PREVIEW
ICEFest 2007 premieres cool new music
Sounds of today, from frisky to freaky
Chicago Tribune
Published: September 21, 2007
By John von Rhein Tribune music critic
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New music has broken free of the stylistic fetters that held it in thrall to academic modernist doctrine for much of the latter 20th Century. And few organizations have better reflected that wonderful sense of liberation than the International Contemporary Ensemble -- ICE, for short.
The unique and adventurous chamber ensemble, which divides its activities between Chicago and New York, comprises some 30 versatile young performers dedicated to advancing the music of our time in all its dizzying variety. ICE's chief forum has been the new music festivals known as ICEFests, that the group has been presenting for the last five years in bars, churches, galleries and public spaces in and around Chicago.
This year's edition, ICEFest 2007, promises more shows and more musical diversity in more venues than ever before. Eleven programs, presented over nine days, will contain everything from classics of the European avant-garde and various examples of minimalism and post-minimalism to electro-acoustical works. Ten world and 15 U.S. premieres are promised. Each 60-minute program will include a pre- or post-concert meet-and-greet between the composers, performers and audience members.
"We've always maintained that new music belongs to everyone and everywhere," says flutist Claire Chase, the group's founder and executive director. "Our approach is not so much an educational exercise as it is a collaboration with our audience.
"ICEFest celebrates the intersection of contemporary culture and daily life. It's an invitation to participate in what's hot, what's going to make history and what's going to transform the way we look at music and at our lives."
The movable feast of new music gets under way with a program titled "Cello!", 9 p.m. Saturday at the Velvet Lounge, 67 E. Cermak Rd. Eight cellists, including the Chicago Symphony's Katinka Kleijn, will perform jazz, classical and experimental works by Kaija Saariaho, John Tavener, Heitor Villa-Lobos and others, including a world premiere by Chicago jazzman Greg Ward. There is a $10 cover charge.
Not to be missed is a concert devoted to renowned French composer Philippe Manoury, 7:30 p.m. Sunday at the Museum of Contemporary Photography, 600 S. Michigan Ave. He will attend the local premiere of his "Cruel Spirals" (2007), an ICE commission for soprano Tony Arnold, string quartet, flute, clarinet, guitar and percussion. Although the concert is free, reservations are required (312-494-2655).
Concerts will continue nightly through Sept. 30.
The closing event is a portrait concert of the celebrated American composer Lee Hyla, recently named to the Wyatt Chair in Music Composition at Northwestern University. The program includes several local premieres, and Hyla will attend. It takes place 2 p.m. Sept. 30 at the Green Mill, 4802 N. Broadway ($5 cover).
ICEFest 2007
When: Saturday through Sept. 30
Where: Various area venues
Price: Free for most events, $5 or $10 cover or donation for others; 312-494-2655
