Pernambuco! At Curious Theatre
Thursday, May 19, 2011, 7:00 pmCurious Theatre
1080 Acoma Street, Denver, CO 80204
FREE
LISTEN: From Mark Fish Pictures of Miro, mvt. 10, The Red Sun Gnaws at the Spider
Paul Nagem, Flute; Paul Primus, Violin; Barbara Hamilton, Viola; Judith McIntyre, Cello
Recorded November 2009
Peruvian-American composer Gabriela Lena Frank, winner of a Latin Grammy award, has written a new piece Rapsodia Andina (Andean Rhapsody)for flute, viola, cello, and harp for the Colorado Chamber Players! This exciting co-commission, commissioned by the CCP along with 10 other chamber groups around the USA, will receive its Denver premiere at our own Curious Theatre. As part of the consortium commission, the work will also be performed by the Mallarme Chamber Players, Raleigh, North Carolina; Azure Ensemble, New York, NY; Pacific Serenades, Los Angeles, CA; Fulcrumpoint New Music Project, Chicago, IL; Cornish College of the Arts, Seattle, WA; Mondadnock Music Festival, Petersburgh, NH.
She writes of the work:
"Rapsodia Andina (Andean Rhapsody) is inspired by the glimpses of ancient Peru contained in dusty yet colorful textiles, cracked ceramics, and carved bones. Not being an archeological expert, merely one who is fascinated to claim heritage from this small Andean nation, my imagination is stirred by the fragments of humanity that speak so poignantly to me. In this work, I've captured my musings in seven short movements scored for flute, harp, viola and cello."
Curious Theatre Company members Ed Cord and Mare Trevathan will intersperse Latino poetry with Rapsodia Andina.
Other works on the program will include American composer David Stock's Vanished World, for Flute, Viola and Harp. Stock writes of his trio:
"Over the last decade and a half, I have written several works with explicitly Jewish content, including Yerusha (clarinet and chamber ensemble), A Little Miracle (mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra), and Third Symphony (Tikkun Olam). Each of these pieces is built from Jewish material- both musical and conceptual, some invented and some quoted. Thus it was a real challenge when Music of Remembrance commissioned me to write a Holocaust-related work. My starting point was the old tune "Shalom Aleichem," which is quoted in full in the middle of the piece. This led to other tunes through association; again, some are "real," some invented.
What eventually emerged was a kind of aural snapshot of the pre-war world of East European Jewry, living on the edge of the abyss. The music is frequently interrupted by instrumental screams -- perhaps warnings of what is to come?
The title comes from a famous book by Roman Vishniac: a photographic and literary depiction of that same Jewish world, now kept alive only in memory and memento."
The CCP and Curious Theatre will present four pre-show dramatic concerts in the 2010-2011 season at Mamie's, Curious Theatre's backstage space. All concerts will feature chamber music and live narration.
Other performances included:
October 10th, 1:00-1:45 p.m., Conte Fantastique, with music of Andre Caplet and interspersed with Masque of the Red Death, by Edgar Allan Poe
November 14th, 12:45-1:30, Einstein's Mozart, with music of Mozart and poetry of NYC poet Kate Light
February 13th, 2011, 1-1:45 p.m., Love for Three, with romantic music for clarinet, viola and piano by Max Bruch and Rebecca Clarke.
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Musicians Playing This Event
- Barbara Hamilton-Primus, Artistic Director & Viola
- Emily Levin, Guest Harpist
- Judith McIntyre, Cellist
- Paul Nagem, Flutist
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