PROGRAMS

1. 20 YEARS OF COLLABORATION: WORKS FOR E-CELLO AND COMPUTER

On Connecticut Naturalism for e-cello and computer by Michael Gatonska

On Connecticut Naturalism (2003) was composed for Mr. Krieger. Ideas and constructive musical elements for the work originated from notes taken by the composer while "in the field" visiting various places in Connecticut. While carrying a notebook when hiking or bicycling trails in the state, many observations, drawings, natural and unnatural effects, etc., form key points or centers which create the whole of the score and its flow. These centers fan or sonorically bleed into each other creating sound combinations, connections, and impetus from one sound center to the next. The work was made possible in part by the Connecticut Commission on the Arts.

Shadows and Light for e-cello and electronics by Ken Steen

Shadows and Light (1989) for solo electronic cello was commissioned by The AIDS Ministries Program of Connecticut. The work was commissioned for the Works Contemporary Dance Fall 1989 Season as part of a larger collaborative work. The entire work was conceived as an artistic response to the AIDS epidemic. Shadows and Light explores the dynamic range of the electronic cello with additional nuances of expression provided by subtle electronic processing which allows the performer to create the illusion of the expansion and contraction of 'acoustic' space as well as other timbral manipulations. This work was composed for cellist Jeffrey Krieger and is dedicated in memory of Rob Kowalski. Originally conceived as a central movement of the work, choreographed for a solo male dancer, Shadows and Light was never performed as originally intended. The choreographer/dancer fell ill just prior to the premier performance and subsequently died from AIDS. The music stands as a contemplation of the fragility of the human condition.

Landmine for e-cello and computer by Anna Rubin

Landmine (2001) for electric cello, digital audio and live electronics is a text/sound work exploring the landmine crisis, especially as it effects Cambodia. The text has been drawn from various sources including demining observer David Levi Strauss, whose recorded voice is heard in the work. Material from the Human Rights Watch Report on Landmines and demining organizations has also been used.

2. HEAL THE WOUNDS OF WAR - A program of compelling musical works conceived as a homage to victims of war on a global level.

Threnody (2003), a song of mourning for victims of war by composer, Tom Flaherty .

Landmine (2001), a text/sound work by Anna Rubin, which explores the landmine crisis especially as it has effected Cambodia. Interviews with experts in the field are heard interwoven with sampled sounds triggered by the performer as well as e-cello sound.

The Lead Plates of the ROM Press (1990) by Jonathan Berger , depicts the Nazi occupation members of the Resistance attempts to melt down the plates of great literary works and religious tracts in order to produce ammunition.

Heal the Wounds of War (1989) for e-cello and video by composer, Ken Steen and media artist, Lyn Harper is composed of "found images" from broadcast TV programming on Veterans' Day, 1987 accompanied by haunting ethereal e-cello and electronic sound.

3. VIDEOCELLO - a program of eclectic works for e-cello, video and sound.

Reliquary of Labor (2006) by media artist, Gene Gort and composer, Ken Steen is a "parallel media" project originally commissioned by the Museum of American Art in New Britain, Connecticut. The work was inspired by video and sound collected during the construction process of a substantial addition to the museum. From initial sketches and finalized blueprints on the architect's drafting table, to breaking ground, arrival of construction materials, construction of the outer shell of the building, exterior work, interior construction, the refuse generated and finishing work, a kind of unacknowledged ritual of production is suggested. The project not only celebrates the opening of the new building, but celebrates and venerates the idea of labor in all of its functional and artistic implications.

Garland (1990) by composer, Robert Carl and media artist, Victor Velt, is a high-tech cello video duet that follows a solo musician undergoing an imagined series of psychological transformations while performing a musical work.

In Heal the Wounds of War (1989) by composer, Ken Steen and media artist, Lyn Harper, graphic war imagery taken from a 1987 televised Veteran's Day is contrasted with a poignant rising cello melody accompanied by ethereal electronic sounds.

4. SCHOOL PRESENTATIONS, WORKSHOPS AND RESIDENCIES

Recent locations: Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT; Peabody Conservatory, Baltimore, MD; Hartford Art School; Loomis Chaffee School, Windsor, CT; Hartt School of Music, West Hartford, CT; West Hartford Public Schools; International School of Informatics and Management, Jaipur, India; Jaipur Theatre Festival at Jawahar Kala Kendra, Jaipur, India; Domodar College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Margao, Goa, India; Kala Academy of the Arts, Campal, Panjim, India; The Chakrapani World School of Music, New Delhi, India; Indian Public School, Rajnandgaon, India.