Tag Archives: chapel performance space

Arts & Entertainment, Music

Composers Nat Evans and Leaha Villarreal Bring New Sounds to Wallingford’s Chapel

On March 29, new music blends with video art, literature, and drama at Wallingford’s Chapel Performance Space. Hosted by contemporary music collective The Box is Empty, this multimedia event features world premieres by two composers, local favorite Nat Evans and New York-based Leaha Maria Villarreal. Both are known for compositions that blend live acoustic music with other elements, from electronic and recorded sounds to video and spoken texts. For Saturday’s concert, the Evans and Villarreal will be joined by video artists Erin Elyse Burns and Rodrigo Valenzuela, whose work accompanies the musical performances.

Composer Leaha Maria Villarreal

Founded in 2011 by conductor Jeremiah Cawley, The Box is Empty provides a platform for composers to collaborate, share ideas, and present their work. The Box is Empty has produced several performances around Seattle, from a multi-composer showcase at the Century Ballroom to individual composer spotlights at the Chapel Performance Space. The Chapel’s intimate stage, a longtime hub for the local music and performance art community, provides an ideal setting for Saturday’s concert.

Currently pursing graduate studies in musical composition at New York University, Villarreal has developed a growing presence in New York’s burgeoning new music scene. She’s co-founder and artistic director of Hotel Elefant, a chamber ensemble dedicated to performing works by living composers. Villarreal’s compositions draw inspiration from literature and visual art, often combining acoustic and electronics elements. Saturday’s concert features several of her pieces for strings, including “The Bell for Waking/The Bell for Sleep“, premiered by the JACK Quartet in 2012.

Inspired by Samuel Beckett’s 1961 play Happy Days, “The Bell for Waking/The Bell for Sleep” is named for the mysterious tone that controls the daily routine of the play’s protagonist. Like many of Villarreal’s works, the piece reflects on notions of home, loss, and memory. Saturday’s performance of “The Bell for Waking/The Bell for Sleep” will be accompanied by a new video work by Erin Elyse Burns.

Composer Nat Evans (Photo: Erin Elyse Burns)
Composer Nat Evans (Photo: Erin Elyse Burns)

The natural world, particularly the ecological environment of the Pacific Northwest, plays a large role Evans’ compositions. Many of his works are written with specific locations in mind and are intended to be performed outdoors, in the settings that inspired their creation. Other pieces incorporate field recordings collected by Evans during his travels through the region’s wilderness areas.

At Saturday’s concert, Evans debuts “More Comfort”, created in collaboration with writer Chelsea Werner-Jatzke and a group of visual artists. The resulting multimedia composition explores the evolving relationship between technology and the individuals it connects, examining the ways that devices such as televisions and mobile phones are changing the fundamental nature of human communication. Evans’ work blends the sounds of a live chamber ensemble with field recordings, snippets of spoken text, and a series of video pieces by Rodrigo Valenzuela.

Saturday’s performance will be Evans’ last concert in Seattle for awhile. In late April, he embarks on a 5-month collaborative residency on the Pacific Crest Trail, which spans the West Coast from the Mexican border to Canada. During his journey, Evans plans to work on a new composition and make field recordings along different segments of the trail. As he travels up the West Coast, he’ll mail his recordings to fellow composers in California, Oregon, and Washington. These collaborators will each compose a musical response. Together with Evans’ piece, these compositions form a musical account of Evans’ journey and the diverse ecological habitats he encounters along the trail.

Anchored by the ongoing Wayward Music Series, the Chapel Performance Space hosts a diverse variety of performances and events each month. Other upcoming concerts include a program of water-inspired music by Doug Wieselman on April 3, and an April 11 appearance by the GRID ensemble, performing music from the silent film Metropolis.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

A Blissful Autumn Afternoon With the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra

Seattle Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra performs at Benaroya Hall’s Nordstrom Recital Hall in 2011 (Photo: UW)

The crisp air, rainless gray sky, and golden leaves spoke of a perfect autumn Saturday afternoon in the Wallingford neighborhood. Inside the Chapel Performance Space housed in the historic Good Shepherd Center, the atmosphere was cozy and warm. The intimate venue’s cathedral-style ceilings and wood-paneled walls provided an ideal setting for the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber Orchestra (SMCO) season opener concert, featuring a delightful program of music by Hector Berlioz and Igor Stravinsky.

Founded in 2009 by conductor Geoffrey Larson and a group of local performers, SMCO serves as an important resource for up-and-coming classical musicians. The orchestra is mostly comprised of young professionals in their 20s and early 30s, including many graduates from local universities like the University of Washington, Western Washington University, and Central Washington University. Performing with SMCO gives them the opportunity to tackle adventurous repertoire for smaller ensembles. Besides giving Seattle audiences a sneak peek into the future of local classical music, SMCO provides a chance to hear works by emerging composers alongside beloved gems.

SMCO Associate Conductor Kim Roy

Since 2012, Larson has shared conducting duties with Associate Conductor Kim Roy, who also works with the Seattle Rock Orchestra and directs the Snohomish County Music Project and the Westside Symphony. Roy took the podium for Saturday’s concert, bringing a clear, no-nonsense conducting style to the short program, which contrasted Berlioz’s Romantic orchestral song cycle Les nuits d’été (“Summer Nights”) with Stravinsky’s small ensemble work L’Histoire du soldat (“A Soldier’s Tale”).

The orchestra was joined by local mezzo-soprano Melissa Schiel for “Summer Nights.” Originally composed in 1841 for voice and piano, Berlioz arranged the work for orchestra and vocal soloist in 1856. Based on short poems by Théophile Gautier, the six songs represent the height of the 19th century Romantic Era in both poetry and music. Despite the cheerful title, the songs actually evoke a bit of dark spookiness, conjuring up imagery of faded roses, lost love, and ghostly apparitions. It’s a perfect work for the Halloween season.

After a few bumpy transitions between soloist and ensemble during Villanelle (“Pastoral Song”), the first song of the cycle, Schiel and the orchestra clicked in for the rest of the piece. Schiel’s captivating mezzo-soprano voice floated perfectly above the string-heavy ensemble, sounding both warm and deliciously live in the Chapel’s intimate, wood-filled space. As a soloist, Schiel is delightful to watch in action. Her tasteful, well-timed gestures and expressions added personality and charm to the performance.

Mezzo-soprano Melissa Schiel

Berlioz’s short songs are full of memorable musical moments. Especially effective were the dense string textures of the third song, Sur les lagunes (“On the lagoons”), which recalled images of a stormy sea. Schiel’s chilling refrain — “Ah! To go to sea without love!” — punctuated the layers of string sound, blending perfectly with a haunting horn call. Flutists Maggie Stapleton and Jessie Polin brought a sweet quality to their solo refrain in Au cimetière (“At the cemetery”), evoking the sound of a dove’s “morbidly tender melody” amidst the graves.

The final half of the program was devoted to another Halloween-appropriate work, Stravinsky’s “A Solider’s Tale.” This programmatic piece tells the story of a soldier who sells his soul to the devil in exchange for worldly riches. Written for an unusual 7-piece ensemble of violin, double bass, clarinet, bassoon, trumpet, trombone, and percussion, the work features signature Stravinsky characteristics, including overlapping rhythmic patterns, clashing harmonies, and meandering melodies. Stravinsky’s interest in different musical genres is apparent here, especially in a trio of dances that touch on tango, waltz, and ragtime.

SMCO’s performance of the fiendishly difficult piece was full of thrilling solo and ensemble playing. After mounting tension in the ironically-titled “Pastorale” movement, which had clarinetist Sabrina Pope and bassoonist Jamael Smith reaching to the very top of their ranges, bold performances by David Hall on trumpet and Sota Takagi on trombone strode to the forefront, especially during the energetic “Marche royale” movement.

Depicting the story’s wayward soldier, violinist Mitchell Drury brought a decidedly fiddle-like character to virtuosic passages that often had him sliding through unusual chords and harmonic progressions. Bassist Ross Gilliland and percussionist David Solomon brought a jazzy quality to many of the movements, especially during pizzicato sections in the bass. Despite occasional issues with balance which left me yearning to hear more from the woodwinds, the ensemble worked very well together, fused by Roy’s clear direction and a solid sense of momentum from bass and percussion.

Concerts like Saturday’s season opener demonstrate why SMCO is an ensemble to watch. Larson, Roy, and the orchestra combined inspired programming and an intimate concert setting with energetic performances from some of Seattle’s best young musicians, all in a bite-sized package (90 minutes including intermission) that’s inviting to families with children and newcomers to classical music.

There’s a lot to look forward to in SMCO’s upcoming season. February brings a program of chamber music, while June’s season finale features the winner of the SCMO’s composition competition, as well as the North American premiere of works by Alex Baranowski and Gabriel Prokofiev (grandson of Sergei Prokofiev).

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Arts & Entertainment, Music

What We’re Hearing This Month: Classical Music Picks for December

Need a break from holiday tunes? In December, when concert calendars are chock-full of seasonal events, it’s hard to avoid hearing yet another cheesy rendition of “Walking in a Winter Wonderland”. However, there are still many exciting performances out there for those seeking respite from holiday-themed entertainment or looking for more unusual seasonal fare. (If you’re a holiday music fan, don’t fear — we’ll post a special list of concert picks for you later this week). From hearty medieval carols to sensual tango melodies, there are plenty of unique ways to get festive at the concert hall this month.

Dec. 7 – 9 — The Esoterics chorus reprises SYBILLA, Frank Ferko’s settings of texts by 12th-century mystic Hildegard of Bingen, including a newly-composed world-premiere motet, O nobilissima viriditas. (A different church setting each night, so check location carefully.)

Last year’s performance of Phil Kline’s “Unsilent Night” in Edmonton, Alberta (Photo: Classical Music in Edmonton)

Dec. 10 — Head to Nordstrom Recital Hall for a trio of favorite piano sonatas. Legendary pianist Yefim Bronfman returns to Seattle for a solo recital, featuring sonatas by Haydn, Brahms, and Prokofiev.

Dec. 14 — The musicians of the Baltimore Consort present a festive program of seasonal music at Town Hall. This concert, hosted by the Early Music Guild, will feature a vast array of period instruments. Now’s your chance to see a crumhorn in action!

Dec. 16 — Vivaldi, Beethoven, J.S. Bach, and Vaughan Williams are on the program for Orchestra Seattle‘s “Winter Celebration” concert. Guest conductor Huw Edwards directs the ensemble for this performance at First Free Methodist Church in Queen Anne.

Dec. 21 — Grab your cellphone, MP3 player, or boombox and participate in this year’s performance of Phil Kline’s Unsilent Night, a piece that’s “written specifically to be heard outdoors in the month of December.” Presented by the Seattle Composers’ Salon, the event begins at Wallingford’s Chapel Performance Space and will flow out onto the streets of Seattle.

Dec. 22 — Earshot Jazz presents their 24th annual Sacred Music concert, featuring works by Duke Ellington. The Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra will be joined by the NW Chamber Chorus, guest vocalists, and a tap dancer for this performance at Town Hall.

Dec. 28 – 30 — Seattle Symphony‘s annual performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony has become a local holiday tradition. But this year, the orchestra’s adding a little Latin flavor to this beloved seasonal concert with Astor Piazzolla’s The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires, complete with tango dancers.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

Seattle Modern Orchestra Explores the Curious Musical World of John Cage

Twenty musicians scattered around the cavernous Chapel Performance Space, some holding instruments, others armed with cardboard boxes. Their performance began unassumingly, the quiet tapping of fingers on cardboard punctuated by occasional soft bleat from an instrument or two. After awhile, the musicians began to wander around the room, sometimes gathering around a conductor in small groups of two or three to perform a short scored passage. Meanwhile, the background soundtrack of cardboard tapping and instrumental noises continued, remaining a constant force throughout the performance.

John Cage and his cat

This performance of John Cage’s Etcetera is the sort of idiosyncratic musical event to be expected from the American composer. Even twenty years after his death, Cage’s music continues to inspire and challenge audiences. One of the most influential figures of the 20th century avant garde, Cage’s works remain fresh and relevant today, pushing us to expand our musical boundaries and encouraging us to experience sound in new ways. This year marks the hundredth anniversary of the composer’s birth, inspiring numerous “Cage Centennial” celebrations throughout the world. On November 9, the Seattle Modern Orchestra (SMO) presented a John Cage retrospective of their own, highlighting a variety of the composer’s works, from large ensemble works like Etcetera to smaller scale pieces for just three or four musicians.

The atmospheric Chapel Performance Space, located at the top of Wallingford’s historic Good Shepherd Center, provided an ideal setting for the evening’s sonic events to unfold. The room’s large open space and level floor enabled the musicians to wander among the audience and play from different parts of the room, lending an immersive atmosphere to the performance.

The highlight of the evening was a performance of Cage’s Concerto for Prepared Piano and Chamber Orchestra, featuring pianist and Cage scholar Stephen Drury. This meandering piece, completed in 1951, is one of most ambitious works Cage wrote for the prepared piano. The work eschews melody and harmony, favoring a loose rhythmic structure over which the piano and orchestra splatter seemingly-random blots of sound. The overall effect is sparse, enabling the listener to experience the blending of prepared piano and orchestral sounds. SMO founder and conductor Julia Tai maintained an effective balance between soloist and ensemble, highlighting Cage’s juxtaposition the prepared piano with the full range of the orchestra. Drury’s expert preparation of the piano followed Cage’s complex specifications, with metal screws, strips of fabric, and plastic pieces placed between the strings to alter the piano’s sound.

Two other representative works on the program were Cage’s Trio and Living Room Music. These short pieces, written for small ensembles, were performed by members of the Seattle Percussion Collective. Trio explores the variety of sounds that can be created by wood-block instruments. The ensemble’s performance of the whimsical Living Room Music was the most fun performance of the evening. This 1940 work, written for a quartet of musicians, requires the performers to create sounds with objects that can be found in a typical living room. SMO’s performance incorporated percussive sounds drummed on vases, books, tables, and a toy boat. During the movement “A Story”, the members of the quartet chanted snippets of phrases in a variety of rhythms, creating an effect that was reminiscent of contemporary spoken word poetry.

Cage’s admiration of the natural world was represented by the arduously-named piece, “But what about the noise of crumpling paper which he used to do in order to paint the series of ‘Papiers froissés’ or tearing up paper to make ‘Papiers déchirés?’ Arp was stimulated by water (sea, lake, and flowing waters like rivers), forests”. This introspective work, inspired by visual artist Jean Arp, was performed by several members of the Seattle Percussion Collective. From different posts around the room, each musician played a small collection of percussion instruments, including crumpling paper, pouring water, clacking rocks together, and tapping pots and pans. The overall effect was meditative and relaxing.

The evening’s performances were augmented by segments from John Cage: I Have Nothing to Say and I Am Saying It, a 1990 documentary about Cage’s life and works. SMO artistic directors Julia Tai and Jeremy Jolley provided additional commentary on the pieces on the program. This multimedia format was accessible, educational, and engaging for both newcomers and experienced Cage aficionados. As a retrospective, the event covered a lot of ground, presenting a wide spectrum of Cage’s compositional styles, guiding the audience on an exploration of the composer’s unique sonic world.

Arts & Entertainment, Music

What We’re Hearing This Month: Classical Music Picks for November

Seattle’s classical calendar is full of intriguing events in November, from musical comedy to Mahler 4. Experience recent developments in microtonality, celebrate the 100th anniversary of John Cage’s birth, and revel in the ethereal sounds of medieval chants. Explore something new this month!

Classical music comedy duo Igudesman & Joo (Photo: BR Public Relations)

Nov. 5 — In 2006, comedy duo Igudesman & Joo became an Internet sensation with their YouTube hit “Rachmaninoff Had Big Hands“. Next week, they’re bringing their signature blend of classical music and hilarious hijinks to Seattle for the first time. Catch this pair of world-class musicians at Town Hall, where they’ll perform their musical comedy show A Little Nightmare Music.

Nov. 7 — New Jersey-based Newband presents a program of microtonal works by composer Henry Partch at the University of Washington’s Meany Hall. The ensemble will perform on a collection of instruments invented by Partch, including the 31-tone zoomoozophone.

Nov. 8, 10-11 — Renowned composer John Adams conducts the Seattle Symphony in a performance of his Harmonielehre. Also on the program is Beethoven’s “Emperor” Piano Concerto, performed by notable young pianist Jonathan Biss.

Nov. 9 — Seattle Modern Orchestra presents a tribute to John Cage at the Good Shepherd Center’s Chapel Performance Space. The program features performances by SMO, Seattle Percussion Collective, and Cage specialist Stephen Drury. The evening will also include a multimedia presentation and documentary on Cage’s life.

Nov. 13 — Explore contemporary electro-acoustic chamber music at Cornish College of the Arts. Visiting ensembles the Living Earth Show and the Mobius Trio present a program of newly commissioned works.

Newband and the Harry Partch Instrument Collection (Photo: Newband)

Nov. 16 & 18 — Now in its fifteenth season, Music of Remembrance presents concerts and outreach events devoted to the memory of Holocaust musicians and composers. This month, they’ll perform Viktor Ullmann’s opera The Emperor of Atlantis, composed in 1943 at the Terezín concentration camp.

Nov. 17 — Dedicated to the performance of vocal music from the Byzantine and Slavic regions, Portland-based ensemble Cappella Romana presents a concert of medieval Latin hymns at the atmospheric St. James Cathedral. Famed French choral director Marcel Pérès will conduct the ensemble.

Nov. 29 & Dec. 1 — Seattle Symphony Music Director Ludovic Morlot takes on Mahler’s momentous Symphony No. 4, featuring soprano soloist Donatienne Michel-Dansac. Also on the program is Berg’s Violin Concerto, performed by up-and-coming young German violinist Veronika Eberle.

 

 

Arts & Entertainment, Music

What We’re Hearing This Month: Classical Music Picks for March

March is upon us, but it’s still blustery, rainy, and cold outside. Luckily, Seattle’s got plenty of live classical music to keep you warm while we all hunker down and wait for spring to arrive. Our picks for the month range from epic choral works to 20th century piano pieces. Experience chamber music in a cafe or hear a jazz trio perform Stravinsky. There’s something for everyone!

The Bad Plus (Photo: The Durham Herald-Sun)

Mar. 1 – 3 — Welcome the month of March with some modern dance. Limón Dance Company performs works by Latin American choreographers at University of Washington’s Meany Hall.

Mar. 9 — Head over the pond to Bellevue to Cafe Cesura, where members of the Parnassus Project and Classical Revolution present a free evening of French chamber music. Relax with a cup of coffee and enjoy live classical music in a casual setting.

Mar. 10  — Experience The Rite of Spring in an entirely new way. Experimental jazz trio The Bad Plus performs the score for Stravinsky’s revolutionary ballet at Tacoma’s Pantages Theater.

Mar. 10 — Four brand-new choral works by composers Mason Bates, Ted Hearne, Paul Crabtree, and The Esoterics‘ own Eric Banks at St. Joseph’s on Capitol Hill, featuring Bates’ Sirens (2009), a six-movement piece commissioned by Chanticleer that explores the seductive, mythical creatures from a variety of cultures.

Mar. 10 – 11 — St. James Cathedral provides a spectacular setting for Seattle Pro Musica‘s performance of  J. S. Bach’s masterpiece, the St. John Passion.

Mar. 14 — Support local composers! Choral Arts performs Pietá, a work by Seattle composer John Muehleisen, at St. Mark’s Cathedral.

Mar. 17 – 18 — Seattle Pianist Collective presents “End Times”, a program of piano works by Olivier Messiaen. The March 17 concert is at the Chapel Performance Space at the Good Shepherd Center. March 18’s performance is at the Seattle Asian Art Museum.

Stephen Stubbs, director of Pacific Musicworks (Photo: Berkshire Fine Arts)

Mar. 30 – 31 — Head to Daniels Recital Hall downtown for Pacific Musicworks‘ performance of Handel’s Il Triomfo del Tempo (“The Triumph of Time”), featuring four vocal soloists and a full Baroque orchestra.

Mar. 31 — Music Northwest celebrates Debussy’s birthday with a concert of the composer’s most celebrated chamber music works, held at Olympic Recital Hall on the South Seattle Community College campus.

Mar. 31 – Apr. 7 — Witness the talented cast of Seattle Opera Young Artists perform Donizetti’s Don Pasquale at University of Washington’s Meany Hall.