The Star-Ledger’s Ronni Reich followed Metropolis conductor Andrew Cyr during a recent rehearsal for the Hallucinations concerts and profiled the ensemble ahead of the 53rd Grammy Awards, for which Cyr and Metropolis are nominated.
Cyr’s Metropolis Ensemble spends all day rehearsing electronic-orchestral hybrids in a Gramercy church so cold a piccolo freezes up. Their dedication to Cyr’s vision — and that vision itself — is exactly why the young orchestra has had such success and why Cyr can be considered a conductor in a new mold. Metropolis records all of its performances and uploads them to its website as a marketing tool for its musicians. In deference to audiences’ variable tastes, the group mixes up its offerings — electronica, neoclassical, folk, chamber music. Concerts may be shorter than usual, have flexible seating, include drinks, take place in unconventional venues or begin when it’s convenient for people who work late. “People say it’s the death of classical music,” Cyr says. “Actually, it’s a tremendous growth opportunity.”