Ian Power

SATURDAY, 18 MAY
Ensemble L’Arsenale
8 p.m.
Paine Hall, Harvard University
Cambridge, Mass.
L’Arsenale will perform Untitled ii, a new work of mine for accordion, electric guitar, and saxophone as part of the final concert in the Harvard Group for New Music season at Paine Hall in Cambridge, Mass.

THURSDAY, 30 MAY
Either/Or
8 p.m.
The Kitchen
New York, N.Y.
Members of Either/Or will perform my untitled string duo as part of their Spring Festival.

SUNDAY-MONDAY, 2-3 JUNE
Current Resonance Ensemble
Space Gallery
Denver, Colo.
The Current Resonance Ensemble (Mallory Bernstein and Shawn Savageau) will premiere for *current* resonance for piano and percussion, which is commissioned by and dedicated to them. It is part of a two-day concert at Space Gallery in Denver.

Posted at 3:46pm and tagged with: one column, new music, current resonance, either/or, l'arsenale,.

April 1st 2013

Construction Song (after Dick Higgins). Ning Yu, piano. Dixon Place, New York, 3/29/13. Photo by S. Takasugi.

Posted at 9:21am and tagged with: construction song, one column, ning yu, new music, piano, qubit,.

March 13th 2013

2 notes

This is the program note for my vibraphone piece, I, II, III, IV. You can hear a recording of the first movement on the audio page.

Posted at 8:51pm and tagged with: one column, program note, i ii iii iv,.

“

I, II, III, IV (so titled as a recitation of the piece’s movements) overlaps repetition, refrain, and return. It is a long piece. The piece considers the vibraphone, in that it takes predominantly the vibraphone into account. It is obsessed with motifs, so much so that it cannot create a mature one. It attempts to appeal to the visceral by stifling expression. It exploits clarity. It is music about music, in the sense that it is absolute music about music. It is absolute music about music where music about music is usually seen as extramusical. It is absolute music to a severe, wholly extramusical degree.

”

February 27th 2013

Erik Satie, as told by Claude Debussy, giving advice on the aesthetic of Pelléas et Mélisande.

Templier, Pierre-Daniel. Erik Satie. p. 17.

Posted at 2:27pm and tagged with: one column, debussy, satie, theater, music theater, opera, ballet,.

“

The orchestra should not posture when an actor appears on stage. Look: do the trees on the stage posture? It should be possible to create in the same way a musical setting, a musical climate in which the characters move and speak. No couplets, no leitmotiv—but a certain atmosphere like a painting by Puvis de Chavannes.

”

February 14th 2013

2 notes

Friedrich Nietzsche

Aphorism 334, The Gay Science.

Posted at 9:15pm and tagged with: one column, nietzsche, music, art, philosophy,.

“

*One must learn to love.*—This is our experience in music. We must first *learn* in general *to hear*, to hear fully, and to distinguish a theme or a melody, we have to isolate and limit it as a life by itself; then we need to exercise effort and good-will in order *to endure* it in spite of its strangeness, we need patience towards its aspect and expression, and indulgence towards what is odd in it:—in the end there comes a moment when we are *accustomed* to it, when we expect it, when it dawns upon us that we should miss it if it were lacking; and then it goes on to exercise its spell and charm more and more, and does not cease until we have become its humble and enraptured lovers, who want it, and want it again, and ask for nothing better from the world.—It is with us, however, not only in music: it is precisely thus that we have *learned to love* everything that we love. We are always finally recompensed for our good-will, our patience, reasonableness and gentleness towards what is unfamiliar, by the unfamiliar slowly throwing off its veil and presenting itself to us as a new, ineffable beauty:—that is its *thanks* for our hospitality. He also who loves himself must have learned it in this way: there is no other way. Love also has to be learned.

”

February 12th 2013

Reblogged from raraspeaks|1,118 notes

raraspeaks:

sun ra business card

Posted at 9:49am and tagged with: one column, sun ra, business card, music, new music, future,.

January 30th 2013

BRANDON BELL, PERCUSSION
10 FEBRUARY, 2013
7 P.M.
HIRSCH ORCHESTRA REHEARSAL HALL - RICE UNIVERSITY
HOUSTON, TEXAS

Next Sunday Brandon Bell will perform the first movement of I, II, III, IV for vibraphone as well as “I seem to be a verb,” for reciter and coffee mug on his doctoral recital at Rice University in Houston. I’ll be there; if you’re interested and nearby, come on out.

(Photo by Ben Doyle; in it, Brandon performs “I seem to be a verb,” at the Menil Collection in Houston in September.)

Posted at 9:04pm and tagged with: one column, xevents, i seem to be a verb, i ii iii iv, brandon bell, contemporary music, percussion, new music, experimental music, rice university,.

BRANDON BELL, PERCUSSION10 FEBRUARY, 20137 P.M.HIRSCH ORCHESTRA REHEARSAL HALL - RICE UNIVERSITYHOUSTON, TEXAS
Next Sunday Brandon Bell will perform the first movement of I, II, III, IV for vibraphone as well as “I seem to be a verb,” for reciter and coffee mug on his doctoral recital at Rice University in Houston. I’ll be there; if you’re interested and nearby, come on out.
(Photo by Ben Doyle; in it, Brandon performs “I seem to be a verb,” at the Menil Collection in Houston in September.)

January 30th 2013

Ave Maria on Q2 Music: Friday, 8 February

1 note

Q2 Music, a new music-specific online portion of NYC’s WQXR will be playing my music on their 3:00 p.m. show on Friday, 8 February. Click the link above to listen at that time; the show will also be archived.

Q2 will feature the theme and first variation from Ave Maria: Variations on a Theme by Giacinto Scelsi.

Posted at 9:01pm and tagged with: one column, xevents, radio, wqxr, q2, ave maria, scelsi, contemporary music, new music, experimental music,.