Date / Place I

22 March 2019 Gare du Nord, Basel

Date / Place II

23 March 2019 Gare du Nord, Basel

Series

Phoenix

Title

Voices

Program

Milton Babbitt (1916–2011) “Arie da capo” for flute, clarinet, violin, cello and piano (1974) – 14’ Paul Dolden (*1956) “Shamanic Sunshine” for pre-recorded tape (digital medium) and violin, flute, trumpet, horn, bass clarinet and cello (2019, WP, commission EPhB) – 10’25” John Zorn (*1953) “Chimeras” for two voices, flute, clarinet, percussion, violin, cello and keyboard (2003) – 35’

Musicians

Svea Schildknecht
coloratura soprano
Céline Wasmer
soprano
Jürg Henneberger
conductor
Christoph Bösch
flute, piccolo, alto flute, bass flute
Toshiko Sakakibara
clarinet, bass clarinet
Aurélien Tschopp
horn
Nenad Marković
trumpet
Daniel Stalder
percussion
Ludovic Van Hellemont
piano, celesta, electric organ
Friedemann Treiber
violin
Martin Jaggi
cello
Thomas Peter
electronics
Christof Stürchler
sound engineer

Program description

A primal delight in experimenting with voices unites the three composers of this program.

Milton Babbitt first studied mathematics and later on changed to music. He was the first to define “serial music” in the 1940s, contributed decisively to the development of “music theory” as an academic discipline, and is now considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century in the United States. Babbitt’s work “Arie da capo” ambiguously alludes to its patrons, the “Da Capo Chamber Players” of New York. In this composition, each of the five instruments gets its aria.

Paul Dolden is a joyful border crosser between musical categories. His virtuosic and intelligent handling of electronically multiplying layers lead to a connecting listening experience between the different musical genres.

Although as a comprehensive musician he can hardly be pinned down to one genre, John Zorn has always seen himself first and foremost as a composer. In 2003 he created “Chimeras” compositionally in the style of Schönberg’s “Pierrot lunaire”, a sensational work between classical ductus and chaotic outbursts.