Pittsburgh New Music Net

The Eclectic Laboratory Chamber Orchestra (E.L.C.O.) will be appearing at the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s Gallery Crawl this Friday, January 25th. E.L.C.O is a grassroots ensemble of emerging musicians dedicated to presenting new music, new interpretations of the standard classical repertoire, and transcriptions of pop and rock songs. True to form, E.L.C.O. will be presenting a varied program, including two songs from singer-songwriter Beck’s recent sheet music-only release, “The Song Reader,” a song by German cabaret master Kurt Weill, and a work by minimalist pioneer Frederic Rzewski.  The two Beck songs, Saint Dude (take a listen in the video above) and Old Shanghai will feature singer Anna Elder. The Kurt Weill selection, “Surabaya Johnny” features singer Rebecca Covert.  The Rzewski piece, Les moutons de Panurge is a classic of the early minimalist movement that explores ideas of freedom and individuality within a context of collaboration.

You’ll find E.L.C.O on the fourth floor of the Trust Arts Education Center at 6:15, 7:15 or 8:15 p.m. For more info on the Gallery Crawl, check out the schedule here.

The Union Project
Tickets: General Admission: $10/$5 students (Suggested Donation)
Cash accepted at the door the evening of the performance.

ELCO presents a multi-media, musical celebration of the music of John Cage with a healthy dose of absurdist theatre.

The Eclectic Laboratory Chamber Orchestra seeks to tear down distinctions of genre and demolish preconceived notions about music by presenting a repertoire spanning from the Middle Ages to present day, placing emphasis on classical, modern classical, and pop music

ELCO utilizes the medium of the chamber orchestra to explore connections between diverse musical genres and traditions, promoting a broad range of repertoire, including modern classical music, new interpretations of older classical works, and rock and pop compositions. The core ELCO ensemble consists of young professional orchestral musicians collaborating with up-and-coming opera and rock vocalists.

Here’s a great write-up of recent performances by Eclectic Laboratory Chamber Orchestra and OvreArts by dance critic Jane Vranish!

http://pittsburghcrosscurrents.com/2012/09/22/on-stage-young-guns/

Future Tenant Art Space
Tickets: $5 at the door

Eclectic Laboratory Chamber Orchestra’s Summer of Awesomeness continues with an interdisciplinary work created by ELCO, Shana Simmons Dance, and videographer Casey Hallas.  Featuring original choreography by Simmons, video design by Hallas, and original music by ELCO Artistic Director David Matthews, along with work by other composers, the performance will use the intimate environment of Future Tenant, with dancers and musicians surrounding the audience, to explore space as an essential act of composition.

July flees away, and along with it, the 2012 Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble season. PNME’s final concert, “To the Earth,” will feature Rzewski’s work by the same title with Cage’s 4’33″ and Crumb’s Idyll for the Misbegotten, all anchored by Messiaen’s classic Quartet for the End of Time. the last concert is tonight in just a few hours.

The end of the PNME season doesn’t mark the end of an exciting summer of new music in the Burgh though, as Eclectic Laboratory Chamber Orchestra presents “The Looking Glass,” a concert including music by Philip Glass alongside transcriptions of jazz, pop, and New Wave music. ELCO’s energetic summer of music making is yet another sign of how vital the Burgh’s new music scene is. The concert takes place on Sunday night at the Union Project at 7 pm.

Nice job by the trad media highlighting some of the innovative music happening this weekend. Andy Druckenbrod previews Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble in the Post-Gazette as does Mark Kanny in the Trib. But in all the (justified) hoopla about the new PNME season, don’t miss out on Relative Positions which is featured in the City Paper this week. Relative Positions is an interdisciplinary event that includes a new piece by the Burgh’s own David Gerard Matthews with ELCO performing.

New music fans have a lot to choose from this weekend as Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble gets underway, Opera Theater of Pittsburgh launches a new summer season that includes new mini-music dramas with each performance, and ELCO premieres a new work by David Gerard Matthews, On the Origin of the World, with Shanna Simmons Dance—part of Relative Positions at the Union Project.

And what am I doing to celebrate July Fourth you ask? Why interviewing THEEEEEEE One and Only Lindsey Goodman about the upcoming pnme season, of course. Look for lots of good insights from Lindsey is this space soon.

Union Project
Tickets

E.L.C.O. is pleased to be participating in Relative Positions in collaborations with Shana Simmons Dance at the Union Project on the evening of July 6. The evening encompassing the multi-disciplinary work as a whole is based loosely on Improv, presented at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in 2010, the event is structured as an immersive performance “tour” through the Union Project on N. Negley Ave in Pittsburgh.

Over twenty artists — choreographers, musicians, writers/poets, installation artists and visual artists — have been commissioned to create work at the site.  Each artist/group presents a 5-20 minute piece that continues on a loop throughout the evening.  Audiences have a choice in their experience: staying in one area to view one piece multiple times, or moving through the venue at their own pace.  E.L.C.O. debuts original composition On the Origin of the World by David Gerard Matthews with the dancers of Shana Simmons dance.

TICKETS

6PM – VIP Experience – $25, 2 for $40

7PM – Gen. Admission – $15

Click HERE for more information, online ticket buying, maps and schedule or e-mail elco.events@gmail.com

So Lawrenceville’s continually expanding Art All Night starts tonight (April 28th) and the first performance is going to be Eclectic Laboratory Chamber Orchestra. They’ll be on Full Power Stage #1 at 5 p.m. What else do you need to know? Nuttin.

What a great concert last night with the Bugallo-Williams piano duo—a great wrap up for Music on the Edge’s 2011-12 season. Pittsburgh’s new music scene is really moving along!

In fact, I’m excited to announce the Hear/Now festival on April 13 and 14. It’s coproduced by the Kelly Strayhorn Theater and Alia Musica.—I’m really honored to have helped curate a pretty cool line-up for this first time.

I don’t even know where to start mentioning the highlights and keeping the list short without leaving out some of the coolest stuff! Performers include eighth blackbird’s Tim Munro, DJ Spooky, Attack Theater’s Dave Eggar, PNME’s Conor Hanik, Pittsburgh’s own Eric Moe and Michael Johnsen… there are numbers by Alia Musica, ELCO, OvreArts, and Freya Quartet, multimedia acts by Chris McGlumphy, Alisha Wormsley, and a party at the Shadow Lounge with Ben Opie and DJ Soy Sos.

And the music that is being played! We’ll get to hear Varèse (Alia Musica is playing Octandre), Cage (in Tim Munro’s own solo-flute version of the Aria for solo voice), Feldman and Worinen played by PNME’s Conor Hanik, a Philip Glass quartet performed by Freya Quartet… I get to premiere a piece by George Tsontakis with Alia Musica too

Not to mention the plenty of music by Pittsburgh composers: Mathew Rosenblum’s wonderful Circadian Rhythms, piano music by him and Eric Moe (performed by Eric himself), John Newkom’s string quartet, a premiere by John Arrigo-Nelson, the music of Luke Mayernik…

For details and discount tickets visit the Kelly Strayhorn website. The event is also announced on Facebook, so make sure to like the organizations involved!