George Lewis: Hearing Voices

These recent works by George Lewis for solo instrument, small ensembles and voice, with texts by some of the most audacious literary figures of our time – Fred Moten, Lyn Hejinian, and Sylvia Wynter – are part of the composer’s ongoing exploration of what decolonization might sound like. Performed by International Contemporary Ensemble

Program

Melodies for Miles (2022): violin solo
a whispered nine (2019): soprano, flute, guitar, viola, percussion
Apis (2019): baritone, clarinet/bass clarinet, trumpet, trombone
H.narrans (2020 / US Premiere): soprano, clarinet/bass clarinet, trumpet, percussion, violin, double bass
Creative Construction Set™ (2015): open instrumentation

PERFORMERS

Tony Arnold, soprano
Damian Norfleet, voice
Alice Teyssier, soprano/flute
Emmalie Tello, clarinet
Gareth Flowers, trumpet
Mike Lormand, trombone
Clara Warnaar, percussion
Dennis Sullivan, percussion
Oren Fader, guitar
Josh Modney, violin
Kyle Armbrust, viola
Lizzie Burns, bass
Nick Houfek, lighting designer

More Info Here

INTERNATIONAL CONTEMPORARY ENSEMBLE

With a commitment to cultivating a more curious and engaged society through music, the International Contemporary Ensemble – as a commissioner and performer at the highest level – amplifies creators whose work propels and challenges how music is made and experienced. The Ensemble’s 35 members are featured as soloists, chamber musicians, commissioners, and collaborators with the foremost musical artists of our time. Works by emerging composers have anchored the Ensemble’s programming since its founding in 2001, and the group’s recordings and digital platforms highlight the many voices that weave music’s present.

Described as “America’s foremost new-music group” (The New Yorker), the Ensemble has become a leading force in new music throughout the last 20 years, having premiered over 1,000 works and having been a vehicle for the workshop and performance of thousands of works by student composers across the U.S. The Ensemble’s composer-collaborators—many who were unknown at the time of their first Ensemble collaboration—have fundamentally shaped its creative ethos and have continued to highly visible and influential careers, including MacArthur Fellow Tyshawn Sorey; long-time Ensemble collaborator, founding member, and 2017 Pulitzer Prize-winner Du Yun; and the Ensemble’s founder, 2012 MacArthur Fellow, and first-ever flutist to win Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Prize, Claire Chase.

CREDITS

The International Contemporary Ensemble’s performances and commissioning activities during the 2023-24 concert season are made possible by the generous support of many individuals as well as the Mellon Foundation, Howard Gilman Foundation, Jerome Foundation, Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, Aaron Copland Fund for Music Inc., Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, Francis Goelet Charitable Lead Trusts, Amphion Foundation, The Cheswatyr Foundation, The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, Siemens Musikstiftung, New Music USA, Alice M. Ditson Fund of Columbia University, BMI Foundation, as well as public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, the New York State Council for the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature, the Illinois Arts Council Agency, and the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant (SVOG) from the U.S. Small Business Administration. Yamaha Artist Services New York is the exclusive piano provider for the International Contemporary Ensemble.