MTT and the San Francisco Symphony present American Mavericks
Feb 22, 2012
The mavericks are iconoclasts, mold breakers, voyagers, pioneers of the American sound. They imagined themselves as musical revolutionaries. And they were.
– Michael Tilson Thomas
Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony present American Mavericks, a month-long festival of music by pioneers of the American sound at San Francisco’s Davies Symphony Hall (March 8 – 18) and on tour in Ann Arbor, in Chicago and at Carnegie Hall (March 18 – 30). In addition to four world premieres, the festival will also feature educational partnerships, experiential learning programs and a host of new media tools to engage audiences with this music.
American Mavericks explores the music of groundbreaking composers such as Charles Ives, John Cage, Henry Cowell, Aaron Copland, Morton Feldman, Lukas Foss, Lou Harrison, Steve Reich, TerryRiley, Carl Ruggles, David Del Tredici and Edgard Varèse. The Festival builds on their visionary spirit with world premieres of works by John Adams, Mason Bates, Meredith Monk and Morton Subotnick.
The music of the American Mavericks Festival will feature soloists Emanuel Ax, Mason Bates, Jeremy Denk, Kiera Duffy, Paul Jacobs, Joan La Barbara, Meredith Monk, and Jessye Norman; as well as performance groups such as Meredith Monk & Vocal Ensemble, Newband, PARTCH, the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, the St. Lawrence String Quartet, the University of Michigan Chamber Choir and the Young People’s Chorus of New York City.
MTT and the musicians will explore the music of these American Mavericks through unique educational partnerships with Mills College, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, University of Michigan, and New York area universities and conservatories.
American Mavericks deepens listeners’ experiences with master classes, educational events, pre- and post-concert activities and theAmericanMavericks.org website, a database for materials about the music and the Maverick composers.
Throughout March, WQXR will present an interactive multimedia companion to deepen the experience of the live performances across the country. Q2 Music, WQXR’s New York-based online station devoted to new music, will become the digital hub for exploration of what it means to be an American Maverick. The site will feature a wide array of content, including musical offerings, archival interviews, guest curators and a special video webcast of a live event with MTT to be at the station’s innovative performance venue, The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space.
