Hello Everyone,

My group, Elevator Rose, will be performing twice this month!

I’m going to focus on the first event in this post – it’s happening this Saturday, 12/8 at 8 pm! Elevator Rose is playing in JACK – an art center in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn. We will be performing Workers Union (1975) by a Dutch composer Louis Andriessen. Andriessen is known as one of the classics of contemporary music, one of the greats of post-war avant-garde movement. And his Workers Union is a really interesting piece, since there is no determined pitch but all the performers (open instrumentation) play the same rhythm. The result is rather disturbing (in a good way). In the words of the composer:

‘Workers Union was originally written for the orchestra De Volharding (Perseverance), in which I myself figured as a pianist at that time.

This piece is a combination of individual freedom and severe discipline: its rhythm is exactly fixed; the pitch, on the other hand, is indicated only approximately, on a single-lined stave.
It is difficult to play in an ensemble and to remain in step, sort of thing like organizing and carrying on political action.’

Louis Andriessen (1990)

As you probably already noticed, there is a very definite political underpinning to it. In the turbulent 1960’s, his formative years, it was very difficult to stay away from politics. And Andriessen has been always on the left side of the spectrum. Which comes as no surprise  – avant-garde is an exact opposite of conservatism, both in music and life.

Elevator Rose will be performing along with other groups – Bassoon, Sarcaustic, Blipvert. The concert is curated by Ron Anderson. Check for details here:

http://www.jackny.org/post/35784759116/ron-anderson-curates-music

If you are interested in hearing a NY band perform a piece of a leftist composer from Holland, this is your jam!!!