New York City's Merkin Concert Hall, in association with New Amsterdam Records, presents the 2011 Ecstatic Music Festival, a showcase of collaborative evenings between more than 150 genre-pushing composers, songwriters and performers who represent a new generation of artists combining diverse influences and techniques to explore the crossover of classical and pop music. All concerts will include premieres. The festival opens with a free seven-hour marathon on January 17th, 2011, featuring headliners Buke & Gass, and continues with 13 additional concerts until March 28, 2011.
The series includes imaginative collaborations such as Owen Pallett with Nadia Sirota and Thomas Bartlett (Doveman); Clogs with the Brooklyn Youth Chorus; Dan Deacon with So Percussion; Nico Muhly and Valgeir Sigurdsson with the Chiara String Quartet; tUnE-yArDs, William Brittelle, and Caleb Burhans with Roomful of Teeth; a Ben Frost arrangement for Alarm Will Sound; Vijay Iyer writing for Darcy James Argue's Secret Society and much, much more. All concerts will be performed at the award-winning Merkin Concert Hall--famed for its unparalleled acoustics and intimate scale. A full schedule is below.
The Ecstatic Music Festival is curated by composer Judd Greenstein, Co-Director of New Amsterdam Records and Managing Director of NOW Ensemble, collaborating with Jenny Undercofler, Ecstatic Music Festival Coordinator at Kaufman Center. The series includes four WNYC New Sounds® Live concerts hosted by acclaimed radio host John Schaefer, which will be webcast live on Q2, WQXR’s new music station, and taped for future broadcast on WNYC.
Ecstatic Music Festival Series schedule (Additional artists TBA)
All events (except for panel discussion) will take place at Merkin Concert Hall at Kaufman Center: 129 West 67th Street (between Broadway and Amsterdam).
Sunday, January 16, 2011 7 pm @ Apple Store on Broadway at 67th Street, FREE
Panel discussion with Ecstatic Music Festival artists -- moderated by Nadia Sirota, featuring panelists Dan Deacon, Nico Muhly, Valgier Sigurdsson, Missy Mazzoli and Tristan Perich.
Monday, January 17th, 2011 2-9 pm, FREE
Ecstatic Music Festival Marathon
Featuring headliners Buke & Gass, and sets by some of the artists appearing later in the festival along with performers TBA.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Creator/Curator, vol. 3: The Chiara String Quartet and the Music of Nico Muhly & Valgeir Sigurdsson
Thursday, January 20, 2011 at 7:30 pm
So Percussion & Dan Deacon
Saturday, January 22, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Craig Wedren, Jefferson Friedman & ACME (American Contemporary Music Ensemble)
Sunday, January 30, 2011 at 2 pm
Alarm Will Sound & Face the Music
Thursday, February 10, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Bang on a Can All-Stars 2011 People’s Commissioning Fund Concert **
Saturday, February 19, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Roomful of Teeth & tUnE-yArDs: The Music of William Brittelle, Caleb Burhans & Merrill Garbus
Thursday, February 24, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Newspeak & Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society: Works by Darcy James Argue, Vijay Iyer, Nicole Lizée & David T. Little **
Thursday, March 3, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Judd Greenstein (The Yehudim) & Olga Bell (Bell)
Saturday, March 5, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Timo Andres & Gabriel Kahane
An Evening with Charles Ives
Wednesday, March 9, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Nadia Sirota & Thomas Bartlett (Doveman) with Owen Pallett
Saturday, March 12, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Clogs & Brooklyn Youth Chorus
Wednesday, March 16, 2011 at 7:30 pm
Sarah Kirkland Snider & yMusic & Special Guest TBA **
So Percussion & Bobby Previte with Zeena Parkins, John Medeski, DJ Olive & Jen Shyu **
** A special Presentation of New Sounds® Live with WNYC’s John Schaefer
