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Tania Leon to Bring Her Signature Musical Style to the Symph
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September 7th 2007 7:09 pm |
On March 22, Symphony Space will present the latest program in its original series, The Composers Project. In this installment, hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Paul Moravec, world-renowned composer, conductor and educator Tania Leon will be joined by pianists Ursula Oppens and Jade Simmons, as well as the award-winning Brasil Guitar Duo, for an intimate evening of inspiring music-including Leon's work-and conversation. Brasil Guitar Duo is recognized for its innovative approach to programming, often including the work of composers, such as Leon, who are known for blending classical structures with Latin rhythms. This event's unusual instrumental pairing of two guitars and two pianos, combined with the extraordinary work of one of contemporary music's most influential composers, will make for an evening you won't want to miss.
Since she came to prominence as Dance Theater of Harlem's first musical director, Tania Leon has become a dynamic and vital presence on the international music scene. Cuban by birth, she is of mixed French, Spanish, African, and Chinese descent, and her music reflects the rhythmic dynamism of the Caribbean as well as the pungency of atonal Western contemporary music. She is a passionate educator and powerful conductor, and has been recognized internationally with performances throughout Europe, South Africa, and the U.S. Her collaborative partners include, among others, Wole Soyinka; Derek Walcott; Rita Dove; Fae Myenne Ng; and Jamaica Kincaid. She is the recipient of a host of awards, including the New York Governor's Lifetime Achievement Award and awards from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the National Endowment for the Arts, Chamber Music America, NYSCA, the Lila Wallace/Reader's Digest Fund, ASCAP, and the Koussevitzky Foundation. She has also held the Fromm Residency at the American Academy in Rome. Recently, Leon was awarded a grant from the New York State Music Fund for a project at Purchase College Conservatory of Music, where she will be in residence during the 2007-08 academic year and will compose a new work for the Purchase Symphony Orchestra, among other projects. Symphony Space is honored to be presenting her in this year's The Composers Project series, and looks forward to an ongoing relationship with this musical master.
Permanent link: http://www.symphonyspace.org/articles/5
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vitaliy (posted on September 20th 2007 20:09:40)
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