Links of the Week: MusicNOW, Dal Niente, Clifford Still and More

As the 2011-2012 season gets under way, it seems an ideal time to bring back the Links of the Week feature. Scroll down to learn more about upcoming concerts as well music and art-related blog posts.

Chicago Concerts:

Monday, October 17, 2011

MusicNOW: Stomp
Location: The Harris Theater for Music and Dance
Time: 7pm

This week begins with the season's first Chicago Symphony MusicNOW concert. The program includes works by John Corigliano, Kirsten Broberg, Alejandro Viñao, Paula Matthusen and Donnacha Dennehy.

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Ensemble Dal Niente: Klänge suchen Menschen / Sounds Seek People
Location: Nichols Conccert Hall
Time: 7:30pm

Dal Niente is joined by conductor Scott Voyles for a program that includes works by Chaya Czernowin, Edgar Guzman, Kirsten Broberg, Edward Hamel and Eno Poppe.

Dal Niente's press release describes the concert as follows:

"Whisper-quiet and riot-loud sounds will commingle in this concert led by one of today’s leading interpreters of new music, Scott Voyles. Music Director of Germany’s ensemble interface, Voyles collaborates with pioneering composers and intrepid performers around the globe. He has worked with rising German superstar Enno Poppe, whose Salz is a busy, chaotic, and beguiling work of expressionist mastery. Voyles will lead another Chicago premiere: Czernowin’s Lovesong, a contemplative, gentle piece full of fleeting gestures. Three extremely new pieces round out the program."

Music Links:

Ekmeles Blog: The New Continuo?

In a recent blog post, Jeffrey Gavett, Director of Ekmeles Vocal Ensemble, ponders whether the use of pitch tracks by singers should be thought of as "the new continuo." This is an interesting topic and Gavett's insights are well worth reading.

NewMusicBox: It Ain't Where Your From, It's Where You've Been

Tim Rutherford-Johnson, author of The Rambler Blog, discusses the recent Pharos International Contemporary Music Festival (PICMF). In particular, Rutherford-Johnson considers the extent to which the aesthetic outlooks of young composers are influenced by the schools and countries where they study as opposed to their countries of origin.

Art Links:

The Wall Street Journal: Still's Stalwart

It is only a month until the new Clifford Still Museum opens in Denver. I cannot overstate the significance of this event. For many years, 95% of the Still's output (825 paintings and 1,575 works on paper) has been withheld from public view pending the construction of a permanent museum devoted exlcusively to his work. In her article in the Wall Street Journal, Judith H. Dobrzynski discusses this mammoth project with Dean Sobel, Director of the Clifford Still Museum. Read it and then book your ticket to Denver.