source file: m1425.txt Date: Sat, 23 May 1998 11:32:10 -0400 (EDT) Subject: Re: review/AFMM/May 8, 1998 From: Johnny Reinhard To open the second of 2 AFMM concerts, Don Conreaux, New York's resident gongmaster, put together a ritualistic work _Gong Elegy-Author Unknown_, to grand effect. David Smith was the white-clad, powerful baritone that chanted "I am not dead" and "Do not weep at my grave, I am not there." Pairs of conch shells and didjeridoos, abetted by the shofar and my responsorial bassoon playing, added to further by bass flute and cello, and Tibetan bowls & tiny interval bells, made for a mysterious piece. For the first time ever, the concert started at exactly 8:00 p.m. for the audience hushed perceptibly at that time. The bassoon played the role of the traveller, moving throughout the hall to play intimately with the various players. The sound was confident and often scintilating. Rebecca Pechefsky then performed 5 distinct Prelude and Fugues on her rich harpsichord, chosen from both books of the Well-Tempered Clavier, but tuned to Werckmeister III. The keys were chosen to reflect the greatest diversity of intervallic difference from key to key, major and minor, as well as choosing aesthetically for musical interest in general. Ah, more examples for my Bach Christmas show. Tapes are better acoustically than my memory of the sound in the hall. James Tenney's _Spectrum II_ for alto flute (Andrew Bolotowsky), English horn (Ron Kozak), Greg Evans (French horn), Michiyo Suzuki (bass clarinet), and Johnny Reinhard (bassoon) was a right-brain style JI composition. It sounds ever more beautiful as a recording when you step away from it a bit. It was timed at 15 minutes, but we gave it an extra minute, unintentionally. It was played from score and well-balanced thanks to the idea of placing the French horn under the dome of the chapel, which is notorious for cutting the sound therein produced. It was very sensitively played, perhaps too much so for the beginning of the piece. Though completely written, it has the improv's need to get going before it really swings. After intermission, Howard Rovics charmed with the debut of his _Cozenage_ (which has to do with family deception, in this case a synthesized quartertone marimba sound along a genuine marimba). Howard spent much of his sabattical from C.W. Post College composing this first quartertonal quartet for the AFMM. Flutist Andrew Bolotwosky, bassoonist Johnny Reinhard and marimba player Judith Hirschman, joined the composer on synthesizer for a 3-movement neo-classical romp in quartertone tunefulness. Difficulty in real-time listening in the hall was a drawback in the fast last movement, so the written out swirl of sound REALLY swirled. In a fantasy come true, I had the opportunity to intone _December 1942_ by Harry Partch with John Schneider playing an exact replica of the original Harry Partch instrument. It's tougher to catch pitch off of it (compared to the PITCH recording I did with Bradford Catler on electric slide guitar). But it was worth it, but only after 3 rehearsals together. Withough any amplification, we matched and warmed, even on such topics as death, unrequited love, and general despair. Schneider had performed the work in toto in LA a few weeks earlier and he generously agreed to collaborate in the duo performance. With full focus on the guitar part, no dynamic, rhythmic, and timbral attention could be given to good effect. _Sleeping Beauty_ featuring composer/guitarist Jon Catler was the dessert at the end of the Micro-Mystery Tour. Skip La Plante played dulcimer on 2 amplifying styrofoam boxes, bringing out rhythms for fretless, and then 13-limit guitar riffing. This is one of Jon's most fully composed works. The 2 bassoons, introducing Young Ling Chang of Taiwan, more recently from NYU, blended their Puchner instruments into delicious harmonies that oftimes doubled a loud undertone line, produced purely by upper string guitar work. Jon held court with his playing and the ensemble balanced into the programatic description of the tough time of the classic story. There's a bit of blues and jazz in this piece, though it is stylistically in a very special place. So, perhaps was the entire series. 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 >