Art of Elan: Collective Memories
Art of Elan: Season 12, called "Ways of Listening," explores the various ways we both listen to and process the world around us. The title is a play on the seminal 1970s book and BBC series Ways of Seeing, which looked at new ways to view visual art. The kickoff concert, Collective Memories, acts as a journey through time and place, with Renaissance madrigals sung by members of Bach Collegium opening the program, followed by the short one-movement "Quartettsatz" by the beloved classical composer Franz Schubert. The journey continues with a musical tribute to Duke Ellington as well as a short work by the folk/bluegrass singer Rhiannon Giddens, which provides both contrast and context for the colorful and haunting final work on the program, "The Consolation of Rain," written by Art of Élan friend and famed contemporary composer David Bruce.