scene, rapidly becoming what Allan Kozinn of the New York Times has called “a force in the New York new-music world.”

Details at http://www.kaufmanmusiccenter.org/mch/event/face-the-music-7

photo by Ivan Singer

On August 7 at 7:30PM at (le) poisson rouge in NYC, GRAND BAND will perform a captivating program of music for six pianos by composers including Steve Reich, Julia Wolfe, Philip Glass, and Kate Moore.

Fresh off the heels of its ‘awesome’ (Sequenza21) debut at the 2012 Bang on a Can Marathon, this ‘super-group of soloists’ (The Glass) provides another rare opportunity to hear a live performance of contemporary music for six pianos. With a program including Steve Reich’s iconic ‘Six Pianos,’ Julia Wolfe’s Aretha Franklin-inspired ‘my lips from speaking…,’ and a new version of an immersive work by up-and-coming composer Kate Moore, this concert promises to be a new music highlight of the summer.

August 7, 2012
@ (le) poisson rouge
158 Bleecker St. (btw Sullivan & Thompson)

7:30PM (doors at 6:30)
$20 day of show/$15 advance

http://lepoissonrouge.com/events/view/3529

=====

GRAND BAND is a new piano sextet featuring six of New York City’s top pianists: Vicky Chow, David Friend, Paul Kerekes, Blair McMillen, Lisa Moore and Isabelle O’Connell. Described as “awesome” (Sequenza21) following their performance of Steve Reich’s Six Pianos at this year’s Bang on a Can marathon in June, this stunning collection of performers creates a powerful sonic force. Of the group’s debut performance, Lucid Culture wrote: “Grand Band had a ball [in the Wolfe], each wearing an ear monitor so as to catch the innumerable, suspenseful series of cues as the gospel licks grew from spacious and minimalist to a joyously hammering choir,” and The Glass declared “the 6 pianists are a super-group of soloists that played what sounded kind of like classical pop-crossover meets post-minimal.” A thoroughly modern ensemble, Grand Band is a champion of new music and living composers.

Momenta Quartet, Photo: John Gurrin

Now in its seventh and most prolific season, the “outstanding” Momenta Quartet takes on the monumental second string quartet of Arnold Schoenberg with “engaging” soprano Katharine Dain at 8pm on Monday, April 11th at the Center for Jewish History as part of its ongoing residency at Yeshiva University’s Stern College. The program also features Lament for Solo Cello by Yeshiva University faculty Bart Bartholomew and the String Quartet no. 5 (1991) by Philip Glass, who all but invented the concept of the “Minimalism” in the 1960s and has since written major film scores and commissions for the Metropolitan Opera.

April 11, 2011
8pm
The Center for Jewish History
15 W. 16th St., NYC
Admission: $15/$10 for students and seniors
www.cjh.org

**************************************************

Described by Time Out New York as “an outstanding ensemble prone to innovation and exploration,” the Momenta Quartet (Emilie-Anne Gendron and Asmira Woodward-Page, violins; Stephanie Griffin, viola; Michael Haas, cello) has given over 50 world premieres since 2004 and presented refreshing programs of contemporary music with a focus on the creativity of composers from the new world. Based in New York City, Momenta has performed at some of New York’s alternative venues such as The Stone and Roulette, and at more mainstream venues such as Bargemusic and Symphony Space. In residence at Temple University for six years, Momenta has also performed and lectured at numerous American Colleges and in England, Singapore and Indonesia.

Soprano Katharine Dain has been praised by The New York Times for her “rich tone,” “deep emotion,” and “lovely, passionate” performances. Her opera credits include Fiordiligi (Così fan tutte), the title role of Cavalli’s La Calisto, and various premieres of contemporary operas. She also has extensive experience in oratorio and concert music from all periods. She has performed with the Alexandria Symphony, Ravinia Festival (where she was a 2009 Steans Fellow), Amherst Early Music Festival, Collegiate Chorale, Mark Morris Dance Group, New York City Ballet, Joy in Singing, and the New York Festival of Song in venues including Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. She has co-founded two critically acclaimed chamber groups in New York: Callisto Ascending, a period-instrument ensemble, and Lunatics at Large, a contemporary chamber group lauded as “young, energetic and highly polished” by senior Times critic Allan Kozinn. She holds degrees from Harvard University, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and Mannes College of Music.

The Momenta Quartet’s 2011 New York season is made possible through the generous support of the Aaron Copland Fund for Music and with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, celebrating 50 years of building strong, creative communities in New York State’s 62 counties.