New York

Bang on a Can, Chamber Music, Concerts, Contemporary Classical, Downtown, Festivals, New York

Marathon Meets Twitterthon

Yes, it’s that time of year again… The Bang On A Can Marathon is about to take flight once more, this Sunday, May 31 from noon to midnight at the World Financial Center Winter Garden (220 Vesey Street, NYC).  And yes, it’s all FREE.

Knowing we can’t all be every place at once, a band of nine volunteers will all be tweeting their reactions and observations in real time! — @anastasiat, @talkmusic, @sethcolterwalls, @espyem, @ogiovetti , @memilybk, @cryfok, @dotdotdottweet and @elimaniscalco.  To simplify things, you can follow all in one centralized spot (even if you’re not an active twitterer) by checking this link (or searching the tag “bangonacan”). Should be oodles of fun, especially for us folk out in the hinterland.

Acting as kick-off for the larger, citywide River to River Festival, the BOACM packs so much great music and so many great performers that even 12 hours can end up flying by (maybe in a haze, but what a glorious haze!). Why not just quote a bit from their own press release?…

The Marathon features two world premieres commissioned especially for the occasion – one from Oscar winning-pianist, composer, producer and actor Ryuichi Sakamoto and the other from innovative guitarist Bill Frisell. Both works will be performed at the Marathon by the Bang on a Can All-Stars with Sakamoto and Frisell as guest soloists. Sakamoto, who began his career with the synthpop trio Yellow Magic Orchestra, has gone on to release numerous albums with artists as diverse as David Byrne, Iggy Pop, Brian Wilson, Youssou N’Dour, and DJ Spooky, and score films including The Last Emperor, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, The Little Buddha, Wild Palms, Snake Eyes, and Femme Fatale. Bill Frisell has been recognized as one of the world’s leading guitarists since the late 1980s, and his eclectic music touches on jazz, progressive folk, classical music, country music, noise and more. The Marathon will also feature post-rock band Tortoise, bringing their signature merging of dub, dance, jazz, techno, rock, and classical minimalism to the Winter Garden. Tortoise will perform selections from their upcoming album, Beacons of Ancestorship (Thrill Jockey, June 2009), their sixth full-length album and first release of new material in five years.  (more…)

by Steve Layton
Chamber Music, Concerts, Contemporary Classical, Downtown, New York

Go Toward the Light

…That would be the light emanating from New York’s P.S. 122 this Friday and Saturday night, where the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), choreographer Yvan Greenberg and stage director Emma Griffin will be partnering with our old (well, young actually) friend Corey Dargel in his latest set of sweetbittersweet songs, Thirteen Near-Death Experiences. Fourty-five minutes ostensibly about hypochondria and, well, death; just like Tristan they’re always at the same time really about love and, well, life.

You could and should have been following the birth of the work through Corey’s special blog devoted to just that; we’ll forgive you this time (and every time, damn it!… though we know you’ll just break our heart again), if you’ll just wander over their way, plunk down your money, and prepare to weep, squirm, sigh and smile. If that weren’t enough, ICE is rounding out the program with three premieres by other young and notable composers; Stephen Lehman, Nathan Davis and Mario Diaz de León. The show’s at 8pm; P.S. 122 is at 150 First Ave. at E. 9th St., NYC; Phone: 212-477-5829.

by Steve Layton
Big Band, CDs, Concerts, Downtown, New Amsterdam, New York

Not-So-Secret Society

You can only keep a secret society secret so long, and with our old S21 pal Darcy James Argue‘s new CD release that time has come.  Infernal Machines is out now on New Amsterdam Records, and to celebrate the kick-off DJA’s Secret Society will be performing the music from the CD Friday at Galapagos Arts Space (16 Main St. @ Water St., Brooklyn / Door – 9pm, Show – 10pm, $10).

Troy Collins advance-reviewed it at AllAboutJazz.com:

Drawing inspiration from classic stalwarts like the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra as well as pioneering post-rock bands like Explosions In The Sky and Tortoise, Argue tastefully incorporates electric guitars, Fender Rhodes and electric bass into traditional big band instrumentation, extending the innovations of such visionaries as Don Ellis, Gil Evans and George Russell.
Straddling the pastoral opulence of Maria Schneider’s Orchestra and the visceral brio of Adam Lane’s Full Throttle Orchestra and Satoko Fujii’s various big bands, Argue has succeeded at creating a magnificent chimera. His harmonically rich blend of contrapuntal horn voicings, atmospheric electronic textures and post-minimalist rhythms surpass the early fusion experiments of his predecessors, yielding a fully integrated sound world as current as it is timeless.
A masterful tunesmith, his dramatic sense of pacing borders on the cinematic, and his instinct for arranging multiple voices into colorful pitch sets exudes kaleidoscopic detail worthy of Ellington.

Drawing inspiration from classic stalwarts like the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra as well as pioneering post-rock bands like Explosions In The Sky and Tortoise, Argue tastefully incorporates electric guitars, Fender Rhodes and electric bass into traditional big band instrumentation, extending the innovations of such visionaries as Don Ellis, Gil Evans and George Russell [….] Straddling the pastoral opulence of Maria Schneider’s Orchestra and the visceral brio of Adam Lane’s Full Throttle Orchestra and Satoko Fujii’s various big bands, Argue has succeeded at creating a magnificent chimera. His harmonically rich blend of contrapuntal horn voicings, atmospheric electronic textures and post-minimalist rhythms surpass the early fusion experiments of his predecessors, yielding a fully integrated sound world as current as it is timeless.

If you want to get primed and pumped beforehand, New Amsterdam is letting you stream the whole CD online. The musical cast is stellar, the pieces are grand, the recording immaculate. Way to go Darcy; here’s to many more words like those above, now and in all the Machines to come.

by Steve Layton
Concerts, Contemporary Classical, Music Events, New Amsterdam, New York

All Your Fridays Are Belong To Us!

Almost everyone in and around the New Amsterdam Records scene has been written up by us. Many are good and long-time visitors, contributors and pals of S21. But screw that; the real reason we follow this crew is that they’re an awesome bunch of composers and performers, with a fresh, open and energetic approach to this whole art-music thingy-ma-jingy. They’re proving it again this May, with… Aww, just let the poster tell you:

Makes a nice prelude to the BOAC “oldsters” Marathon, dontcha think?

by Steve Layton
Composers, Concerts, Contemporary Classical, File Under?, Music Events, New York

2+2=5: Christopher O’Riley at Miller Theatre

Christopher O’Riley performs his final recital in the 2+2=5 Series tomorrow night at Miller Theatre. Each of the programs has featured a pairing of a classical composer and O’Riley’s transcriptions of songs by a pop musician.  Thus far, the recitals have featured Shostakovich / Radiohead & Debussy / Nick Drake. Tomorrow’s program pairs Schumann and Elliott Smith.

Yesterday, O’Riley released a digital single on iTunes of his interpretation of Kurt Cobain’s Heart Shaped Box. It’s featured on the iTunes’ “Rock” page! On May 5th the digital single will be widely released to other music download sites. A Heart Shaped Box ring tone can be created at iTunes and will be available through major cellular carriers by May 5th.

O’Riley played HSB as the encore for his Debussy/Nick Drake recital at Miller. He really wails the stuffing out of it!

by Christian Carey
Chamber Music, Classical Music, Concerts, Contemporary Classical, Experimental Music, File Under?, New York, Uncategorized

The 2009 Ditmas Park Concert Series

The Ditmas Park Concert Series is up and running for its second season. Curated by Jody Redhage, there will be five concerts in the series.

Friday, May 1 / 9:00 pm Erica von Kleist Trio, 10:30 pm John Ellis Trio / Sycamore Bar & Flower Shop, 1118 Cortelyou Rd. at Westminster Rd., Brooklyn, NY (Q to Cortelyou Rd) $10

Sunday, May 10 / 4:00 pm Janus / Temple Beth Emeth, 83 Marlborough Rd. at Church Ave., Brooklyn, NY (B/Q to Church Ave) $10

Saturday, May 23 / 9:00 pm Dan Pratt Organ Quartet / Sycamore Bar & Flower Shop, 1118 Cortelyou Rd. at Westminster Rd., Brooklyn, NY (Q to Cortelyou) $10

Saturday, May 30 / 3:00 Botanica String Quartet / PS 217 Auditorium, 1100 Newkirk Ave. at Coney Island Ave., Brooklyn, NY (B/Q to Newkirk Ave.) Free Family Concert

Friday, June 12 / 8:00 pm Gabriel Kahane and Friends / PS 139 Auditorium, 330 Rugby Rd. at Cortelyou Rd., Brooklyn, NY (Q to Cortelyou Rd.) $10

Sponsored by the Brooklyn Arts Council and numerous local businesses, the Ditmas Park Concert Series connects the world class musicians living in the Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn with the students and residents of the community. Featuring band leaders who live walking distance from the venues, the DPCS strengthens the community through live creative performance.

by Christian Carey
Chamber Music, Concerts, Contemporary Classical, New York, Performers

The S.E.M. All-Stars

The Orchestra of the S.E.M. Ensemble, founded and directed by Petr Kotik, joins forces with the acclaimed FLUX Quartet and the international chamber orchestra Ostravská banda for an evening of adventurous music: Wednesday, May 06, 2009 8:00 PM, Alice Tully Hall, Starr Theater. Tickets are a steal, only $15 for a real wealth of music.

Highlights include three new pieces by self-taught composers: the premiere of Christian Wolff’s Trio for Robert Ashley (2009), performed by members of the Flux Quartet; the American premiere of Sicilian-born composer Salvatore Sciarrino’s Vento D’ombra (2005), performed by The Orchestra of the S.E.M. Ensemble; and the premiere of Petr Kotik’s String Quartet No. 1, Erinnerungen an Jan (2007–09), performed by the Flux Quartet. The program also features renowned Belgian pianist Daan Vandewalle in Elliott Carter’s Dialogues for Piano and Orchestra (2003), and award-winning Czech violinist Hana Kotková in György Ligeti’s Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (1990–92) — both making their debuts at Alice Tully Hall. Petr Kotik conducts The Orchestra of the S.E.M. Ensemble as well as Ostravská banda.

Kotik writes: “To me, Ligeti’s Concerto for Violin and Orchestra always sounded strange, as if something were out of place. When I was asked by the Prague Spring festival to conduct the piece last May, I worked to solve the puzzle, but to no avail. Then moments before the start of our first rehearsal with Hana Kotková and the Ostravská banda, I suddenly got an idea. I walked up to Hana and said, ‘You’ve got to play the piece like a gypsy would. That’s how it should sound, I think.’ She looked at me and immediately understood what I meant. Hana grew up in a family that made folk music for generations. She has participated in performances since the age of four, often alongside fiddlers and cimbalom virtuosos, who were often Romani. She comes from the Silesian part of Moravia, right next to the Carpathian region from which most of Ligeti’s melodies come. No one can understand this music better than Hana. It was a thrill to conduct Ligeti Concerto with her as the soloist and I am delighted that she was able to accept this appearance at Alice Tully Hall.

Since the premiere of John Cage’s complete Atlas Eclipticalis by then newly formed The Orchestra of the S.E.M. Ensemble (86 musicians) at Carnegie Hall in 1992, S.E.M. has made a significant contribution to new music here in the U.S. and in Europe. And with Ostravská banda, founded at Ostrava Days 2005, a group which combines musicians from both sides of the Atlantic was a natural thing (Ostrava Days is a new music institute and festival taking place every other year at Ostrava in the Czech Republic). Ostravská banda consists of young musicians from the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, Hungary, Holland and the United States, who are focused on the performance of new music. It is not necessary to introduce the New York-based FLUX Quartet. At Alice Tully, they will be performing the pieces by Wolff and Kotik. In January, when I asked Christian for a piece for this concert, he decided to compose Trio for Robert Ashley as there was my new string quartet on the program. He had recently attended Robert Ashley’s opera Dust and was very moved by the work. The title reflects his admiration for Ashley’s music, its rhythms and structural movements.”

— If you can’t make it, S21’s own Christian Carey will be there and will be filing a report post-concert.

by Steve Layton
Chamber Music, Concerts, Downtown, Experimental Music, Improv, jazz, Music Events, New York, Performers

Interpretations Season #20: Artist Blog #9 — John Lindberg of S3NY

We’ve reached the final concert of Interpretations’ twentieth season of provocative programming in New York City! Founded and curated by baritone Thomas Buckner in 1989, Interpretations focuses on the relationship between contemporary composers from both jazz and classical backgrounds and their interpreters, whether the composers themselves or performers who specialize in new music. To celebrate, Jerry Bowles has invited the artists involved in this season’s concerts to blog about their Interpretations experiences. Our last concert is also an anniversary celebration: The String Trio of New York has been going strong for 31 years. Guitarist James Emery and bassist John Lindberg have invited some of the most innovative jazz violinists to work with them: Billy Bang, Regina Carter, Diane Monroe, and Charles Burnham. Since 2001, violinist Rob Thomas has more than ably filled those shoes. While the trio has had many works written for them, and does perform the “classics” of jazz, this concert will feature the music of Emery and Lindberg. John Lindberg explains in his own words, below. We hope to see you at Roulette this Thursday, 23 April and stay tuned for next season.

This particular concert of the String Trio of New York, now 31 years running, is a unique opportunity to present a retrospective of works that have in some ways defined the development of the group, and highlights its diverse repertoire. My three pieces on the program — The Anticipator (1987), Nature,Time, Patience (2001), Journey Platz (2007) represent different side of my mucical personality as a composer, and extremely varied approaches to the collective utilization of the improvising and interprational talents of the trio members, in effect being a voyage through the time/space continnum of the s3ny, while offering up renditions that lie solidly “in the moment” that they are being performed.

Interpretations has been, in my view, the most vital and compelling series for creative music in New York city for some two decades, due to its great breadth of music it presents, and remaining one of he very few ongoing series that offer composers free reign to present their music as they wish it to be presented.

It is with great pleasure I have another opportunity, with this landmark concert for the trio, to perform as part of the Interpretations series.

The String Trio of New York performs at Roulette on Thursday 23 April at 8pm.

For more information:

The String Trio of New York

Interpretations

Roulette

by John Lindberg
Bang on a Can, Composers, Contemporary Classical, Downtown, Music Events, New York, Online

Want some free tracks & tix? The hunt is on!

Apropos this Wednesday’s Michael Gordon Trance performance mentioned just a few posts previously:  Besides the pre-concert talk and videotaping, we’ve got a bit more fun for you all…

Along with the good folk at Bang On A Can and Cantaloupe Records, Michael Gordon himself had the idea of offering the tracks to Cantaloupe’s Trance CD, performed by Icebreaker, as free downloads for you all. The only catch: Each of the seven tracks are hosted at a different blog, and it’s up to you to follow the clues to find all seven.

Besides the music itself, there’s a further reward for the quick: the first three people to correctly identify all seven blogs in an e-mail to promotion@firstchairpromo.com will receive a free pair of tickets to the April 22nd concert at Le Poisson Rouge!

We get to lead off the hunt with the simplest clue of all: a link directly to the first track. And to get to the next blog & track you only have to decipher this:

The most famous bridge in New York City carries the name of this borough, where a person who avoids eating any animal product like the plague blogs about all events musical, metal, comedy — or whatever’s happened to grace the fair city this or that week.

Those wishing to experience the full sonic glory of the physical Trance CD can purchase it here. Good luck!

by Steve Layton
Chamber Music, Composers, Contemporary Classical, Experimental Music, Interviews, Music Instruments, New York, Percussion, Performers, Podcasts

My Ears Are Open. This week on the podcast: Alex Lipowski

It’s hard to imagine a percussionist that you would want to perform your music more than Alex Lipowski. Alex has a passion for the new, the challenging and the unusual and I find him to be one of the most inspirational musicians I’ve ever met. He spent much of our time together explaining how important it is to take risks and to find new and innovative sounds — good advice. You can see Alex and the Talea Ensemble on April 28 at the Players Theatre, 115 Macdougal Street, NYC.

Looking ahead, there will be three episodes in May and I’ll be devoting the month to violists. Check back on May 3 and see what Beth Weisser of the iO Quartet has to say.

Not sure where to find the podcast?

– Subscribe in iTunes here

– Subscribe with your RSS reader here

– Find it on InstantEncore here

P.S., If you were not able to make it to the bake sale then you missed out on a very special event. Even if you don’t care for all the music it’s hard to deny the sense of community from having so many different groups all in the same room – we are all in this together! Tip of the hat to Newspeak and Ensemble de Sade for making it happen.

by James Holt