press

17 December 2011

Los Angeles Times

Grammys: Gustavo Dudamel in classical's West-leaning field

With the classical Grammy nominations, anything goes. There is more than ever to pick from, with thousands of releases coming from CDs, DVDS or downloads. But there are also fewer categories this year — most notably, the one for best classical recording is gone. For what it’s worth, this year brings a notable Grammy bias on the West Coast, but then this is where a great many of the Recording Academy voters are.

Chicago Tribune

Grammy nominations 2012: Kanye West, R. Kelly, Numero Group get multiple nods

Kanye West wasn’t the only artist with Chicago connections to receive plenty of attention Wednesday at the 54th annual Grammy Award nominations.

Roosevelt Review

HItting her high note: Amy Beth Kirsten

Before she attended graduate school at Roosevelt University’s Chicago College of Performing Arts, Amy Beth Kirsten (MM, ’04) was a popular Chicago jazz singer and
songwriter. Now she is a classical music composer who this spring received a prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship. “My direction completely changed
at Roosevelt,” said the 38-year-old resident of New Haven, Conn., who went on to receive a doctorate in composing from the Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins
University.

The Globe and Mail

A mind-messing stay at the Lonely Motel

Slide was a semi-staged multimedia piece about a psychologist involved with studies in deception, who is also being consumed by the aftermath of a failed relationship. The piece, written by Steve Mackey (music) and Rinde Eckert (text), was premiered by the American chamber ensemble Eighth Blackbird at California’s Ojai Music Festival in 2009, and toured the U.S. in 2010. This remarkable album, which was nominated earlier this month for three Grammy Awards, is a condensed version of the piece, with Eckert joining the ensemble as tenor and speaker and Mackey playing electric guitar.

Chicago Classical Review

Genre-crossing Contempo program serves up a dizzying musical mix

Piano tangos, the U.S. premiere of a Russian string quartet, two works new to Chicago — including one for chorus by Nico Muhly — and a celebrated Japanese jazz pianist. It was another packed and dizzyingly eclectic Contempo program served up Tuesday night at the Harris Theater by the University of Chicago Presents series. Moderated by composer and artistic director Shulamit Ran, the evening flowed smoothly despite its wildly variegated elements and, while not all of the music was consistently inspired, there was no doubt about the commitment and dedication of the performers.