Music News

Concert of Ensemble U: at the Bio Est – New York Festival of Estonian Contemporary Culture

On October 10 at 7 pm, Ensmble U: will give a concert in New York Scandinavia House at the festival Bio Est. Program includes two world premieres by American composers: Bryan Christian’s Walk (2011) and Eugene Birman’s Red Desert (2011). Also earlier works written for the Ensemble U: will be performed: Tatjana Kozlova’s Horizontals (2010), Helena Tulve’s stream 2 (2009), Märt-Matis Lill’s When the Buffalo Went Away (2007) and Benjamin Broening’s Changing Light (2008).

Bio Est is a multi venue festival introducing a new generation of Estonian artists and performers to NewYork City. In addition to concert of Ensemble U: there will be screenings of rarely seen vintage Estonian films, solo performance by Mart Kangro and a photography exhibit by Ulvi Tiit.

Ensemble U:’s first concert tour in US continues on October 12 at 8 pm in North Carolina Duke University where the concert with the program mentioned above is supplemented by lecture and workshop of Estonian music as well as closer introduction of works that will be performed. The invitation to perform in the US was partly initiated by a prestigious grant from the Fromm Music Foundation at Harvard University to composer Bryan Christian for creating a new piece for U:.

Ensemble U: is a group of six outstanding young musicians dedicated to contemporary music: Tarmo Johannes (flute), Helena Tuuling (clarinet), Merje Roomere (violin), Levi-Danel Mägile (cello), Vambola Krigul (percussion), Taavi Kerikmäe (piano). Ensemble U: pays a lot of attention to performing experimental and improvisational music. The ensemble has also been responsible for commissioning new music from Estonian and foreign composers: Toivo Tulev, Mari Vihmand, Tatjana Kozlova, Märt-Matis Lill, Tauno Aints and Andres Lõo (Estonia), Roméo Monteiro (France), Antti Auvinen, Kimmo Kuitunen (Finland).

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