“One of the greatest of American symphonists is hardly ever performed in her home country,” writes William Robin in Saturday’s (4/6) New York Times. “Gloria Coates, who decamped to Europe in 1969, has composed at least 16 symphonies, mind-bending works couched in a language laden with eerie smears of orchestral texture. That path began with her breakthrough Symphony No. 1 in 1973, a twitchy and brooding exploration of radically retuned strings, which will receive a rare performance by the intrepid American Composers Orchestra at Zankel Hall on April 11. Along with music by Morton Feldman, another highlight of the program is the premiere of ‘Where We Lost Our Shadows,’ a multidisciplinary work by the composer Du Yun and the artist Khaled Jarrar inspired by the refugee crisis, which brings together soloists across genres including the Qawwali vocalist Ali Seth, the singer Helga Davis and the percussionist Shayna Dunkelman.”
Posted April 11, 2019
