Everything old and revered today was new at one time, possibly groundbreaking, maybe even revolutionary. The new is all around us ? in art, literature, medicine ? while the past often becomes today?s building blocks. Where music is concerned, the Peabody Institute, at 150 years old this year, is a celebration of the old and the new.
An upcoming “founding concert” is a novel idea on the part of Michael Kannen, Peabody?s chamber music chair. The faculty Chamber Music Group, in a program titled “New Music; Now and Then” will present the “latest” of its time, two works from the year of Peabody?s founding (1857), and the premier of a new piece.
“It?s our responsibility to play the music of our time,” said Kannen. “We owe it to our peers to bring new [works] into the world.”
When he thought of the year 1857, he considered the music being written then, choosing for the concert Bedrich Smetana?s “Piano Trio in G, Op. 15” and Johannes Brahms? “Serenade in D, Op. 11.” The Smetana piece is somber, written shortly after his daughter died. The Brahms serenade features the original chamber version from 1857.
The new work is titled “The Gray Man,” by McGregor Boyle, chairman of the composition department, and teacher in the computer music department. Boyle has utilized an Apple Macintosh and software designed specifically for the piece.
“The [computer] processes the sounds of the bass and cello on stage, and moves them quadraphonicly around the audience,” he said, adding that the computer makes it own sounds as well.
The title is based on a legendary ghost that haunts Pauli?s Island in South Carolina. He warns of impending hurricanes. Those who heed him are spared their lives and property. Those who pay no attention … well, imagine the force of the wind and beating rain ? the computer sounds capture it all.
“This is a piece … as much of our day as you can get,” said Kannen. “The new music of today and the new music [of] 1857, sort of brackets Peabody?s whole history.”
IF YOU GO
Peabody Faculty Chamber Music Concert
» Venue: Miriam A. Friedberg Concert Hall
Peabody Institute, 17 E. Mount Vernon Place, Baltimore
» Time: 8 p.m. today
» Tickets: $18, $10 for seniors, $8 for students; 410-659-8100 ext. 2
