Kronos Quartet continues a month of major events—which included their winning the Avery Fisher Prize and the Polar Music Prize, and the European premiere of Steve Reich's WTC 9/11 at the Barbican—with Kronos in Glasgow, a mini-festival in which Kronos Quartet is joined by special guest collaborators, hand-picked by Kronos, for an international program of events taking place all weekend across Glasgow's Concert Halls, including the Scottish premiere of WTC 9/11.
Kronos Quartet began the month with the incredible news that they have received two internationally prestigious awards: the Avery Fisher Prize and the Polar Music Prize, becoming the only musician or ensemble ever to win both prizes. The following weekend brought Reverberations, the Barbican's weekend-long celebration of Steve Reich's music and influences, in which the Quartet gave the European premiere of Reich's WTC 9/11. Now comes a mini-festival of their own: this weekend's Kronos in Glasgow, in which Kronos Quartet is joined by some very special guest collaborators, hand-picked by Kronos, for a world exclusive international program of events taking place all weekend across Glasgow's Concert Halls, including the Scottish premiere of WTC 9/11.
"We are absolutely thrilled to be bringing Kronos Quartet to Glasgow," says Svend Brown, Artistic Director of Glasgow’s Concert Halls. "Over the weekend, we’ll hear brand new music from leading composers such as Steve Reich, as well as seminal pieces which have never before been performed in Scotland. Kronos Quartet challenge the boundaries of the string quartet repertoire, and with its focus on collaboration across an array of musical genres, the Kronos in Glasgow weekend not only embraces the Quartet’s ethos but is the perfect way to bring our 2010/2011 season to a close."
Kronos in Glasgow gets into full swing tonight with a taste of the weekend to come, as Kronos Quartet is joined by some special guests for an exclusive event staged in Glasgow's Hamilton Mausoleum. This Roman-style domed structure’s high stone vault gives the building one the longest lasting echoes in any man-made structure in the world. The musicians will perform a series of short sets, exploring the astonishing acoustic and reverb time of the venue. The performances will be broadcast live to screens inside the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. You can watch a gorgeous full-length performance Kronos recorded for STV of the traditional Scandinavian tune Tusen Tankar (a Nonesuch Store bonus download on The Cusp of Magic) in the Hamilton Mausoleum, at stv.tv. Harrington also spoke with STV about all the weekend's events in a piece you can watch at stv.tv and with the BBC about the mausoleum for a story you can read at bbc.co.uk.
Later this evening in Glasgow Royal Concert Hall's Main Auditorium, Kronos will be joined by the National Youth Choir of Scotland for Kronos in Glasgow’s official Opening Concert, with a program of four Scottish premieres, including WTC 9/11. Also featured on the program are Terry Riley’s Another Secret eQuation, Michael Gordon’s Exalted, and Jon Rose’s Music from 4 Fences, for which Kronos swap their strings for a specially constructed barbed wire fence (pictured above). The performance will be accompanied by visual design by Willie Williams, U2’s long-time tour set designer.
Also tonight, the Alim Qasimov Ensemble, which is featured on Kronos Quartet's latest Nonesuch album, Floodplain, gives a concert of Azerbaijani mugham in Glasgow Royal concert Hall's Strathclyde Suite.
Tomorrow begins with a morning family workshop, in which Dr. Craig Woodson presents "World Orchestra You Can Build," based on instrument making from around the globe, in City Halls, where later in the afternoon comes a double bill from Scottish performers Chris Stout & Catriona McKay and Finland's Ritva Koistinen, one of the leading players of the kantele, a zither-like string instrument.
Saturday evening, Kronos leads a triple bill of musics from across the globe at the Old Fruitmarket, also featuring Ritva Koistinen; the Alim Qasimov Ensemble; and Inuit throat singer Tanya Tagaq, with whom Kronos will perform Derek Charke's Tundra Songs.
Kronos Quartet have chosen the Baltimore-based experimental electronic duo Matmos, a.k.a. M.C. Schmidt and Drew Daniel, to bring Saturday to a close with a late-night show with Tagaq in the Old Fruitmarket.
On Sunday, Kronos Quartet returns to the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall for an hour of family fun featuring instrument making, performance, and participation, in which Dr. Woodson will teach the audience how to make their very own Drumpet (a cross between a drum and a trumpet) before leading everyone in a mass participation performance alongside the Quartet. Before and after the performance, there will be a number of additional activities for kids.
Bringing the weekend to a close, Kronos will be joined by Wu Man for a performance of Terry Riley’s The Cusp of Magic, a piece the artists recorded for a 2008 Nonesuch recording.
For more information and tickets to Kronos in Glasgow, visit glasgowconcerthalls.com. For more on Kronos Quartet's upcoming performance schedule, visit nonesuch.com/on-tour. To peruse Kronos's Nonesuch catalog, visit the Nonesuch Store.
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