Aug
4
11:00pm
Ballet Mecanique presented by Alia Musica Pittsburgh
By Show Must Go Online
(run-time 60 minutes)
Alia Musica Pittsburgh presents a silent-film-plus-new-music act, with 000, a new musical work (composed remotely for remote performers) by Pittsburgh-based composer Brian Riordan over the seminal 1920s experimental short Ballet Mechanique by French filmmaker Ferdnand Léger.
As a piece of "visual poetry," Ballet Mechanique premiered in Vienna with no soundtrack and became an instant classic with its frenetic pacing, post-cubist and Dada imagery, and the obsessions of Léger's "mechanical" period, at a time of social and technological turmoil. Brian Riordan reimagines the sounding atmosphere in our own times of uncertainty and technological revolution, with composer-directed, remote recordings by performers Brittany Trotter (flute), Simon Cummings (cello), Federico Garcia-De Castro (piano), and Ben Barson (saxophone).
Alia Musica Pittsburgh was founded in 2006 to promote the composition and performance of contemporary chamber music in Pittsburgh, focusing on local composers and performers, as well as monuments of the modern music repertory. The organization behind the Pittsburgh Festival of New Music, Alia Musica has presented artists of such stature as pianist/composer Frederic Rzewski, conductor Cliff Colnot, and soprano Tony Arnold, and ensembles like Yarn/Wire, Varispeed, thingNY, and Quince. As a performing ensemble, it has appeared as guest in six states throughout the US, and was guest ensemble in Panama's MusicArte Festival in 2015.
Brian Riordan is a composer, performer, improviser, producer, and sound artist originally from Chicago, Illinois, currently finishing a PhD student in music composition and theory at University of Pittsburgh. His music reflects the eclecticism of a very diverse musical background, having performed in numerous ensembles ranging from rock, jazz, classical, and experimental throughout the United States. His compositions have been performed by The JACK Quartet, Wet Ink Ensemble, The Meridian Arts Ensemble, The H2 Quartet, Alia Musica, and been featured at SICPP, New Music On The Point, SPLICE, and The Walden Creative Musicians Retreat.
The Show Must Go On(line) is made possible thanks to generous support from the Benter Foundation, The Heinz Endowments, the Juliet Lea Hillman Simonds Foundation, the Opportunity Fund, The Pittsburgh Foundation, and an Anonymous Foundation.
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