On Friday 16th January at 18.00 you can hear episode 1 of a new programme, American Highways.
The American pianist Guy Livingston is the compiler and presenter. This first edition will present : the symphonic music of Henry Cowell.
American maverick composer and pianist Henry Cowell invented tone cluster technique in his teenage years, and went on to write major symphonies based on his experiments with polytonality and polyrhythms.
In this episode of American Highways, pianist Guy Livingston brings us Four Irish Tales, the Concerto for Piano and Orchestra, and Seven Rituals of Music, representing three key periods of Cowell's music.
Biography
Pianist Guy Livingston has performed all over the world, notably as soloist with the Chicago Symphony, the Orchestre Nationale de France, and as a recitalist at the Centre Pompidou, Théâtre du Chatelet, IJsbreker, MuziekGebouw, Vredenberg, Library of Congress, Knitting Factory, Louvre, Hermitage, Moscow Conservatory, and Lincoln Center.
His recordings of the 20th and 21st century repertoire include over one hundred premieres of music by John Cage, George Antheil, and other composers. He has directed radio documentaries for Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and been artistic advisor for programs on Radio Suisse Romande, NTR/Radio 4, and France Musique.
About American Highways
American Highways looks and listens to the intersections between the arts in the American 20th century. As a programmer, I seek to explore the forgotten periods of history, to uncover musical treasures, to understand the convergence between visual art and music, to find connections between architecture, dance, and sound. Maverick composers such as Ives, Cage, Antheil, Nancarrow, and Partch are a source of inspiration. So are artists and thinkers such as Buckminster Fuller, Merce Cunningham, Mark Rothko, Jasper Johns, and Man Ray.
