Press Releases
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Beethoven and Brahms Plus a World
Premiere
First Performance of ...Ex Machina by
Composer-in-Residence Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez
Marimbist Makoto Nakura and Pianist Cristina Valdes Perform as Guest
Artists
On Saturday, April 5, 2008, at 8:00 p.m. in the
Anderson Center at Binghamton University, the Binghamton
Philharmonic, José-Luis Novo music director and
conductor, continues its 2007-2008 Season with a concert titled
Great Composers: World Premiere. The event is the culmination
of the Binghamton Philharmonic's season-long exploration of classical music
from Latin America: South of the Border, A Latin American
Festival. The concert features Beethoven's
Egmont Overture and Brahms' Symphony No. 2,
as well as the world premiere of ...Ex Machina
for Piano, Marimba and Orchestra by Carlos
Sánchez-Gutiérrez , which was commissioned by the Binghamton
Philharmonic. Marimbist Makoto Nakura and pianist
Cristina Valdés will be the guest artists for this new
musical work, which is inspired by the kinetic sculptures of artist Arthur
Ganson (http://www.arthurganson.com/).
Mr. Sánchez-Gutiérrez is the Binghamton Philharmonic's composer-in-residence
for the 2007-2008 season. Both the commission and residency were made
possible by a generous grant from the New York State Music Fund. Tickets
range from $29-$40 for adults, $26-$37 for seniors (over 60) and $10 for
students and children. Call 607-723-3931 for tickets and
information. Tickets may be purchased online at
www.binghamtonphilharmonic.org. Patrons can choose
their seats online.
This concert is sponsored by the Oakdale Mall. The
Binghamton Philharmonic's 2007-2008 Classical Series is sponsored by
M&T Bank.
The Binghamton Philharmonic will also present a pre-concert talk by
composer-in-residence Carlos Sánchez-Gutiérrez at 7:00 p.m.
in the Anderson Center Chamber Hall. The pre-concert talk is free to
all ticket holders and is sponsored by The Golub Foundation of Price
Chopper.
Also, a pre-concert dinner will be held in the Anderson
Center Reception Room at 6:00 p.m., presented by Sodexho Catering Service at
Binghamton University. Call 607-777-2925 for dinner reservations and
information.
This performance is made possible with public
funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.
General Operating Support is provided to the Binghamton Philharmonic by a
grant from the United Cultural Fund, a program of the Broome County Arts
Council. The Binghamton Philharmonic's 2007-2008 Season is also made
possible by a grant from The New York State Music Fund, established by the
New York State Attorney General at Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors.
***
Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez
The music of Carlos Sánchez-Gutiérrez has been described by the press as
"vigorously organized and highly visceral...neither eclectic nor post-modern
nor owing allegiance to any passing fashion."
Born in Mexico City in 1964, he grew up in Guadalajara, and later studied
at the Peabody Conservatory, Yale University, Princeton and Tanglewood under
Henri Dutilleux, Jacob Druckman, and Martin Bresnick. He is currently
Associate Professor of Composition at the Eastman School of Music in
Rochester, New York.
Among the many awards he has received are the Barlow Prize, a Finalist
Prize at the 2004 Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestral Composer Competition, as
well as the 2003 Lee Ettelson Composition Award. He has also been honored in
recent years with awards and fellowships from the Koussevitzky, Guggenheim,
Fromm, Rockefeller and Camargo Foundations. He was the 2000-01 American
Academy of Arts and Letters Charles Ives Fellow and has received two B.M.I
composition awards, the Mozart Medal from the governments of Mexico and
Austria, and a Fulbright Fellowship. Sánchez-Gutiérrez's work is performed
and recorded frequently in the U.S, Latin America, Europe and Asia.
In 2007 Sánchez-Gutiérrez was Composer-in-Residence at the Michoacan
International New Music Festival (Morelia, Mexico), the S.L.A.M. Festival in
Seattle, as well as with the Binghamton Philharmonic (through a grant from
the New York State Fund for Music.)
Sánchez-Gutiérrez's most recently completed works are ...Ex Machina, for
marimba, piano and orchestra (NY State Music Fund for the Binghamton
Philharmonic) and "[...and of course Henry the Horse...] Dances the..."
(Koussevitzky Music Foundation in the Library of Congress, New York State
Council on the Arts, Continuum) and Twittering Variations (Hanson Fund for
the Mexico City Woodwind Quintet. Upcoming projects include a Barlow
Endowment-commissioned work for a consortium of percussion ensembles (SO,
Kroumata and Nexus) and a new work for Ensamble Onyx.
Click Here To Visit The Composer's Website
Cristina Valdes
Committed to both contemporary and standard repertoire, Cristina Valdés
is known for presenting innovative concerts with repertoire ranging from
Bach to Xenakis. She has performed across four continents and in a
multitude of venues including Lincoln Center, Carnegie Recital Hall and the
Kennedy Center. Her passionate interest in new music has led to a
variety of collaborations with many composers including performing side by
side with Joan Tower and Terry Riley, recording the works of Ezra Laderman
and Ned Rorem, and premiering works by Evan Ziporyn, Carlos
Sanchez-Gutierrez, and Oliver Schneller among others. Her festival
performances include the Foro Internacional de Musica Nueva in Mexico City,
the Brisbane Arts Festival, the Festival of Contemporary Music in El
Salvador, Theater de Welt in Stuttgart, the New Music in Miami Festival, the
Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, and the Singapore Arts Festival.
An avid chamber musician, Cristina has toured extensively with the Bang
On a Can "All Stars" and has performed with the Mabou Mines Theater Company,
the Parsons Dance Company, Musicians Accord, and the Princeton Composers
Ensemble. From 1998-2001, Cristina was a member of the award-winning chamber
music group Antares, which commissioned, premiered, and recorded the works
of contemporary composers in addition to performing piano trios and quartets
from the standard repertoire. As a collaborative pianist, she has
toured the US with Canadian Brass trumpet player Joe Burgstaller and has
performed throughout Mexico with flutist Asako Arai of the Mexico City
Woodwind Quintet.
Cristina received her BM from the New England Conservatory of Music and
later continued her studies at SUNY Stony Brook where she earned an MM and
DMA, was a member of the Stony Brook Graduate Piano Trio, and performed
Ravel's Concerto for the Left Hand under Gustav Meier. Her teachers have
included Glibert Kalish, Steve Drury, John Perry, and Claude Helffer. She
has been the recipient of numerous prizes and awards including an Arts
International Grant, the Thayer Award for the Arts, the W. Burghardt Turner
Fellowship, first prize in the Ruth Slenczynska Solo Piano Competition, the
Silver Medal in the Osaka Chamber Music Festa, and an Yvar Mikhashoff Trust
for New Music grant. Most recently, Cristina was named a 2007 Jack
Straw Productions Resident Artist. Currently, Cristina resides in
Seattle where she is the founder and director of the S.L.A.M. Festival.
Makoto Nakura
Makoto Nakura is a musician whose artistry and astonishing virtuosity has
been mesmerizing audiences for decades. He creates innovative programs of
new music as well as traditional classical repertoire, revealing the
versatility and expressive range of the marimba while enlightening and
entertaining the listener. His extraordinary communicative power and poetic
musicality is inspirational.
In 1994, Makoto Nakura moved from his native Japan to New York City,
becoming the first marimbist to win First Prize in the prestigious Young
Concert Artists International Auditions. His critically acclaimed
performances around the world have included venues in London, Rome, Tokyo,
Hong Kong, Seoul and Ho Chi Minh City. In the U.S., he has performed for
audiences in 40 of the 50 states with orchestras such as the New York
Chamber Symphony, the Chicago Sinfonietta and the California Symphony. As a
recital soloist, his long list of appearances includes Carnegie's Weill
Recital Hall, New York's 92nd Street Y and Washington's Kennedy Center.
He has performed numerous times with the American Ballet Theatre in New
York City, including appearances at the Metropolitan Opera House, the Kaye
Playhouse and at City Center, where he was soloist in a new production of
"Marimba." He also has been a guest artist with the Chamber Music Society of
Lincoln Center and appeared in the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival,
Spoleto USA Festival, Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival, and Music from
Angel Fire.
Mr. Nakura has established himself as a dedicated champion of the music
of our time. Many leading young composers such as Kevin Puts, Kenji Bunch,
Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez, Pierre Jalbert, Michael Torke, David Schober and
Jason Eckardt have written pieces especially for him. This marimbist's
mission is to explore and expand the possibilities of the instrument,
demonstrate what an exciting and provocative vehicle it offers to composers,
and provide a thrilling experience for audiences.
Born in Kobe, Japan, Mr. Nakura began to play the marimba at the age of
eight. He earned Bachelor's and Master's degrees from Musashino College in
Tokyo, where he wrote his graduate thesis on the marimba as a solo
instrument. He continued his studies at the Royal Academy of Music in
London. He has been invited to the Hong Kong Academy for the Performing Arts
four times to serve as a visiting consultant for Percussion Studies and
perform recitals. Indeed, because of his strong commitment to reaching
younger audiences, he conducts many master classes and workshops at schools
such as the Eastman School of Music and the Royal Academy of Music, among
many others.
His recent honors include a National Arts Festival New Artist Award from
the Japanese Agency of Cultural Affairs and the BMI/Carlos Surinach Fund
Marimba Commission. He was named an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music
in London. His first CD, "Ritual Protocol," was released by Kleos Classics.
It was followed by "Tsuneya Tanabe Works for Marimba," released by Japan's
ALM Records, and "Triple Jump: Six Original Pieces for Marimba," also by
Kleos. Virtually every composition on all three discs was written for Mr.
Nakura.
A network television portrait of Mr. Nakura was broadcast across the U.S.
on CBS Sunday Morning. His recitals have been widely televised by
KBS (Korea) and NHK (Japan) and played on many radio stations.
Click Here To Visit Makoto's Website