Our regular listen to and look at living, breathing composers and performers that you may not know yet, but I know you should… And can, right here and now, with so much good listening online: Virgil Moorefield (b. 1956 — US) With not only an M.F.A. and Ph.D. in composition from Princeton, but a B.A. and an M.A. in Comparative Literature from Columbia (with a bit of Juilliard thrown in), you might expect some “high-concept” mixing with the music in Virgil Moorefield’s work, and so there is. But Virgil has a powerful weapon for keeping that ivory tower from becoming
Read moreWhen he went to work for the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center a few years ago, Ronen Givony knew very little about classical music. Not himself a musician, but a passionate music fan, his tastes inclined to Indie-rock. He listened to Radiohead, David Byrne, Björk, and other, more obscure eclectics. At CMS he discovered classical music and was quickly smitten by old fogies like Bach, Mendelssohn, and Ligeti. Seeing his fellow Indie fans as a natural audience for classical music, he proposed a series of joint rock/classical concerts at Lincoln Center. He now works at Nonesuch. For a series
Read moreOn September 15, 2001 Kalvos & Damian put out a call for pieces composed in reflection of the September 11th tragedies in New York and Washington and Pennsylvania, to be broadcast on the late, lamented radio program. Their list is here. There have been lots of pieces since–Adams’ On the Transmigration of Souls, Carl Schroeder’s Christine’s Lullaby, Michael Gordon’s The Sad Park. Who can name some others?
Read moreSo that’s what’s wrong! (nudge-nudge, wink-wink…): Pitchfork Gives Music 6.8 Music, a mode of creative expression consisting of sound and silence expressed through time, was given a 6.8 out of 10 rating in an review published Monday on Pitchfork Media, a well-known music-criticism website. According to the review, authored by Pitchfork editor in chief Ryan Schreiber, the popular medium that predates the written word shows promise but nonetheless “leaves the listener wanting more.” “Music’s first offering, an eclectic, disparate, but mostly functional compendium of influences from 5000 B.C. to present day, hints that this trend’s time may not only have
Read moreFabulous review of Corey Dargel’s “darkly enchanting” theater piece about voluntary amputation, Removable Parts, in today’s New York Times. A few years from now when Corey is permanently ensconsed in the old Bobby Short room at the Carlyle, we’ll all say we knew him when. Matthew Cmeil has a new website. Steve Layton has a hot new piece for your dining and dancing pleasure: Spin It (2002; 2007 performance) Alesis QSR & my FreeSound posse (sandyrb, oniwe) Minimalist multi sax and keyboard barrage, to be played as loudly as you or your neighbors can stand… The technique is all Rzewski &
Read moreOkay, he stayed too long at the fair. The idea of a 60-year-old, 400-pound man playing a starving artist failed to suspend disbelief. The three tenors crap was execrable. He probably inspired Andrea Bocelli. But, once upon a time, there was this voice: [youtube]_CC9U43BFio[/youtube] Alex Ross, Steve Smith, Marcus Maroney, Charles T. Downey, Tim Mangan, Marc Geelhoed, Opera Chic
Read moreI’m delighted to announce that the fabulous Philadelphia based chamber ensemble Relâche will be premiering a new piece of mine during thier 07-08 concert season. The piece is called “Waiting in the Tall Grass,” and it features totalistic 6 against 5 against 4 rhythms, aperiodic tiling, some rock-out drum kit work, and a face only a mother could love. It’ll be played on November 30th at a location to be determined and on December 1st at the International House in Philly, and will share the billing with new pieces by Duncan Nielson and others. But wait, there’s more! The rest of
Read moreHad a great time this morning on Marvin Rosen’s Classical Discoveries radio show in Princeton and on the worldwide Internets. I didn’t get a chance to play as much of the Sequenza21 concert from last year as I would have liked because Frank (J. Oteri) and Marvin rudely insisted on talking and picking some stuff they wanted to play, too. I did manage to sneak in Mary Jane Leach’s haunting oboe piece and Jeff Harrington’s three preludes which had the joint jumping. And, of course, Frank’s very brief guitar piece with the unpronouceable Brazilian name which tied the whole thing together. I left
Read moreTomorrow would have been John Cage’s 95th birthday and to mark the occasion, Avant Media Performance is staging two multimedia realizations of works by Cage at the The Kitchen, 512 West 19th St. beginning at 8. Four6 (for any way of producing sounds) will be performed in an electro-acoustic realization featuring Patrick Davison, video; Randy Gibson, electronics and percussion; Mike Rugnetta, guitar; and Megan Schubert, voice. The second half of the concert promises to be a real hootenanny with Winter Music, Atlas Eclipticalis, and Song Books realized for singers, actors, videos, and lighting being performed simultaneously. Randy Gibson’s “One Wall – for
Read moreOur regular listen to and look at living, breathing composers and performers that you may not know yet, but I know you should… And can, right here and now, with so much good listening online: Fuhong SHI (b. 1976 — China / Canada) Official blurb: “A native of Shenyang, Fuhong learned to play the piano at the age of eight, and began to study composition at fourteen. She graduated from the music school affiliated with the Shenyang Conservatory of Music in 1995, where she received the highest entrance exam score on the National Examinations for admission to the Central Conservatory
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