Preview: MusicNOW/Harris Theater

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The relationship between Pierre Boulez and Elliott Carter goes back over fifty years, when both were already legendary avant-garde composers on opposite sides of the pond. As Boulez began his performing career—largely due to the fact that his music was so demanding that most performers didn’t know what to make of it, let alone how to perform it—Carter’s music was right there being performed alongside of Boulez, particularly during Boulez’ controversial music directorship of the New York Philharmonic. Both had rejected contemporary attempts to continue down well-traveled roads and both made developing their own, unique musical language and sound a top priority. How remarkable that Carter, who turned 100 on December 11 and whose centennial is being celebrated worldwide, and Boulez, who turns 84 on March 26, are both still plugging away and neither has given an inch in terms of their groundbreaking spirit of adventure. Of the various Carter tributes, none is likely to be more significant than this rare performance by Boulez and members of the Chicago Symphony of Carter’s 1976 bicentennial song cycle “A Mirror on Which to Dwell” for soprano (Jo Ellen Miller) and chamber orchestra based on poems of Elizabeth Bishop. Carter’s fascination with Bishop’s poetry about nature, love and isolation was in part due to what he described at the time as “a clear verbal coherence as well as an imaginative use of syllabic sounds that suggest the singing voice” and their “almost always…secondary layer of meaning, sometimes ironic, sometimes passionate, that gives a special ambiance, often contradictory, to what the words say.” The concert also features works by younger protégées of Boulez: Nigerian born Swiss composer Hanspeter Kyburz’s “Réseaux” for flute, oboe, violin, cello, piano and harp and French composer Bruno Mantovani’s “Streets,” the timbres of which are meant to evoke the crowded streets of New York City. (Dennis Polkow)

March 2, Millennium Park’s Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph, (312)294-3000, 8pm. $10-$20.

Author: Dennis Polkow

Dennis Polkow is an award-winning veteran journalist, critic, author, broadcaster and educator. He made his stage debut at age five, was a child art prodigy and began playing keyboards in clubs at the age of fourteen. He holds degrees in music theory, composition, religious studies and philosophy from DePaul University in Chicago. Polkow spent his early years performing and recording in rock and jazz bands while concertizing as a classical pianist, organist and harpsichordist and composing, arranging and producing for other artists. As a scholar, Polkow has published and lectured extensively and taught at several colleges and universities in various departments. As an actor, narrator and consultant, Polkow has been involved with numerous films, plays, broadcasts and documentaries. As a journalist, Polkow helped co-create the experiential Chicago Musicale and Spotlight, the award-winning tabloid arts and entertainment section of the Press Publications chain of newspapers, which he later edited. He also created and ran the nationally recognized journalism program at Oakton College and was faculty advisor to its award-winning student newspaper; many former students went on to major media careers, including Channel Awesome’s the Nostalgia Critic. Polkow’s research, interviews, features, reviews and commentaries have appeared across national and international media and he has corresponded from the Middle East, Asia and Africa for the Chicago Tribune. Contact: dpolkow25@aol.com