Come hear Lakeshore Rush live at PianoForte Studios on Friday, April 17 at 8pm. Works will include Marc Mellits' Platter of Discontent, a cover of Radiohead's Videotape (arr. Dane Crozier), and Mason Bates' Difficult Bamboo.
Don't miss the last concert of our inaugural 2014-2015 season!
Platter of Discontent (2004) Marc Mellits (b. 1966)
I. The Seduction of Brie
II. Roasting Petunia
III. Standing at the Gates of Orange Wheat
IV. Paranoid Cheese
V. Jello Infusion
VI. Freedom of the Eggs
Videotape (2007) Radiohead
(arr. Dane Crozier)
Difficult Bamboo (2013) Mason Bates (b. 1977)
NOTES:
Both Mellits and Bates have a strong musical connection to Chicago. Bates is the composer in residence at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and Mellits is a member of the music faculty at the University of Illinois-Chicago where he teaches composition and theory. Come hear the unique sounds of these fascinating composers.
Platter of Discontent bears whimsically titled movements such as “Paranoid Cheese” and “The Seduction of Brie”. Described as a post-minimalist, Mellits employs mixed meters, repetition, and the color of each instrument to create new aural soundscapes. Elements of rock make this piece one of our favorites to perform.
Radiohead’s “Videotape” comes from their 2007 record In Rainbows. The digital release of this album featured the unique model of customers determining what they wanted to pay for the band’s product. Many reviewers see this album as a slow return to the pop realm from the ambient sounds of Kid A and Amnesiac. Dane Crozier, Lakeshore Rush’s percussionist, has always admired Radiohead and created this arrangement for our group this spring.
Difficult Bamboo was commissioned by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 2013. Eerie, minimalist sections transform into energetic, wild segments that depict an aggressive species of running bamboo invading a landscape. Lakeshore Rush may very well be the first group to perform this intricate piece without a conductor. John von Rhein describes this work as “a winner, one of Bates’ most appealing, shrewdly plotted pieces.”
