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03.13.06

Contact: Nancy Condon, 404-727-1687, nancy.condon@emory.edu

Yukimi Kambe Viol Consort to Premiere Works by Emory’s Steve Everett and John Anthony Lennon

Japan’s Yukimi Kambe Viol Consort will perform old and new works, including two U.S. premieres of compositions by Emory University composers Steve Everett and John Anthony Lennon, when the ensemble comes to the Schwartz Center at Emory on March 25 ( 8 p.m.). The concert, titled "European Roots and International Flowerings,” will be presented in two halves. The first half of the program consists of traditional works, including Henry Purcell’s Fantasia no. 7 and two J.S. Bach pieces. The second half is all contemporary works, including Everett’s “SideStep” and Lennon’s “As She Sings.” Tickets are $10, $5 for discount category members, free for Emory students. The concert will be followed by a meet-the-artist dessert reception for ticketholders.

Everett, who teaches at Emory and performs in the new music ensemble Thamyris, explains “SideStep:” “The idea of ‘taking steps’ is a common metaphor describing an act of decision-making. ‘Giant steps’ are seldom. … Occasionally taking a ‘sidestep’ is a desirable course, both in life and in music design.” Thamyris will be presenting a free concert March 28 at 8 p.m. at the Schwartz Center.

The Yukimi Kambe Viol Consort, formed by Kambe in 1983, performs works for various sizes of the viol, a stringed instrument introduced to Japan by missionaries in 1561. Credited with possessing "the same precision and wordless communication as a longstanding string quartet" ( Seattle Post-Intelligencer), the consort has won international recognition for its music. The ensemble expresses stylistic diversity, performing both European Renaissance music and world contemporary music, and grounding themselves in cultural traditions of both East and West. In addition to Everett’s and Lennon’s compositions, the consort has premiered more than 80 works written expressly for them.

The ensemble has recorded three compact discs. The first (2001), "Buffet delle Quattro Viole da Gamba,” comprises early works and contemporary Japanese compositions for viol consort. The second (2002), "Foglia d'olivo, works for viols by Tsutomu Mizuno," is the first recording ever consisting entirely of viol works by a single contemporary composer. The third (2005) is the recording of an-all Bach program, "Ja, doch BACH mit Gambenconsort.”  They have also performed on several other recordings.

The members of the consort are director Yukimi Kambe, Eriko Ozawa, Maki Noguchi and Kaori Hashizume. In addition to their participation in the consort, each member individually pursues various performance activities of early and contemporary music. The members also teach viol at academic institutions, private studios and workshops.

As Emory Coca-Cola Artists in Residents, members of the consort will also be teaching two classes for Emory music students earlier in the day: a viol workshop at 4 p.m. and a composition class at 5 p.m. Both classes take place in Emory’s Schwartz Center. The public is welcome to observe.

For more information about the Yukimi Kambe Viol Consort concert, reception, or classes, or the Thamyris concert, call 404-727-5050 or go to www.arts.emory.edu.

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