Synchromy and Harp Society LA Present PLAY NICE, An Evening of Harp Duets

Synchromy and Harp Society LA present Play Nice, an evening of harp duets, on March 26th, 2020 at 8pm at Occidental's Bird Studio. The event will feature a world premiere performance of a newly commissioned work, NCTRN V by Nicholas Deyoe. All other works are by living composers.

Made possible by a grant from the American Harp Society, Inc., Synchromy commissioned Nicholas Deyoe to write a piece for harp duet as part of his series of NCTRN pieces, pronounced "nocturne". The fifth installment, NCTRN V is a study of persistence, meditation, obsession, and manipulated repetition. Since nocturnes are evocative of the night, this work will be paired with Krzywicki's Starscape and Lizotte's Suite Galactique. The second half of the concert will focus on the storytelling power of the harp. Featuring Beglarian's Play Nice, Larkin's The Juniper Tree, and Carro's An End for a New Beginning, this grouping of music will showcase comical, wistful, and dark narratives. Actor Leandro Cano will narrate our performance of The Juniper Tree, based on a Grimm Fairly Tale that shockingly tells of child abuse, murder, and cannibalism.

Los Angeles Harpist Catherine Yom Litaker is an avid soloist, chamber musician and orchestral harpist. She has performed on countless stages across the globe including Western Europe, South America, North America and Asia. She currently performs as a freelance harpist in and around Los Angeles, CA. She has performed with many Orchestras including: Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Lyric Opera of Chicago, San Diego Symphony, Ars Viva Symphony, Chicago Philharmonic, Dubuque Symphony and Quad City Symphony Orchestra.

Elizabeth Huston has been fascinated by contemporary art since she can remember. She grew up on Washington State's Olympic Peninsula in a musical family that encouraged artistic experimentation. In 2010, Elizabeth relocated to Philadelphia to study with Elizabeth Hainen. Here she met a dedicated contemporary art patron merely by chance. He invited Elizabeth to attend the many Philadelphia Fringe Festival performances, which involved experimental theater and dance. Elizabeth immediately began to think about how what she had seen could be applied to music performance, updating its staging. She has since started the Arcana New Music Ensemble in collaboration with Bowerbird, and has become Executive Director of Synchromy. Elizabeth currently resides in Los Angeles, while continuing many of her programs in Philadelphia.

Actor Leandro Cano is excited to work with the immensely talented team at Synchromy. Theatre credits include Nowhere on the Border and The Rescued (Road Theatre), Rules of Seconds (LATC), River Bride (Arizona Theatre Co), Jesus Hopped the 'A' Train, Motherf**ker With the Hat, Cuckoo's Nest (barebones productions), Colony Collapse, Oedipus el Rey (Boston Court), Of Mice & Men (Pittsburgh Playhouse), Stories, Romeo & Juliet, Fables (Denver Center), El Henry (La Jolla Playhouse), and American Falls (Echo Theatre Co.) Television appearances include Bull, CSI: Miami, Castle, Life, Huge, General Hospital, and Days of Our Lives.

The cost is $20 for general admission, $15 for seniors, and $15 for students. All tickets are available online at www.synchromy.org.

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