For
Immediate Release
Contact: Jane
Turnis
(719)
389-6138
jturnis@ColoradoCollege.edu
FOUR-DAY CELEBRATION HONORS & FEATURES
RENOWNED AMERICAN COMPOSER GEORGE CRUMB
Crumb Celebrates 75th Birthday at College that Premiered ‘Makrokosmos’
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Oct. 15, 2004 – George Crumb, one of America's greatest living composers, will mark his 75th birthday with a four-day celebration honoring his music, his art and his impact on contemporary classical music. Fittingly, The Music of George Crumb: A Celebration in Honor of the Composer’s 75th Birthday, will be at Colorado College – the place where Crumb premiered one of his most important pieces.
Crumb, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and Grammy Award, began his relationship with Colorado College in 1973, when his composition “Makrokosmos,” Volume 1, received its world premier on the campus. His connection to the college has continued through the years: CC music professor Ofer Ben-Amots brought his mentor Crumb to the college as a composer in residence. Quattro Mani, the piano duo featuring CC artist-in-residence Susan Grace and Alice Rybak of Denver University, has performed and recorded Crumb’s works. In 2000, the college gave Crumb an honorary doctorate degree in recognition of his tremendous contributions to the world of music. The celebration is also the 10th anniversary of the college’s Distinguished Visiting Composers Series.
Crumb will first appear at a reception on Monday, October 18 at the opening of an exhibit of his artful scores, accompanied by a running slide show of his composition books and his music. Steven Bruns, University of Colorado-Boulder associate professor of music theory, will present a gallery talk. The exhibit will run through October 26.
The Music of George Crumb: A Celebration in Honor of the Composer’s 75th Birthday will feature two evenings of concerts, on Oct. 19 and 21. Among the musicians featured are Crumb himself, his daughter, Broadway singer Ann Crumb, as well as guitarist David Starobin, pianist Susan Grace, flutist Paul Nagem, piano duo Quattro Mani, soprano Tony Arnold and conductor David Colson, among others.
A conference on Oct. 20 will feature papers, lectures and presentations on Crumb’s music from the upcoming book “George Crumb and the Alchemy of Sound,” to be published in November by the Colorado College Music Press. James Keller, p rogram annotator for the New York Philharmonic and the San Francisco Symphony, and former staff music writer for The New Yorker , will present the keynote address, “George Crumb: An Appreciation.”
Details of each day’s events:
Monday, Oct. 18
Art opening and reception: “George Crumb and the Alchemy of Sound,” art and music of contemporary composer George Crumb, featuring Crumb’s music scores as art. Gallery talk by Steven Bruns, University of Colorado-Boulder associate professor of music theory, with reception and appearance by Crumb following.
5:30 p.m. gallery talk; 5 p.m.-7:30 p.m. reception, Coburn Gallery in the Worner Campus Center, 902 N. Cascade Ave., Colorado College, free
Tuesday, Oct. 19
Concert: The Music of George Crumb: A Celebration in Honor of the Composer’s 75th Birthday, Concert I, “Eine Kleine Mitternachtmusik,” (“A Little Night Music”), “Mundus Canis” (“A Dog’s World”), “An Idyll for the Misbegotten” and “Unto the Hills,” featuring performances by Crumb on percussion, Broadway vocalist Ann Crumb, guitarist David Starobin, pianist Susan Grace and flutist Paul Nagem.
7:30 p.m., Packard Hall, Colorado College, free
Wednesday, Oct. 20
Conference: The Music of George Crumb: A Celebration in Honor of the Composer’s 75th Birthday. Papers presented by three scholars: Richard Bass, professor of music theory and director of graduate studies, University of Connecticut; Russell Steinberg, director of the Stephen Wise Music Academy, Los Angeles; and Steven Bruns, associate professor of music theory, University of Colorado-Boulder.
4 p.m.-5:30 p.m., Packard Hall, Colorado College, free
Wednesday, Oct. 20
Lecture: The Music of George Crumb: A Celebration in Honor of the Composer’s 75th Birthday. Lecture on “George Crumb: An Appreciation” by James Keller, p rogram annotator for the New York Philharmonic and the San Francisco Symphony, and former staff music writer for The New Yorker. Keller is contributing editor for Chamber Music magazine, and has written for Travel & Leisure, Le Monde de la Musique, BBC Music Magazine, Opera News, Historical Performance, and the Sunday New York Times. He has been a frequent cultural and arts commentator for National Public Radio.
7:30 p.m., Packard Hall, Colorado College, free
Thursday, Oct. 21
Concert: The Music of George Crumb: A Celebration in Honor of the Composer’s 75th Birthday, Concert II, “Otherworldly Resonances,” “Zeitgeist,” and “Ancient Voices of Children,” featuring piano duo Quattro Mani, conductor David Colson, vocalist Tony Arnold, oboist Kathryn Dupuy Cooper, pianist Susan Grace, David Starobin on mandolin and musical saw, and 11-year-old soprano Justin Murray of the Colorado Springs Conservatory.
7:30 p.m., Packard Hall, Colorado College, free
About Colorado College
Colorado College is a nationally prominent, four-year liberal arts and sciences college that was founded in Colorado Springs, Colorado in 1874. The college operates on the innovative Block Plan, in which its 1,900 students study one course at a time in intensive 3½-week blocks. For more information, visit www.ColoradoCollege.edu.