The North/South Chamber Orchestra Pays Tribute To Composer Christopher James In June

The North/South Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Max Lifchitz will devote its upcoming June 11 concert to the music of New York City-based composer Christopher James.

Joining the ensemble will be Tyler Duncan, violinist Claudia Schaer and pianists Erika Switzer and Marc Peloquin.

The in-person event will start at 8 PM and will conclude around 9:30 PM. The concert will be held at the acoustically superior DiMenna Center for Classical Music (450 West 37th St; New York, NY 10018).

Seating is limited. First come, first served.

For further information please visit www.northsouthmusic.org

ABOUT THE COMPOSER AND HIS MUSIC

Christopher James has been accorded recognition by the American Academy of Arts and Letters, ASCAP, the International Double Reed Society, and New Music USA. He studied under David Diamond and Milton Babbitt at The Juilliard School, earning the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in 1987. His First String Quartet was performed by the Juilliard String Quartet at the Library of Congress in 1987, and broadcast by National Public Radio. James' orchestral composition Lohengrin Follies was presented in a 1989 Carnegie Hall concert of the New Music Orchestral Project, conducted by Jorge Mester. A highly praised recording of his Bassoon Concerto featuring Carolyn Beck and the North/South Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Max Lifchitz was recently released on the North/South Recordings label.

Four recent works by James will be heard for the first time at this concert. They include:

Labyrinths for violin and piano was composed especially for the occasion at the request of violinist Claudia Schaer and pianist Marc Peloquin.

The Songs of the Tragic Generation were composed as a 70th birthday tribute for the late David Del Tredici. Based on poetry by Oscar Wilde, Arthur Symons, Lionel Johnson, Ernest Dowson, and Johnm Davidson, the writers were members of the informal literary society known as the Rhymers' Club, which met in London in the 1890's. William Butler Yeats' 1922 essay entitled "The Tragic Generation of English Poets" contains reminiscences of their unhappy and often brief lives. The songs are unusually demanding for both singer and pianist and run an emotional gamut from lyrical reflection to blazing passion. They will be performed by baritone Duncan Tyler and pianist Erika Switzer.

The Sextet explores the myriad possibilities for instrumental combinations inherent in the unusual ensemble consisting of violin, viola, cello, clarinet, horn and piano.

James' Concerto Grosso for string ensemble follows the fast-slow-fast three movement design typical of the Baroque genre. The music sets in opposition two differently constituted string quintets which sometimes go their separate ways and at other times unite in concert.

Active since 1980, North/South Consonance, Inc. is devoted to the promotion of music by composers from the Americas and the world. Its activities are made possible, in part, with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; as well as grants from the Music Performance Fund, the BMI Foundation and the generosity of numerous individual donors.