From The New York Times: yMusic Brings Its Versatility to Ecstatic Music Festival

This article is copyright protected, so just a few notes.

By WILLIAM ROBIN
February 3, 2012

“Over an eight-day stretch in December members of the chamber sextet yMusic finished a Midwest tour with the folk band Bon Iver; accompanied the indie-rock acts My Brightest Diamond and the National at the Beacon Theater; played with the New York Philharmonic; performed in the Radio City Christmas Spectacular; and participated in recording sessions for the singer and songwriter Beth Orton, the band Dirty Projectors and Trey Anastasio, the frontman of Phish.

For yMusic the difference between hip-hop and classical music is more an issue of performance practice than of impassable boundaries, a shift of style rather than genre. As members of Generation Y — hence the group’s name — the players grew up with the Internet, whose breakdown of artistic barriers has informed the ensemble’s outlook. Its versatility serves not only unclassifiable composers like Mr. Lott but also more conventional ones who weave pop idioms into their music.

yMusic

Rob Moose, violin
CJ Camerieri, trumpet
Clarice Jensen, cello
Alex Sopp, flute
Hideaki Aomori, reeds
Nadia Sirota, Viola

Nadia Sirota

This approach intersects with that of the Ecstatic Music Festival, which is in its second season at Merkin Concert Hall. Judd Greenstein, the festival’s curator, prizes yMusic’s open ears.”

See the full article here.

From The New York Times:”Freelance Musicians Hear Mournful Coda as the Jobs Dry Up” but…

First, I am not nor have I ever been a musician. I am simply an avid listener, a passionate New Music and Jazz listener, with a computer. I cannot even type very well.

So, here is this sort of sad article in The New York Times about the reduced opportunities for freelance musicians these days around the New York City Metropolitan area.

But, is it really so bad? Not for some, who have taken the D.I.Y approach, formed new groups, sometimes with interchangeable members, and put themselves out in the public view.

Maybe this dynamic goes back to the seminal D.I.Y group, Bang On a Can, “Formed in 1987 by composers Michael Gordon, David Lang and Julia Wolfe. B.O.A.C “is dedicated to commissioning, performing, creating, presenting and recording contemporary music.” B.O.A.C even has its own label, Cantaloupe Music. And, of course,there are the Bang On A Can All-Stars.


Bang On A Can All-Stars.

While B.O.A.C paved the way, there are now a number of other very worthy groups who have formed up to present themselves to the public.

First to my mind is ACME, The American Contemporary Music Ensemble

ACME

I know this group because of one Nadia Sirota, accomplished violist, host and proprietor of Nadia Sirota on Q2, and fellow traveler with the Bedroom Community group of musicians.

Nadia Sirota

Bedroom Community’s main players: Sam Amidon, Nico Muhly, Ben Frost, Valgeir Sigurðsson (I hope I got the order correctly)

Then, there is ICE, International Contemporary Ensemble, mentioned in the article.

Check their web site and look at their concert schedule. They range far and wide and frequently.

A group about which I only recently learned is yMusic, “an expandable group of performers actively engaged and equally comfortable in the overlapping classical and pop music world.”

yMusic
Recognize anyone?

Do you know the group Ethel, this string group has been around since 1998. It is safe to say that thye are world famous.

I really have to quit this post, I could go on and on. Worthy of mention also are So Percussion, eighth blackbird, others not right now bubbling up to memory.

There are two common threads here, and they are both very important: these groups are basically smallish new music and contemporary music groups; and I leafrned about all of them at Q2 , WQXR’s 24 hour “New Music” web stream.

So, is it really so bad for freelance musicians, probably, although even most professional journalists are capable of some hyperbole. But maybe the lesson is, what my father did, start your own business.
Gte your group together, get some compositions that either members of the group compose, or existing works, and go out and sell yourselves. Can you do it alone? Sure, if you are Maya Beiser. But, she is pretty rare.