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Contact: Walter Zooi
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CalArts School of Music Presents Gavin Bryars with the CalArts New Millennium Players

March 18
REDCAT
8:30 p.m.
$24-general, $12-students

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Los Angeles, March 3 - The CalArts School of Music presents Gavin Bryars, performing his works with the CalArts New Millennium Players under the direction of Marc Lowenstein at the REDCAT performance space on March 18. The performance begins at 8:30 p.m. CalArts faculty and students who have rehearsed under Bryars' supervision perform the evening's program, consisting primarily of works for strings and voice. Mr. Bryars will conduct a discussion with the audience after the performance.

REDCAT - the Roy and Edna Disney/CalArts Theater - is CalArts' new performance venue and gallery in Walt Disney Concert Hall. Admission is $24 for the general public, $12 for students. Tickets may be purchased at the REDCAT box office located at the corner of 2nd and Hope streets, by calling 213-237-2800 or by clicking here.

Considered one of Britain's most important post-minimalist composers, Gavin Bryars mixes classical, jazz and modern influences in music that is both intellectually engaging and emotionally touching. He has remained a provocative yet accessible composer in a variety of musical settings since his first major piece, The Sinking of the Titanic, was performed in 1969. Bryars currently works with the human voice and, in particular, with soloists who can cross over from classical to contemporary music.

Works on the evening's program include:

  • Three Canadian Songs for Orchestra and singer (Harmony Jiroudek)
  • String Quartet #3
  • ntermission
  • One Last Bar, Then Joe Can Sing
  • Cello Concerto (Farewell to Philosophy) Orchestra and cello, Colette Alexander, cellist

NoteProgram order is subject to change

Gavin Bryars was born in Yorkshire in 1943. His first musical reputation was made as a jazz bassist working in the early sixties with improvisers Derek Bailey and Tony Oxley. He abandoned improvisation in 1966 and worked for a time in the United States with John Cage. Subsequently he collaborated closely with composers such as Cornelius Cardew and John White. From 1969 to 1978 he taught in departments of Fine Art in Portsmouth and Leicester, and during the time that he taught at Portsmouth College of Art he was instrumental in founding the legendary Portsmouth Sinfonia. He founded the music department at Leicester. His first major work as a composer was The Sinking of the Titanic (1969) originally released on Brian Eno's Obscure label in 1975 and Jesus' Blood Never Failed Me Yet (1971), both famously released in new versions in the 1990s on Point Music label, selling over a quarter of a million copies. The original 1970s recordings have recently been re-released on CD by Virgin Records. He has composed prolifically for the theater and dance as well as for the concert hall and has written three full-length operas. The Gavin Bryars Ensemble, founded in 1981, regularly tours internationally, including appearances in France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Norway, Finland, Belgium, Germany, Holland, Austria, Japan and Australia, as well as giving occasional concerts in London.

http://www.gavinbryars.com/

Gavin Bryars' appearance is made possible, in part, by Meet The Composer and its Global Connections Program. Funding for Global Connections is provided by The Ford Foundation.

REDCAT inaugural season sponsors include Shamrock Holdings, KCRW FM, The L.A. Weekly, and The Standard Hotel, with additional media sponsorship provided by The Downtown News.

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