Saturday, April 18, 2009

In The Loop | Apr 18, 2009

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Our April SUNDAY SALON is tomorrow, April 19, at The Ellington Room at Manhattan Plaza, 400 West 43 Street, second floor, from 2-5pm. GENE MC BRIDE will introduce our special guest, the esteemed composer Raoul Pleskow. Still composing at age 78, he will be speaking about changes in his personal compositional style over time, and will discuss his own life in music and his great wealth of knowledge of new music spanning many years. He will present his latest composition "Dialogue for Three Instruments." 

Also, tomorrow we will hear NATALIYA MEDVEDOVSKAYA's The First Snow for oboe, bassoon, violin, and piano recorded by the Poulenc Trio with Anton Lande, violin

And also: GENE McBRIDE's Movements for Violin and Piano presented as a Sibelius generated file.
 
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RICHARD MCCANDLESS's percussion quartet, Pile Driver, was performed this past Tuesday at the Oberlin Conservatory in Ohio. The performance was by The Oberlin Percussion Group under the direction of Michael Rosen. Regarding Pile Driver, the Washington Post wrote "The concert ended with a piece by McCandless called 'Pile Driver,' which he introduced with the half-boast 'This piece is not subtle,' but the poetry McCandless found in the cacophony made Pile Driver absorbing." 


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Guitarist OREN FADER writes: "I'm playing two amazing pieces this Saturday, April 18th at 8 pm, accompanied by members of the Fireworks Ensemble." The pieces are Joan Tower's Snow Dreams (guitar and flute), and Charles Wuorinen's Sonata for Guitar and Piano. Also on the program: Nataraja, for flute and piano, by Jonathan Harvey; Vox Balanae, for amplified flute, cello and piano, by George Crumb; Time of Desperation, for solo piano by Caleb Burhans. The musicians are Oren Fader, guitar, Elizabeth Janzen, flute, James Johnston, piano, Leigh Stuart, cello. Details: "Members of the Fireworks Ensemble play Tenri" TONIGHT: Saturday, April 18th at 8 pm. Admission by donation at Tenri Cultural Institute, 43A West 13th Street, NY, New York 10011. 

Saturday, April 11, 2009

In The Loop | Apr 11, 2009

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Our April SUNDAY SALON is a week from tomorrow, April 19, at The Ellington Room at Manhattan Plaza, 400 West 43 Street, second floor. We meet from 2-5pm and all are invited and encouraged to attend. Again we will be privileged to have a special guest: the Salon will feature a presentation by the esteemed composer Raoul Pleskow. Still composing at age 78, he will be speaking about changes in his personal compositional style over time, and will discuss his own life in music and his great wealth of knowledge of new music spanning many years. He will present his latest composition "Dialogue for Three Instruments." 

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Baritone RICARDO RIVERA has several performances of note upcoming in April. He will be singing a new piece for Baritone and Orchestra on April 13th at 8:30 with the Arts Symphony Orchestra, with conductor Stilian Kirov. Featuring new works by composition students at Juilliard and other new works including: Soliloquio en las Olas (2009) for Baritone and Orchestra, composed by Reinaldo Moya (b.1984) with a text by Pablo Neruda. Monday, April 13th, 8:30 PM, The Juilliard School, Room 309, 60 Lincoln Center Plaza (at Broadway), third floor. Admission is free, no reservations necessary.

Ricardo will also be featured in "Chromatic Voice Exchange" with conductor Saya Callner. Featuring new works for choir by composition students at Mannes and other works, including: We Are Five Friends, composed by Ronnie Reshef, a dramatic work for five solo singers and percussion on a text by Kafka. He'll also perform a song for baritone, clarinet, and piano, Shlosha Yamim (Three Days), composed by Ronnie Reshef with a text by Lea Goldberg. This event will be held Sunday, April 19th, 7:30 PM, at Mannes College of Music, Goldmark Hall on the third floor. Admission is free, no reservations necessary.

Ricardo will perform in a chamber opera, Borges and the Other #2, composed by Matthew Welch on a text by Jorge Luis Borges. The conductor is Matthew Welch, featuring his eclectic ensemble Blarvuster. Tenor Nick Hallett is also featured in this performance. Friday, April 24th, 8:30 PM at Roulette, 20 Greene Street (between Canal and Grand). 
Admission: $15 / Harvestworks & DTW members, 
Students, Under 30 & Seniors: $10; 
Roulette members / Location One members: FREE.
Reservations/Tickets: 212.219.8242 

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RICHARD BROOKS thought the NYCC readership would be interested to know about the world premiere of a new play about the life and music of Virgil Thomson. It is called Oh Virgil! A Theatrical Portrait written by Wallace Norman in collaboration with Larry Alan Smith. A two-week limited engagement will run May 1 thru May 10.  The play is produced by Woodstock Fringe in association with Judson Arts. You can learn more about this production at www.woodstockfringe.org. Tickets ($18, group rates available) can be ordered at that website or by calling (845) 810-0123. The venue is Judson Memorial Church, 55 Washington Square South (corner of West 4th Street and Thompson Street). Performances are Friday and Saturday at 8pm, and Sunday at 3pm.