Elements Quartet

2003-2004 NY Concert Series at Merkin Hall

November 18, 2003, 8pm

Merkin Concert Hall

129 West 67th St. NY, NY

 

 

Project:            Snapshots

 

 

The Elements Quartet will commission 15 composers who will each write a 2-5 minute piece inspired by a photo they own. A personal photo is preferred but a photo in the public domain that has a personal meaning to the composer may also be used. Like a good snapshot, each selection will capture a fleeting feeling or moment in time. The photograph will be displayed while the piece is performed, adding another dimension to the audience's experience of the music and helping to increase their understanding of the themes or emotions explored in the piece. Unlike a conventional concert, Snapshots will be presented in a modified cabaret format. Audience members can attend the first "set" of pieces, the second or both. In between each set there will be an opportunity for audience members to purchase light snacks and view the photographs more closely. Both the setting and the short segment format are designed to appeal to a more diverse and possibly younger audience. This commissioning project will be an ongoing signature activity of the quartet, eventually developing a rich and exciting repertoire of short pieces by a diverse group of contemporary composers, including some who are not associated with "classical" music.

 

'Snapshots' is inspired by the personal photographs of composers such as Angelo Badalamenti, Regina Carter, John Corigliano, Sebastian Currier, Lenny Pickett, and many others from diverse musical genres. Photographs chosen by each composer will be projected during Elements Quartet's premiere performance of 'Snapshots' at Merkin Hall in New York City on Tuesday, November 18 at 8pm in a video display created by award-winning projection artist Wendall K. Harrington (Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and American Theatre Wing Award winner for her design of The Who's Tommy.)'Snapshots' demonstrates the first time a string quartet has created a multimedia work where the musical and visual elements were created simultaneously. Photos taken from the personal lives of each composer are viewed simultaneously with the music while informing the listener about the music, creating an integrated theatrical experience. For those who have felt shut out of classical music by longer forms and traditional quartets, 'Snapshots' provides a sample of a broad range of pure, undiluted string quartets. Just as modern singer-songwriters explore complex and meaningful ideas in 3-6 minute songs, 'Snapshots' merges that world with the world of contemporary string quartet writing. The audience gets to see and touch the point of inspiration for what remains an essentially abstract and non-programmatic piece of music. A complete list of the 'Snapshots' follows:¡P

 

 

David Del Tredici - "Innocence"¡P

John Corigliano - "Circa 1909"¡P

Paul Moravec - "Vince and Jan"¡P

Paul Schoenfield - "Cowbird"¡P

HollisTaylor -"Corfu '72"¡P

Sebastian Currier - "REM"¡P

Zhou Long - "Gazers"¡P

Chen Yi -"Burning"¡P

Lenny Pickett - "String"¡P

Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez - "Waves"¡P

Regina Carter - "Praia Dos Carnieiros"¡P

Daron Hagen - "Snapshot: Gwen and Earl's Wedding Day, December 20th, 1951"¡P

John Patitucci - "Joan Patitucci"¡P

Angelo Badalamenti - "Snapshot: Prague, 1986"¡P

Justine Chen - "Ancient Airs and Dances"¡P

Jonathan Sheffer - "25.VI.95"'

 

 

Snapshots' is the first in Elements Quartet's new repertoire of dramatic, emotionally etched shorter works for string quartet. For tickets and information visit Merkin Hall online or call the box office: 212-501-3330. For more information on Elements Quartet, visit the web site.