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Cypress by Alexandra Gardner, 6 minutes
Improvisation (with electronics), 8 minutes
Still Point by Paul Berlinsky, 9 minutes
This program has its origins from a larger project between performer Kyle Jones and composer Paul Berlinsky entitled SEASON AND CYCLES. Jones and Berlinsky collaborated on a new piece, Still Point, and worked together to present a program featuring works for bari saxophone and electronics at the Arvin Gottlieb Planetarium in Kansas City.
The two works featured for this program, Still Point and Cypress, are works about embracing change, the cycles of life, and finding our place in it. Still Point is a reference to a Margaret Atwood poem about the winter solstice, a moment when the dark days of winter begin to turn into the brighter days of spring. When we can let go of what is keeping us in the darkness. Go into the coming days with acceptance and with those we love. To quote Atwood, “...This is the solstice, the still point of the sun, its cusp and midnight, the year’s threshold and unlocking, where the past lets go of and becomes the future; the place of caught breath, the door of a vanished house left ajar…” Featuring the fragility of the instrument, much of the work focuses on quick, delicate passages, and subtle multiphonics, eventually opening up to long timbre shifts in the delicate upper register. The work features media that is pulled from many sources: a variety of field recordings, synthesized sounds, and live processing.
An improvisation set will link the two works, featuring Kyle on bari and Paul on electronics.
Cypress, by Alexandra Gardner, touches on similar themes of acceptance and finding beauty in the passing of time. Gardner says, “The cypress tree is considered a symbol of both mourning and immortality in many cultures and makes appearances in legends from Greek mythology to Christianity. It has often been planted to mark graveyards, with the idea that its straight, tall stature helps guide departed souls towards heaven.” The work features fixed media that is entirely pulled from acoustic saxophone sounds, blending the live performance into the media. The warmth of the middle and lower ranges of the instrument are featured in the work.
Dr. Kyle Jones is a performer, teacher, and arts administrator. An advocate for new music, Kyle actively collaborates with composers and performers from various styles and genres. Kyle has commissioned and premiered works by composers including Anthony R. Green, Gabriela Ortiz, Spencer Arias, Evan Williams, Tyson Gholston Davis, and Peter Dayton. He has premiered these works at events across the country such as the North American Saxophone Alliance Conference, the Navy Band International Saxophone Symposium, DC New Music Festival, and other concert venues.
Paul Berlinsky’s music explores the intangible space between tone and noise, as well as the emotional impact of layering these elements. Paul’s music has been described as “dark and satisfying to listen to” ( KCUR).
Paul’s music has been performed and recorded by musicians and ensembles around the country, including JACK Quartet, duo per se, Hub New Music, Transient Canvas, newEar, Plaza Winds, Florida Gulf Coast University Wind Orchestra, and flutist Gözde Çakir Ramsey.
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