At every point in the disc, Fung has a strong sense of thematic control and structural overview that suggests more great things to come.
Joshua Kosman from the San Francisco Chronicle hails the new Metropolis Ensemble album, Dreamscapes, and its “welcome lyricism and grace.” Here’s an excerpt from his review:
“The year-old Violin Concerto that leads off the disc boasts a certain winsome charm, especially in the fluid performance of soloist Kristin Lee….the final Piano Concerto, in a powerhouse rendition featuring soloist Conor Hanick. Here at last is music of dramatic urgency and depth, in which Fung draws on ideas from gamelan while also adding plenty of her own original material – clangorous, dissonant harmonies, off-kilter rhythms and a sense of wild unpredictability.”
Here at last is music of dramatic urgency and depth, in which Fung draws on ideas from gamelan while also adding plenty of her own original material - clangorous, dissonant harmonies, off-kilter rhythms and a sense of wild unpredictability.
Dreamscapes, the new album from Metropolis Ensemble featuring the works of Vivian Fung, is already turning heads and getting airplay ahead of the formal Naxos release on September 25 (and the Metropolis CD launch event on October 1). Both local classical stations in New York City have included the new album in broadcasts this week. John Schaefer featured the recordings with its “clear inspiration or influence from Indonesian gamelan music” on WNYC’s New Sounds. And Olivia Giovetti introduced the album on WQXR’s The New Canon with the following review:
Two concertos dominate Dreamscapes, Vivian Fung’s new album on Naxos’s Canadian Classics series, and both demonstrate Fung’s prepossessing predilection for cross-cultural conversations. Her own Violin Concerto was written with a symbiosis similar to that of Salonen and Josefowicz’s, responding to Fung’s time spent in Bali with violinist Kristin Lee (the violin often resembles the Balinese gamelan). The Metropolis Ensemble, under Andrew Cyr, gave Fung’s Violin Concerto its world premiere last year and returns here for the recording, which also features Fung’s Piano Concerto, “Dreamscapes.” The study of contrasts is apt for an instrument that can juggle two musical lines at once, and here that honor falls to Q2 Music’s own Conor Hanick.
Send a request to your local classical radio station to get
played near you!
Chatting with composer Vivian Fung about her upcoming studio release with Metropolis Ensemble and finding her voice in the creative process.
All three of the works presented here are based on gamelan motifs and melodies giving the disc a wonderful continuity.
Fuse: Questlove’s Electrifying ‘Shuffle Culture’ Concert
“Questlove spent most of the 75-minute set sitting quietly behind his drum set, a pick sticking out of his Afro as his head swayed to the strings of the Metropolis Ensemble… the highlights were uniquely electrifying. Deerhoof’s fanciful noise-rock paired surprisingly well with orchestral strings.”
Village Voice: Questlove Puts The World On Shuffle At BAM
“On one level, the premise was anticipatory, predicting a future where concertgoers won’t have the time or patience for a low-concept, single-band show. On the other, one could see the evening’s roots: in the mixtape, the DJ set, the all-star benefit concert, the R&B revue. And it was this marriage of old and new—analog and digital—that permeated the night, a constant reminder that, as Q-Tip famously told his daddy, things go in cycles.”
Brooklyn Vegan: Questlove brought 'Shuffle Culture’ to BAM
“For all of the pre-show talk about iPods, much of the vibe seemed to echo the beginning of the previous century. Metropolis Ensemble and Jeremy Ellis, the two acts that did most of the heavy lifting, focused on material that captured the pop of a record needle, the static of the AM radio band and the warbly tempos of an antique turntable.”
Capital: Questlove’s Post-iPod Humanism Brings Brilliant Cross-Genre Shuffling to the Concert Hall
“Meantime, a double string quartet pulled from the ranks of the Metropolis Ensemble - whose contributions had been mostly marooned from the other musicians during the night, truly shuffled off to the side—draped some gorgeous pizzicato playing of few simple arpeggios over the top. The arrangement wasn’t overcrowded; everything felt magically in balance - and yet there was a sense of group improvisation at work.”
NY Daily News: Brooklyn Shuffle
“We wanted to take some of the old and some of the new music and create a unique experience. It’s always interesting to take musicians with different backgrounds and have them play music none of them are really familiar with.”
Wall Street Journal: Questlove Shuffles to Brooklyn
“Questlove will join a genre-busting assortment of his favorite performers to offer a kaleidoscopic peek at his own aesthetic shuffle mode: from Rahzel ("the human beatbox”) to indie-rock wild card Deerhoof, to actress/industrial rocker/former porn star Sasha Grey—all tied together by the strings of the Metropolis Ensemble.“
Village Voice: Questlove’s Quest
"To Questlove, the concept of Shuffle Culture is something to be both celebrated and critiqued. It’s an approach to life that allows us to consume more information than ever before but at a rate that doesn’t always provide us the time to appreciate that knowledge.”
Additional mentions:
Since 2006, Metropolis has encouraged creativity and self-expression through teaching composition to NYC students in our education program, Youth Works.
A review of Metropolis Ensemble’s performance at The Armory Show on March 7, 2012 by Art in America’s Paul David Young:
The program got off to a firm start on Wednesday at the VIP preview with an unusual composition by Icelandic artist Örn Alexander Ámundason, “Kreppa: A symphonic poem about the financial situation in Iceland,” superbly performed by the Metropolis Ensemble, a New York chamber orchestra that specializes in new music and contemporary composition. The result strangely and rather convincingly resembled a piece of early 12-tone music of the Viennese variety, perhaps because the human voice is naturally serial, repeating tonal patterns within a restricted range. Despite the method of its composition, the music held its own and seemed to tell a story, perhaps at least as intelligible as the verbal ones in circulation among most commentators. Ámundason chose his instruments with an ear for music and some humor. The double bass at the beginning, representing a controversial Icelandic politician, gave way to a succession of instruments, often playing at the same time though by no means the same notes. The chronological sequence ended with a ukulele, standing in for the openly lesbian prime minister elected in 2009, after the fall of the laissez-faire conservative government that had presided over the spectacular collapse of Iceland’s banks and financial system. The protestors, who came out in Iceland in force well before the Occupiers, are heard as a marimba, intoning with the clarity of bells the voices of the people in the streets. Artistic Director Andrew Cyr conducted the extremely able musicians of the Metropolis Ensemble.
[caption id=“attachment_861” align=“alignright” width=“150” caption=“June Wu, Metropolis board member and patron, at the Glimpses concert with Artistic Director Andrew Cyr.”][/caption] Last year, the June K. M. Wu Artists Fund was established to honor Metropolis Ensemble board member, June Wu, and her vision and passionate dedication to our young performing artists. The Fund helped Metropolis launch a new Resident Artist Series, supported two studio recordings at Tanglewood with NAXOS and Nonesuch Records, and continued our mission to emerge the next generation of outstanding composers and musicians. As Metropolis embarks on several exciting new projects supported by the Wu Artists Fund, including the creation of our own record label, launching new albums and concerts, and expanding the Resident Artist Series, we wanted to reflect on the past year through the eyes of some of the artists who benefited from these generous gifts. [caption id=“attachment_847” align=“alignright” width=“150” caption=“Timothy Andres - pianist and composer”][/caption] Timothy Andres: An Ambitious New Album
My work with Metropolis last year was a continuation of a scheme Andrew Cyr and I had been formulating since 2008. At first, it resulted in the concert Home Stretch in the spring of 2010; now it has evolved into the production of a CD. The album is centered around my piano concerto Home Stretch, bookended by my “re-composition” of Mozart’s Coronation concerto and my Paraphrase on Themes of Brian Eno, which were both Metropolis commissions. A recording is not just a concrete item to be sold, or a promotional tool, but an artifact of our musical culture at a specific time. These artifacts can be much more powerful than a one-off concert, which by nature has limited reach and duration. A recording is a commitment, a way of saying ‘this is what we feel most strongly about, and we need to share it as widely as possible’. The scope of this recording project is ambitious, especially for a group as young as Metropolis; recording an orchestra is simply a very time-consuming and expensive proposition. Such propositions are dependent on people like June Wu, who understands the importance of such projects, shares our ambitions, and helps both things come to fruition. I will always be grateful to June not just for helping me in my career, which is small in the scheme of things, but for helping my entire field.
[caption id=“attachment_848” align=“alignright” width=“150” caption=“Bridget Kibbey - harpist and composer”]
[/caption]
Bridget Kibbey: One Woman Tour-de-Force
Over the course of three years, I conceived a project entitled Music Box in which composers - all born abroad and recent immigrants to the United States and mostly living in New York City - wrote solo works for the harp based on folk music from their native country. Metropolis presented the project in January. It was a powerful personal journey, because it allowed me to showcase some of my own arrangements and explore multiple genres of harp-writing in a single evening. What was most helpful was working alongside Metropolis to give this project the “kick-off” the composers deserved. Many in the audience at each sold-out concert had never heard a full solo harp program. It was incredibly satisfying to perform these new fun, eclectic works for such enthusiastic guests. I also walked away from the concerts with high-definition video and fabulous audio to show other interested presenters. I’m happy to say that I will be presenting the project next season in other venues in the United States as a result!
[caption id=“attachment_849” align=“alignright” width=“150” caption=“Kristin Lee - violinist”]
[/caption]
Kristin Lee: From Bali to the Studio and Beyond
In 2010, I joined composer Vivian Fung on a trip to Bali to understand where her ideas came from in her music. It was remarkable to visit these communities filled with gamelan music and a tangible artistic energy. It gave me an entirely new perspective on living and breathing art every day. Vivian was inspired by our trip and wrote a new Violin Concerto that we premiered at Renderings last fall with Metropolis. From there, we recorded the work at Tanglewood with the extraordinary help of audio engineer Tim Martin and the whole Metropolis gang. Professionally it really means everything to have my first recording on a major label, NAXOS, which wouldn’t be possible without June’s help and the Fund. Premiering a concerto takes money to support the commission, book the beautiful concert space at Angel Orensanz Center, and bring in the audience. As a result, I performed Vivian’s cadenza on WQXR Cafe Concerts and Metropolis received a lot of publicity. It was a huge leap in every way. As a musician, this new work written specifically for me opened new doors for commission projects with other composers and the opportunity to build programs around innovative pieces. I’m looking forward to working with Andrew Cyr and Metropolis to produce new projects for the Resident Artist Series.
[caption id=“attachment_857” align=“alignright” width=“150” caption=“Conor Hanick - pianist”]
[/caption]
Conor Hanick: Teamwork and Remarkable Opportunity
In the past year, I premiered Ray Lustig’s beautiful vocal work Compose Thyself from Renderings, recorded works by Ryan Francis with the superlative Kristin Lee, and, perhaps most significantly, participated not only in Timothy Andres’ new recording on Nonesuch, but also recorded world premiere recordings of Vivian Fung’s Glimpses for prepared piano and her titanic piano concerto called Dreamscapes, both supported by the Wu Fund. I’m indebted to June for her generous and unparalleled support of Metropolis. These remarkable projects simply wouldn’t happen without her, and it’s hard to adequately thank her for giving us such remarkable opportunities through the Fund. Metropolis Ensemble afforded me some of the most extraordinary and artistically rewarding experiences of my career. It’s touching to be offered opportunities like this and hard to overstate what a privilege its been to be associated with the ensemble. Vivian’s recording is a great example: it’s a professional boon to having a widely-released commercial recording of such high quality. I am humbled to be listed alongside Andrew, Vivian, Kristin, and others. These were experiences that for me will continue to inform my musical activities and serve as benchmarks for artistic quality.
Metropolis Ensemble artists performing on Opening Day (March 7, 2012, 2pm and 3:30pm, at Pier 94) at The Armory Show this week, presenting the U.S. premiere of Icelandic artist Örn Alexander Ámundason’sKreppa. The work is a “symphonic poem” that explores the question: “what does a financial collapse sound like?” Ámundason, who has explored what happens when politics are transformed into music, has identified thirteen main protagonists, given each of them an instrument and transformed their voices into a music score. [caption id=“attachment_840” align=“alignright” width=“250” caption=“Örn Alexander Ámundason”][/caption]The Armory Show is the cornerstone of the art community in New York City, an adventurous contemporary art fair with an international roster of galleries, performances, and programs. This year’s event features a focus on the vibrant art of the Nordic Countries, including a conversation with the artist Björk and select galleries from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland. Get directions to the show… Ámundason was born in Reykjavík, Iceland in 1984, and has explored what happens when politics are transformed into music. Some of his works refer to a tense social or political context but even more importantly to the probably irresolvable difficulties of ‘true’ translation. He’s had exhibitions at the Göteborgs International Biennial for Contemporary Art in Sweden, Brandenburgischen Kunstverein in Germany, Sudsudvestur in Iceland, and Galleri F-15 in Norway. Kreppa marks his first commission for orchestra. Ámundason explains the work:
In October 2008 a financial crisis hit Iceland. Three of the major banks went bankrupt and the Icelandic crown lost about half its value. The story of the crisis can be traced back to 1984 when the government issued a fishing quota system, through the privatization of the three major banks in 2000 and finally to the recent financial crash in 2008. It’s a story of greed, revenge, arrogance and poor political decisions. In Kreppa, I transpose words and speeches from politicians, investors, protesters, banks & the media, all involved with the financial crisis into musical notes. I collected material from various medias, radio interviews with politicians, TV shows about the Icelandic investors and so forth. Having no experience of writing musical notes I used a computer program that altered the voices of these people into musical transcripts. Investors are transformed into woodwinds, which have cultural references to the snake charmer that hypnotizes cobras often using a wind instrument, as well as the Pied Piper of Hamelin who lured 130 boys and girls from their hometown. The politicians’ voices became string instruments, a reference to Nero, who is said to have played the fiddle while he watched Rome burn to the ground. Banks and press became brass music, which has a specific role in history, as the world’s first adverts were simply people yelling announcements through a speaking trumpet. Protesters become percussion, which were likely the first musical devices ever created and are often referred to as “the backbone” or “the heartbeat” of a musical ensemble.
Metropolis has a great lineup of musicians appearing in the concert: Double Bass: Doug Balliett Cello: Brook Speltz Viola: Wei-Yang Andy Lin Violin: Emily Smith Ukulele: Matthew Slotkin Clarinet: Carlos Cordeiro Flute: Lance Suzuki Flute: Steven Kim Recorder: Priscilla Smith French Horn: Wei-Ping Chou Tuba: Ibanda Ruhumbika Trombone: Steve Dunn Marimba: Britton Matthews Conductor: Andrew Cyr
Kreppa
is generously sponsored by Stund styrktarsjóður and the Icelandic Art Center. Metropolis Ensemble’s performance is generously sponsored by Robert Bielecki and Fast Orbit.
Harpist Bridget Kibbey had a concept for a concert: to celebrate the diverse and colorful cultures that make up the American musical fabric.
Violinist Sean Lee talks to Metropolis about his critically-acclaimed new release with EMI Classics and The Juilliard School.
Kicking Up Dust from Metropolis Ensemble on Vimeo.
Michael Ward-Bergeman’s Kicking Up Dust, performed on January 28, 2009 at Le Poisson Rouge in New York City. Featuring Paul Clifford on freedom boot and the Metropolis Ensemble led by conductor Andrew Cyr. Video by Gareth Paul Cox and Kyrié Cox; sound by Ryan Streber.
[caption id=“attachment_801” align=“alignright” width=“230” caption=“Akimi Fukuhara”][/caption] Metropolis pianist Akimi Fukuhara recently gave the world premiere of Ryan Francis's Tri Cantae in Tokyo. Akimi is quickly becoming a truly international artist. Dividing her time between New York, San Francisco, and Tokyo, she has set a clear goal for herself: “My hope as an artist is to become a ‘bridge’ between the artistic communities in the U.S. and Japan.” Part of encouraging dialogue between her native Japan and the U.S. has its roots in her interest in contemporary music. “The connections between music, politics and culture are very fascinating to me; working with living composers has been an incredible way to create dialogue between different musical communities.” Among her numerous performances over the past several years, her strong advocacy of Metropolis composer Ryan Francis’s music in Japan stands out. Fukuhara and Francis have been friends and colleagues for the better part of a decade, and she has been actively championing his compositions in Japan since 2009. One such work she gave the Japanese premiere of is Francis's Wind-Up Bird Preludes. Francis’s set of preludes was actually inspired by the novel The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami, one of Japan’s most preeminent writers, who has become one of the most internationally recognized authors alive today. Although the Wind-Up Bird Preludes were completed in 2009, it took Fukuhara’s dedication to Francis’s music to bring the new work to a Japanese audience. Fukuhara even took steps to reach out to Murakami himself about the piece, and received an enthusiastic acknowledgement.
“It is really liberating to work on Francis’s music. It has taken me beyond my background of generally standard repertoire, and for Japanese audiences, hearing American new music just fresh off the page from New York is really unusual! It is especially encouraging that younger audiences I have played for are responding to contemporary music like his.”
[caption id=“attachment_803” align=“alignright” width=“300” caption=“Akimi performing in Sumida Triphony Hall.”]
[/caption] This shared interest of her and her audience in Japan ultimately lead her to commission an entirely new piece by Francis for her latest recital in Japan. This past December, she gave the world premiere Francis’s newest piano work,
Tri Cantae
in Sumida Triphony Hall, Tokyo. Listen to the performance: [wpaudio url=“http://metropolisensemble.org/media/afukuhara_tricantae.mp3” text=“Ryan Francis - Tri Cantae”]
“Playing Tri Cantae is like a meditation, and it requires a deep calmness and a great sense of space for its effect to come across. The whole piece consists of three voices spread across the entire range of the piano, but I wanted to play it without moving my upper body at all. The piece gave me a whole new perspective about pianistic sound, and it was really challenging to find a way of expressing each line in the piece.”
Fukuhara’s performance schedule is not exclusive to Japan however, and the Metropolis Ensemble community counts itself lucky to have had occasion to work with her. You might recognize her from her most recent appearance with the group during their appearance on last year’s
. Hopefully her busy schedule will bring her rare artistry back to New York again soon!
Bach and Ryan Francis: Sillage from Metropolis Ensemble on Vimeo.
Bach and Ryan Francis: Sillage, featuring Kristin Lee on violin and Conor Hanick on piano. Performed on February 14, 2010 at Le Poisson Rouge in New York City. This was part of Love Letter to Haiti, a Valentine’s Day benefit concert for Partners in Health, organized by Metropolis Ensemble and artistic director Andrew Cyr. Video by Gareth Paul Cox and Kyrie Cox; sound by Ryan Streber.
Tallis: If Ye Love Me from Metropolis Ensemble on Vimeo.
The world premiere of Thomas Tallis: If Ye Love Me (arranged by David Bruce), featuring Metropolis Ensemble and Friends, Kristin Lee on solo violin. Performed on February 14, 2010 at Le Poisson Rouge in New York City. This was part of Love Letter to Haiti, a Valentine’s Day benefit concert for Partners in Health, organized by Metropolis Ensemble and artistic director Andrew Cyr. Video by Gareth Paul Cox and Kyrie Cox; sound by Ryan Streber.
Metropolis Ensemble features first class performers and Bridget Kibbey is no exception. It was such a treat not only to hear her play, but to get an insight into her sources of inspiration and her creative/collaborative process.
Concerto in A - 1st Movement from Metropolis Ensemble on Vimeo.
American premiere of Avner Dorman’s Concerto in A for Solo Piano and String Orchestra (1995), performed on October 11, 2007 at the Angel Orensanz Center in New York City. Featuring Eliran Avni (piano) and the Metropolis Ensemble led by conductor Andrew Cyr. Video by Timothy Bakland; sound by Nils van Otterloo.
Sports et Divertissements - Tennis from Metropolis Ensemble on Vimeo.
Erik Satie’s Sports et Divertissements (1914) arranged for chamber orchestra by David Bruce, performed on April 10, 2008 at The Times Center in New York City. Featuring Mike Daisey (narrator), and the Metropolis Ensemble led by conductor Andrew Cyr. Video by Timothy Bakland; sound by Ryan Streber.