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Moshe · 07.20.2008, 03:25 AM

http://timesunion.com:80/AspStories/...&category=ARTS

You'll get a bang out of Bang On a Can

By GREG HAYMES, Staff writer
First published: Sunday, July 20, 2008
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. -- No one was actually banging on a can, but drummer David Cossin was flailing away on a bunch of traditional Balinese gongs during the opening suite of music from "ShadowBang," and by the end of the evening's program pianist Ning Yu was dragging a heavy metal chain across the strings inside her Baldwin grand.

Back for their seventh annual Summer Music Festival at MASS MoCA, the Bang On a Can All-Stars treated adventurous listeners to a wild ride on Saturday night at MASS MoCA's Hunter Center, and if you were looking to hear something out of the ordinary, you certainly weren't disappointed.
The six-piece ensemble featured founding member and clarinetist Evan Ziporyn, along with BOAC veterans Cossin and bassist (and Capital Region native) Gregg August, as well as relative newcomers Felix Fan on cello, Ning Yu on piano and Derek Johnson on eight-string electric guitar. It's a unique sound that fuses together elements of a contemporary avant-garde classical ensemble with the power and fury of a rock band without ever quite sounding like either one.
The centerpiece of the program was the closing number, in which the All-Stars were joined by special guest guitarist Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth in a performance of his composition "How Deep Are Rivers (A Map is a Good Piece of Paper)." Beginning with snippets of telephone messages looped and laden with echo, the piece morphed into a extended guitar solo, in which Ranaldo played his guitar in seemingly every manner except the traditional way. Holding it gingerly by the neck, he dragged a violin bow across the bass strings, sculpting a deep, low-end sound that fought against a delicate balance of feedback.
The rest of the ensemble kicked in somewhere around the eight-minute mark, layering on progressive rock filigrees and a throbbing rhythmic foundation, which built to a climax of joyous, ecstatic noise.
But that was just the finale. The BOAC All-Stars opened the concert by exploring Balinese gamelan music with Ziporyn's "ShadowBang" suite, the delicate, meditative wash of the second movement ("Ocean") and the thoroughly rocking closing section ("Head") gave Ranaldo's piece a run for its money as the highlights of the night. Along the way, the All-Stars also dove head-first into free jazz with Ornette Coleman's "Haven't Been Where I Left," conjured a mutant strain of polyrhythmic Afro-pop with Lukas Ligetti's "Glamour Girl" and served up Julia Wolfe's "Big, Beautiful, Dark and Scary," which seemed to be one suspenseful, tension-building chord that grew more harrowing with each pounding of a concert bass drum that literally rattled the seats of the theater. Music reviewTHE BANG ON A CAN ALL-STARS with Lee Ranaldo When: 8 p.m. Saturday Where: MASS MoCA's Hunter Center, 87 Marshall St., North Adams, Mass. Length: Two hours Musical highlights: Ranaldo's "How Deep Are Rivers (A Map is a Good Piece of Paper)" and Ziporyn's suite from "ShadowBang" Upcoming: The Bang On a Can Summer Institute at MASS MoCA continues with free performances throughout the galleries at 1:30 and 4:30 p.m. daily. The festival concludes with the Bang On a Can Marathon features the All-Stars, students and acclaimed contemporary classical composer Terry Riley at 4 p.m. Saturday in the Hunter Center.

07.20.2008, 03:25 AM	#8
Moshe Super Moderator Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 5,865	http://timesunion.com:80/AspStories/...&category=ARTS You'll get a bang out of Bang On a Can By GREG HAYMES, Staff writer First published: Sunday, July 20, 2008 NORTH ADAMS, Mass. -- No one was actually banging on a can, but drummer David Cossin was flailing away on a bunch of traditional Balinese gongs during the opening suite of music from "ShadowBang," and by the end of the evening's program pianist Ning Yu was dragging a heavy metal chain across the strings inside her Baldwin grand. Back for their seventh annual Summer Music Festival at MASS MoCA, the Bang On a Can All-Stars treated adventurous listeners to a wild ride on Saturday night at MASS MoCA's Hunter Center, and if you were looking to hear something out of the ordinary, you certainly weren't disappointed. The six-piece ensemble featured founding member and clarinetist Evan Ziporyn, along with BOAC veterans Cossin and bassist (and Capital Region native) Gregg August, as well as relative newcomers Felix Fan on cello, Ning Yu on piano and Derek Johnson on eight-string electric guitar. It's a unique sound that fuses together elements of a contemporary avant-garde classical ensemble with the power and fury of a rock band without ever quite sounding like either one. The centerpiece of the program was the closing number, in which the All-Stars were joined by special guest guitarist Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth in a performance of his composition "How Deep Are Rivers (A Map is a Good Piece of Paper)." Beginning with snippets of telephone messages looped and laden with echo, the piece morphed into a extended guitar solo, in which Ranaldo played his guitar in seemingly every manner except the traditional way. Holding it gingerly by the neck, he dragged a violin bow across the bass strings, sculpting a deep, low-end sound that fought against a delicate balance of feedback. The rest of the ensemble kicked in somewhere around the eight-minute mark, layering on progressive rock filigrees and a throbbing rhythmic foundation, which built to a climax of joyous, ecstatic noise. But that was just the finale. The BOAC All-Stars opened the concert by exploring Balinese gamelan music with Ziporyn's "ShadowBang" suite, the delicate, meditative wash of the second movement ("Ocean") and the thoroughly rocking closing section ("Head") gave Ranaldo's piece a run for its money as the highlights of the night. Along the way, the All-Stars also dove head-first into free jazz with Ornette Coleman's "Haven't Been Where I Left," conjured a mutant strain of polyrhythmic Afro-pop with Lukas Ligetti's "Glamour Girl" and served up Julia Wolfe's "Big, Beautiful, Dark and Scary," which seemed to be one suspenseful, tension-building chord that grew more harrowing with each pounding of a concert bass drum that literally rattled the seats of the theater. Music reviewTHE BANG ON A CAN ALL-STARS with Lee Ranaldo When: 8 p.m. Saturday Where: MASS MoCA's Hunter Center, 87 Marshall St., North Adams, Mass. Length: Two hours Musical highlights: Ranaldo's "How Deep Are Rivers (A Map is a Good Piece of Paper)" and Ziporyn's suite from "ShadowBang" Upcoming: The Bang On a Can Summer Institute at MASS MoCA continues with free performances throughout the galleries at 1:30 and 4:30 p.m. daily. The festival concludes with the Bang On a Can Marathon features the All-Stars, students and acclaimed contemporary classical composer Terry Riley at 4 p.m. Saturday in the Hunter Center.
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