Darmstadt in nyc

"Music of Boulez, Stockhausen, and Xenakis"
Presented by the Marticians:
Alexander Lipowski, Gregory Beyer, Matthew Gold (percussion);
Erin Lesser (flute); Ann Steltenpohl (oboe); Rane Moore (clarinet); Miranda Sielaff (viola); Steven Beck (piano); Oren Fader (guitar); Bo Chang (mezzo-soprano); Michel Galante (conductor)
July 30, 2008 at The Julliard School


Three big guys of the twentieth century European avant-garde rejoined in spirit in room 309 Lincoln Center Plaza at the concert by the Marticians, a "percussion based ensemble" presenting the music of Boulez, Stockhausen, and Xenakis. Lead by percussionist Alex Lipowski and conductor Michel Galante, the brand new, new-music group consisted of members of Argento and other up-and-coming young musicians of the New York new music scene. The group presented rare live performances of Stockhausen's Kreuzspiel (1951) and Xenakis' Okho (1989) in the first half, and Boulez' classic work, Le marteau sans maître (1953-1955) in the second. The program felt a bit too heavy and somewhat predictable, almost like period re-enactment of a Darmstadt concert from the 1950s. And though a seminal work of twentieth-century European music, Boulez' looming 9 movement answer to Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire comes across today a bit like a smug Oedipal nag. But the performances were precise yet spirited, even in Kreuzspiel, which is hardly a children's "game." Steven Beck braved through the notoriously difficult piano part with style, and Michel Galante lead the group as tightly-knit ensemble crucial to executing the meticulously calculated "pointillistic" work.
***out 5 stars