Great Noise Ensemble presents the final concert of their second season, “Idol Worship (and possessions…)” on May 18, 2007 at the Patricia M. Sitar Center in Washington, D.C. This performance is a part of the American Composers Forum New Music Salon series and will feature an evening of chamber music that demonstrates the wildly interesting scope of contemporary music written in the past 33 years.

The concert will feature the following works-

Icicle by Robert Aitken lets the flute soloist dictate the form of the composition and uses unconventional extended techniques for the instrument to evoke the experience of ice melting.

This is Not for John Lennon by Stephen Stone is a memorial for John Lennon based on the poetry of Nikki Giovanni which challenges the listener to improve their world.

Banjo Trio No. 2 in 4 movements by Mark Sylvester swaps the traditional roles of banjo, viola, and bass instruments in an unexpected, yet somehow familiar composition.

Dances for Brass Quintet by Blair Goins took its initial inspiration from Dvorak’s Slavonic Dances and turned this traditional style into a jazz composition.

Elegy in the Form of Dream by Francis McKay explores the tension of internal and external worlds as depicted in Proust’s writing.

Turns and Nocturnes for Solo Piano by Frances McKay is a modern take on the character pieces from the 19th century.

Four Humors by Elizabeth Vercoe uses the Medieval philosophy of the four bodily fluids that create moods and sets these to music for clarinet and piano.

Tickets are available at the door prior to the concert ($20). The Patricia M. Sitar Center is located at 1700 Kalorama Rd., NW, Washington, DC, 20009.

http://www.composersforum.org/dc

http://www.sitarartscenter.org/

Great Noise Ensemble: Guest Artists – The Chamber Music of Andrew Earle Simpson
Thursday, March 22, 8:00 PM
Ward Recital Hall
The Catholic University of America

Free and open to the public
Reception to follow

Great Noise Ensemble appears as guest artists on a recital of chamber music and silent film music by Andrew Earle Simpson (a composition faculty member at Catholic University).

GNE will perform Simpson’s Chamber Concerto, a 1992 three-movement work for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, and percussion. GNE Director Armando Bayolo will conduct the performance.

Also on the program:

The premiere of the clarinet-piano version of Summer-Night Songs (1994, rev. 2006);

phos (2000-01), for piano and percussion;

The Dead are Dancing (2006), for flute and piano;

Melies Suite (2006), for solo piano, featuring music originally written to accompany silent films;

Liberty (2005), performed by the Snark Ensemble (Andrew Simpson, piano, Maurice Saylor, woodwinds, and Phil Carluzzo, percussion, with Ben Redwine, guest artist): inspired by a Laurel and Hardy silent film of the same title

Directions to Catholic University may be found by clicking on this link: http://www.cua.edu/directions/

Jesus gave a message of peace, tolerance and love – why has so much violence been committed in his name?

Composer Armando Bayolo in his 2 part oratorio for chamber orchestra and voices seeks to understand how Jesus’ message and Christianity have been so mis-represented.

GREAT NOISE ENSEMBLE continues their second season on March 16, 2007 with “Sacred Music for a Secular Age ” and a presentation of Towards Golgatha for Chamber Orchestra and Vocal Quartet composed by Armando Bayolo. GNE will be joined by Rachel Barham, soprano, Tracy Cowart, mezzo-soprano, Thomas Mirenda, tenor and Solomon Howard, bass.

The concert will take place at the Ward Recital Hall, Benjamin T. Rome School of Music, Catholic University 8 P.M. 620 Michigan Ave NE, Washington, DC 20064 at 8 PM. Tickets are $20 general/ $10 students & seniors and available at the door or online:
www.greatnoiseensemble.com

Towards Golgotha by Armando Bayolo sets the story of Jesus’ last days through the lens of poetry from the last 200 years. Scored for soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor and baritone soloists and chamber orchestra, Towards Golgotha explores the story of Jesus’ last days through the work of modern and contemporary poets and seeks to arrive at an understanding of the myriad meanings attached to the foundational story of Christian faith and the significance it still holds to a largely secularized contemporary age.

Bayolo’s music “often exude(s) a searching quality that makes each piece a pathway reaching toward a kind of understanding or discovery. Achieving this effect is one of the most difficult and important projects for an artist to undertake, and he does it with a sincere heart and great technical accomplishment; ”
(Evan Chambers, the University of Michigan)

“It is new, it is fresh and it gets its message across.”
(Gerald Cochran, Charlotte Observer)

Past performances by the GNE this season included a birthday celebration of Steve Reich and his music, the first of Great Noise’s annual Composers in Profile series, ” Premieres and Prized Pieces,” an all-premiere program and ” Dancing, Drumming & Re-Defining” a recital of chamber works. Also in 2006-2007, Great Noise is the ensemble in residence for the Washington chapter of the American Composers Forum.

The mission of the Great Noise Ensemble is to promote the work of young, emerging talents in the field of new music from the United States with a focus on composers from the Washington DC area and to further the creation of new musical compositions, present world-class performances of masterpieces of music since 1970 and to educate audiences on the work of both established and emerging composers active in the creation of new concert music.

For questions please contact Executive Director Kristen Williams at info@greatnoiseensemble.com
or visit http://www.greatnoisensemble.com
and http://www.myspace.com/greatnoise

The American Composers Forum New Music Salon Series features Great Noise Ensemble

What would is sound like if…
an amplified Coke can and a mandolin come together in duet?
a flute, bassoon and oboe get inspired by the Techno music of Ibizia, Spain?
a traditional Cuban song gets a minimalist makeover?
good and evil battle together on one piano?

Great Noise Ensemble continues their second season answering these questions and more in:

“Dancing, Drumming and Re-Defining”
January 26, 2007 8:00PM
at the Patricia M. Sitar Center for the Arts,
1700 Kalorama Rd., NW, Washington, DC

Tickets are $15 general $8 in advance, and $20/$10 at the door (space is limited)

Visit www.greatnoiseensemble.com for tickets and more information.

Friday, November 17, 2006

7:00 PM