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Jeremy Gill Concerto BMOP Release

January 19, 2018, 10:00 pm

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Photo by Arielle Doneson

Composer Jeremy Gill recently had the opportunity of a lifetime when the Boston Modern Orchestra Project agreed to record not one, not two, but three of his concertos.  We’ll talk with Jeremy and clarinet soloist Chris Grymes about this fantastic new release and play as much of it as we can.

Playlist

Conduit; Mvmt I: Touch; Mvmt II: Pulse, by Robert Honstein
eighth blackbird

Duos; Mvmts 21-24, by Jörg Widmann   
Nick Photinos, cello; Michiko Theurer, violin

Cold Mountain: “Listen,” by Jennifer Higdon   
Justine Aronson, soprano; Jocelyn Zelasko, soprano; Robert Fleitz, piano

Only the Words Themselves Mean What They Say, by Kate Soper  
Justine Aronson, soprano; Erika Boysen, flutes

Electric Aroma, by Viet Cuong
Michael Maccaferri, clarinet; Dylan Ward, saxophone; Phoebe Wu, piano; Matt Keown, percussion

Dogs, by Invoke     
Invoke: Zachariah Matteson, violin; Nick Montopoli, violin; Karl Mitze, viola; Geoff Manyin, cello

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Eighth Blackbird Creative Lab

January 12, 2018, 10:00 pm

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Erika Boysen, Flutes; Photo by Kirby Russell © 2017

Three-time Grammy winning super group Eighth Blackbird unveils their newest creative project: “to inspire the next generation of performers and composers to share in the ensemble’s vision: to champion a distinctive, dynamic and engaging performance aesthetic.”  We’ll talk to the birds and this year’s participants and bring you into the creative process as the lab comes to life.

Playlist

Conduit; Mvmt I: Touch; Mvmt II: Pulse, by Robert Honstein
eighth blackbird

Duos: Mvmts 21-24, by Jörg Widmann 
Nick Photinos, cello; Michiko Theurer, violin

Cold Mountain: “Listen,” by Jennifer Higdon
Justine Aronson, soprano; Jocelyn Zelasko, soprano; Robert Fleitz, piano

Only the Words Themselves Mean What They Say, by Kate Soper 
Justine Aronson, soprano; Erika Boysen, flutes

Electric Aroma, by Viet Cuong  
Michael Maccaferri, clarinet; Dylan Ward, saxophone; Phoebe Wu, piano; Matt Keown, percussion

Dogs, by Invoke
Invoke: Zachariah Matteson, violin; Nick Montopoli, violin; Karl Mitze, viola; Geoff Manyin, cello

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World Music Days: Vancouver Part II

January 5, 2018, 10:00 pm

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World Music Days in Vancouver took place in November 2017

This is the second program featuring the International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM) which holds arguably the world’s most important contemporary music festival in a different city each year.  Much like the Olympics, cities bid to be the host and this year it’s in Vancouver.  In this first program of two, we hear from Fredrik Gran, Fredrick Neyrinck, and violinist, Müge Buyukcelen.

Playlist

Klee Wyck Woman, by Jennifer Butler
Emily Carr Quartet; Marion Newman, mezzo soprano

Tonight My Shadow Sinks Into the Wall, by Vytautas Germanavicius
Müge Buyukcelen, violin

Vox Terminus, by Frederik Gran
NOW  Society Ensemble; JP Carter, trumpet; Joshua Zubot, violin; Lisa Cay Miller, piano; James Meger, bass; Skye Brooks, drums

Gestalt X, by Frederick Neyrinck
Bozzini Quartet

Freycinet, by Robert J Coe
Emily Carr Quartet

Cadenza lirica, by Sabina Ulubeanu
Müge Buyukcelen, violin

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World Music Days: Vancouver Part 1

December 29, 2017, 10:00 pm

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World Music Days in Vancouver took place in November 2017

The International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM) holds arguably the world’s most important contemporary music festival in a different city each year.  Much like the Olympics, cities bid to be the host and this year it’s in Vancouver.  In this first program of two, we hear from Jordan Nobles, Charlotte Bray, Jocelyn Morlock, and Stefan Prins. 

Playlist

Skywriting, by Jordan Nobles
Redshift Vertical Orchestra & Electric Guitar Orchestra

At the Speed of Stillness, by Charlotte Bray
Aldeburgh World Orchestra; Sir Mark Elder, conductor

Lux Antiqua, by Jordan Nobles
The Esoterics; Eric Banks, conductor

My Name is Amanda Todd, by Jocelyn Morlock
Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra; Alexander Shelley, conductor

Hände Ohne Orte, by Stefan Prins
Hamburg-based Decoder Ensemble; Carola Schaal, clarinets; Jonathan Shapiro,  percussion; Andrej Koroliov, piano; and Sonja Lena Schmid, cello

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Kontras in Levin Performance Studio!

December 22, 2017, 10:00 pm

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Kontras Quartet; Dmitri Pogorelov, Francois Henkins violins, Ben Weber, viola, and Jean Hatmaker, cello

A WFMT special broadcast of Ensemble-in-Residence Kontras Quartet on Relevant Tones. Kontras Quartet has been blending the line between classical and folk music since 2009. On this program we’ll hear a Folk inspired repertoire from South Africa to Japan back home to the Midwest.   

Playlist

Strum by Jessie Montgomery

String Quartet No. 1 “White Man Sleeps”: Movement I. “First Dance,” by Kevin Volans

Exodus Quartet: I. “A Tale; Generations of Suffering” by Rudy Perrault

Appalachian Polaroids  by Steven Snowden

Japanese Folk Song Suite No. 2: Movement I. Yagibushi  & Movement II. Nambu ushioi ota, by Hajime Komatsu –

Komeng, by Mokale Koapeng

8 Chinese folk songs: No. 5: Horse Herds Mountain Song & No. 8: Leaving Home, by Zhou Long

Shortnin’ Bread, by Florence Price

String Quartet No. 3 “Old Time” by Mark O’Connor

Black Bend, by Dan Visconti

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Composer Spotlight: Zhou Long

November 10, 2017, 10:00 pm

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One of the first composers to graduate from the Beijing Conservatory upon its reopening after the Cultural Revolution and the winner of the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for his opera Madame White Snake, Zhou Long creates thoughtful, spiritually-infused music that has resonated with audiences across the globe.

Playlist

The Five Elements mvt. II Wood, by Zhou Long

The Rhyme of Taigu, by Zhou Long
Singapore Symphony Orchestra; Lan Shui, conductor

Soul, by Zhou Long
Shanghai Quartet; Min Xiao-Fen, pipa

The Five Elements mvt. IV Water, by Zhou Long

The Future of Fire, by Zhou Long
Singapore Symphony Orchestra; Singapore Philharmonic Chamber Choir; Lan Shui, conductor

The Ineffable, by Zhou Long
Laura Park, violin; David Fedele, flute; David Fedele, piccolo; Chris Finckel, cello; William Trigg, percussion; Min Xiao-Fen, pipa

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Foster the Music: Ireland

November 3, 2017, 10:00 pm

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The Contemporary Music Centre in Ireland is one of the world’s foremost models of government support for composers, with dozens of composers receiving financial support, commissions and travel grants. We plunge into the incredible wealth of music created by this program.

Playlist

“He Wishes His Beloved Were Dead” from That the Night Come, by Donnacha Dennehy
Crash Ensemble; Alan Pierson, conductor; Dawn Upshaw, soprano

New Ross Dance Music, by Eric Sweeney
Finghin Collins, piano; Dearbhla Collins, piano; Alexander Bernstein, piano

The Mayfly, by Stephen Gardner
Fidelio Trio

Reflections II, by Jane O’Leary
Concorde Contemporary Music Ensemble; Jane O’Leary, conductor; Harry Sparnaay, bass clarinet

Relocating Elk… By Train, by Karen Power
Carin Levine, bass flute, tape

Little Engines, by Adam Melvin
Mary Dullea, piano

Changing Rates of Change, by Seán Clancy
RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra; Gavin Maloney, conductor

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Eighty Trips Around the Sun

October 27, 2017, 10:00 pm

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Seth speaks with Sarah Cahill about the new box set Eighty Trips Around the Sun, celebrating the music of Terry Riley.

Playlist

In C Too (minute or so), by Elena Ruhr
Sarah Cahill, piano

Cinco de Mayo, by Terry Riley
Regina Myers, piano; Sarah Cahill, piano

Waltz for Christmas, by Terry Riley
Regina Myers, piano; Sarah Cahill, piano

Two Pieces No. 2, by Terry Riley
Sarah Cahill, piano

Poppy Infinite, by Gyan Riley
Sarah Cahill, piano

Circle Songs 3, Danny Clay
Sarah Cahill, piano

A Trilling Piece for Terry, by Pauline Oliveros
Sarah Cahill, piano; Samuel Adams, piano & live electronics

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LIVE: Late Night at National Sawdust

October 20, 2017, 10:00 pm

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Interior of National Sawdust, New York. Designed by Bureau V Photography by Foto + Warner

In this final live broadcast from Brooklyn’s hottest new music venue, National Sawdust, we’re featuring chamber and vocal music by the late, great Steven Stucky, a former composer in residence with the New York Philharmonic and modern compositional master.

Playlist

 

Violin Sonata by Steven Stucky
Suliman Tekali, violin; Daniel Anastasio, piano

Horizon by Christopher Stark
Chris Grymes, clarinet; Jeremy Gill, piano

Piano Quintet by Steven Stucky
Daniel Anastasio, piano; James Kim, cello; Mari Lee, violin; Caeli Smith, viola; Suliman Tekali, violin

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Sonata Form Redux

October 13, 2017, 10:00 pm

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David Maslanka died in August 2017

Sonata form is one of the oldest composition structures in classical music but it’s being rediscovered, and in many cases re-purposed, by contemporary composers. What is the lasting appeal? We’ll play music by four composers looking to the past for formal inspiration.

Playlist

Piano Quintet, mvt. I, by Thomas Adès
Thomas Adès, piano; Arditti Quartet: Irvine Arditti, Ashot Sarkissjan, violin; Ralf Ehlers, viola; Lucas Fels, cello

Camille for Sax and Piano, mvt. I, by David Maslanka
Stephen Jordheim, alto saxophone; Christina Dahl, piano

2, by Keeril Makan
Either/Or Ensemble: Jennifer Choi, violin; David Shively, percussion

Piano Quintet, by Thomas Adès
Thomas Adès, piano; Arditti Quartet: Irvine Arditti, Ashot Sarkissjan, violin; Ralf Ehlers, viola; Lucas Fels, cello