February 16, 2006 / 8pm
Angel Orensanz Center / 172 Norfolk Street NYC
Voices of Night
Metropolis Ensemble presents its debut concert
Elizabeth Kieronski, English Horn
Travis Heath, Trumpet
Alexander Gusev, French Horn
Daniel Neer, Tenor
Marty Ehrlich, Alto Saxophone
Mark Helias, Bass
Michael Sarin, Drums
Andrew Cyr, Artistic Director / Conductor
David Schiff, Composer
On the Program
Aaron Copland: Quiet City
For trumpet (Travis Heath), English horn (Elizabeth Kieronski) and string orchestra
Benjamin Britten: Serenade
For tenor (Daniel Neer), horn (Alexander Gusev), and string orchestra
David Schiff: Singing in the Dark*
For alto saxophone (Marty Ehrlich), bass (Mark Helias), and drums (Michael Sarin) and string orchestra
*New York premiere
About the Concert
For its sold-out debut concert, Metropolis Ensemble featured saxophonist Marty Ehrlich, "one of the premiere melodicists of his generation," (New York Times) in the New York premiere of David Schiff's Singing in the Dark.
Singing in the Dark, the centerpiece of the concert, is an "enthralling work" whose "music moves from a soulful incantation to a rhythmic dance, back to an even slower meditation based on fragments from the Jewish Day of Atonement services, to a song obliquely inspired by Duke Ellington" (David Stabler, The Oregonian). Schiff's music "suggests a Fourth Streamapproach, in which jazz crosses the line into postmodern, non-jazz compositional processes." (Downbeat) In collaboration with Artistic Director Andrew Cyr for this performance by the Metropolis Ensemble, Schiff has re-scored the work for string orchestra, upright bass, and rhythm section. The bass and percussion parts, like solo alto saxophone, combine composed and improvised passages woven into more traditional writing for strings.
Wine reception sponsored by Trentadue Winery.
