Chameleon Arts Ensemble presents "by
the north-wind sent"
BOSTON, MA: The Chameleon Arts
Ensemble's first concerts of 2012 will be on Saturday, February 4, 8 PM and
Sunday, February 5, 3 PM, both at the Goethe-Institut Boston, 170 Beacon Street
in the Back Bay. The program, titled by the north-wind sent, is a
Chameleon-style exploration of the "Idea of North": works exploring nature,
solitude, spirit and legend by composers from northern climes. It includes: Sir
Peter Maxwell Davies' extraordinary 2002 Piano Trio: A Voyage to Fair Isle;
Welsh-born composer Hilary Tann's From the Song of Amergin for flute, viola &
harp; Carl Nielsen's Wind Quintet, Op. 43 (Denmark); Jean Sibelius' Four Pieces
for cello & piano, Op. 78 (Finland); and Edvard Grieg's Sonata No. 3 in c minor
for violin & piano, Op. 45 (Norway).
Over the course of six decades, Peter Maxwell Davies has gone from avant garde
enfant terrible to an appointment as Master of the Queen's Music in 2004,
recognizing both his role at the heart of British musical culture and his
tremendous international influence. Since the 1970s he has made his physical and
spiritual home in the Orkney Islands, north of mainland Scotland, and his music
since that time has often reflected its stark land- and seascapes, as well as
his identification with its traditional culture. His Piano Trio was inspired by
a trip to the first ever music festival on the even more remote Fair Isle. In
the course of the festival, the entire island population of about 70
participated in the premiere of a difficult new work by native composer Alasdair
Stout, and Davies was deeply moved at the way a piece of new music had so
permeated a community. "My Trio," he writes, "is an attempt to express my
delight at, and appreciation of this Fair Isle experience." Over the course of
the piece, Davies captures the spirit of the indigenous dance music and the folk
song style characteristic of Fair Isle, distilled, of course, through his
thoroughly individual voice.
Born in Wales, Hilary Tann now lives in the foothills of the Adirondack
Mountains in Upstate New York, where she is the John Howard Payne Professor of
Music at Union College, Schenectady. From the Song of Amergin for flute, viola &
harp was written in 1995, inspired by Robert Graves' restoration of the text
from an ancient Celtic calendar-alphabet. Three lines are represented directly
in the piece, each by featuring a different instrument: "I am a wind: on a deep
lake, I am a tear: the sun lets fall, I am a hawk: above the cliff."
Since its founding in 1998, Chameleon and artistic director Deborah Boldin have
earned unqualified praise for integrating old and new repertoire into unexpected
chamber music programs that are themselves works of art. They were recognized
nationally with 2009 and 2007 ASCAP/CMA Awards for Adventurous Programming. The
Boston Globe praised Ms. Boldin's "stellar example of interesting programming,"
and her "discerning ears and cosmopolitan tastes," and remarked, "Boldin is
continually looking for big but little-known works - new, recent, and old - and
putting them together in intriguing, organic combinations. The cross-references
are not just intellectual; you can feel them in your body."
This innovative ensemble now draws capacity audiences of those who love the
adventure of music - classic and contemporary. The musicians are among Boston's
most sought-after performers, with growing national and international
reputations. Their superb artistry and finely honed collaborative skills ensure
luminous performances and dynamic musical dialogues. The Boston Phoenix hailed
"A performance that was as tender as it was ferocious, as expansive as it was
intimate, as mysterious as it was open-hearted... I doubt I'll ever hear it
played better."
For tickets or more information, concertgoers can call 617-427-8200 or visit
www.chameleonarts.org.
Individual tickets are $43, $33 and $23. $5 discounts for students and seniors
are available. Goethe-Institut is a wheelchair accessible venue.
