Mirror Visions Ensemble to Present WHEN ICICLES HANG BY THE WALL at Sheen Center
By: BWW News Desk Oct. 19, 2016
On Tuesday, December 6 at 8:00 p.m., Mirror Visions Ensemble (MVE) presents its winter-inspired program When Icicles Hang by the Wall at the Loreto Theater at The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture, as part of the ensemble's 25th anniversary season.
The concert features soprano Vira Slywotzky, tenor Scott Murphree, and baritone Mischa Bouvier, together with pianist Grant Wenaus.
The program begins with a triple "mirror vision"-three different musical settings of the same text-of Shakespeare's "When Icicles Hang by the Wall" from Love's Labour's Lost, by three different composers: Roger Quilter, E.J. Moeran, and Richard Lalli (MVE commission). Also on the program are beloved seasonal favorites including Carol of the Bells sung in the original Ukrainian, Irving Berlin's Snow!, popularized by the classic holiday movie White Christmas, Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock's Twelve Days to Christmas from the musical She Loves Me, and Britten's Procession: Hodie Christus natus est, and Balulalow from his Ceremony of Carols, as well as traditional holiday songs from Germany, Sweden, France, England and Australia.
Mirror Visions Ensemble returns to The Sheen Center on Monday, January 16 at 8:00 p.m. for its 25th anniversary celebratory concert, performing works written by the four recipients of its inaugural Young Composers Competition, Tom Cipullo's song cycle A Visit with Emily, based on the poetry of Emily Dickinson and her correspondence with T.W. Higginson, and a few favorite "mirror visions" from the group's repertoire.
Program and Ticket Information:
When Icicles Hang by the Wall
Tuesday, December 6 at 8:00 p.m.
The Sheen Center for Thought & Culture
Loreto Theater
18 Bleecker Street
New York, NY 10012
Tickets: $20 ($15 for students); visit SheenCenter.org or call 212-925-2812
Vira Slywotzky, soprano
Scott Murphree, tenor
Mischa Bouvier, baritone
Grant Wenaus, piano
ROGER QUILTER When Icicles Hang by the Wall
Richard Lalli When Icicles Hang by the Wall E.J. MOERAN When Icicles Hang by the Wall CARL LOEWE Der Hirten Lied am Krippelein HUGO WOLF Nun wandre, MariaRobert Schumann Weihnachtslied MYKOLA LEONTOVYCH Shchedryk (Carol of the Bells) IVAR WIDÉEN Betlehems StjärnaBenjamin Britten Procession: Hodie Christus natus estBenjamin Britten Balulalow GABRIEL FAURÉ NoelClaude Debussy Noel des enfants qui n'ont plus de maisons OTTORINO RESPHIGHI Noel Ancienne No. 2 LÉON ROQUES Noel nouvelle & Les angesMirror Visions Ensemble (MVE) was founded from a desire to explore the relationship between music and text, initially through the creation of "mirror visions" - settings of the same text to music by different composers. The group's passion for storytelling has produced thematic concerts on surprising subjects, based on scholarly research and laced with humor, leading to the revitalization of art song programming. Featuring soprano, tenor, baritone and piano, often joined by other instrumentalists, MVE's programs take audiences on an imaginative journey through song, showcasing well-known and oft-neglected pieces by composers both familiar and new, set to texts by poets and historical figures that encompass published works, correspondence and other anecdotes.
During its 25-year history, Mirror Visions Ensemble has championed and fostered the work of new composers, providing a platform for their works to be showcased through the commissioning and performance of over 80 works by 24 composers, including Tom Cipullo, Scott Wheeler, and Pulitzer Prize recipient Yehudi Wyner. In the 2015-16 season, the ensemble launched its first-ever Young Composers Competition, awarding four commissions to early-career composers dedicated to developing the future catalogue of vocal chamber music.
The ensemble has presented its programs, residencies, and masterclasses both in the U.S. and abroad at concert halls, schools, libraries, and museums. MVE's concerts are often free and open to the public, continuing the ensemble's commitment to education and its tradition of providing access to the arts. Mirror Visions Ensemble has performed at such venues as Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, Merkin Concert Hall at the Kaufman Music Center, Le Poisson Rouge, SubCulture, and Mt. Kisco's Copland House, and at educational institutions including California State University at Fullerton, University of Southern California, New York University, the Longy School of Music of Bard College, Northwestern University, Williams College, and Yale University. Museums in France have become a home for MVE, with many performances at the Musée Carnavalet, Musée des Arts Décoratifs and the Musée Nissim de Camondo, as well as at the American University of Paris.
In recognition of strengthening cultural relationships between the U.S. and France, bringing to life forgotten texts and music from both French and American traditions, and sharing these works through commissions and performances by Mirror Visions Ensemble, Artistic Director Tobé Malawista was named Chevalier of the Legion of Honor in 2008.
MVE's discography includes Américain à Paris (2003), Secrets (2004), Cosmic and Domestic Matters (2008), and The Three-Paneled Mirror (2015). Mirror Visions Ensemble was founded by Tobé Malawista, Richard Lalli and Scott Murphree in 1992.
Photo by Jennifer Taylor
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