March 29, 2009
2:00 PM – Moog Synthesizer Demonstration
3:00 PM – Bang On A Can All-Stars perform "Music for Airports"
4:15 PM – Concert with UM Percussion Ensemble and Bang On A Can, with appearances by Marilyn Nonken and Esther Lamneck
The Applause Cafe will be open throughout the afternoon selling snacks and drinks!
6:00 PM – Bang On A Can All-Stars, Glenn Kotche and Terry Riley in Performance
Click here for more information or to purchase tickets
The Marathon: A Collision of Musical Styles and Ideas
The Marathon concert is the heart and soul of Bang on a Can. As Vanity Fair said, "There are other places to hear new contemporary music, but it is seldom offered with such a potent blend of intensity, authority, and abandon."
Composers Michael Gordon, David Lang and Julia Wolfe created the first Bang on a Can marathon concert in 1987 in order to break down the barriers that separate musical communities. Their idea was simple - instead of sorting music by style or genre or venue it would be more powerful to sort music by innovation, finding the rebels in each musical community, the restless creators not content to leave conventions unchallenged. Putting all these fresh voices next to each other on one gargantuan concert would let an audience feel the excitement of innovation itself. Their first marathon featured appearances by such leading lights as Steve Reich, John Cage, Pauline Oliveros and Milton Babbitt, but most of the music was by the young and unknown. It is a formula that Bang on a Can has followed to this day.
Read more... | Watch video excerpt 1 | Watch video excerpt 2
"Music for Airports"
Brian Eno Talks about the Genesis of the Work
"When you went into an airplane or the airport, they always played this very happy music, which is sort of saying 'You're not going to die.... don't worry!' ...I thought it would be much better to have music that said 'Well if you die it doesn't really matter.'"
Contemporary Music's Role in the UM School of Music
School of Music Director Robert Gibson discusses the importance of contemporary music in the UM curriculum, and talks about faculty work to be performed during the Marathon.
Meet the Musicians
Bang On A Can:
Respect for the Risk
Glenn Kotche:
A World of Music Outside the Comfort Zone
Terry Riley:
Waking to the Realities
Marilyn Nonken:
Real and Conscious Power
Click here for more information
Sample Their Music
Bang On a Can All-Stars with Glenn Kotche
Watch the video
Glenn Kotche Solo
Watch the video
Watch the video
Terry Riley in Performance
Watch the video
Terry Riley's Music by Other Performers
"Eastern Man" video
"In C" (excerpt) video
Marilyn Nonken in Performance
"Concerto for Toy Piano"
See It Now!
Bang On a Can Marathon Photos:
