In Harmony: the Kaufman Center Newsletter
Musically Speaking at Merkin Concert Hall
When Merkin Concert Hall opened in 1978, The New York Times exclaimed, “New York has long needed a truly intimate concert hall . . . and the answer may be on West 67th Street.” The past 30 years have seen a lot of change for the Hall and for the New York City performing arts community as a whole. The landscape of classical music has shifted, making way for the tremendous growth of contemporary classical, pop and jazz offerings. The way in which music is articulated–– from composition to performance––is constantly evolving.
With its stellar acoustics and numerous awards for adventurous programming, Merkin Hall has been a leader in this growth since its inception. And so it is appropriate to celebrate the Hall’s 30th year with a focus on the language of music in all its forms. The inspiration for the 2008–09 season––the first full season in the newly renovated space––is Musically Speaking. Both literally and stylistically, the way in which music communicates with and influences listeners and artists––how it is written, interpreted and exchanged––is at the heart of this exploration.
The nucleus of the season will be a series of concerts under the umbrella title of Musically Speaking––each concert a mini-dialogue on this theme. We’ve invited musicians who straddle the genres of jazz, pop and classical music. We’ll pay homage to the work of such visionaries as Joan Tower, Elliot Carter and the late Olivier Messiaen. To mark the 60th anniversary of Israel’s independence we will savor Israeli and Jewish music of all kinds—cantorial, contemporary classical, jazz. We welcome back John Schaefer and WNYC’s New Sounds® Live, as well as the popular Tuesday Matinees and Broadway Close Up series, and we celebrate the return of the New York Festival of Song. Our musical theater programming for families has expanded––a total of six delightful Sunday mornings featuring the Broadway Playhouse cast and the Poppy Seed Players.
For a taste of what’s to come this fall, here is a sneak peek at three shows, narrated by Merkin Hall Director Greg Evans. Join us for these and many other concerts that celebrate music in all its glory.
Dialects: Israeli Jazz & Klezmer
Greg Evans: “25-year-old pianist Omer Klein and 25-year veteran trumpeter Frank London present two of the best examples of the new face of American/ Israeli music. While London recovers the lost sounds of Klezmer, taking the music back to its 19th-centuryroots with the Klezmer Brass All Stars, Klein, a rising star in the Israeli/ New York jazz movement, offers a program of his deeply melodic, utterly original compositions. These two artists areagreat combination, both exploring what it is that makes Israeli music unique. Jazzed up Middle Eastern melodies will share the stage with rocked out Klezmer brass strains from a cast of hot newcomers and seasoned pros.”
WHEN: Thu 09/18/2008 at 8:00 pm
Translating ‘Trane: A Love Supreme
GE: “Turtle Island String Quartet takes a classic––John Coltrane’s groundbreaking 1964 album, A Love Supreme––and recasts it into an entirely different language, not harmonically but stylistically. No one can hear the string quartet version of this music and not recognize the tunes. The texture of the strings at once smooths out and makes even more clear Coltrane’s ear for the entire sweep of his music. This Grammy Award-winning translation of an iconic jazz masterpiece is highlighted and deepened in its impact by this change.”
WHEN: Sun 11/09/2008 at 8:00 pm
Elliott Carter’s First Hundred Years
GE: “Composer Elliott Carter set an independent course early on in his career after mastering the language of the day, Neo-Classicism; all this while absorbingthe truly American spirit in music on this continent. His knack for putting instruments into a discernable dialogue with each other has given him a distinctive voice that has its beginnings in the experiments of Charles Ives, Carl Ruggles and the other firebrand individualist composers who came before him. In honor of Carter’s 100th birthday, the New York Woodwind Quintet and Ursula Oppens will perform works that span his entire career, including his complete works for winds. The program will demonstrate how Carter’s musical language evolved, resulting in the vibrant, unique voice of his maturity.”
WHEN: Sun 11/23/2008 at 8:00 pm
Join us! Merkin now offers memberships valid for most Kaufman Center presentations.* Purchase any four tickets to concerts from the Musically Speakingseries and pay only $20 per ticket. Better still, you can choose your four events now or wait until later. Membership allows you to select what you want to hear––and try something new––with maximum savings and flexibility.
*Some exclusions apply.
