NEC Presents Celebration of Steve Reich, November 28--29
Steve Reich (Wonge Bergmann)
For Immediate Release:
November 13, 2007
New England Conservatory will celebrate the music of composer Steve Reich in a two day mini-festival, November 28 and 29. In four concerts, NEC students, alumni, and faculty will perform works taken from the composer’s earliest to most recent periods. Under the artistic direction of Stephen Drury, the festival will feature two Boston premieres, City Life (1995) and Daniel Variations (2006). The latter work had its world premiere a year ago as part of Reich’s 70th Birthday observances and commemorates Daniel Pearl, the America journalist murdered in Pakistan.
The composer will be in Boston to coach rehearsals on Tuesday, Nov. 27 and Wednesday, Nov. 28 and attend the performances. He will also work with NEC student composers.
Among performers taking part in the concerts will be pianists Stephen Drury and Yukiko Takagi, the Borromeo String Quartet, the NEC Wind Ensemble under the direction of Charles Peltz, composer/conductor John Heiss and the NEC Contemporary Ensemble, [nec] shivaree, the Callithumpian Consort, and the NEC Philharmonia.
Composer Steve Reich has been called "...our greatest living composer" ( The New York Times ), "...America’s greatest living composer" ( The Village Voice ), and “...the most original musical thinker of our time.” ( The New Yorker ) From his early taped speech pieces It's Gonna Rain (1965) and Come Out, (1966) to his and video artist Beryl Korot’s digital video opera Three Tales (2002), Reich's path has embraced not only aspects of Western Classical music, but the structures, harmonies, and rhythms of non-Western and American vernacular music, particularly jazz. "There's just a handful of living composers who can legitimately claim to have altered the direction of musical history and Steve Reich is one of them," states The Guardian.
In 1966 Steve Reich founded his own ensemble of three musicians, which rapidly grew to 18 members or more. Since 1971, Steve Reich and Musicians have frequently toured the world, and have the distinction of performing to sold-out houses at venues as diverse as Carnegie Hall and the Bottom Line Cabaret.
The concerts are free and open to the public. The schedule follows:
Wed., Nov. 28
5pm – Brown Hall
Piano Phase for two pianos (1967) - Stephen Drury & Yukiko Takagi
Different Trains for string quartet and tape (1988) - Borromeo String Quartet
8pm – Jordan Hall
Six Pianos (1973) – [nec]shivaree, Stephen Drury, director
Music for Eighteen Musicians (1976) - Callithumpian Consort, Stephen Drury, director
Thurs., Nov. 29
5pm – Brown Hall
Violin Phase for four violins – [nec]shivaree
Drumming (1971) - Callithumpian Consort
8pm – Jordan Hall
Triple Quartet for string orchestra (1998) - NEC Philharmonia, Stephen Drury, conductor
Vermont Counterpoint for 11 flutes (1982) - NEC Contemporary Ensemble, John Heiss, director
City Life - NEC Wind Ensemble, Charles Peltz, director
Daniel Variations - NEC Philharmonia, Drury conducting
Emily Spear, Sheena Ramirez, Jonathan Reed, Alex Powell, soloists
For further information, check the NEC Website or call the NEC Concert Line at 617-585-1122. NEC’s Jordan Hall, Brown Hall, Williams Hall and the Keller Room are located at 30 Gainsborough St., corner of Huntington Ave. St. Botolph Hall is located at 241 St. Botolph St. between Gainsborough and Mass Ave.
ABOUT NEW ENGLAND CONSERVATORY
Recognized nationally and internationally as a leader among music schools, New England Conservatory offers rigorous training in an intimate, nurturing community to 750 undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral music students from around the world. Its faculty of 225 boasts internationally esteemed artist-teachers and scholars. Its alumni go on to fill orchestra chairs, concert hall stages, jazz clubs, recording studios, and arts management positions worldwide. Nearly half of the Boston Symphony Orchestra is composed of NEC trained musicians and faculty.
The oldest independent school of music in the United States, NEC was founded in 1867 by Eben Tourjee. Its curriculum is remarkable for its wide range of styles and traditions. On the college level, it features training in classical, jazz, Contemporary Improvisation, world and early music. Through its Preparatory School, School of Continuing Education, and Community Collaboration Programs, it provides training and performance opportunities for children, pre-college students, adults, and seniors. Through its outreach projects, it allows young musicians to engage with non-traditional audiences in schools, hospitals, and nursing homes—thereby bringing pleasure to new listeners and enlarging the universe for classical music and jazz.
NEC presents more than 600 free concerts each year, many of them in Jordan Hall, its world- renowned, 100-year old, beautifully restored concert hall. These programs range from solo recitals to chamber music to orchestral programs to jazz and opera scenes. Every year, NEC’s opera studies department also presents two fully staged opera productions at the Cutler Majestic Theatre in Boston.
NEC is co-founder and educational partner of “From the Top,” a weekly radio program that celebrates outstanding young classical musicians from the entire country. With its broadcast home in Jordan Hall, the show is now carried by National Public Radio and is heard on 250 stations throughout the United States.
Contact: Ellen Pfeifer
Public Relations Manager
New England Conservatory
617-585-1143
epfeifer@newenglandconservatory.edu