November 9, 2013 7:30pm
Frick Fine Arts Auditorium
$10 adults / $5 children
Trillium Ensemble kicks off its fourth season with Autumn Rhythms at Frick Fine Arts Auditorium on Saturday, November 9, 2013 at 7:30pm. Trillium Ensemble’s new flutist, Elise DePasquale, makes her debut with the group, performing trios by Maria Grenfell, Paul Schoenfield, Jennifer Higdon, and flute solo Air by Takemitsu. Trillium Ensemble will also premiere Whimsy #1 by Matthew Heap, which weaves together many familiar tunes in a self-described “childhood quilt.”
Jackson Pollock’s work Autumn Rhythms inspired Trillium Ensemble to tie art and music together and invite the audience to participate. The audience will receive a few art supplies to use during the performance. The trio will encourage the audience to express the performance visually, and connect to the music in a tangible way.
Elise DePasquale takes center stage to perform Air by Toru Takemitsu, the last published work by the Japanese composer (1995). Takemitsu creates a unique soundscape with his use of several extended techniques and melodic lines that alternate from fast and energetic sixteenth notes to long notes which fade away into nothing. These written silences are Takemitsu’s expression of “Ma” – a Japanese concept defined as open space, a gap, or a pause. DePasquale’s musical mastery is displayed in this hauntingly beautiful solo.
Rachael Stutzman performs Joan Tower’s Wings, a piece that explores the wide range and flexibility of the bass clarinet. Tower imagines a large bird flying high, gliding at times, looping and diving at other times. Wings opens softly and slowly, gains momentum and surges upwards, and ends with a dramatic, almost heavenly ascent.
Paul Schoenfeld’s virtuosic Sonatina for Flute, Clarinet and Piano closes the concert. The Carnegie Mellon University alum composed the piece for close friends, Sam and Thelma Hunter’s 50th anniversary. The personalities of the couple are represented with a Charleston and a Jig, accompanied by Schoenfeld’s signature “classical” rag, displaying pianist, Katie Palumbo’s dexterity on the keyboard.
Trillium Ensemble presents quality musical performances while creating a fun, accessible experience for audiences of all ages. Founded in 2010, Trillium has performed in venues throughout the Pittsburgh region, and has commissioned works by a number of young professional composers in the area. Email trillium.ensemble@gmail.com to reserve tickets!
Trillium Ensemble presents Autumn Rhythms
Saturday, November 9, 2013 7:30 pm
Frick Fine Arts Auditorium (Frick Fine Arts Building, Oakland, 15260)
$10 adults / $5 children (cash at the door)
Program
Maria Grenfell, Poems of a Bright Moon
Joan Tower, Wings
Matthew Heap, Whimsy #1
Jennifer Hidgon, Dash
Toru Takemitsu, Air
Paul Schoenfeld, Sontatina for Flute, Clarinet and Piano
Trillium Ensemble
Elise DePasquale, flute
Katie Palumbo, piano
Rachael Stutzman, clarinet
