Feldman - IMMA May 30th
Sunday 30 May, 2010
Irish Museum of Modern Art, Kilmainham, Dublin, Ireland
Rothko Chapel / Words
and Music
May 30, 2010 | 8pm | The Great Hall, IMMA
| FeldmanFestival
A concert of music by Morton
Feldman
Part of theexhibition VerticalThoughts: Morton Feldman and the Visual Arts
Presented by Crash Ensemble
and the
National Chamber Choir
of Ireland
In association with IMMA and RTE Lyric FM
“Rothko's imagery goes right to the edge of hiscanvas, and I wanted the same effect with the music… the sound is closer, morephysically with you than in a concert hall.’ MortonFeldman
Liam Cagney of www.musicalcriticism.com wrote ofCrash Ensemble:
"Crash [is] undoubtedly Ireland's foremostcontemporary music outfit, [its] concerts always ones to look forward to on themusical calendar...they consistently attract a large audience for contemporaryclassical concerts… Crash's outlook is exemplary and to be commended."
DavidMcKenna, Executive Producer Cross-Media & Arts, RTE said of the NCC:
“I think the National Chamber Choir is one of thevery best things in the country (including seafood, rugby teams and PaulaMeehan)”
In their firstever collaboration, Ireland’s cutting edge new music ensemble Crash Ensemble, and the acclaimed National Chamber Choir of Ireland, willperform ‘Rothko Chapel’ by the world-renownedcomposer, Morton Feldman.
Crash Ensemblewill also present the rarely performed ‘Wordsand Music by Samuel Beckett’ in a collaboration with renowned BeckettActors, Barry McGovern and Owen Roe. The piece was written forradio by Samuel Beckett, with music composed by Feldman.
Part of Vertical Thoughts: Morton Feldmanand the Visual Arts, the current exhibition at IMMA, this concert is thefinal performance in the Morton Feldman Concert Series.
Feldman is oneof the most influential American composers of the second half of the 20thCentury and his inspiration was largely drawn from modernabstract visual art. Feldman was a close friend of Mark Rothko and hecomposed the choral masterwork ‘Rothko Chapel’ as a tribute, taking the namefrom the Chapel decorated with Rothko’s works - a place for contemplation wheremen and women of all faiths, or of none, may meditate in silence, in solitudeor celebration together.
In relation to ‘Words and Music by Samuel Beckett’Feldman said that it was a collaboration between the ‘words man and the notesman.’ Like many Beckett works, there is heated debate as to the meaning of thepiece and it centres round the themes of Love, The Face, Age and Music. “Twocharacters, Words and Music work together and against each other producingsongs, musical interludes, and lyric poetry. They are joined by Croak, whoexists somewhere in between sound and sense.”[i]
Just backfrom their US Tour and a collaboration with the Dublin Dance Festival, CrashEnsemble’s upcoming events include a recording for Nonesuch Records and the worldpremiere of a new work by Donnacha Dennehy commissioned by Grammy award-winningsoprano Dawn Upshaw, to be performed in October 2010.
LISTINGS INFORMATION
Crash Ensemble & NCC Present ‘Rothko Chapel ‘followed by ‘Words and Music by Samuel Beckett’: Sunday30 May, 2010 | The Great Hall, IMMA | 8pm | Tickets €20.00 from http://www.tickets.ie/
REVIEWS
By Pat O'Kelly THE Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) is hosting 'Vertical Thoughts -- Morton Feldman and the Visual Arts', an exhibition running until June 27. Feldman -- born New York 1926, died Buffalo 1987 -- was part of an eccentric group of American composers who forged an idiosyncratic path. Maintaining he learned more from painters than he did from other composers, Feldman's music may indeed call to mind abstract works of visual art. In conjunction with its exhibition, IMMA also presents a number of Feldman compositions complementing the artists on show. One, devoted to his piano piece, 'Triadic Memories', had Hugh Tinney spellbinding his audience in a 90-minute pianissimo marathon. This week brings the contrasted and shorter 'Rothko Chapel' and 'Words and Music'. The former, for antiphonal choir, viola, celesta and percussion, creates a particularly haunting atmosphere. With the wordless chorus oscillating gently, the viola engages an eerie line over delicate percussion. Timpani imply muffled menace in repeated patterns and towards the end the viola branches on to a more melodic line with a strangely English quality. The performance from the National Chamber Choir and Crash Ensemble is one of utmost sensitivity. 'Words and Music' -- a radio play by Samuel Beckett with Feldman's score -- finds Barry McGovern giving another of his phenomenal Beckett interpretations as both Joe (Words) and Bob (Music) manipulated by club-wielding Croak -- Owen Roe. The fragmented music may seem detached, but its subtle presence is integral. - Pat O'KellyReview: Crash Ensemble, IMMA
Tuesday June 01 2010