The main stream of the program leading up to Density 21.5, though, flowed through the idea of process music. Du Yun’s Gradient Density began the program with atmospheric algorithmic music, the only piece solely for electronics. In contrast to Leon’s brazenly electronic concerto, Pessoa let Chase draw out veiled and breathy sentiments from the relatively uncommon bass flute. Balter’s Pessoa, written for six bass flutes, came off remarkably well, with five other flute parts recorded and played back using the impeccably executed sound design of Levy Lorenzo. The lighting design by David Michalek shone most brightly here, as the three-by-three arrangement of horizontal fluorescent lights formed a cross, and sharp blue and pink ceiling lights flooded the stage area. The seats rumbled with sub-bass whose speakers must have been placed under the risers themselves the shifting and colored lights came within a fog machine and Hollywood celebrity images of an immersive Universal Studios ride.
Luciform, a concerto for flute and electronics written for Claire Chase herself, hit hard with a veneer of Stockhausen, circa Studie I and II. While the Varèse was clearly the concert’s focus both historically and thematically, Mario Diaz de Leon’s Luciform and Marcos Balter’s Pessoa (both 2013) nevertheless gave crisp, fresh definition to the modern flute idiom. The majority of works presented included as many as ten prerecorded flute tracks, played alongside the singular Chase, who sometimes gave the impression that she was in at least three places at once, overlapping condensed ghosts playing impossible harmonies. Now, nearly 80 years later, “Density” was a fitting name for the solo concert for many reasons, not only for Chase’s truly virtuosic performance of the seminal Density 21.5. So named for the density of platinum (in grams per cubic centimeter), the piece was originally written for the première concert of George Barrere’s platinum flute. The oldest piece on the program, and the only one from the first half of the 20th century (written in 1936 and revised in 1946), Edgard Varèse’s Density 21.5 for flute alone. ICE presents a performance inspired by the current Pulitzer exhibition, Art of Its Own Making, which “explores the autonomous object as something simultaneously enduring and ephemeral, synchronic, and diachronic.The flute is one of the most venerable musical instruments we have (the earliest archaeological records have been dated to over 35,000 years ago), and as Claire Chase proved Thursday night at The Kitchen in Chelsea, it retains an energy that ensures it will continue to play a vital role in the future of concert music. In 2013 Chase released Density, for which The Washington Post praised her as “One of the most electrifying flutists on the planet.” Over the past decade Chase has presented the world premieres of over 100 new works for flute, many of them tailor-made for her. Since its founding in 2001, ICE has premiered over 500 compositions – the majority of these new works by emerging composers – in venues ranging from alternative spaces to concert halls around the world.Ī 2012 MacArthur Fellow, Claire Chase is a soloist, collaborative artist, and arts entrepreneur. ICE redefines concert music as it brings together new work and new listeners in the 21st century. ICE functions as performer, presenter, and educator, advancing the music of our time by developing innovative new works and new strategies for audience engagement. The International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), described by the New York Times as “one of the most accomplished and adventurous groups in new music,” is dedicated to reshaping the way music is created and experienced.
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