Amerita, Network for New Music, and ARTCy

In the last two weeks, I’ve heard four new works that made me wonder, once again, if the future will mine our day the way we mine the Baroque. Our new music organizations concentrate on premieres. A new piece that receives repeat performances is a phenomenon.

I was unable to attend the April Network for New Music concert, but I attended the final rehearsal and heard complete performances of the two premieres on the program. Jan Krzywicki’s Catching Light is a lively piece that’s packed with novelties, starting with the composer’s choice of instruments. The core of the ensemble is a colorful variation on the traditional string quartet. Krzywicki substituted a flute for one of the violins and a clarinet for the viola, then he combined that wind-and-string unit with a piano and a one-musician percussion section. He created a sextet that offered an inventive composer a rainbow of colors and sonorities.

The Network for New Music concert was supposed to explore light and dark in music, and Krzywicki chose to explore light. Catching Light is a busy piece, with a steady parade of colorful, interesting events. Some of the events are unexpected, like sudden outbursts from the flute, but they all make sense, and they’re all imaginative. They’re also a pleasure to listen to, whether they center on a cello song, a clarinet solo, or a silvery xylophone.

Now for something completely different

The composer of the other premiere went over to the dark side — about as far over as you can go, in fact. Michael Hersch takes his listeners on a trip to Hell, with texts from Dante’s Inferno, supplemented with a few words by Ezra Pound. Hersch has been thinking about a piece on this subject for 15 years, ever since he saw a set of engravings by the late American artist Michael Mazur. Some of the etchings that haunted him are currently on display at the Print Center, in an exhibit scheduled in conjunction with the Network for New Music event.

Like Krzywicki, Hersch opted for a highly personal chamber ensemble — a soprano accompanied by horn, clarinet, and viola. The horn at this performance, played by his brother Jamie, made a major contribution to the somber atmosphere. The other two instruments tipped the coloring in the same direction.

But the natural colors of the instruments won’t do a composer any good if he doesn’t know how to use them. Hersch’s score includes a carefully modulated viola part and unexpected effects like sudden shrieks from the clarinet. His vocal writing carries the audience through a guided tour of Hell that is just as evocative.

Going ARTCy

Two weeks later, I heard two premieres presented by a new group, the Artsong Repertory Theater Company, which, as its name indicates, adds some staging to its performances. For its opening number, Tom Cipullo’s Insomnia, the ARTCy vocalists took turns pantomiming background scenes like a couple struggling to get some sleep.

The performance was marred by a miscalculation. The programs included the customary printed texts, but the company decided it wanted to eliminate the rustle of turning pages, so the house lights were turned off, and we were told we could go to the company’s website and follow on our phones. I don’t carry a smartphone, but I might have brought my tablet if I had been warned in advance. You can’t follow most unfamiliar vocal music without the help of a printed text, so I couldn’t understand 90 percent of the words the cast was singing. Most of the audience seemed to be in the same fix.

Fortunately, I had looked at the text, and the pantomimes told me where we were in the script. Insomnia is an effective, moody cantata on a subject most of us can relate to. A dramatic, passionate piano accompaniment supports vocal writing that is lyrical and slightly Broadway, with some beautiful harmonies.

Stylized declamations

The second composer, Jeremy Gill, noted the problem and had the lighting turned up before the premiere of his Whitman Portrait, which sets several complex texts by Walt Whitman. Gill’s piano accompaniments are just as dramatic as Cipullo’s, but his vocal writing is more restrained. Most of his vocal settings resemble the recitative sections of operas and cantatas. They’re essentially stylized declamations.

The last two sections, on the other hand, are true arias. The finale is a moving setting of Whitman’s death song, “Darest thou now, O Soul, walk out with me toward the unknown region.” It was sung by Michelle Johnson, a young soprano who’s been playing title roles all over the United States, and it brought the evening to a rousing close. Johnson’s voice floated over a torrent of piano music, singing a vocal line that matched the flow of Whitman’s language.

Will any of these pieces receive repeat performances? The odds are against them. Music reviewers comment on ephemeral events. We can’t guide you to productions that are still being performed; we can only tell you where the action is. Network for New Music is an established organization, in its 30th season, that consistently presents programs that can enrich your life. The Artsong Repertory Theater Company is a new organization that’s still fumbling but could become a contender.