Elena Kats-Chernin’s rhythmically busy Village Idiot is a dynamic piece in several movements. The intricate arrangement rides on Philip Bush’s strident harpsichord (played like a subliminal tom-tom) along with Terry Smirl’s malletted percussion; electric guitarist Jason Seed softly punctuates the melody, carried in part by Stas Venglevski on bayan accordion. If a drum kit were added, Village Idiot could be a bridge between minimalism and prog rock.
Reflecting on childhood memories of the vicious 1960s riot in Detroit, Randall Woolf’s Motor City Requiem pulls sampled echoes of ‘60s soul together with teasing melodic and rhythmic hooks suggesting that era’s music. Finally, Armando Luna’s Graffiti in II Movements is a clever tribute to 13 very different composers, including Chick Corea and Dimitri Shastakovich, Bach and Brubeck.
—David Luhrssen
Present Music will perform another representative piece of contemporary music this weekend. Omnivorous Furniture is a recent work by Mason Bates, who straddles the worlds of serious composition and club music. Also on the program will be work by John Adams, Raymond Scott and Arnold Schoenberg, animation by UWM film students and a performance by Madison funk-klezmer band the Shtelblasters. 7:30 p.m., March 27, Turner Hall Ballroom.
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