Contact: Gabriel Langfur
info@chameleonarts.org
617-427-8200
Chameleon Arts Ensemble presents Silver Songs and Golden Drums: an afternoon of chamber music for children and families
April 3, 2009 – Boston, MA – The Chameleon Arts Ensemble of Boston, in partnership with the Forest Hills Educational Trust, will present a Family Concert on Sunday, May 3, 2009 at 2 PM, in Forsyth Chapel at historic Forest Hills Cemetery, 95 Forest Hills Avenue in Jamaica Plain. The program is intended for children ages 6 and up and their families and will be interactive, with time for comments, questions, and answers. An instrument “Petting Zoo” and demonstration will follow the live performance. Children will be able to handle and play orchestral instruments as guided by members of Chameleon, and will be encouraged to touch, blow, pluck, bow, and strike.
The concert, entitled Silver Songs and Golden Drums, will explore rhythm and melody in music, with classical chamber music inspired by dancing, clapping, tapping, walking, and talking. The program includes Sergei Prokofiev’s Quintet for oboe, clarinet, violin, cello & double bass, originally commissioned for a small ballet to be called “Trapeze.” Also on the program are Mozart’s Duo for violin & viola in G Major, Astor Piazzolla’s Oblivion, Morton Gould’s Benny's Gig for clarinet & double bass dedicated to jazz great Benny Goodman, South African composer Kevin Volan’s Asanga for solo drums, Steve Reich’s iconic Clapping Music, Frederic Rzewski’s fascinating To the Earth for four flower pots & spoken voice, and Hocket Cycles for chamber ensemble, written for this concert by composer Hans Spencer, who will also be hosting and narrating the event, contributing his various talents as musician, storyteller, and educator. About his piece, Mr. Spencer comments: “Hocket Cycles is base on African rhythmic structures in which each ensemble member, though only contributing one or two on a repeating timeline, fuse together to create a piece of music.”
In a city immersed in music, the Chameleon Arts Ensemble is distinguished by superb artistry, luminous performances, and dynamic musical dialogues. Since its founding in 1998, Chameleon and artistic director Deborah Boldin have earned unqualified praise for integrating old and new repertoire into unexpected chamber music programs that are themselves works of art, and were recently recognized nationally with a 2009 CMA/ASCAP award for adventurous programming, their second such award in three years. The Boston Globe praised her “discerning ears and cosmopolitan tastes” and remarked that “planning a good chamber music program is an art unto itself, and few in town have mastered it as persuasively as the Chameleon Arts Ensemble.” This innovative ensemble draws capacity audiences of those who love the adventure of music—classic and contemporary. A Chameleon concert is a multifaceted experience in an intimate environment joining audience and musicians in an exuberant celebration of music.
The concert takes place in a hidden architectural gem: Forsyth Chapel at historic Forest Hills Cemetery in Jamaica Plain. The chapel, with a vaulted ceiling and lovely stained glass, was designed by the same team that designed Harvard University’s Sanders Theater. It seats only 140 people, so every member of the audience can see the musicians up close. The event is presented in collaboration with the Forest Hills Educational Trust, and is made possible by the Neal Rantoul Foundation, Robbins de Beaumont, Rowland, and the Mt. Washington Bank Foundations, and the Rayburn Musical Instrument Company.
For tickets or more information, concertgoers can call 617-427-8200 or visit www.chameleonarts.org. Individual tickets are $10 for adults, free for children. Forsyth Chapel is one block from the Forest Hills Station on the Orange Line, via Tower Street shortcut; free parking is available on the Cemetery grounds. Forsyth Chapel is a wheelchair accessible venue.
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info@chameleonarts.org
