Event Description

Picosa’s first concert of the season explores the concept of momentum musically, politically, and artistically.

Celebrated American composer Jennifer Higdon describes her piece Smash as “…smashing forward with momentum”. As George Crumb celebrates his 90th birthday in October of 2019, we celebrate another visionary whose programmatic Vox Balaenae smashed through musical boundaries not only in its use of extended techniques, but also in its influence of non-western music.

Cambodian-American composer Chinary Ung’s Child Song not only reflects influences of European, Asian, and Western musics, but also his personal political journey having survived the mass murders of his family and people.

Luciano Berio’s celebrated series of solo works for virtuosi were progressive in their use of extended techniques.

Finally, Nico Muhly’s Common Ground utilizes three different repetitive techniques from varying eras of time, two contemporary and one baroque, first a cycle of chords, the second an obsession over a single chord, and the third a ground bass reminiscent of the writing of Purcell.

Join us for this exciting and varied program!

Program:

Nico Muhly, Common Ground
Luciano Berio, Sequenza IX
Chinary Ung, Child Song
George Crumb, Vox Balaenae
Jennifer Higdon, Smash