Asterisk engages their audiences with a broad range of diverse
material and strives for nothing less than the reinvention of the
concert experience. As advocates for the adventurous presentation of
both new and timeless classical music, Asterisk carefully
chooses programs that are simultaneously challenging and accessible.
Their programs offer a dynamic, visceral and thrilling performance
experience in which audiences see music like they have never heard it
before. Asterisk breaks down the traditional walls between performers and listeners by beginning each event in the audience, creating an immediate personal connection between performers and audience. A typical program might juxtapose an established 20th century masterwork re-imagined through choreography, music hot off the press written just for Asterisk, and a folk-song made new. Expect an English Horn player doing chorus-line leg kicks, ordinary objects transformed into percussion instruments, and the true integration of compelling music and evocative poetry. Currently Touring: Poetic License  Poetic License is a musical exploration of the relationship between poetry, dance, and theatre. Featuring great American poems, Irish folk songs, and a Homeric hymn, Asterisk seamlessly connects words both beautiful and playful with whirlwinds of sound and motion. Repertoire includes: Three Irish Folksong Settings - Arranged by John Corigliano A delightful re-staging of three Irish favorites with inviting melodies, atmospheric percussion, and poetic recitation Why Else Do You Have An English Horn... - Christopher Berg, text by V.R. Lang With quirky words and intriguingly nostalgic music, provides an amusing answer to this persistent question Shummu (Dreams of a Spring Evening) - David Loeb A fully choreographed solo flute piece whose painterly movement and dream-like music conjure Japanese calligraphy Moonrise with Memories - Frederic Rzewski, text by Langston Hughes Hughes' satirical anti-war text combined with the tuneful and driving music of Rzewski create an engaging work with a powerful sense of purpose Subadobe - Fredrik Högberg A madcap work for solo trombone with theatrical staging, audience participation and ever-changing comic schtick To The Earth - Frederic Rzewski, text from a Homeric hymn Beautiful and simple, intimate and quiet, this moving setting of a Homeric hymn celebrating life is played entirely on four flower pots Etudes from Eight Etudes and a Fantasy for Woodwind Quartet - Elliott Carter A masterwork of 20th century music re-invented by Asterisk, with stunning choreography by C. Neil Parsons |