Miller Theatre to Celebrate John Luther Adams with Three NY Premieres This October

Miller Theatre at Columbia University
School of the Arts celebrates distinguished American composer John Luther Adams with the William Schuman Award Concerts in a three-night series of New York premieres, each composed in honor of one of Adams' greatest influences.

On Wednesday, October 7, 2015 at 8 p.m. is "Clouds of Forgetting, Clouds of Unknowing," a tribute to Adams' father, evoking a vast landscape and ethereal Arctic light. On Friday, October 9, 2015, 8:00 p.m. is "for Lou Harrison," a captivating and emotional work composed in honor of Adams' great friend and mentor, And on Saturday, October 10, 2015, 8:00 p.m. will be "In the White Silence," dedicated to Adams' mother, an exploration of stillness, wholeness, texture, and warmth featuring JACK Quartet, International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) and Steven Schick, conductor.

From Miller Theatre Executive Director Melissa Smey: "Every few years, we at Miller Theatre join with Columbia University School of the Arts in the presentation of the William Schuman Award to an American composer. I couldn't be happier to celebrate this year's honoree, John Luther Adams, with this three-night tribute. I loved working with John in 2011 to present Inuksuit, and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to once again work with him and some of our favorite musical collaborators to highlight these three beautiful works."

All performances play the Miller Theatre (2960 Broadway at 116th Street). All-Access Pass: $100; Single Tickets: $25-$40;. All-Access Pass includes prime seating for all three concerts, and an invitation to attend the private awards ceremony. For more information, visit www.millertheatre.com/event-series/schuman-award-concerts.

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William Schuman Award Concerts

October 7, 9, 10, 2015

Honoring John Luther Adams

Miller Theatre (2960 Broadway at 116th Street)

American composer John Luther Adams has always forged his own path. From his small cabin in Alaska, he has written works of great beauty and depth, ultimately earning him the Pulitzer Prize. Listeners will dive deep into Adams' music with this trilogy of unforgettable large-scale memorial works-none of them previously played in New York-composed in honor of those who influenced him most: his mother, father, and friend and mentor Lou Harrison.

FEATURED ARTISTS:
John Luther Adams, composer
JACK Quartet
International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE)
Steven Schick, conductor
Includes commentary on: "Clouds of Forgetting, Clouds of Unknowing," "for Lou Harrison," and "In the White Silence."

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Clouds of Forgetting, Clouds of Unknowing (1991-95) New York premiere
Shimmering and clear, this music evokes the Arctic light and expansive landscapes, with movements such as Lost Chorales, Forgotten Triads, and Clouds of Perfect Fourths.

"Quantum physics has recently confirmed what shamans and mystics, poets and musicians have long known: the universe is more like music than like matter." - John Luther Adams, from the introduction to Clouds of Forgetting, Clouds of Unknowing

Friday, October 9, 2015

for Lou Harrison (2003) New York premiere
Lush colors and cascading harmonies capture the joy and longing at the heart of this tribute to Adams' friend and mentor.

"Lou Harrison was an inspiring model of how to live, without regret or bitterness, as an uncompromising independent composer." - John Luther Adams

Saturday, October 10, 2015

In the White Silence (1998) New York premiere
This iconic piece invites listeners into the heart of Adams' sonic world: a celebration of wholeness, stillness, space, light, and being.

"For many years now, I've been obsessed with the notion of music as place, and place as music... I want to inhabit the music, to be fully present and listening in that immeasurable space which Malevich called 'a desert of pure feeling'." - John Luther Adams, from the introduction to In the White Silence

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About John Luther Adams (johnlutheradams.net) - John Luther Adams (b. 1953) is a composer whose life and work are deeply rooted in the natural world. Adams was awarded the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Music for his symphonic work Become Ocean, and a 2015 Grammy Award for "Best Contemporary Classical Composition." Inuksuit, his outdoor work for up to 99 percussionists, is regularly performed all over the world.

Columbia University has honored Adams with the William Schuman Award "to recognize the lifetime achievement of an American composer whose works have been widely performed and generally acknowledged to be of lasting significance." A recipient of the Heinz Award for his contributions to raising environmental awareness, Adams has also been honored with the Nemmers Prize from Northwestern University "for melding the physical and musical worlds into a unique artistic vision that transcends stylistic boundaries."

Adams has taught at Harvard University, the Oberlin Conservatory, Bennington College, and the University of Alaska. He has also served as composer in residence with the Anchorage Symphony, Anchorage Opera, Fairbanks Symphony, Arctic Chamber Orchestra, and the Alaska Public Radio Network. His music is recorded on Cantaloupe, Cold Blue, New World, Mode, and New Albion, and his books are published by Wesleyan University Press.

About International Contemporary Ensemble (iceorg.org) - The International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) was described by the New York Times as "one of the most accomplished and adventurous groups in new music." With a modular makeup of 33 leading instrumentalists performing in forces ranging from solos to large ensembles, ICE functions as performer, presenter, and educator, advancing the music of our time by developing innovative new works and new strategies for audience engagement.

Since its founding in 2001, ICE has premiered over 500 compositions, the majority of these new works by emerging composers, in venues ranging from alternate spaces to concert halls around the world. ICE is Ensemble-in-Residence at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago through 2013. The ICE musicians also serve as Artists-in-Residence at the Mostly Mozart Festival of Lincoln Center through 2013, curating and performing chamber music programs that juxtapose new and old music.

ICE has released acclaimed albums on the Nonesuch, Kairos, Bridge, Naxos, Tzadik, New Focus, New Amsterdam, and Mode labels. ICE has worked closely with conductors Ludovic Morlot, Matthias Pintscher, John Adams and Susanna Mälkki. In 2015 ICE became a Yamaha Ensemble.

With leading support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, ICE launched ICElab in early 2011. This new program places teams of ICE musicians in close collaboration with six emerging composers each year to develop works that push the boundaries of musical exploration.

About JACK Quartet (www.jackquartet.com) - The JACK Quartet electrifies audiences worldwide with "explosive virtuosity" (Boston Globe) and "viscerally exciting performances" (New York Times). Alex Ross (New Yorker) hailed their performance of Iannis Xenakis' complete string quartets as "exceptional" and "beautifully harsh," and Mark Swed (Los Angeles Times) called their sold-out performances of Georg Friedrich Haas' String Quartet No. 3 In iij. Noct. "mind-blowingly good."

The recipient of Lincoln Center's Martin E. Segal Award, New Music USA's Trailblazer Award, and the CMA/ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming, JACK has performed to critical acclaim at Carnegie Hall (USA), Lincoln Center (USA), Wigmore Hall (United Kingdom), Suntory Hall (Japan), Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ (Netherlands), La Biennale di Venezia (Italy), the Lucerne Festival (Switzerland), and the Wittener Tage für neue Kammermusik (Germany).

JACK is focused on the commissioning and performance of new works, leading them to work closely with composers including John Luther Adams, Chaya Czernowin, James Dillon, Brian Ferneyhough, Vijay Iyer, György Kurtág, Helmut Lachenmann, Steve Mackey, Matthias Pintscher, Steve Reich, and John Zorn. Upcoming and recent premieres include works by Wolfgang von Schweinitz, Toby Twining, Georg Friedrich Haas, Simon Holt, Kevin Ernste, and Simon Bainbridge.

JACK operates as a nonprofit organization dedicated to the performance, commissioning, and spread of new string quartet music. The members of the quartet met while attending the Eastman School of Music and studied closely with the Arditti Quartet, Kronos Quartet, Muir String Quartet, and members of the Ensemble Intercontemporain.

About Steven Schick - Steven Schick was born in Iowa and raised in a farming family. For the past thirty years he has championed contemporary percussion music as a performer and teacher by commissioning and premiering more than one hundred new works for percussion. Schick is Distinguished Professor of Music at the University of California, San Diego and a Consulting Artist in Percussion at the Manhattan School of Music. He was the percussionist of the Bang on a Can All-Stars of New York City from 1992-2002, and from 2000 to 2004 served as Artistic Director of the Centre International de Percussion de Genève in Geneva, Switzerland. Schick is founder and Artistic Director of the percussion group red fish blue fish, and in 2007 he assumed the post of Music Director and conductor of the La Jolla Symphony and Chorus. His book on solo percussion music, The Percussionist's Art: Same Bed, Different Dreams, was published by the University of Rochester Press; his recording of The Mathematics of Resonant Bodies by John Luther Adams was released by Cantaloupe Music; and, a three-CD set of the complete percussion music of Iannis Xenakis, made in collaboration with red fish blue fish, was issued by Mode Records.