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The Waltz Project features jazzy and acrobatic movement interwoven with point work and classical ballet steps. Performing deadpan and cool, the dancers are by turns playful, daring or concentrated within the unusual moves. In 1976, Robert Moran joined with Robert Helps in inviting fellow composers to write waltzes; a collection was published in 1978; a recording was made in 1981. Martins has used thirteen from the collection for the ballet. Some are serious, others funny, sentimental or experimental; some differ from the composer's usual work, others are miniature examples; some explore mathematical ideas. Asked to keep the works short, most of the composers kept between two and three minutes; one lasted five, another for only one minute; Thomson's is twelve seconds. A Waltz for Evelyn Hinrichsen by Lou Harrison; born Portland, OR (1917). Composer, conductor and teacher, Harrison has organized recitals of percussion music and worked as a dancer and dance critic. Valse by Peter Gena; born Buffalo, NY (1947). Composer and pianist, Gena has been involved in the direction of several American New Music groups. Red Garnet Waltz by Joan Tower; born New Rochelle, NY (1936). Composer, pianist, and lecturer. Her waltz reflects her fascination with the molecular structure of gems in the hardness of attack and the shimmer of notes rapidly succeeding each other. Minute Waltz by Milton Babbitt; born Philadelphia, PA (1916). Composer, writer, and lecturer, an aptitude for music and mathematics led to studies in musical theory developing concepts about time points and relating pitch to duration. His work has contributed to the understanding and extension of twelve-tone theory and composition. Waltz-in-Memoriam-Maurice-Ravel by Robert Moran; born Denver, CO (1937). Studied piano and twelve-tone composition, Moran has composed chamber pieces, operas, pieces for six and eight orchestras, and events for entire cities using autos, airplanes, and radio and TV stations. Dejavalse by Tom Constanten; born Long Branch, NJ (1944). Interested in the mathematical elements of music, he described this piece as a " gracefully gliding dance of threes." Waltz by Roger Sessions; born Brooklyn, NY (1896). From 1935 to the 1980's, Sessions was a leading teacher of composition. Career Pulitzer Prize (1974); published collected essays (1979); died 1985. Modern Love Waltz by Philip Glass; born Baltimore, MD (1937). Working with Ravi Shankar and travelling in India, North Africa and Central Asia led to his unique composing method using rhythm as structure. Valse Perpetuelle (The 45 R.P.M.) by Ivan Tcherepnin; born in Paris, France (1943). Composer and teacher, he has composed for piano, clarinet and flute. Titles Waltz: After Max Steiner by Joseph Fennimore; born New York, NY (1940). Accomplished pianist, he devotes himself to composing and teaching piano. Rag Waltz by Morton Gould; born NY (1913). From 1935 to 1942 he was composer, arranger and conductor for a WOR weekly broadcast. He uses American culture and history and combines elements of jazz and folk music with classical forms. 49 Waltzes for the Five Boroughs by John Cage; born Los Angeles CA (1912). Cage has been involved with dance as a composer and accompanist throughout his career. As composer, philosopher and writer he has had an international impact on music. 49 Waltzes is a mathematical-musical map of New York City, involving chance, numerous sound devices, and pre-recorded environmental tape made in the five boroughs. For a Happy Occasion by Virgil Thomson; born in Kansas City, MO (1896). Thomson has used American rhythms, hymnbook harmony and pop music of the nineteenth century. Fourteen years as music critic for The New York Herald Tribune produced four anthologies. Awards include Pulitzer Prize (1948, film score, Louisiana Story); Kennedy Center Honors (1983); died 1989.
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