About the Show
Eric Moe has been a friend of counter)induction since about forever. He’s also a seriously legit pianist (not always true with composers.) So, I thought we could share a program with him. c)i is playing three newer works by Eric, What Instruments We Have Agree (also written for c)i)), Uncanny Affable Machines (commissioned by our violist Jessica Meyer), and the New York premiere of Welcome to Phase Space. Eric will perform three works of my choosing: some preludes by Ruth Crawford Seeger, Sofia Gubaidulina’s Chaconne, and a piece I have written for him, called Shards from an Amphora Depicting the Goddess Athena at War.
-Kyle Bartlett
About the Artists
COUNTER)INDUCTION
Renowned for virtuosic performances and daring programming, the composer/performer collective COUNTER)INDUCTION has established itself as the touchstone of excellence in contemporary music. In the words of Mario Davidovsky, “With stunning virtuosity, committed, generous musicality, and intellectual depth, COUNTER)INDUCTION consistently presents brilliantly the music of our time, rendering a very distinguished service to our community. With very imaginative, broad based and challenging programming the group has gained top ranking amongst our premier contemporary music presenters.” Focused by its mission to provide world-class performances and fresh, thought-provoking repertoire, c)i celebrates the diversity of contemporary music with an aesthetic unbounded by convention.
Kyle Bartlett
KYLE BARTLETT earned a Bachelor’s Diploma in flute performance from the Longy School of Music, and received her PhD in composition from the University of Pennsylvania. Her works have been performed across the US, including at Weill Hall, the MATA Festival (New York), the Boston Conservatory New Music Week, and in Europe, notably in numerous performances by the German ensemble E-MEX and the Belgian ensemble Champ d’Action. Commissions include works for Network for New Music, Concert Artists Guild, the American Philosophical Society Museum, and the Orpheus Institute (Belgium).
Douglas Boyce
Recently awarded a Fromm Commission, DOUGLAS BOYCE writes chamber music that bridges the medieval and the modern, the visceral and the cerebral. Regarding his Book of Songs (2006), the Washington Post wrote “[they] can only be described as drop-dead beautiful… extraordinarily well written and insightful.” His works have been recorded on Capstone and New Dynamic Records. He holds degrees from Williams College, the University of Oregon, and the University of Pennsylvania, and is Associate Professor of Music at the George Washington University in Washington, DC.
Miranda Cuckson
Downbeat magazine recently wrote that violinist MIRANDA CUCKSON “reaffirms her standing as one of the most sensitive and electric interpreters of new music.” Praised for her “undeniable musicality” (New York Times), among her nine lauded solo/duo records are works by Nono (a NYTimes Best Recording of 2012), Shapey, Hersch, Eckardt, Haas, Xenakis and more. She is the founder/director of Nunc, and she studied at The Juilliard School, where she received her doctorate. Miranda is on the faculty at Mannes College: the New School for Music.
Benjamin Fingland
BENJAMIN FINGLAND interprets a diverse range of clarinet literature with performances capturing “spiritedness and humor”, “unflagging precision and energy”, and playing described as “something magical” (The Boston Globe). He works closely with living composers, and plays with many of the leading contemporary performance ensembles on the East Coast – including the International Contemporary Ensemble, Philadelphia’s Network for New Music, the New York New Music Ensemble, Ensemble 21, the Argento Chamber Ensemble, the American Modern Ensemble and Sequitur. He holds a Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degree from The Juilliard School.
Jessica Meyer
JESSICA MEYER, violist, known for her “polish, focus, and excitement” and “expressive, luscious sound” (The New York Times), is a versatile performer and composer who has been featured as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player throughout the world. Equally at home with many other styles of music, Jessica can regularly be seen performing on Baroque viola, improvising with jazz musicians, or collaborating with other performer/composers like bandoneonist JP Jofre in his Hard Tango Chamber Band. She holds Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School.
Karen Ouzounian
Described as “radiant” and “expressive” (The New York Times) and “nothing less than gorgeous” (Memphis Commercial Appeal), cellist KAREN OUZOUNIAN approaches music-making with a deeply communicative and passionate spirit. She is a founding member of the Aizuri Quartet, formerly the string quartet-in-residence at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, and an active member of the Silk Road Ensemble. She holds Master of Music and Bachelor of Music degrees from The Juilliard School, where she was a student of Timothy Eddy.
Ning Yu
Praised for her “taut and impassioned performance” by the New York Times, pianist NING YU performs with vigor and dedication for traditional and avant-garde repertoire of the 20th and 21st century on stages across the United States, Europe and Asia. Ning has worked with esteemed composers including Steve Reich, Terry Riley, David Lang, Michael Gordon, Enno Poppe, and has given dozens of premieres worldwide. Ning is a graduate of the Eastman School of Music and Stony Brook University. A native of China, she currently lives in Washington, DC.
Ryan Streber
RYAN STREBER is a composer and audio engineer based in New York City whose works have been performed in the United States and abroad by artists and ensembles such as The American Composers Orchestra, The Lucerne Percussion Group, The Juilliard Orchestra, The New Juilliard Ensemble, Flexible Music, Line C3 Percussion Quartet, ACME, Boston Conservatory, Gemini Youth Orchestra, and many others. Ryan’s record Concentric was released in 2014 on New Focus Recordings. In addition to composing, Ryan is co-owner of Oktaven Audio, a recording studio in Yonkers, NY.
Eric Moe
ERIC MOE, composer of what the NY Times calls “music of winning exuberance”, has received numerous grants and awards for his work. His ten solo records include Strange Exclaiming Music, on Naxos, described by Fanfare magazine as “wonderfully inventive, often joyful, occasionally melancholy, highly rhythmic, frequently irreverent, absolutely eclectic, and always high-octane music.” Active as a pianist, he has recorded the works of thirty composers. Moe studied composition at Princeton University and at the University of California at Berkeley. He is currently the Andrew W. Mellon Professor of Music at the University of Pittsburgh. <ericmoe.net>