Tag: Minimalism

Minimalism Three Generations: Bryce Dessner and Nico Muhly

by Janette Tilley

Three Generations: Bryce Dessner and Nico Muhly

Zankel Hall
Bryce Dessner and Nico Muhly are leading voices of a new generation of young, eclectic, and absolutely fearless composers. NPR described Dessner’s music as “gorgeous and full-hearted,” while The Washington Post called Muhly “a composer who has everything.” Dessner’s and Muhly’s music is performed by an ensemble of young cutting-edge performers who are not averse to taking risks on stage. This final concert of Three Generations, the Steve Reich–curated exploration of new music, presents the bold face of music now and tomorrow.

Performers

  • Pekka Kuusisto, Violin
  • Nadia Sirota, Viola
  • Nicolas Altstaedt, Cello
  • Adam Marks, Piano
  • Nico Muhly, Piano
  • Chris Thompson, Percussion

Program

    • BRYCE DESSNER Tuusula
    • BRYCE DESSNER New Work for Violin and Cello (World Premiere, co-commissioned by Carnegie Hall)
    • BRYCE DESSNER New Work for Violin, Viola, and Cello (World Premiere, co-commissioned by Carnegie Hall)
    • NICO MUHLY No Uncertain Terms (World Premiere, commissioned by Carnegie Hall)

Performance includes a discussion with Steve Reich, Bryce Dessner, and Nico Muhly

 

Minimalism Three Generations: Bang on a Can

by Janette Tilley

Three Generations: David Lang, Julia Wolfe, and Michael Gordon

Zankel Hall
A group of composers associated with the revolutionary Bang on a Can collective are featured in this event that is part of the Steve Reich–curated Three Generations exploration of the changing direction of concert music. Impossible to pigeonhole, David Lang, Julia Wolfe, and Michael Gordon eschew the familiar “isms” of the day by creating music that is deeply moving and always surprising.

Performers

  • Bang on a Can All-Stars
    ·· Ashley Bathgate, Cello
    ·· Robert Black, Bass Guitar
    ·· Vicky Chow, Piano
    ·· David Cossin, Percussion
    ·· Mark Stewart, Electric Guitar
    ·· Ken Thomson, Saxophones
  • Todd Reynolds, Violin
  • Kelli Kathman, Flute
  • Peter Hess, Saxophones
  • David Friend, Keyboard
  • Michael Gordon, Keyboard
  • Nathan Koci, Accordion
  • JACK Quartet
  • Additional artists to be announced

Program

    • DAVID LANG cheating, lying, stealing
    • JULIA WOLFE Lick
    • JULIA WOLFE Early that summer
    • MICHAEL GORDON Yo Shakespeare

Performance includes a discussion with Steve Reich, David Lang, Julia Wolfe, and Michael Gordon

 

Minimalism: John Adams (Shaker Loops) and Terry Riley (In C)

by Janette Tilley

Three Generations: John Adams and Terry Riley

Zankel Hall
Part of the Steve Reich–curated Three Generations exploration of the changing direction of concert music, this evening focuses on the pioneering first generation of composers. In his revolutionary In C, Terry Riley took 53 phrases, or modules, and gave players the freedom to repeat them as often as they like before moving to the next phrase. The resulting work introduced minimalism to the mainstream. John Adams’s Shaker Loops owes much to the minimalist movement, but also uses small repeating melodic fragments, a technique popularized by Steve Reich in his tape music. Adams’s piece refers to the Shaker religious group, recreating their ecstatic ritual dance in music that is wildly exciting, beautifully meditative, and always fascinating.

Performers

  • Ensemble Signal
  • Brad Lubman, Conductor

Program

  • JOHN ADAMS Shaker Loops
  • TERRY RILEY In C (original version)

    • Performance includes a discussion with Steve Reich and John Adams

 

Three Generations: Arvo Pärt, Philip Glass, and Steve Reich

by Janette Tilley

Music of Arvo Pärt, Philip Glass, and Steve Reich is featured in a performance that’s part of Three Generations, a Reich-curated exploration of the changing direction of concert music from the mid-20th century to the present day. Chant-like melodic lines and notes resembling ringing bells are Pärt hallmarks, while Glass’s incandescent String Quartet No. 5 juxtaposes rhythmically propulsive passages with slower, tender ones. Reich’s Pulitzer Prize–winning Different Trains is a riveting work in which strings imitate the sounds of speech samples drawn from recorded interviews and train sounds. This powerful musical documentary speaks to the composer’s childhood and the tragic experience of Jews in 1940s Europe.

This concert is nearly sold out! Please call CarnegieCharge at 212-247-7800.