Department of Music

Please join the Arts Board and the McIntire Department of Music this Friday 18 February @ 3:30pm in the Old Cabell Auditorium for a colloquium with Bang on a Can founding composer, Michael Gordon.

Michael Gordonʼs music merges subtle rhythmic invention with incredible power embodying, in the words of The New Yorkerʼs Alex Ross, “the fury of punk rock, the nervous brilliance of free jazz and the intransigence of classical modernism.” Over the past 25 years, Gordon has produced a strikingly diverse body of work, ranging from large-scale pieces for high-energy ensembles to major orchestral commissions to works conceived specifically for the recording studio. Transcending categorization, this music represents the collision of mysterious introspection and brutal directness.

On Friday, Gordon will discuss Decasia, a large-scale, single-movement, relentlessly monumental work about decay - the decay of melody, tuning, and classical music itself. Decasia retunes a giant amplified orchestra, with gripping strings, four detuned pianos, massive winds & brass. The piece was premiered by the Basel Sinfonietta in 2001, in a live, multi-media performance, which featured staging by Ridge Theater, and images by Bill Morrison created out of decaying found footage. The sounds and images of Decasia have gained a second life as a film, which premiered at the 2002 Sundance film festival. This film will be shown at the UVa Music Arts Board opening reception on Thursday 17 February from 6:30-8pm at Ruffin Hall.

Friday's colloquium is a part of the Bang on Can All-Stars Residency (17-19 February 2011). For a full list of events, including a free concert at the Jefferson Theater on Saturday 19 February @ 8pm, see: www.uvaartsboard.org