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Petroushkates
Petroushkates, one of Tower's most popular works, was written for the tenth anniversary of the Da Capo Chamber Players. Written as an homage to Stravinsky, one of the greatest influences on Tower's musical thought, the piece quotes the rhythms and color of the opening of Stravinsky's Petroushka, and also draws inspiration from the flow and grace of figure skating. The version on this recording differs from the original version for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, and piano in that it has an added percussion part composed by Allen Otte.
Program Notes by: Nicholas Photinos, eighth blackbird, Cello
Composer...
Joan Tower
Joan Tower's bold and energetic music, with its striking imagery and novel structural
forms, has won large, enthusiastic audiences. From 1969 to 1984, she was pianist and founding member of the Naumburg Award-winning Da Capo Chamber
Players, which commissioned and premiered many of her most popular works. Her first orchestral work, Sequoia, quickly entered the repertory, with performances by orchestras including St. Louis, New York, San Francisco,
Minnesota, Tokyo NHK, Toronto, the National Symphony, and London Philharmonia.
A choreographed version by The Royal Winnipeg Ballet toured throughout Canada, Europe, and Russia. Ms. Tower's tremendously popular five Fanfares for the Uncommon Woman have been played by over 400 different ensembles. Since 1972, Tower has taught at Bard College where she is Asher Edelman Professor of Music. She is composer-in-residence with the Orchestra of St. Luke's, a title she also held for eight years at the Yale/Norfolk Chamber Music Festival.
Hailed as "one of the most successful woman composers of all time" in The New Yorker magazine, Joan Tower was the first woman ever to receive the Grawemeyer Award in Composition in 1990. She was inducted in 1998 into the prestigious American Academy of Arts and Letters, and into the Academy of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University in the fall of 2004.
Performers...
eighth blackbird
Hailed as "Friendly, unpretentious, idealistic and highly skilled" by The New Yorker, eighth
blackbird is widely lauded for its unusual performing style - often playing from memory with virtuosic and theatrical flair - and its efforts to make new
music accessible to wide audiences.
Highlights of past seasons have included performances in South Korea, Mexico, The Netherlands, Poland, and throughout the United States, including performances at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. The group has won numerous competitions, including the Naumburg Chamber Music Award and the Concert Artists Guild Competition, and is currently in residence at the University of Richmond and the University of Chicago. eighth blackbird has been featured on CBS's Sunday Morning and in The New York Times. Its third commercial CD release on the Cedille label, titled fred, was released in June 2005. eighth blackbird is represented by ICM Artists, Ltd.