WFMT's Thirsty Ear Festival
Jul
12
5:00 PM17:00

WFMT's Thirsty Ear Festival

WFMT and the program Relevant Tones presents its Third Annual Thirsty Ear Festival at the City Winery, featuring performances by Fonema Consort, Gaudete Brass, and Graham Reynolds. This two-hour program will be broadcast on Chicago's WFMT, but join us live for an evening of music and drinks in the beautiful City Winery!

Fonema will perform a set of theatrical works by Aperghis, Pablo Chin, and Hector Parra.

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The Berger Park Cultural Center presents Fonema Consort's Sand and Stone
Jun
7
7:30 PM19:30

The Berger Park Cultural Center presents Fonema Consort's Sand and Stone

As part of a partnership with the Chicago Park District, Fonema Consort presents Sand and Stone, a concert whose sounds and impetus evoke both natural and spiritual matters. Sand and Stone combines the intimate atmospheres and echoing plasticity of Giacinto Scelsi's “Sauh II”, “Ko-Loh” and Ryan Krause's "sense títol", with the subtle virtuosity of Chicago's own Juan Campoverde's "Umbrales": sand gardens and stone temples.

Juan Campoverde, Umbrales for two sopranos, flute and guitar
Aaron CassidyThe Crutch of Memory, version for solo double bass
Ryan Krause, sense títol for flute and double bass
Kaija Saariaho, Adjo for soprano, flute and guitar
Giacinto Scelsi, Sauh II for two female voices

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ESS's Outer Ear Series presents Fonema Consort's Pasos en otra calle Album Release
May
24
8:00 PM20:00

ESS's Outer Ear Series presents Fonema Consort's Pasos en otra calle Album Release

Fonema Consort is thrilled to present its first album, “Pasos en otra calle,” which compiles vocal and instrumental works by Costa Rican composers Pablo Santiago Chin and Mauricio Pauly, and that is partially funded by the “Dotación Musical” Grant from the Costa Rican Association of Musical Authors (ACAM).

As Fonema's musicologist in residence, Etha Willimas writes in the liner notes: "the music by Mauricio Pauly and Pablo Chin collected on Fonema Consort's debut recording explores the boundaries of form—where structures are endangered by the very tensions that sustain them—and of meaning—where words verge on pure sound and where musical sound is itself loosed from its conventional moorings."

Selections from the CD and other chamber works will accompany this special evening.

Tickets $10/$8

Boschiana for soprano, saxophone and piano by Pablo Chin
Persona for solo double bass by Pablo Chin
Libros de Marc for solo flute by Pablo Chin
vs. el monopolio de la memoria for violin, saxophone and piano by Mauricio Pauly
Apertura del Becerro for soprano and cello by Mauricio Pauly
Ochre 2 for electric guitar and tape by Alejandro Cardona

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The Foro de música nueva present Fonema Consort and Julio Estrada
May
22
8:00 PM20:00

The Foro de música nueva present Fonema Consort and Julio Estrada

  • Auditorio Divino Narciso de la Universidad del Claustro de Sor Juana (map)
  • Google Calendar ICS

Ten years since its only performance at Julio Estrada’s home country, Fonema Consort performs his 30 minute piece Mictlan, derived from his opera “Murmullos del Páramo,” at the Foro Manuel Enríquez in Mexico City, thus marking Fonema’s Mexican debut, and third international appearance. In addition to collaborating with Estrada, Fonema presents pieces by its resident composers Pablo Santiago Chin and Joan Arnau Pàmies featuring Kathryn Schulmeister as bassist and vocalist/actress, and Daniel Peter Biro’s “Be Mitzraim” for percussion and the percussionist’s voice, featuring Ryan Packard.

BeMitzraim for solo percussion by Dániel Péter Biró Como la leyenda de Tlön for vocalist/actress and percussion by Pablo Chin Mictlan for soprano, double bass and percussion by Julio Estrada [k(d_b)s] for solo double bass by Joan Arnau Pàmies

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May
14
7:30 PM19:30

The Berger Park Cultural Center Presents Fonema Consort's Drawing Music

Composers such as Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951) were talented painters, avant-garde artists like Paul Klee were highly musical, writer/artist Marcel Duchamp flirted with composition, and composer Iannis Xenakis’ scores resemble wild architectural blueprints. In recent decades, visuals have deeply permeated the making-music process, defying the possibilities of the imagination. Part of Fonema Consort's partnership with the Chicago Park District, Drawing Music reflects this trend, featuring works by composers whose pieces are based upon drawings, including a work by one of the most unique and influential composers of our times, Julio Estrada, whose works can be thought of as a sonic gallery. Fonema Consort is pleased to welcome flutist Shanna Gutierrez as a special guest for this concert. Mark André, Kontraetude for soprano, bassoon and double bass Pablo Chin, A Rayas y Cuadros for solo guitar Julio Estrada, Yuunohui'nahui'ehecatl for flute and double bass Shawn Lucas, Blind for two sopranos, flute and double bass Joan Arnau Pàmies, New work for soprano, double bass and percussion Chiyoko Szlavnics, Partial Response I for voice and two mouthpieces.

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The Universidad de Costa Rica presents Fonema Consort
May
7
7:00 PM19:00

The Universidad de Costa Rica presents Fonema Consort

  • Escuela de Artes Musicales, Sala Maria Clara Cullel (map)
  • Google Calendar ICS

Fonema Consort retorna a Costa Rica para presentar su primer álbum "Pasos en otra calle", que compila obras vocales-instrumentales de los compositores costarricenses Pablo Santiago Chin (chicago) y Mauricio Pauly (manchester), y que fue parcialmente financiado por la "Dotación Musical" de ACAM. Como nos dice la musicóloga Etha Williams en las notas del disco:

"La música de Mauricio Pauly y Pablo Chin reunida en el primer álbum de Fonema Consort explora límites formales—donde las estructuras son amenazadas por las mismas tensiones que las sustentan—y de significado—donde las palabras rozan el sonido puro, y donde el sonido musical es así mismo liberado de sus amarras convencionales."

Selecciones del CD y otras obras de cámara del repertorio de Fonema Consort acompañarán esta noche especial en la Sala Maria Clara Cullel de la Escuela de Música de la Universidad de Costa Rica.

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May
4
2:00 PM14:00

The Green Mill Presents Fonema and Feldman, Curated by Christopher Wendell Jones

Curated in collaboration with DePaul faculty composer Christopher Wendell Jones, this concert showcases soloists from Fonema Consort exploring rare early works by Varése and Feldman, recent music composed for Fonema by Chicago composers Pablo Chin, Christopher Wendell Jones and Joan Pàmies, and culminating with a rendition by Jones of Feldman’s entrancing and monumental Triadic Memories.

$5 cover

Pub 1 and 2 for solo soprano by Georges Aperghis BeMitzraim for solo percussion by Dániel Péter Biró Persona for solo double bass by Pablo Chin Only for solo female voice by Morton Feldman Triadic Memories for solo piano by Morton Feldman Devil Madrigals for two sopranos, bass flute and piano by Christopher Wendell Jones Palimpsestus for soprano, double bass and percussion by Joan Arnau Pàmies Density 21.5 for solo flute by Edgar Varèse Un grand someil noir for soprano and piano by Edgar Varèse

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Merging Voices – Fonema Consort and Voix de Stras'
Apr
24
7:30 PM19:30

Merging Voices – Fonema Consort and Voix de Stras'

During the last week of April, Strasbourg-based contemporary vocal ensemble Voix de Stras' will visit Chicago as part of an American tour, where they will be joined by Fonema Consort to deliver two collaborative concerts in Evanston's Musical Offering and Chicago's Constellation Theater. Both events will be centered around the premieres of four pieces written for the occasion by composers Ivan Solano and Clara Olivares from the Conservatoire de Strasbourg, and Chicago's own Pablo Santiago Chin and Morgan Krauss, in addition to representative works from both ensemble's repertoire. These concerts will bring together the interest of both groups in exploring the human voice through the works of emerging composers, and their particular approaches to such mission, as well as merging the tastes and voices of two rich new music scenes. We are also pleased to welcome mezzo-soprano Kayleigh Butcher as special guest soloist.

Strasbourg Instantanés for voices by Georges Aperghis
(in)armonia: motetes (WORLD PREMIERE) for 8 voices by Pablo Chin
Two Walking (excerpts) for two voices by Pascal Dusapin
Apprehending distinction (WORLD PREMIERE) for 6 voices and double bass by Morgan Krauss
Cantar del Alma by Caroline Março
Nebula (WOLRD PREMIERE) for 6 voices and flute by Clara Olivare
Adjö for soprano flute and guitar by Kaija Saariah
Kyogen (WORLD PREMIERE) for 6 voices by Ivan Solano

This project is made possible by the support of the Institut Français in Paris

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Merging Voices – Fonema Consort and Voix de Stras'
Apr
23
7:30 PM19:30

Merging Voices – Fonema Consort and Voix de Stras'

During the last week of April, Strasbourg-based contemporary vocal ensemble Voix de Stras' will visit Chicago as part of an American tour, where they will be joined by Fonema Consort to deliver two collaborative concerts in Evanston's Musical Offering and Chicago's Constellation Theater. Both events will be centered around the premieres of four pieces written for the occasion by composers Ivan Solano and Clara Olivares from the Conservatoire de Strasbourg, and Chicago's own Pablo Santiago Chin and Morgan Krauss, in addition to representative works from both ensemble's repertoire. These concerts will bring together the interest of both groups in exploring the human voice through the works of emerging composers, and their particular approaches to such mission, as well as merging the tastes and voices of two rich new music scenes. We are also pleased to welcome mezzo-soprano Kayleigh Butcher as special guest soloist.

Strasbourg Instantanés for voices by Georges Aperghis
(in)armonia: motetes (WORLD PREMIERE) for 8 voices by Pablo Chin
Two Walking (excerpts) for two voices by Pascal Dusapin
apprehending distinction (WORLD PREMIERE) for 6 voices and double bass by Morgan Krauss
Cantar del Alma by Caroline Marçot
Nebula (WOLRD PREMIERE) for 6 voices and flute by Clara Olivares
Adjö for soprano flute and guitar by Kaija Saariaho
Kyogen (WORLD PREMIERE) for 6 voices by Ivan Solano

This project is made possible by the support of the Institut Français in Paris

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The Berger Park Cultural Center present Fonema Consort's Singing Instruments
Mar
19
7:30 PM19:30

The Berger Park Cultural Center present Fonema Consort's Singing Instruments

How often someone says after a concert, “that instrument sounded like a human voice!”. In our deep conviction that the role of the human voice has been reborn in recent decades as a leading and powerful source of musical material, Fonema Consort presents Singing Instruments as part of a partnership with the Chicago Park District. This program showcases the use of vocal resources to transform instrumental writing, through the influential music of Kaija Saariaho, Georges Aperghis, and the seductive, fully imaginative sounds of Chicago's Katherine Young. Phonemes (which inspired the name of our consort) merge with traditional flute performance in Saariaho's "Laconisme d'aile"; BeMitzraim demands the utmost of the percussionist as he both sings and plays; and the organic use of non-traditional instruments by our vocalists defines the identity of Young's new work. this program culminates with the ultimate crossroads between instrumentalist and vocalist, converging in the music theater of Aperghis' Les sept crimes de l'amour.

Georges Aperghis, Les sept crimes de l'amour, for soprano, clarinet and percussion Dániel Péter BiróBeMitzraim for singing percussionist Kaija Saariaho, Lachonisme de l’aile for solo flute Stratis Minakakis, new work for two voices playing percussion Katherine Young, New work for two sopranos, bass clarinet and baritone saxophone

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Feb
22
8:00 PM20:00

North Central College's Sounds of New Music Festival presents Fonema Consort

Fonema Consort is thrilled to be ensemble in residence at North Central College, leading a week of workshops for student composers, and culminating in its concert debut at the NCC Sounds of New Music Festival, bringing to the Naperville community a varied program involving technology and virtuosic writing, and highlighting the forceful voices of a new generation of composers.

Christopher Wendell Jones, Devil Madrigals for two sopranos, bass flute and piano James Dillon, A Roaring Flame for soprano and double bass Beat Furrer, Invocation VI for soprano and bass flute Joan Arnau Pamies, New work for soprano, double bass and percussion Simon Steen-AndersenDifficulties Putting it into Practice for two amplified sopranos Chris SwithinbankSmall Atlas for soprano, saxophone and piano

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The Frequency Series Presents Fonema Consort's Amplified
Feb
16
8:30 PM20:30

The Frequency Series Presents Fonema Consort's Amplified

AMPLIFIED features works uniting acoustic instruments with the electronic medium, a continued interest of Fonema Consort which resulted in the ensemble's participation in the Loops and Variations series at Pritzker Pavillion last summer. This program brings together adventurous works of subtle complexity, including a commission from Alexander Sigman based on his collaboration with filmmaker and visual artist Damir Ocko, and that serves as the foundation for a future chamber opera. This concert also features works by Chicago's own Juan Campoverde and Nomi Epstein, Danish composer Simon Steen-Andersen's Difficulties Putting it into Practice, in which minute, simple noises reveal a new sonic body when magnified. Simon Steen-Andersen, Difficulties Putting it into Practice, for two amplified sopranos Alexander Sigman, epiglottis, for two sopranos, flutes, cello, contrabass, electronics, and video projection *WORLD PREMIERE Juan Campoverde, Muna I, for solo guitar with tape Erin Gee, Mouthpiece VI, for soprano, flute, viola, double bass and percussion Nomi Epstein, Pillars and Glisses, for two sopranos, flute, clarinet, electric guitar, piano, violin and cello

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The Frequency Series presents Fonema Consort's Clay and Water
Nov
10
8:30 PM20:30

The Frequency Series presents Fonema Consort's Clay and Water

Centering upon Yuunohui, the cornerstone work of charismatic composer Julio Estrada, this concert initiates a long-sought collaboration with one of the most imaginative and influential composers of the last decades. "Clay and water", the meaning of the Nahuatl word yuunohui, defines the sculptural, kinetic approach to music characterizing this program. Fonema Consort is proud to present the world premiere of a version of Yuunohui for trombone, bass and piano, and to welcome rising star trombonist Felix Del Tredicci, and Chicago's own pianist/composer Christopher Jones. This program also features the US premiere of Mauricio Pauly's Dust Unsettled, which will be part of Fonema’s first recording project, scheduled for release in the Spring of 2014.

Pablo ChinBoschiana, for soprano, tenor saxophone and piano *WORLD PREMIERE Julio Estrada, Yunnohui'Ehecatl'Nahui'Tlapoa, version for trombone, piano and double bass *WORLD PREMIERE Julio Estrada, Yuunohui'Ehecatl for solo trombone Heinz Holliger, Lied , version for bass flute and ad lib. amplification Stratis Minakakis, new work for two sopranos playing percussion *WORLD PREMIERE Mauricio Pauly, Dust Unsettled, for soprano, trombone, cello, piano and percussion

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Oct
17
8:00 PM20:00

The Latino Music Festival presents Fonema Consort's Otras músicas

  • The University of Chicago's Fulton Hall (map)
  • Google Calendar ICS

Fonema Consort showcases a diverse range of musical aesthetics in the music of six Hispanic composers based in Chicago. Almost a century after the legendary Silvestre Revueltas lived on Michigan Avenue, the city continues to attract composers from Spain and Latin America who exhibit different sensibilities and backgrounds. From English, French, and Spanish texts to instrumental speech imitation inspired by Swedish, as well as totally abstract sound, these works offer a taste of current musical trends. Beyond nationalist stereotypes and expectations, this concert presents "other musics".

Andrés Carrizo, ...awake, aware, awaiting... for soprano, flute, guitar, piano, violin, vibraphone Pablo ChinPersona for double bass Guillermo Gregorio, Otra Musica 12b: Apuntes para la posthistoria, 2a Parte for soprano, flute, clarinet, tuba, piano and double bass Tomas Gueglio, … Pellicanz, for soprano, violin and piano Joan Arnau Pàmies[k(d_b)s] for double bass Francisco Castillo Trigueros, Abismo azul, floreciente for soprano, bass flute, saxophone and percussion

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The Comfort Music Series Presents Fonema Consort's Amphitheater
Sep
26
7:30 PM19:30

The Comfort Music Series Presents Fonema Consort's Amphitheater

A program that takes the performer out of her comfort zone is brought to the Comfort Music Series at Logan Square to kick off Fonema Consort’s 2013-14 season. The Comfort Station will become an intimate, modern amphitheater to witness some of the finest dramaturgia in music today. In solo works by James Bean and Stratis Minakakis, the performer’s need to express battles the limitations of the lungs; like Minakakis' AGGELOI III, Hector Parra's Mort d'Antigone revives the timelessness of Greek drama; the primitive rites of ancient times may resound in the raw soundworld of James Dillon's A Roaring Flame and Giacinto Scelsi's Ko-Loh.

Fonema Consort's breathlessly frantic set will be followed by the mellow and atmospheric music of Chicago's Weatherman band (http://weathermancan.com/band).

Fonema's season opening concert is free of charge- donations suggested by Comfort Station. James BeanThis Will Rub Against My Grid II A for solo alto flute James Dillon, A Roaring Flame, for soprano and double bass Stratis MinakakisAGGELOI III for solo female voice Hector Parra, Mort d’Antigone, for mezzo-soprano and clarinet Giacinto Scelsi, Ko-Lho, for flute and clarinet Shawn Lucas, new work for two sopranos, flute, and double bass *WORLD PREMIERE

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The Chicago Music Summit Showcase
Sep
20
6:30 PM18:30

The Chicago Music Summit Showcase

  • The Chicago Cultural Center's Preston Bradley Hall (map)
  • Google Calendar ICS

After a first musical engagement with the City of Chicago this summer at the Loops and Variations Series, Fonema Consort shares stage with a wide variety of music groups from all over the city during the Chicago Music Summit Showcase, presenting two fierce and never-resting duos by James Dillon and Beat Furrer.

Beat Furrer, Invocation VI for soprano and bass flute James Dillon, A Roaring Flame for soprano and double bass

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