Spring is popping up all over… or in our case, 8SW is popping up, which is definitely better then pooping out.
Over the last season and a bit, we have had two Pop Up concerts, and we’re doing it again to celebrate the end of our 2018-19 season.
The Pop Up concerts happen in a variety of spaces. So far, we’ve played at Alchemical Studios in lower Chelsea (not sure that is a legitimate real estate term, but let’s go with it) and Shetler Studios in Midtown. Our next one will be in the Theater district, at a studio we chose because we liked the name. Why studios? First, they tend to be less expensive than a more formal concert space like Tenri, or one of the halls. Also, they are smaller and more casual, which is the aesthetic we’re aiming for. And there are so many options in New York. These performances give us a chance to try different places and acoustics in a pretty low risk way. In the future, we are looking at spaces in the outer boroughs. (Yes, I’m originally from Queens, so I can say “Outer Boroughs”. I still think of Manhattan as going into “the City”.) Maybe even… New Jersey. Who knows?
These Pop Ups are short too. We like to keep them to about 30-40 minutes of music. They are a chance to try pieces out. With any piece, but especially with new music, it’s hard to know what you have till you trot it out in front of actually living people. With these concerts, we can see what works and what doesn’t — what we need to change or adjust. And most importantly to us, get direct feedback from the audience about what they heard.
On June 11, we will be playing three pieces. The first is by NY composer, Pamela Sklar. Pam is a flutist and composer. She and Matt spent many years trekking around Maine and Japan performing with the New York Ragtime Orchestra. I still remember Pam in her flapper dress playing “Whistler and his Dog” on the piccolo. Her work, Third Eye, is a long way from Ragtime. We have actually performed this work once before and Pam is currently working an a second movement that we will premiere in the Fall. You can read all about Pamela and her music in our Featured Composer Section.
Then there is the entrée of this little concert – Aribert Riemann’s Canzoni e Ricercari. This piece was written in 1961 and has been sitting in our library for a long time, waiting for the right program. It’s an interesting set of works that has solo, duo and trio movements.
Finally, a little CPE Bach. I know, not new music, but you know…variety. And of course we’ve messed with it –– Viola instead of a violin, so a few (maybe a lot) of octave changes, altering the timbre just a bit and no pesky harpsichord to get in the way of that nifty Basso Continuo.
These Pop Ups are free to attend, but, of course, we’d never pass up any donations. We do have a new recording to fund, and our 2020 8SW Composer Competition. and a few other projects that you’ll be hearing about soon…I guess I know what the next 3-8 blogs will be about!
Want to come to our June 11 Pop Up at 6PM? Great!! Drop us a quick email at 8stringswhistle@gmail.com. Space is a bit limited so we want to make sure we have a chair for you and of course, tell you where exactly the performance is happening.
