15 February 2010
DNK presents an evening taking in the of extremes of percussion, with seminal works by two of the most important composers from the 20th century. This evening was built around the Swiss percussion duo Buttercup Metal Polish and extended to include the works by Tenney and Lucier.
Buttercup Metal Polish
Nicolas Field - percussion
Alexandre Babel - percussion
Buttercup Metal Polish works on semi structured improvisation without clear references to any particular genre in a man/instrument continuum, in which skin and metal instruments as well as other types of musically conductive materials are used to create sound; bringing together elements from different musics in a defined liberty.
Alvin Lucier
- Silver streetcar for the orchestra
(1988)
Matthias Engler - solo amplified triangle
Silver Streetcar of the Orchestra is a thorough and beautiful musical exploration of the triangle. The piece explores all of the complex overtones that are present within this extremely simply constructed orchestral percussion instrument. Matthias Engler is a Berlin based percussionist specialising in contemporary music. In 2004 he co-founded ensemble 'adapter' and is known in Amsterdam for his duo Thai On Top. His solo repertoire includes works by Helmut Lachenmann, Franco Donatoni, Iannis Xenakis and Morton Feldman.
James Tenney
- Having Never Written a Note for Percussion
(1971)
Alexandre Babel - snare drum
Matthias Engler - snare drum
Nicolas Field - snare drum
For the second time, DNK presents work by James Tenney. Previously we premiered Spectral Variations, a series of works for player piano, the recordings of which will be released on Important Records later this year. This time we present a sonic masterpiece whish must have one of the simplest scores in contemporary music (see below). Giving maximal effect from minimal direction, this is certainly the first time the piece has been performed with three snare drums.