I know Anne LaBaron’s work primarily through her collaborations with poets Douglas Kearney and Charles Bernstein. This looks like a great set of shows and nice way to catch up on her work.
“Always changing, and always captivating.”
—Los Angeles Times“She inhabits her massive instrument as if it were a continent.”
—The New York City Jazz Record
Widely recognized as one of the most intriguing talents in American postmodern composition, Anne LeBaron has used her music to explore a range of fanciful subjects and stories—from the mysterious Singing Dune of Kazakhstan to figures such as the apocryphal cross-dressing Pope Joan and Voodoo queen Marie Laveau. Surveying four decades of adventurous musicmaking—honored with the Herb Alpert Award in the Arts, as well as Guggenheim and Fulbright fellowships, among other prizes—two different programs feature selections from LeBaron’s operas, concert theater pieces, and instrumental compositions augmented by electronics and video. Also in the mix: a sneak preview of the composer’s seventh opera, Psyche & Delia, which probes the cultural resonances of LSD; and compositions by LeBaron’s former students. Guest artists include soprano Lucy Shelton, flutist Camilla Hoitenga, shakuhachi player Ralph Samuelson, and the Formalist Quartet.
On April 12, compositions by Anne LeBaron include Creación de las Aves; a selection from Silent Steppe Cantata; Way of Light; Doggone Catact; and Breathtails, with additional compositions by Daniel Corral and James Klopfleisch. Special guests: Richard Valitutto, Timur Bekbosunov, Daniel Rosenboom, Ralph Samuelson, and the Formalist Quartet.
On April 13, LeBaron compositions will be The Good Man (from her opera, Crescent City); Transfiguration; Sachamama; and Julie’s Garden of Earthly Delights, with additional works by Andrew Tholl, James Klopfleisch, Andrew McIntosh, Chris Schunk, and Kwan-fai Lam. Special Guests: Cedric Berry, Vicki Ray, Lucy Shelton, Camilla Hoitenga, Justin DeHart, Alison Bjorkedal, Julie Feves, and Jon Stehney.