Carol M. Highsmith Archive, Library of Congress/Solomon E. HaileSelassie
The following is a guest post by Nicholas A. Brown, Music Specialist, Concert Office.
Here in the Concert Office we are all very excited for the upcoming launch of our LIBRARY LATE series on Friday, November 30! Anything but your average concert experience, LIBRARY LATE offers you an enjoyable evening out at the Atlas Performing Arts Center in the vibrant H Street Corridor. The festivities begin at 9:00 pm with a special music trivia session. Suitable for everyone, you will have the opportunity to win some unique prizes and even ask questions of the hosts in the “Stump the Specialists” segment. The club-style concert begins at 9:30 pm in the intimate Sprenger Theater. You can have a seat at the café tables and enjoy refreshments while you hear two of New York City’s most innovative and vibrant groups, American Contemporary Music Ensemble and yMusic, who will come together with “all the attitude and energy of an indie rock band” (Paste Magazine). The performance will include works by John Cage and composers under the age of 35, such as Andrew Norman and Caroline Shaw.
As always, Concerts from the Library of Congress seeks to connect culture and the community. During the intermission the audience will have the opportunity to meet the artists. With the launch of LIBRARY LATE, the Library of Congress continues to present dynamic, unconventional programming from the “world’s best artists” (Washington Post).
Led by artistic director and cellist Clarice Jensen, the American Contemporary Music Ensemble (ACME) is dedicated to the performance of masterworks from the 20th and 21st centuries, primarily those of American composers. The ensemble presents cutting-edge repertoire by living composers alongside the classics of masters like John Cage. The New York Times describes ACME as “vital,” “brilliant,” and “electrifying.” ACME does not subscribe to one stylistic movement or genre; its performances present all genres of contemporary music with the same conviction.
Hailed by NPR’s Fred Child as “one of the groups that has really helped to shape the future of classical music,” yMusic is a sextet of young performers equally comfortable in the overlapping classical and pop music worlds. The “six hip virtuosi” (Time Out New York) play a unique combination of instruments: strings, flute, clarinet and trumpet. For yMusic the difference between hip-hop and classical music is more an issue of performance practice than of impassable boundaries, a shift of style rather than genre.
View the program here (pdf).
Event Listing
LIBRARY LATE: ACME and yMusic
New Music Double Bill at the Atlas Performing Arts Center
Friday, November 30, 2012
9:00 p.m. – Music Trivia, including “Stump the Specialists”
9:30 p.m. – ACME and yMusic perform works by John Cage and composers under the age of 35. “Meet the Artists” during intermission.
Free, tickets required. Tickets available at: atlasarts.org or (202) 399-7993.
For more information, visit loc.gov/concerts