by Steve Schick

I have had the great privilege to play the music of Iannis Xenakis many hundreds of times over the last 35 years. The collaboration with ICE on Palimpsest, Echange, Akanthos and Omega has been one of the most satisfying and exciting of any of those performances.  The group is superb, dynamic and passionate. The extraordinary Tony Arnold is, well, extraordinary.  What she does is so engaged and exacting, she seems to re-write the rules of singing.  I think the MCA concert in Chicago will be mind-blowing!

Boston Herald original link 
March 20, 2009

With high-octane superstars like Renee Fleming, Peter Serkin and Murray Perahia coming to town this spring, Boston’s classical scene promises to please. But amid the star power, one event stands out: a long-overdue tribute to courageous composer Iannis Xenakis.

Name another composer who would take a commission from a ruthless dictator (the shah of Iran) and then go on to write a work dedicated to the man’s political prisoners. Who else would design a World’s Fair building by first writing a score? Xenakis moved easily from physics to game theory to architecture to computer music, but the 20th century was slow to recognize his influence or output. Next month’s concert, featuring the International Contemporary Ensemble as part of the Isabella Stewart Gardner’s Composer Portraits series, should start rectifying his neglect (April 16 at the Gardner Museum; $5-$23; 617-278-5156).

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For tickets and more information, visit the Gardner Museum’s website.