source file: m1424.txt Date: Fri, 22 May 1998 23:15:09 -0400 (EDT) Subject: Re: review of AFMM/May 7, 1998 From: Johnny Reinhard The first night was a real challenge because Sasha Bogdanowitsch's piece _Atom Turning in the Sun of Eternity_ involved a certain amount of distance between instruments, and his tempi are specific to his dance movements. As conductor, I used a silent metronome to give precise indication, trying not to get disoriented by the peculiarities of the spongy chapel sound. This piece takes the listener through several deep feelings in basic JI. It worked well, and Sasha performed with earnesty, energy, and a myriad of facial archetypes. Andrew Bolotowsky played the wooden flute beautifully. Then Virgil Moorefield scared everyone by playing ELECTRIC right up in the first row. During dress rehearsal, I did feel there was one spot that might be a bit TOO loud to and mentioned it to electric guitarist Evans Wohlforth, but the performance itself was amazingly well balance, and well within normal listening expectations...though it was certainly visually intimidating, what with a synthesizer, electric guitar, baritone saxophone, electric violin and electric cello... It was sharp post "Glenn Branca rock drummer", post-Princeton, post downtown sound color, inadvertently about a bug that entered the composer's ear during his composition time. It's exciting and wild. Next on the program, the eloquent John Schneider performed a panapoly of majestic solo guitar works. They were as pearls of sound in the old chapel of stone. He seemed to radiate while he played. The concert was in an hourglass form. The largest pieces were at the beginning and end of the concert with a mirror inverse emanating from the center. After intermission, violist Anastasia Solberg joined Schneider (well, that's the way he answers the phone...), and cellist Jennifer DeVore in _Fratres_ by Estonian composer Arvo Part, in a JI arrangement. Powerful, theatrically, it did distort intonationally, at times, which may have been amplified by the particular acoustics of the chapel. Definitely a powerful effect in the hall, with a raging fury erupting in kaleidescopic sound color. While the cellist droned, JS plucked whispered JI chords apace. In a solo viola work --Din Cinpuoi-- by Rumanian composer Violeta Dinescu, Anastasia Solberg took the listener through different sound landscapes, making the piece her own, often simulating a bagpipes character, as suggested by its title. It was intense, if lengthy for a solo. (Ah, the page turns, and tuning up, the bane of a microtonal concert.) Really virtuosically natural playing. During previous performance of the piece in Europe,the microtonal considerations were ignored by the player. The 18 players certainly had fun in my phantasmagorical venture Adam and Eve, Everyone I've heard from in the audience had a different main comment to make. The ratio of loud to soft was huge, more than I intentioned, but perhaps, even more effective for its psychological affect. Ron Kozak took a ballsy solo as the forbidden fruit on English horn, behind cellist David "the tree" Eggar. The dancing all seemed to work, but discussions on symolisms continue. I used the storyline to jumpstart improvisations that have a logical path to follow, with lots of variety and unexpected surprises. Got that. And it was fun. Johnny Reinhard Director American Festival of Microtonal Music 318 East 70th Street, Suite 5FW New York, New York 10021 USA (212)517-3550/fax (212) 517-5495 reinhard@idt.net http://www.echonyc.com/~jhhl/AFMM On Fri, 22 May 1998, Aline Surman wrote: > Just curious...usually, some of the East Coast guys post reviews of > gigs in their area. I didn't see a review of the AFMM May concerts (other > than the Times review)...how come? I'd like to see some > comments...Hstick >