Press Release: Love Letter to Haiti

Valentine’s Day concert to benefit Partners In Health - 6:00PM (doors) 7:00PM (concert) Sunday, February 14th 2010 at (le) poisson rouge

New York, NY - As a way of showing love to those who need it most this Valentine’s Day, (le) poisson rouge will present an evening of romantic favorites, new and old, performed by musicians and friends of Metropolis Ensemble. The emerging British-American composer David Bruce has written a piece especially for the occasion. 100% of ticket proceeds will benefit Partners In Health, providing world-class health care to one-third of Haiti’s citizens for the past twenty-five years.

The celebrated chamber musicians of Metropolis Ensemble will perform solo and chamber works by Bach, Bowles, Debussy, Brahms, Chopin, Piazzolla, Rachmoninoff and Ravel as well as Metropolis Ensemble’s own David Bruce, Adam Schoenberg and Ryan Francis. The generous musicians donating their performances include:

Ashley Bathgate, Cello - Sarah Beaty, Clarinet - Misha Bouvier, Baritone - Rachel Calin, Bass - Layla Claire, Soprano - Rachel Drehmann, Horn - Akimi Fukuhara, Piano - Jonathan Greenburg, Trombone - Conor Hanick, Piano - Dane Johansen, Cello - Bridget Kibbey, Harp - Taka Kigawa, Piano - Kristin Lee, Violin - Sean Lee, Violin - Britton Matthews, Percussion - Matt McDonald, Trombone - Edvinas Minkstimas, Piano - Guillaume Molko, violin - Paul Murphey, Trumpet - Anna Polonsky, Piano - Yannick Rafalimanana, Piano - Gregorio Robino, Cello - Lance Suzuki, Flute

Metropolis Ensemble is a professional chamber orchestra and ensemble based in New York City. Dedicated to emerging composers and performers, Metropolis Ensemble has quickly established a reputation for presenting “new music played with the same kind of panache and bravura we usually experience only in performances of standard repertoire” (Esa-Pekka Salonen).

The dynamic ensemble, comprised of the finest young artists now performing, is led by Music Director Andrew Cyr. Cyr is a distinctive new voice in the growing contemporary classical music scene. His enthusiasm for connecting musicians and composers of the next generation to today’s audiences led him to create Metropolis Ensemble in 2006.

Metropolis Ensemble commissions, premieres and records new works from the freshest voices in classical composition, including Timothy Andres, David Bruce, Anna Clyne, Jakub Ciupinski, Avner Dorman, Ryan Francis, Vivian Fung, Ryan Gallagher, Erin Gee, Raymond Lustig, Ricardo Romaneiro, David Schiff, Adam Schoenberg, Cristina Spinei, and Michael Ward-Bergeman. Since its formation in 2006, Metropolis Ensemble has performed to capacity crowds and has premiered and commissioned over 24 new works.

David Bruce is developing a growing international reputation as a composer, with performances this season in the US, UK, Belgium, Australia and Israel. His work has attracted the attention of some of the world’s leading musicians, including soprano Dawn Upshaw, Klezmer pioneer Giora Feidman, clarinetist Todd Palmer and the St Lawrence String Quartet.

Upshaw was also the soloist in a new song-cycle with ensemble, The North Wind was a Woman, commissioned for the Gala opening of the 2009 season by the Chamber Music Society of the Lincoln Center. Other recent commissions include Gumboots, commissioned by Carnegie Hall for clarinetist Todd Palmer and the St Lawrence String Quartet, Groanbox for New York’s Metropolis Ensemble featuring his friends the Groanbox Boys; and Caja de Musica for Concert Artists Guild Winner Bridget Kibbey’s Carnegie Hall recital debut. Current projects include a new commission for pianist Bruce Levingston to be premiered at Carnegie Hall in 2011.

$15 Students | $20 Bar (limited) | $25 General ($30 at door) | $80 VIP Opera Box ($100 at door) | $250 | $500

(le) poission rouge is located at 158 Bleecker Street

For additional information, please contact:
Nate Bachhuber
ph. 917.763.9396
e. press@metropolisensemble.org

KSJN: Inspired Accompaniment… Absolutely Perfect

Michael Barone of KSJN Minneapolis on Avner Dorman’s Concertos:

“Intrigued by Baroque music since childhood, Dorman has created a collection of ‘modern’ pieces imbued with the formal clarity and rhythmic energy of 18th century music. Make no mistake, these pieces sound 'new’, but they also sound fresh and friendly, and surprisingly 'original’, despite the obvious derivations. Performances are breathtakingly fine, and if you pass by this album you’re missing out on a disarmingly satisfying production. Go for it!”



Listen to the broadcast:

KBAQ: CD of the Week

Sterling Beeaff named Avner Dorman’s Concertos the CD of the Week on KBAQ Phoenix, hailing the recording as “new and delightful… a guilty pleasure… a journey of light and color… and a generous doorway into something new.” Listen to the broadcast:

The Best of 2009

The Best of 2009

Watch concert highlights from Groanbox, New Music 101, Reverb, and Glimpses.

Press Release: Metropolis Ensemble Celebrates Launch of First International Studio Recording

Free Concert, Reception, and CD signing Monday, February 1, 7:30pm at the former Tower Records - Avner Dorman: Concertos for Mandolin, Piccolo, Piano and Concerto Grosso released January 26 on NAXOS American Classics

New York, NY - The imaginative, up-and-coming chamber orchestra, Metropolis Ensemble, will celebrate its first studio album, Avner Dorman: Concertos for Mandolin, Piccolo, Piano and Concerto Grosso, with a free concert, reception, and CD signing on February 1 at 7:30pm. The event will feature a performance of Avner Dorman’s Mandolin Concerto (string sextet version) by renowned mandolinist Avi Avital and members of Metropolis Ensemble. All attendees will receive a free copy of the new CD and are invited to a CD signing and reception with artists from Metropolis Ensemble. The event is presented in association with, No Longer Empty, a non-profit organization that organizes site-specific public art exhibitions in vacated storefronts and properties in New York City, located in the former Tower Records on Broadway and East 4th Street.

Produced by Grammy-winning producer David Frost, the album contains the complete chamber orchestra concerti by award-winning Israeli composer Avner Dorman. In addition to Dorman’s 2006 Concerto for Mandolin, the album also features three world premiere recordings: the 2001 Piccolo Concerto, with piccolo soloist Mindy Kaufman and pianist Eliran Avni; Concerto Grosso (2003) with Arnaud Sussmann and Lily Francis, violins; Eric Nowlin, viola; Michal Korman, cello; and Aya Hamada, harpsichord; and the composer’s 1995 Piano Concerto, a work he penned when he was only nineteen years old, also featuring pianist Eliran Avni. Metropolis Ensemble was the first professional orchestra to perform Dorman’s music in the United States.

Metropolis Ensemble is a professional chamber orchestra and ensemble based in New York City. Dedicated to emerging composers and performers, Metropolis Ensemble has quickly established a reputation for presenting “new music played with the same kind of panache and bravura we usually experience only in performances of standard repertoire” (Esa-Pekka Salonen).

The dynamic ensemble, comprised of the finest young artists now performing, is led by Music Director Andrew Cyr. Cyr is a distinctive new voice in the growing contemporary classical music scene. His enthusiasm for connecting musicians and composers of the next generation to today’s audiences led him to create Metropolis Ensemble in 2006.

Metropolis Ensemble commissions, premieres and records new works from the freshest voices in classical composition, including Timothy Andres, David Bruce, Anna Clyne, Jakub Ciupinski, Avner Dorman, Ryan Francis, Vivian Fung, Ryan Gallagher, Erin Gee, Raymond Lustig, Ricardo Romaneiro, David Schiff, Adam Schoenberg, Cristina Spinei, and Michael Ward-Bergeman. Since its formation in 2006, Metropolis Ensemble has performed to capacity crowds and has premiered and commissioned over 24 new works.

Avner Dorman has quickly risen to become one of Israel’s most successful and renowned composers. At the age of 25, he became the youngest composer to win Israel’s prestigious Prime Minister’s Award and that same year he was awarded the Golden Feather Award from ACUM (the Israeli Society of Composers and Publishers). Since coming to the United States, Dorman has received several international awards from ASCAP, ACUM, and the Asian Composers League.

Dorman’s unique approach to rhythm and timbre has inspired some of the world’s leading conductors, including Zubin Mehta, Marin Alsop, Asher Fisch, and Simone Young to bring his music to international audiences in performances with The New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, and Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestras.

Dorman’s fresh, spontaneous style lends itself well to the screen and he has written for film, notably Nitzan Aviram’s award-winning film Son. His music is exclusively published by G. Schirmer, Inc. and is available on NAXOS, the world’s leading classical music label. Dorman holds a Doctorate from the Juilliard School.

The former Tower Records is located at 15 East 4th Street at Broadway. To RSVP for reserved press seating or to request a review copy of the CD please contact:

Nate Bachhuber
ph: 917.763.9396
e: press@metropolisensemble.org

Minnesota Public Radio: Concertos Review

Minnesota Public Radio: Concertos Review

Make no mistake, these pieces sound ‘new’, but they also sound fresh and friendly, and surprisingly ‘original’, despite the obvious derivations. Performances are breathtakingly fine, and if you pass by this album you’re missing out on a disarmingly satisfying production. Go for it!

PBS Thirteen: CD Release Party for Concertos

PBS Thirteen: CD Release Party for Concertos

The piece has a virtuosic mandolin part and an amalgam of styles including Middle Eastern harmonies, lots of minor seconds, fluttering tremolos, and string bits that occasionally sound like something from a Bernard Herrmann film score.

Our First Four Years in Review

Our First Four Years in Review

With the start of the new year, we want to pause a moment to reflect on the four years since Metropolis Ensemble’s founding in 2006.

Naxos Podcast and Artist Features

Naxos features Avner Dorman’s Concertos on their podcast, hosted by Raymond Bisha, highlighting the album’s liner notes and some great highlights from the recording itself. Listen to the podcast…

Naxos also features painter Joe Fig, whose artwork “Inka’s Floor” graces the cover of the album. Joe’s new book Inside the Painter’s Studio was published in 2009, and dives into his creative process as he explores the daily routines of other artists. Read the article…

Brad Balliett Named 2009-10 Youth Works Fellow

Metropolis Ensemble welcomes its 2009-10 Youth Works fellow, Brad Balliett. Over the next year, Brad will work with elementary students at PS11 in Manhattan to teach them about composition and music appreciation… which culminates in a concert featuring the students’ work. Brad is an accomplished composer, avid bassonnist, and active teaching artist. In addition to his work at PS11, he is part of Carnegie Hall’s The Academy, in residency at PS315 in Brooklyn.

Youth Works is made possible thanks to a generous grant from the van Otterloo Foundation.

Exclusive Members-Only Event

Show your support for Metropolis Ensemble and experience inspiring musical performances! If you become a member today, you’ll be invited to attend a private concert hosted by June Wu at her Upper West Side apartment (Friday, December 11 at 7pm). The concert will feature the popular “Composing and Cocktails” and “Music from Air” programs from our New Music 101 concert with composer Jakub Ciupinski and Metropolis Ensemble musicians. RSVP for the event now… You can help sustain the future of Metropolis Ensemble and the vitality of classical and contemporary music in our society by becoming a member today! Contributions are tax deductible and benefit the ensemble throughout the upcoming year. Membership includes:

  • one complimentary ticket for an upcoming concert

  • invitation to member events and private concerts

  • advanced ticket sales and discounts

  • listing in concert programs

Become a member now…

The Dreams of Vivian Fung

The Dreams of Vivian Fung

There’s a long tradition of composers finding inspiration in Balinese music, from Poulenc and Britten to Evan Ziporyn and Ingram Marshall.

Jakub Ciupinski and the Art of Repetition

Jakub Ciupinski and the Art of Repetition

“I absolutely love churches for their long reverb. Harmonic structures can only emerge through reverb or the listener’s memory.”

Erin Gee Finds Her Voice

Erin Gee Finds Her Voice

To hear her describe it in precise, almost scientific terms might lead one to believe that Erin is not her music’s best salesperson; that is, until she gets on stage.

Cristina Spinei in Constant Motion

Cristina Spinei in Constant Motion

For Cristina Spinei, writing music is inextricably linked to dance, her study of Brazilian folk music, and, at times, the sounds and rhythms of her commute on Metro-North railway.

New Sounds, New Ideas

New Sounds, New Ideas

With four completely different voices, the composers in our fall concert, REVERB, have summed up their thoughts on what new music can express.

Highlights from New Music 101

Highlights from New Music 101

Go behind-the-scenes and watch concert highlights and premieres from our latest interactive concert.

On the Menu…

On the Menu…

One of the highlights of our upcoming concert, New Music 101, is a segment we’re calling “Composing and Cocktails.”

Free MP3 Download from Jakub Ciupinski

To celebrate our upcoming concert, New Music 101: Intro to Electronica, Metropolis Ensemble and composer Jakub Ciupinski are delighted to offer the mp3 of an inspiring electro-acoustic work by Jakub. “The Architect’s Brother” premiered in 2006 at the Juilliard School’s Peter Jay Sharp Theatre accompanying the choreography of Adam Weinert. You can download it here, absolutely free, for a limited time.

The Architect’s Brother as performed by Vassilis Varvaresos (piano), Marko Pavlovic (celesta), Rachel Brandwein (harp), and Eugene Lifschitz (cello).

Download the mp3…

(right-click to download the mp3s, ctrl-click on a mac)

Upcoming Concerts in 2008-09

We’ve done a bit of spring cleaning around the Metropolis website in preparation for our 2009-2010 season, and we’re excited to announce six upcoming events:

Complete details about each program will be unveiled in due time. Be sure to RSVP for Glimpses on May 6 at the stunning Americas Society for an evening of music demonstration and wine tasting sponsored by Miro Cellars!