The Fredösphere

Composer Evan Chambers came to the Ann Arbor library last night to talk about his new work, The Old Burying Ground.  He's the chair of the composing department at the University of Michigan, and his work will receive its premiere this coming Monday by the UM Symphony Orchestra and three vocal soloists.  The featured performer will be a folk singer known for his singing in the movie Cold Mountain and whose name is...is...aw, shucks, I can't remember if it was Tim Eriksen or one of the others.

For last night's presentation, Chambers sang a few songs himself, accompanied by his wife, the pianist (and ethomusicologist) Suzanne Camino, and poet Keith Taylor, who was commissioned to write a poem inspired by the epitaphs which make up the text of Chambers' work.  Chambers apologized in advance for his untrained voice.  Indeed, his intense vocal production--inspired by folk singers from Ireland, Albania, and the American South--left him hoarse after only a few songs, so it would seem no singing career is imminent.  Nevertheless, the audience found his singing compelling.  He inhabited the music in a way that is rare, using his composer's advantage to the fullest.  It's thrilling, really, to find a composer of high-brow music who sings; Samuel Barber was another, and who else?  One expects a composer to be a pianist first and foremost.  (Evan Chambers also plays the Irish fiddle, and was raised in a home steeped in 60s folk music.)  Chambers' website has sound files of him singing these songs.

After next week's program (which will also include The Rite of Spring) the orchestra will take the show on the road, culminating in a performance at Carnegie Hall on February 28.  I hope Alex Ross is marking his calendar.

Labels: Composer