"Superb instrumentalists at work and play." The New York Times
The Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP), the premier new music orchestra in the country, is proud to launch its 2006-07 10th Anniversary season with one powerful concert Friday, November 3, at 8:00pm at New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall (30 Gainsborough Street). This celebratory evening features six orchestral works including two Boston premieres by four contemporary composers featuring BMOP's new Composer-in-Residence Lisa Bielawa. Led by Artistic Director and Conductor Gil Rose, BMOP continues its dedication to exclusively commissioning, performing and recording new music of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.
Known for her literary and phenomenological nature of music-making, composer-vocalist Lisa Bielawa brings her Roam (2001), written at the Copland House, and her unfinish'd, sent (2002) with Lisa as soprano soloist. Known for creating a global language all his own, composer/performer Derek Bermel presents Thracian Echoes (2002), a complex, sophisticated orchestration of Bulgarian rhythms and melodies scored for large orchestra. According to Artistic Director Gil Rose, these two Yale colleagues compliment each other well. "Lisa and Derek are still in the early stages of their careers. It is a pleasure to prepare works that have the potential to become part of the orchestral canon." Other highlights include High Bridge: Prelude for Orchestra by New York-based composer Charles Fussell; derived from the writings of Hart Crane, Fussell's High Bridge for Chorus and Orchestra received widespread acclaim after the premiere in its entirety in 2003. Composer Jacob Druckman is known for incorporating dramatic gestures and rhythmic drive into his compositions. BMOP's program features two of his later works: Nor Spell Nor Charm (1990) and Quickening Pulse (1988). BMOP is thrilled to feature such significant contributors to new music. "It is very rewarding to work on a concert that includes a diverse group of four talented composers whose careers span two generations, and it's reassuring to know that talented composers are still writing for orchestras," says Rose. On November 6, BMOP will record the complete program at Mechanics Hall (Worcester, MA) for four world premiere commercial recordings featuring the orchestral music of Bielawa, Bermel, Fussell, and Druckman. This concert provides a taste of what to expect from BMOP for the upcoming season.
"After 10 years, 50 concerts, 40 world premieres, and 13 recordings, such an exciting season and future make all the work seem very worthwhile. We are looking forward to celebrating this milestone with some of the world's best composers and soloists. This season really gives us a chance to show everyone what we are about," says Rose. The 2006-07 season includes seven orchestral performances. Highlights include the world premiere performances of new works by Betsy Jolas, Michael Gandolfi, Eric Sawyer, and Evan Ziporyn, and the North American premiere of Steven Mackey's Dreamhouse with soloist Rinde Eckert. In addition to BMOP's appearance on the Bank of America Celebrity Series, Amherst College will present BMOP in a concert performance of Eric Sawyer's new opera Our American Cousin. Over the course of the season, BMOP will record 14 works for world premiere commercial releases, including three complete CDs.
BMOP's season opening event launches Lisa Bielawa's three-year residency with BMOP as one of the six orchestras nationwide to be awarded an extended Music Alive residency, a program of Meet the Composer and the American Symphony Orchestra League. During her residency, Bielawa will write two new works for BMOP, including a double violin concerto, host BMOP's pre-concert talks, curate the popular Club Concerts series, and mentor young composers in local high schools and colleges. Drawing from her role as Co-Director of the New York-based MATA Festival, Bielawa will organize a BMOP/MATA young composers contest and concert for BMOP's 2007-08 season. "This opportunity to work closely with Gil, develop new work with the players and immerse myself in the community will undoubtedly ensure a vital, richly fulfilling three years of music-making," exclaims Bielawa.
The Boston Modern Orchestra Project has had an outstanding reputation amongst Boston's most innovative and performing arts organizations for attracting multi-generational audiences and providing thematic, diversified programming, and a national reputation for performing and recording new orchestral music at the highest level. Founded in 1996 by Artistic Director Gil Rose, the Boston Modern Orchestra Project strives to illuminate the connections that exist between contemporary music and contemporary society by reuniting composers and audiences in a shared concert experience. In just 10 years, BMOP has received eight ASCAP Awards for Adventurous Programming of Orchestral Music, and at the 2006 American Symphony Orchestra League conference BMOP received the prestigious John S. Edwards Award for Strongest Commitment to New American Music. BMOP has appeared at the Bank of America Celebrity Series, the Boston Cyberarts Festival, Tanglewood, the Festival of New American Music (Sacramento, CA), and Music on the Edge (Pittsburgh, PA). In Boston BMOP performs at Jordan Hall and Symphony Hall, and has performed in New York at Miller Theater, the Winter Garden, and Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. BMOP recordings are available from Albany, New World, Naxos, Arsis, Oxingale, and Chandos, and are regularly reviewed by national and international publications including The New York Times (Best CDs of 2003), The Chicago Tribune (Best CDs of 2004), Gramophone, Fanfare, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Time Out New York (Best CDs of 2004), The Boston Globe (Best CDs of 2003), Paris Transatlantic Monthly, LA Weekly, Opera Now, BBC Music, and American Record Guide. BMOP is generously supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, Meet the Composer and other private foundations, and individuals.
Gil Rose, Artistic Director, Founder, and Conductor for BMOP, is recognized as one of a new generation of American conductors shaping the future of classical music. Since 2003, Rose has served as Music Director of Opera Boston, launching the much-celebrated Opera Unlimited, a ten-day contemporary opera festival performed with BMOP. He was recently chosen as the "Best Conductor of 2003" by Opera Online. The Boston Globe claims he "is some kind of genius; his concerts are wildly entertaining, intellectually rigorous, and meaningful."
Lisa Bielawa is a New York-based composer-vocalist and enthusiastic advocate for new music, and the new Composer-in-Residence for BMOP starting October 2006. Bielawa currently serves on the Board of the American Music Center and teaches composition through the New York Youth Symphony Making Score program. She is also one of the founders and co-directors of the MATA festival, which was New York Times reviewer Allan Kozinn's #1 Classical Pick of the Year. In the works is her piece for migrating ensembles and soprano Susan Narucki for performance in public spaces, a multi-year project of Creative Capital.
Ticket Information:
Tickets range from $21 - $42 for the November 3rd concert at Jordan Hall. Special pricing for students $10. Seniors receive a 10% discount. For tickets, call BMOP at 617.363.0396 or visit www.bmop.org. Tickets are also available for sale at the Jordan Hall Box Office three weeks before the concert and at the door, subject to availability.