Ecce Ensemble Presents Music by Philippe Hurel and John Aylward

As the 2016-17 contemporary music ensemble-in-residence at Cambridge's Le Laboratoire, the Ecce Ensemble completes its French-inspired season with a diverse program juxtaposing American and French music. The concert features chamber performances of masterworks by French composer Philippe Hurel and by American composer John Aylward. The event is also a program of memorials, featuring two of Hurel's significant homage works, Pour Luigi and In Memoriam a Berio, and the world premiere of Aylward's Angelus Novus, an homage to Lee Hyla.

Inspired by Le Lab's current exhibit, Life in Picoseconds, the evening's repertoire is an intersection of French and American art. "French composers like Philippe Hurel, who came from the spectral school, have had a strong and resonant impact internationally, especially in America," said John Aylward, composer, Ecce's executive director, and newly awarded 2017 Guggenheim Fellow. "And a new generation of American composers is now responding to these French advancements. So there is a lot to explore between the influences across these generations."

The music of Philippe Hurel (b.1955) eschews labels as it straddles spectral music with appropriations of American Jazz and African rhythmic systems. Somewhat similar to Ligeti, Hurel's eclectic rhythmic language provides a kind of vitality to his interpretations of spectral music, an aesthetic very much rooted contemporary French culture. Pour Luigi (1994) is an exemplary work by Hurel in that it gives a strong impression of his unique perspective and contribution to French spectral music. Ritornella-In Memoriam Luciano Berio (2004) is in some ways a more intimate look at Hurel's voice, but also a more virtuosic one in which Hurel takes advantage of the nimble nature of the flute and piano to create fleeting evocative gestures.

Described by The Boston Globe as "a composer of wide intellectual curiosity," John Aylward summons "textures of efficient richness, delicate and deep all at once." His latest work is Angelus Novus (2017), is an homage to former teacher Lee Hyla (1952-2014), who was a significant influence on Aylward. It is a large-scale, multimedia piece designed in collaboration with choreographer Colin Gee, graphic artist Steven Taylor, and the French Artist Collective Millimetre. Also on the program is Aylward's Daedalus (2014), a complementary work responding to ancient and modern concepts of machine, technology and industry. "For me, the myth of Daedalus fits perfectly inside the larger concert's theme in that it's an inspirational and cautionary tale. The machinations of Daedalus, such as the labyrinth, shield us from what we do not want to acknowledge. And his wings, cured from the wax of bees, promise transcendence but betray the costs of our overconfidence."

Taking Le Lab as its primary experimental workspace, Ecce "reimagines salon interactivity (The Boston Globe)" by crafting a season of events dedicated to the interdisciplinary and exploratory. Each event searches for ways to connect contemporary music experiences to Le Lab's innovative gallery installations. The 2016-17 Ecce residency is dedicated to spotlighting music of French composers. It began December 8, 2016, with a salute to one of France's most prominent musicians, Jean-Baptiste Barrièrie, followed by a March 2nd performance of music by Franck Bedrossian.

About Ecce Ensemble
Founded in 2008, the Ecce Ensemble is a group of today's most accomplished performers who are committed to presenting captivating and visionary performances of contemporary music. Through concerts, symposia, and other community-centered events, Ecce shares new forms of engagement in modern music with a diverse international audience. Ecce has realized personal and refined interpretations of works by composers such as Georg Friedrich Haas, Philippe Hurel, Lee Hyla, Helmut Lachenmann, Fabien Levy, Hanspeter Kyburz, Louis Karchin and many others.

Every year, the ensemble deepens its relationships with prominent composers and brings their work to new audiences. Ecce's annual residency is the international Etchings Festival in Auvillar, France. There, the ensemble shares diverse contemporary repertoire, as well as new works by emerging international composers, with European audiences.

In addition to the Etchings Festival, Ecce continues to expand its residency and workshop programming, holding events at The Goethe-Institut Boston; The La Pietra Forum in Florence, Italy; the NEON Festival; Virginia Commonwealth University; and The University of Campinas at Sao Paulo, Brazil. These opportunities continue to connect Ecce with the most diverse cross-sections of society, sharing with them the profound aesthetic experience of contemporary music, and the joy of its creation. For more information on Ecce, visit: Eccensemble.com.

PROGRAM DETAILS

*world premiere

Jean-Philippe Wurtz, Conductor

Ecce Ensemble, Performers

Pour Luigi (1994)

Composer: Philippe Hurel
Performers: Roberta Michel (flutes), Carlos Cordeiro (clarinet), Jennifer Choi (violin), John Popham (cello), and Julia Den Boer (piano)

In Memoriam Luciano Berio (2004)

Composer: Philippe Hurel
Performers: Roberta Michel (flute) and Julia Den Boer (piano)

Daedalus (2016)

Composer: John Aylward

Performers: Roberta Michel (flutes), Carlos Cordeiro (clarinet), Jennifer Choi (violin), and John Popham (cello)

Angelus Novus (2017)*

Composer: John Aylward

Choreographer: Colin Gee
Performers: Amanda DeBoer Bartlett (soprano), Colin Gee (choreographer/dancer), Roberta Michel (flutes), Carlos Cordeiro (clarinet), Hassan Anderson (oboe), Jennifer Choi (violin), John Popham (cello), and Sam Budish (percussion)

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For more information about the Ecce Ensemble, visit EcceArts.com.

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