Tonight: John Cage's Europera 5


American avant-garde composer John Cage and Buffalo have a rich history.  Commissioned by an array of organizations, Cage came to Buffalo over 20 times between 1960 and 1991 for the performances of his portable pieces.  To celebrate what would have been Cage’s 100th anniversary, the Burchfield Penney Art Center is presenting Europera 5 – a piece that premiered at the University at Buffalo’s Slee Hall on April 12, 1991 during the Ninth Annual North American New Music Festival.  Original performers from the Slee Hall show include Don Metz, Jan Williams, Martha Herr, and Tom Kostusiak, all of whom will be on stage for tonight’s production.  The opera calls for two singers, a pianist, technicians to operate a tape recorder, a television, a radio, and the lighting, and a person to play records on the 78-rpm Victrola.  There is a semblance of cohesion to the sound collage, as each performer follows Cage’s instructions on when to begin and end their chosen arias or historical opera recordings.  The performance is tonight from 8:00-9:30pm in the museum’s Peter and Elizabeth C. Tower Auditorium.

Friday, October 12, 2012
8:00-9:30pm
Peter and Elizabeth C. Tower Auditorium
Burchfield Penney Art Center
Members: $5
Non-members: $15


~Taryn Alper

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