Department of Music

The University of Virginia Mcintire Department of Music presents the New Music Ensemble in concert on April 13, 2017 at 8:00 p.m. in Old Cabell Hall. The concert is free and open to the public.

The New Music Ensemble, directed by I-jen Fang, presents a concert of graphic oriented music. In "Treatise" by Cornelius Cardew, performers interpret abstract graphics as gestures dynamic, pitch, instrumentation and more. The title Treatise is a reference to the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein who was an inspiration of Cardew’s. In this piece, Cardew does not give instructions to the performers on how to interpret or play his graphics but does say that it should not be improvised, but instead planned out by the ensemble. For this concert, all 193 pages of the score are going to be projected on a screen for the audience to see and potentially follow along. The score will also have notes from the ensemble in it that the audience will be able to see and gain insight into the process of rehearsing and planning the performance.

"Immaterial Vamp" by Jon Bellona is the interplay between physical and sonic action. By focusing on slow changes through repetition, shifts in the physical performance result in sonic altercations, and vice versa. We hear sound then as the responsibility of the performer, the performer who juggles sonic envelopes and phrases, shaping and molding the immaterial through physical and sonic activity.

Current members of the ensemble are Jon Bellona, Alex Christie, David Joo, Christopher Mega-Luna, Jackson Patton-Smith, Connor Reilly, Maxwell Tfirn, and Tianyu Zhang.

Described as an “intrepid percussionist” by Fanfare Magazine, I-Jen Fang is on the faculty of the McIntire Department of Music and is the Principal Timpanist and Percussionist of the Charlottesville Symphony at the University of Virginia. She directs the New Music Ensemble, the Percussion Ensemble and co-directs the Tea Time Student Recitals. She received her B.F.A. from Carnegie Mellon University, M.M. from Northwestern University and Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of North Texas. She has performed as marimba soloist in Taiwan, U.S., Austria, France, Hungary, Romania, and South Africa. She has also appeared as a featured performer at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention, Staunton Music Festival, and Charlottesville Chamber Music Festival.

Old Cabell Hall is located on the south end of UVA's historic Lawn, directly opposite the Rotunda.  Parking is available in at the Central Grounds Parking Garage, or in the Corner parking lots off University Avenue. For more information pleae call the McIntire Department of Music at 434.924.3052.

Photo credit for I-Jen Fang: Rick Stillings