Venues
Events
VideoMusic
The Beautiful Music of Ping Pong Balls, Chocola and Wine Glasses
All this (and more!) at NY Phil’s Kraft
Magnus Lindberg
The New York Philharmonic, led by Music Director Alan Gilbert, will perform the New York Premiere of the groundbreaking, theatrical Kraft, by Magnus Lindberg on October 6 at 7:30 p.m.
Kraft, which is receiving its first indoor performance in the U.S., is one of Lindberg’s landmark compositions, employing a mammoth orchestra, unusual instruments, soloists and groups of musicians placed around the hall.
The performance will feature Mr. Lindberg at the piano in his Philharmonic piano debut. “This was my breakthrough piece and remains my biggest and most complex work,” says Mr. Lindberg. “It’s stunning to do with orchestra, and very difficult. It calls for a huge orchestra, a huge percussion section, and a huge setup for the soloists. The place will be absolutely crowded with stuff! There will be loudspeakers everywhere. It’s big and noisy but not just for the purpose of making noise. The effect, hopefully, is of a structured world of richness in sound.” The title of the work, he notes, “has a deeper meaning in that it involves the entire structure of the piece. It’s sort of working with the craft, with the power of having a sound that is rotating around with full speed in the hall and gradually centralizes and stops in the middle of the hall.”
A sampling of instruments employed in Kraft, in addition to the Orchestra, includes: bongos, congas, alm glocken, tamtam, sleigh bells, vibraphone, wood blocks, whip, ratchet, sizzle cymbal, marimba, metal plates, wood drums, tomtoms, cabasa, maracas, crotales, guiro, claves, bamboo chimes, castanets, ping pong balls, a lion’s roar, chocola, referee whistle, wine glass and live electronics.
Mr. Lindberg will play one of two pianos onstage, with the lid removed so that he can use elements from inside the instrument. Around him will be a large setup of percussion instruments with scrap metal elements.
A pre-concert talk will take place one hour before each performance in the Helen Hull Room at Avery Fisher Hall unless otherwise indicated. Speaker to be announced. All tickets may be purchased online here or by calling (212) 875-5656.