LONDON: The Horse Hospital

Wednesday 3rd October, 2012

7:30pm

Event information

DOORS 7:30PM
ADVANCE TICKETS: £8 / CONCS. £5
TICKETS ON THE DOOR: £9 / CONCS. £6
Written in 1964, In C, if not the first work of the minimalist movement, is certainly one of its most important prototypes, capturing a spirit of freedom and inclusiveness. Despite eschewing the apparently over-complex style of modernism, the piece is rich in brilliant counterpoint, iridescent textures and subtly of form. Riley, however, gives freedom to the performers to shape these – each player works from an identical score, made up of small repeated units, but works through it at their leisure, reacting and adapting to the music as it unfolds, constantly updating to the changing environment. The result is a musical space, a molten landscape as much to be occupied as to be heard, a universal plane, just as relevant and alive, and as great and fertile an exploration of the nature of Music as it was almost 50 years ago.

Vibrant young group, The Harrison Ensemble, present this work at The Horse Hospital on 3rd October, capturing the soundworld and ideology present at the work’s conception in a way that speaks directly to today’s audiences. This work has universal appeal, and is just as brilliant for those for whom it is familiar as it is for those who come to Terry Riley, or minimalism, or live contemporary music for the first time. There will also be opportunity to meet and discuss the work with the performers during the evening, as befits a work as provocative and inclusive as Terry Riley’s In C.

www.harrisonensemble.com