Ignobles Dances Consortium Commission
- On September 01, 2021
- By alzand@rice.edu
- In Uncategorized
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A new work for flute and piano, Ignoble Dances, commissioned by a consortium of 50 flutists, was presented at the National Flute Association 2021 Convention. The event, held online from August 12–15, featured a filmed performance by flutist Matthew Roitstein (Houston Symphony) and pianist David Roitstein (head of Jazz Studies at CalArts). The work was supported through a consortium of 50 flutists from around the US and Canada. These flutists (listed below) will present performances of the work in the coming months and seasons.
The film of Ignoble Dances will be released publicly by Musiqa on October 1st, as part of their 2021–2022 season. In conjunction with the release, an “Educational Explorer” module, designed for middle and high school students, will give the piece musical and historical context. A live performance of the piece will follow in April 2022.
Ignoble Dances was written in 2020, and its music reflects upon that disconsolate year. The seven short dances draw musical influence from a variety of sources. The title of the first movement, “Antemasque,” refers to a “buffoonish dance” that precedes a masque, a courtly entertainment of the 16th century. Of course, the word has gained another meaning in 2020, one that is equally buffoonish. Here the flute plays an urgent tune over an obstinate bass (ostinato). “Dance of Duplicity” presents a wistful slow drag (a ragtime two-step) gradually undermined by repeated interruptions. “Dance of Denial” is based on the Italian tarantella, in which those bitten by the tarantula spider dance in a feverish trance until they collapse. “Distanced Dance” is a melancholy solo for flute alone. In “J. B. Dances a Jig in the Gloom,” a surprisingly cheerful flute tune emerges from the piano’s somber haze. “Dog Whistle Dance” features the piccolo and the highest register of the piano in strident rhythmic interplay. The set concludes with a pavan: a slow, stately Renaissance dance. In 1648, composer Thomas Tomkins wrote a lament in memory of King Charles I, entitled “Sad Pavan for These Distracted Tymes.” In my pavan, which draws on the Tomkins, it is the music that is distracted and the times that are sad.
commissioners:
Hilary Abigana, Claudia Anderson, Amanda Blaikie, Leone Buyse, Christopher Chaffee, Michelle Cheramy, Douglas DeVries, Judith Dines, Aralee Dorough, Cobus du Toit, Jill Felber, Brook Ferguson, Steven Finley, Lisa Garner Santa, Marianne Gedigian, Brandon Patrick George, Emma Gerstein, Michael Gordon, Nave Graham, Jennifer Grim, Christine Gustafson, Hannah Hammel, Elise Henry, Jill Heyboer, Christina Jennings, Trudy Kane, Jennifer Keeney, Cynthia Kelley, Sherry Kujala, Stephen Kujala, Walfrid Kujala, Kathryn Ladner, Christina Medawar, Norman Menzales, Diana Morgan, Erica Peel, Catherine Ramirez, Leslie Richmond, Matthew Roitstein, Elizabeth Rowe, Rosalina R. Sackstein, Adam Sadberry, Marisela Sager, Julie Scolnik, Christina Smith, Yoobin Son, Nancy Stagnitta, Wendy Stern, Mark Teplitsky, Ebonee Thomas, Caen Thomason-Redus, Linda Toote, James Walker, Viviana Wilson, Heather Yarmel, Natalie Zisman
Capriccio FILM
- On July 13, 2021
- By alzand@rice.edu
- In Musiqa, News, Reviews/Press
- 0
Musiqa presents a newly commissioned work by filmmaker Traci Lavois Thiebaud entitled Capriccio. Commissioned by Musiqa, Capriccio celebrates the diversity and resilience of Houston’s arts community, and features musicians, dancers, poets, painters, actors, art cars and more, all packed into a free-flowing visual collage conceived and created by Houston artist Traci Lavois Thiebaud. The filmmaker describes it as a “love letter to Houston’s artists.” The film is scored to Capriccios Nos. 1 & 6, as performed by Natalie Lin Douglas (director of Kinetic Ensemble) and Matthew Detrick (from Apollo Chamber Players). Contributors include Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Houston Masterworks Chorus, WindSync, Apollo Chamber Players, Houston Symphony, Houston Ballet, Mildred’s Umbrella Theater Company, DiverseWorks, The Catastrophic Theatre, Ars Lyrica Houston, Stages, Loop38, Orange Show Center for Visionary Art, NobleMotion Dance, Transitory Sound and Movement Collective, Kinetic Ensemble, Dre Forgotten, Brittani Alexandra Broussard, Anastasia F. Kirages, Sara Royer, Bryan Kaplun, Casey Waldner, Erin Rodgers, Alli Partin Villines, Natalie Lin Douglas, JooYoung Choi, Charlie Scott, David A Brown, Christa Forster, Rebecca Lowe, Miranda Ramírez, Kacee Dugas, Joe Folladori, Candice D’Meza, Matt Detrick, Loren Holmes, BooTown, AFA, Muhammad Fachrul Yunus, James Templeton, James Medford, National Pleasure, Joseph Weiss, Bonnie Blue, Ken Hoge, Felizabeth Smiley, Swimwear Department, and many more….
CAPRICCIO
/kəˈprēCHēˌō/
1. A lively piece of music, typically short and free in form.
2. A style of painting introduced in the Renaissance that combines real architectural elements and figures in fictional and fantastical combinations.
3. A series of six works for solo violin by Houston composer and Musiqa Artist Board member Karim Al-Zand.
4. The film inspired by Al-Zand’s Capriccios, created by Houston filmmaker Traci Lavois Thiebaud, and involving arts organizations and artists from across the city. “Capriccio” was commissioned by Musiqa, and includes ballet dancers, actors, writers, visual artists, poets, musicians of all sorts and (of course) art cars in a celebration of Houston’s artistic diversity. A modern cinematic riff on a 17th century painting style, Musiqa’s “Capriccio” is coming this summer, for free, to your electronic device.
Rice Stadium Concert
- On July 10, 2021
- By alzand@rice.edu
- In News, Uncategorized
- 0
On March 17th, 2021, in the midst of the COVID pandemic, Shepherd School of Music composition students participated in a unique concert of new music at Rice University’s 50,000 seat football stadium. Five new, site-specific works were composed by graduate students Nicky Sohn, Jake Sandridge, Grace Ann Lee and Daniel Leibovic, and by undergraduate Alex Moreno—works especially designed to be performed within the “extreme distanced” environment of the stadium. The collaborative project involved the school’s brass and percussion students, who rehearsed and performed the works over the course of several weeks, assisted by staff conductor (and light saber brandisher) Jerry Hou. The result was a memorable and unique concert on a massive spatial scale, occasioned by performance restrictions in the era of COVID. Full footage of the concert can be found below.
Attar of Rose played by Ensemble Connect
- On May 23, 2021
- By alzand@rice.edu
- In News
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On May 19, 2021, Ensemble Connect presented American Mosaic, a fascinating fusion of visual art and chamber music. American Mosaic showcased the many identities, cultures, and styles that 20th- and 21st-century composers in America bring to their music. The online presentation called attention to the ever-expanding boundaries of what it means to be an artist and musician in the diverse cultural mosaic that is the United States while also celebrating one’s own personal identity. American Mosaic features renowned visual artist Kevork Mourad, who brought the program to life in a stunning visual display. The concert featured a performance of Attar of Rose from Quelques Fleurs.
Ensemble Connect
Amir Farsi, Flute
Yasmina Spiegelberg, Clarinet
Tamara Winston, Oboe (Alum)
Nik Hooks, Bassoon
Cort Roberts, Horn
Joanne Kang, Piano
Rubén Rengel, Violin
Stephanie Zyzak, Violin
Halam Kim, Viola
Laura Andrade, Cello
Kevork Mourad, Artistic Partner
Luctus Profugis performed by WDR Symphony Orchestra
- On March 16, 2021
- By alzand@rice.edu
- In News
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The WDR Symphony Orchestra, under music director Cristian Măcelaru, performed Luctus Profugis live at the Kölner Philharmonie on November 21, 2020. This filmed performance of the work was premiered online on March 5, 2021. Luctus Profugis is a lament for string orchestra and percussion that reflects on the 2015–2019 European refugee crisis. The title translates roughly from the Latin as “Grief for the Displaced.” The word “profugus” has a connection to the opening lines of Virgil’s “Aeneid,” which describes one of the earliest refugees: Aeneas fleeing the Trojan war to the shores of Italy. In Luctus Profugis, the percussionist at the heart of the ensemble plays a simple three-note motive that repeats for the duration of the piece. Its persistence symbolizes for me the refugees’ journey, their tenacity, courage and resilience.