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Press Releases
Dirty Paloma at The Boston Conservatory: New Works and Sarah Palin's Aria
De la Guardia, who originated the role in September 2009, will perform "I am the future of the Republican Party" (Sarah Palin's Aria) from Say It Ain't So, Joe, by Curtis K. Hughes, also on the composition faculty at The Boston Conservatory. This is the first time this aria will be performed as a excerpt from this opera. In case you missed the Guerilla Opera performances, you can have a little taste of the "Sarah Palin Opera" at this concert.
Hasebe's Mi-da-re-ga-mi song for soprano and piano is sung in Japanese and was commissioned by pianist Hisako Hiratsuka (Tufts University) and de la Guardia.
The title of this piece comes from the collection of Tanka poems (each with 31 syllables, arranged 5-7-5-7-7) by Akiko Yosano called Midaregami, which has been translated into English as "Tangled Hair." In this set of poetry she uses the imagery of hair as a tool to express her feelings. For this song cycle, I chose five poems from the collection, each with a different mood or feeling based on how I interpreted them. - Composer Masaki Hasebi
Epstein's Lenz, for baritone and piano, is from poetry by Kandinsky, who was one of the foremost abstract/expressionist painters of the early 20th century. His Lenz is an attempt to accomplish in poetry form something along the lines of what he could accomplish in his paintings. Epstein's setting is simultaneously simple and deceptively complex. She works with the poetry to create images and feelings that are open to free interpretation by the listener, much like viewing a Kandinsky canvas.
"I chose Kandinsky's poetry because I love his paintings so much; I felt this was a way to make a musical connection to him as an artist. Jonathan Nussman and I met last year when we gave a performance of some songs by John Murphree. I was very impressed with the beauty of Jonathan's voice as well as his musical intelligence, and I immediately thought of asking him to present the premiere of these songs. We gave the first performance last month, and I am still hearing comments from people about the beauty and intensity of Jonathan's performance." - Composer Marti Epstein
Rojahn's Dodo as Avian Christ is performed by Gabriela Diaz and de la Guardia, the violin and soprano duo that performed Kurtag's Kafka Fragments February 2009 at The Boston Conservatory New Music Festival and for PRI's The World podcast series. The work is a setting of first-hand historical accounts of the discovery and slaughter of the famous flightless bird which would become the earliest and most famous example of animal extinction. "The dodo's role as one of the earliest concrete examples of animal extinction in Western culture provided a jumping off point for the work. The text was taken from a variety of first-hand historical accounts of the infamous bird assembled into a five movement arc. The piece chronicles the dodo's discovery, slaughter, extinction and ultimate rebirth as a martyr and cautionary tale." - Composer Rudolf Rojahn
Murphree's Her Final Summer is scored for two singers, three aluminum gongs and a set of aluminum chimes. The gongs and chimes were built by the composer and are tuned to pitches not typically found in European and American music. For this premier performance, the gongs and chimes have been prerecorded and will be played back through a speaker. No digital effects were used in the production of the accompaniment.
"This piece is a lament. It is meant to reflect the duality of consciousness entered when a traumatic loss occurs. The sensation of emotional time slowing down while reality accelerates is musically expressed through the slow pulse of the gongs juxtaposed against the quicker vocal line hovering above it. Likewise, the melody both pushes against the miss-tuned gongs and chimes while simultaneously working with their altered tonality. In the end the two singers converge, tuning to the gongs, providing a sense of repose." - Composer John Murphree
"Dirty Paloma at The Boston Conservatory" Wednesday, February 3, 2010 at 8pm Seully Hall, The Boston Conservatory 8 The Fenway, Boston, MA 02215 FREE Admission
Hasebe's Mi-da-re-ga-mi song for soprano and piano is sung in Japanese and was commissioned by pianist Hisako Hiratsuka (Tufts University) and de la Guardia.
The title of this piece comes from the collection of Tanka poems (each with 31 syllables, arranged 5-7-5-7-7) by Akiko Yosano called Midaregami, which has been translated into English as "Tangled Hair." In this set of poetry she uses the imagery of hair as a tool to express her feelings. For this song cycle, I chose five poems from the collection, each with a different mood or feeling based on how I interpreted them. - Composer Masaki Hasebi
Epstein's Lenz, for baritone and piano, is from poetry by Kandinsky, who was one of the foremost abstract/expressionist painters of the early 20th century. His Lenz is an attempt to accomplish in poetry form something along the lines of what he could accomplish in his paintings. Epstein's setting is simultaneously simple and deceptively complex. She works with the poetry to create images and feelings that are open to free interpretation by the listener, much like viewing a Kandinsky canvas.
"I chose Kandinsky's poetry because I love his paintings so much; I felt this was a way to make a musical connection to him as an artist. Jonathan Nussman and I met last year when we gave a performance of some songs by John Murphree. I was very impressed with the beauty of Jonathan's voice as well as his musical intelligence, and I immediately thought of asking him to present the premiere of these songs. We gave the first performance last month, and I am still hearing comments from people about the beauty and intensity of Jonathan's performance." - Composer Marti Epstein
Rojahn's Dodo as Avian Christ is performed by Gabriela Diaz and de la Guardia, the violin and soprano duo that performed Kurtag's Kafka Fragments February 2009 at The Boston Conservatory New Music Festival and for PRI's The World podcast series. The work is a setting of first-hand historical accounts of the discovery and slaughter of the famous flightless bird which would become the earliest and most famous example of animal extinction. "The dodo's role as one of the earliest concrete examples of animal extinction in Western culture provided a jumping off point for the work. The text was taken from a variety of first-hand historical accounts of the infamous bird assembled into a five movement arc. The piece chronicles the dodo's discovery, slaughter, extinction and ultimate rebirth as a martyr and cautionary tale." - Composer Rudolf Rojahn
Murphree's Her Final Summer is scored for two singers, three aluminum gongs and a set of aluminum chimes. The gongs and chimes were built by the composer and are tuned to pitches not typically found in European and American music. For this premier performance, the gongs and chimes have been prerecorded and will be played back through a speaker. No digital effects were used in the production of the accompaniment.
"This piece is a lament. It is meant to reflect the duality of consciousness entered when a traumatic loss occurs. The sensation of emotional time slowing down while reality accelerates is musically expressed through the slow pulse of the gongs juxtaposed against the quicker vocal line hovering above it. Likewise, the melody both pushes against the miss-tuned gongs and chimes while simultaneously working with their altered tonality. In the end the two singers converge, tuning to the gongs, providing a sense of repose." - Composer John Murphree
"Dirty Paloma at The Boston Conservatory" Wednesday, February 3, 2010 at 8pm Seully Hall, The Boston Conservatory 8 The Fenway, Boston, MA 02215 FREE Admission
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