Spitting Image was formed in 2013 by composers Katherine Bergman, Ted Moore and Daniel Nass with a mission of bringing together composers, performers, and listeners in order to strengthen the Minneapolis/St. Paul new music community. Their work includes commissioning new work from local composers, presenting new music in the Twin Cities, and organizing events for composers to share works-in-progress.
For their first concert series, entitled The Hear and Now, the collective has commissioned five new works from local composers Joshua Musikantow, Noah Keesecker, Daniel Nass, Ted Moore, and Katherine Bergman. Here are a few notes from the composers on what you’ll hear at the concerts this weekend:
Extinction by Joshua Musikantow for electronics using Axis 64
“Extinction, tuned to 53-tone equal temperament, is a non-nostalgic meditation on loss: both everything that has been lost, and everything we risk losing. I say non-nostalgic not because it is without sentiment, but rather because nostalgia usually entails a yearning for the familiar; yet, that which has been truly lost is quite alien to us, as its very state of being lost implies an omission from, or at least underrepresentation within, the accepted canons and historical narratives.
I’d like to believe that the things that survive the test of time do so because of their virtue; yet, through the years, I have moved further towards the opposite viewpoint: namely, that survival is secured not through virtue but through some combination of cold pragmatism; pandering; political maneuvering; or outright brutality on the part of those with superior numbers, resources, or military might.
My allegiances are with the losing side.” --Joshua Musikantow
Nine Wee Drams by Daniel Nass for clarinet and cello
“The term 'a wee dram' is most commonly used to described a small pour of whiskey. In this instance, I'm using it to refer to a small piece of music. Nine Wee Drams consists of nine miniatures for clarinet and cello, each named after a favorite Scotch whiskey of mine.” --Daniel Nass
leviathan by Ted Moore for bass clarinet and electronics
"leviathan started as a work about the sounds one might hear in sea side caves. Specifically, it was about An Uaimh Bhinn, a cave on the coast of Scotland that is famous for the unique way in which sound resonates through it. As the piece developed, some kind of character beast appeared within the music and form I was working with, so I chose to title the piece leviathan, a large sea monster." --Ted Moore
Phase Change by Katherine Bergman for flute and cello
“Phase Change is an artistic representation of the transition between thermodynamic systems from one phase or state of matter (solid, liquid, and gas) to another. The piece is in three movements performed without pause, each depicting a state of matter; beginning with vapor, transitioning to liquid, and ending with solid.” --Katherine Bergman
Spitting Image: The Hear and Now
June 6, 2014
7:30 p.m.
Studio Z
275 E. 4th St., Suite 200, St. Paul
$15 / $10 students
Tickets: hearandnow1.bpt.me
June 8, 2014
7:30 p.m.
Honey
205 E. Hennepin Ave, Minneapolis
$15 / $10 students
Tickets: hearandnow2.bpt.me
New works by local composers Joshua Musikantow, Noah Keesecker, Daniel Nass, Ted Moore, and Katherine Bergman. Music will be performed by Carrie Henneman Shaw, soprano; Sarah Porwoll-Lee, clarinet; Lars Krogstad, cello; and James DeVoll, flute.