Empyrean Ensemble Presents “Americana—American Themes in Music and Film”
Empyrean Ensemble presents “Americana—American Themes in Music and Film” on Sunday, Jan. 25, at 7 p.m. in the Studio Theatre of the Robert and Margrit Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts. The performance features new works by Pablo Ortiz (with early American silent film), Robin Estrada, Derek Keller and Aaron Travers, plus compositions by Benjamin Boone (“Buffing the Gut”) and Charles Ives (“Largo”). A pre-concert talk, “Demystifying the Music” with Pablo Ortiz, starts at 6 p.m.
Tickets are $18 for adults and $9 for students and children. Purchase tickets online at MondaviArts.org, through the Mondavi Center ticket office at 530-754-2787 or 866-754-2787 (toll-free), or at the door. Accommodations for persons with disabilities are available upon request.
For
the past 20 years, Empyrean Ensemble has introduced Northern
California audiences to the finest new works and 20th-century classics,
energizing listeners with engaging, invigorating, mind-expanding performances. Now
in its 21st year, Empyrean has set out to premier 21 new works in a
single season. For “Americana,” the ensemble premieres
four compositions: "Dasal" by Robin Estrada
and "California Dreamin’" by Derek Keller (both commissioned by Empyrean), “TRIO” by Aaron Travers
and a new work by Pablo Ortiz accompanying the 1910 film “Ramona.”
Also on the program is Ortiz’s arrangement
of the American classic “Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean.”
Derek
Keller's "California Dreamin'" was composed as an exploration
of themes for his forthcoming opera based on a late 19th-century short
story, “The Haunted Valley,” by journalist and author
Ambrose Bierce. Using music, speech and movement, "California
Dreamin’" alludes to California racism in the latter half of the
19th century
"Dasal," the Tagalog word for prayer, is a musical image of prayer at dawn written by Filipino composer Robin Estrada. He is composer-in-residence of both the Ateneo Chamber Singers and the San Francisco Choral Artists.
Pablo Ortiz’s new work to accompany “Ramona” loosely follows the style of early silent-film music. Says Ortiz, “This project started with an idea by Alan Taylor, UC Davis professor of history, who imagined a concert of patriotic songs and American-themed compositions played by the Empyrean Ensemble (which also explains ‘Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean’).” Ortiz, a professor of composition at UC Davis, received an Academy Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 2008.
UC Davis faculty members Kurt Rohde, Laurie San Martin and Mika Pelo direct Empyrean Ensemble. For more information on Empyrean, visit music.ucdavis.edu/empyrean.
For complete event information, to receive a Department of Music season brochure, or to join the department mailing list, call 530-752-7896, send e-mail to musicmail@ucdavis.edu or visit music.ucdavis.edu/events.