Celebrated Alums eighth blackbird Return for Performance on Thursday, November 4, 8 P.M. in Finney Chapel
	THE PROGRAM Paramo (1999) Ricardo Zohn-Muldoon (b. 1962) Trés lent (In Memoriam Olivier Messiaen) for Cello and Piano (1994) Joan Tower (b. 1938) Luciérnagas (1998) Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez (b. 1964) Pause Variations (1998) David Schober (b. 1974) Notturno (1973) Donald Martino (b. 1931) Molly Alicia Barth, flutes Michael J. Maccaferri, clarinets Matthew Albert, violin & viola Nicholas Photinos, cello Matthew L. Duvall, percussion Lisa Kaplan, keyboards RELATED Program Notes		It's always a treat when eighth blackbird returns to Oberlin. Composed of alums Molly Alicia Barth, flutes; Michael J. Maccaferri, clarinets; Matthew Albert, violin & viola; Nicholas Photinos, cello; Matthew L. Duvall, percussion; and Lisa Kaplan, keyboard, Thursday's Capital Campaign Kickoff performance will offer area audiences another opportunity to see and hear these extraordinary musicians. The ensemble specializes in contemporary work and Thursday's program will showcase them in performce of five contemporary pieces, including Paramo (1999) by Ricardo Zohn-Muldoon (b. 1962); Trés lent (In Memoriam Olivier Messiaen) (1994) by Joan Tower for Cello and Piano (b. 1938); Luciérnagas (1998) by Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez (b. 1964); Variations (1998) by David Schober (b. 1974); and Notturno (1973) by Donald Martino (b. 1931). The group, which takes its name from the Wallace Stevens poem "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird," eighth blackbird is being touted as one of the most exciting young ensembles performing today. In 1998, eighth blackbird was the first contemporary ensemble ever to win First Prize at the Concert Artists Guild International Competition, where they were also awarded the Channel Classics Recording Prize and the Rockport Chamber Music Festival Prize. In 1999, they were named First Prize Winners of the 1997-98 CMA/ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming/Touring Ensembles. Other honors include top prizes at the Fischoff and Coleman Chamber Music Competitions. eighth blackbird has performed in festivals and on chamber music series throughout the United States, including the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, the Hot Springs Music Festival, the Hampden-Sydney Music Festival, the Grand Valley State University Celebration of the Arts, and the Shenandoah Performing Arts Camp. Spring and summer 1998 were marked by the ensemble's appearances with the Opera Theatre of Lucca, Italy, and on their self-presented noble accents visiting composers series in Cincinnati. In the 1998-99 season, eighth blackbird made their New York debut at Merkin Concert Hall, for which they were cited by The New York Times as "a superb contemporary music sextet". They were featured by Eugenia Zukerman on television's CBS Sunday Morning and as a result of their appearance on CBS, the American Symphony Orchestra League invited them to perform at the League's annual conference in Chicago, where they were featured in a symposium on new music led by Carnegie Hall artistic advisor Ara Guzelimian and composer Joan Tower. Other highlights of the season included appearances at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, the Cleveland Museum of Art, Close Encounters with Music in Lenox, MA, and the La Jolla Chamber Music Society. Their debut CD, Round Nut Tool, was released in the summer of 1999. Highlights of their 1999 summer included performances at the Caramoor International Music Festival, the Rockport Chamber Music Festival, and the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival in Colorado, where they premiered a work by John Musto commissioned for them by the Festival. They also served as ensemble-in-residence at the Yellow Barn Music Festival. The 1999-2000 season will see them performing throughout the United States, including appearances at the 92nd Street Y and for the People's Symphony Concerts in New York, performances in San Francisco, Santa Fe, Memphis, and Mexico City, and residencies at Oberlin, the Aspen Music School and Williams College. The group has worked with composers Joan Tower, Fred Lerdahl, Donald Martino, Andrew Imbrie, Wendell Logan, and Michael Torke. The ensemble has had works written for them by Thomas Albert, Burton Hatheway, Pieter Snapper, Gordon Fitzell, Tamar Muskal and David Schober. The members of eighth blackbird founded the ensemble at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, and hold an Artist Diploma in Chamber Music from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory.
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