Other Minds Presents
Henry Cowell: The Whole World of Music
Two distinct concerts of music by Henry Cowell
Complete repertoire for the two concerts of Henry Cowell: The Whole World of Music is now available on the Other Minds website here. Concert highlights include:
** The Abel-Steinberg-Winant Trio performing Set of Five (Friday the 13th)
** The vocalise work Toccanta for quartet, originally composed for the Bacons and the Luenings (Thursday the 12th)
** The rarely heard Adagio from Ensemble, for solo cello and bullroarer (Thursday the 12th)
** The complete organ works performed by Sandra Soderlund on the Presidio Chapel's original pipe organ (Friday the 13th)
Another highlight of the Cowell celebration will be Friday's pre-concert panel discussion, featuring (pictured here, clockwise from top right):
** Charles Amirkhanian of Other Minds
** Joel Sachs, Cowell's biographer, conductor of Continuum and the New Juilliard Ensemble
** John Duffy, composer and founder of Meet the Composer
** Sarah Cahill, pianist and tireless proponent of Cowell's works
** Anahid Ajemian, violinist who premiered many works by Cowell, Cage, Hovhaness and others with sister Maro
** George Avakian, legendary record producer and 2009 GRAMMY lifetime achievement award recipient
Thursday, November 12
8pm Concert
Valley Presbyterian Church
945 Portola Road, Portola Valley
Friday, November 13
7pm Panel Discussion, 8pm Concert
Presidio Chapel, Building 130, Fisher Loop, San Francisco
Reception to follow
Tickets
November 12: $20 general, $15 students/seniors
November 13: $25 general, $20 students/seniors
Two-concert Pass: $40 / $30 students & seniors
>>Buy your tickets now!
2. OM 15 Artist Preview: Tom Johnson
September 7, 1972:
"I've heard people refer to the 'New York Hypnotic School' several times now, and have been trying to figure out if it is a good term or not... in listening to the music of these composers, one soon discovers that static does not necessarily mean boring, the way we always thought it did. Many interesting things can happen all on one plane. A pitch changes slightly, a rhythm is altered, something fades in or out. They are not big changes, but they are changes, and there are more than enough of them to sustain one's interest, provided that he can tune in on this minimal level."
Although Tom Johnson's article for The Village Voice on the "Hypnotic School" dealt specifically with the music of La Monte Young, Steve Reich, Terry Riley, and Philip Glass, it can today also serve as an apt description for many of Johnson's own works. He is well known for working with simple forms, limited scales, and generally reduced materials.
However, Johnson often makes use of formulas, permutations, and predictable sequences, creating his own brand of process music. He also frequently injects a wry sense of humor in his work, giving a knowing nod to the artificiality and, at times, absurdity, of fulfilling those processes.
After 15 years in New York, Johnson moved to Paris, in 1983. Don't miss his rare visit to the United States for the 15th Other Minds Music Festival, with concerts March 4, 5, and 6, 2010.
>>Read The Voice of New Music, a collection of Johnson's articles, online
>>Read more about Tom and listen to his music
>>Purchase tickets for OM 15
3. Now available for free listening at radiOM.org
Video of the 14th Other MInds Festival of New Music (2009)Thursday, March 5, 2009: Panel Discussion 1 Concert 1
Friday, March 6, 2009: Panel Discussion 2 Concert 2
Saturday, March 7, 2009: Panel Discussion 3 Concert 3
In case you missed the last Festival, or want to re-live your favorite moments, complete video footage is now available on radiOM.org. Check out all three panel discussions, and performances of works by featured composers Michael Harrison, Dobromila Jaskot, Ben Johnston, Catherine Lamb, Chico Mello, John Schneider, Linda Catlin Smith, and Chinary Ung. Hear again the world premiere of Ben Johnston's The Tavern, John Schneider's performances of the music of Harry Partch, or the Amsterdam Cello Octet performing Mauricio Kagel's Motetten or the American premiere of Arvo Part's O-Antiphonen. The complete printed program is also available online here.
A Living Man by Sten Hanson (1972)
Recorded in stereo quadraphonic, A Living Man is a work combining electronic sounds and recorded voice by the Swedish composer and sound poet, Sten Hanson (b. 1936). The composition begins with a self described electronic music symphony but soon expands so as to include a male voice listing a litany of qualities and activities that a living man enjoys. Composed in 1972 the work is typical of the type of text-sound composition that was in vogue in Northern European avant-garde circles during the late 20th century.
Early American Music (1972)
From a recording first broadcast on November 30, 1972, Charles Amirkhanian presents a program of early American music, much of which was taken from old, rare 78 rpm recordings. The program begins with Henry Hadley's Piano Quintet, Op. 50 followed by six versions of Thurlow Lieurance's By the Waters of Minnetonka: An Indian Love Song, followed by several selections of music by John Knowles Paine. While there is a distinctive Native American melody at the heart of Lieurance's song, most of the music heard here is by American composers still steeped in the music of Western Europe and lacking that uniquely American flair that would later be apparent in the music of Charles Ives, and other later American composers.
And, with congratulations to Shulamit Ran on the occasion of her 60th birthday (today, October 21, 2009):
Speaking of Music: Shulamit Ran, 1983
Shulamit Ran is an Israeli-American composer and long time member of the faculty at the University of Chicago. Her music's expansive and dramatic nature make her a very interesting composer. In this program, recorded on December 1, 1983, as part of the San Francisco Exploratorium's Speaking of Music series, Ran presents recordings of her Apprehensions, a setting for a text by Sylvia Plath, and Fanfare for two multi-tracked sopranos. In addition clarinetist Laurel Hall and cellist Daniel Reiter perform a new work, Private Game. Before each piece Ran provides an explanation of her intent and then after hearing the music she goes into technical detail about how she composed the pieces. The host of this live event was Charles Amirkhanian, and it was produced for radio by Russ Jennings. (from KPFA Folio)
4. Tenth Anniversary of poetry website Lyrikline
"Welcome to your personal poetry reading..."So reads the poetry website lyrikline, which this month celebrates its 10th anniversary. Initiated by the German organization literaturWERKstatt berlin, which for years has been staging an annual Summer Night's Poetry Festival, the website presents collections of poetry read by the authors themselves.
Visitors may hear authors reading their poetry in their native language: the site has grown to include authors in 50 languages, including Basque, Scottish Gaelic, Urdu, Shona, and Wayuunaiki. Alongside most selections, listeners can read the poetry in its original language as well as English and German translations.
With 5400 poems by 590 poets, lyrikline is an online resource not to be missed. Celebrate this site's tenth anniversary with readings by W. B. Yeats, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, or Charles Amirkhanian!
5. Eventwire: Don't Shoot the Pianist!
Don't Shoot the Pianist!Music by Fred Frith, Morton Feldman, Meredith Monk, Steve Reich, Jose Maceda, and W. A. Mozart
Friday, October 30, 8pm
Littlefield Concert Hall, Mills College, Oakland
The fourth concert of the Mills Music Now series features music for multiple pianos, including Impur, for twenty plus pianos, by Fred Frith (OM 11), Steve Reich's Piano Phase (1967), Morton Feldman's Piece for Four Pianos (1957), and three works by Meredith Monk (OM 1). A battery of pianists will be conducted by Steed Cowart in this singular celebration, presented by The Mills College Music Department and the Center for Contemporary Music.
6. Eventwire: (Untitled) film opens November 6
(Untitled)
Directed by Jonathan Parker
Written by Jonathan Parker and Catherine di Napoli
Opens November 6
Landmark Embarcadero, San Francisco
Shattuck Cinemas, Berkeley
A fashionable contemporary art gallerist in Chelsea, New York falls for a brooding new music composer in this comic take on the state of contemporary art, with music by David Lang (OM 6). (Untitled) opens this Friday in Los Angeles and New York, and throughout the San Francisco Bay Area on November 6.
In (Untitled), Adam Goldberg (2 Days in Paris) plays the composer, whose work calls for paper crumpling, glass breaking and bucket kicking. Marley Shelton (Grindhouse) plays the gorgeous Chelsea gallerist, whose latest show features an artist, played by Vinnie Jones (Snatch), who employs taxidermy and household objects. Further complicating the affair is the composer's brother, played by Eion Bailey (Band of Brothers), whose highly commercial art work ��� the financial backbone of the gallery ��� is sold to corporate clients discreetly out of the gallery's back room.
Bay Area-based writer, composer and director Jonathan Parker was a musician in his youth, and is also a collector of the San Francisco school of abstract expressionism, using many of his experiences in both worlds as a basis for (Untitled). Check out a clip on YouTube.
7. Eventwire: Terry Riley's Pipe Dreams
Terry Riley: Pipe DreamsFriday, November 6, 9pm
Gallery B, Berkeley Art Museum & Pacific Film Archive
Terry Riley (OM 2) returns to the Berkeley Art Museum after some thirty-five years to start the Friday night series. The UC Berkeley alumnus, best known for kicking off the minimalist music revolution with his composition In C, has studied Indian classical music with Pandit Pran Nath, explored jazz with Chet Baker, and reinvigorated the string quartet ensemble via his collaborations with the Kronos Quartet. Along the way, his enormously influential music has inspired three generations of composers across the world, and provided the creative spark for rock bands such as Can and the Velvet Underground.
At BAM/PFA, Riley will treat audiences to a rare solo performance at the piano. A limited number of chairs will be available, so bring a pillow and make yourself comfortable on the gallery floor.
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