Zornfest to Celebrate the Work of Composer/Saxophonist John Zorn on Tuesday, April 18, 9 P.M. at the Cat in the Cream Story by Emily Manzo
	THE PROGRAM "Cat o' Nine Tails" for string quartet Performed by Femme en Noir String Quartet Celeste Cleveland, violin; Erica Dicker, violin; Amy Cimini, viola; Robin Reynolds, cello From the Naked City repertoire: "Punk China Doll" "Snagglepuss" Performed by The Keanus Brian Chase, drums; Matthew Mueller, bass; David Reminick, saxophone; Robert Reich, piano; joined by Walter Scharold on guitar Selections from "Book of Heads" for solo electric guitar Performed by Walter Scharold From the Masada song book: "Abidan" "Delin" Performed by Brian Chase, drums; Matthew Mueller, bass; David Reminick saxophone; Farnell Newton, trumpet "Carny" for piano solo Performed by Emily Manzo "Cobra" with guest conductor, Stephen Drury Performed by David Reminick, Brian Chase, Matthew Mueller, Amy Cimini, Walter Scharold, Stefan Tcherepnin, Ezra Buchla, Allan Baker, Robert Reich, Katherine Miller, Peter Evans, and guest Nathan Fuhr.		Zornfest, a festival of the music of composer, saxophonist and cult figure John Zorn, will culminate in a marathon concert of his music on Tuesday, April 18, 9 p.m. at the Cat in the Cream. The concert, sponsored by the Student Finance Committee and WOBC 91.5 FM, is free and open to the public. Zorn's contributions to contemporary American music encompass nearly every genre from classical, jazz, free improvisation, and film music; to klezmer, pop, rock and metal. Zorn has been recognized with commissions from the New York Philharmonic and Kronos Quartet, and is a recognized as an important composer in New York's Uptown establishments. Zorn is a founder of what is now the very eclectic Downtown New York music scene and has created his own record label, Tzadik, to provide experimental composers a venue for their work. Pianist and conductor Stephen Drury is the foremost authority on Zorn's music and has come to Oberlin as the festival's guest artist. Drury will conclude his four-day residency by conducting Zorn's game-piece for improvisation orchestra, Cobra. Coaching for Cobra began on Sunday, and the 11 student performers describe Drury's rehearsals as inspired. "They have been really successful rehearsals, which says a lot considering the complex nature of Cobra," says drummer Brian Chase. (The only 'score' that exists of Cobra is a four-page list of instructions compiled by Drury himself.) "Steve took it section by section and he made sure we knew every rule he presented. He was very clear and articulate. By the end of the first rehearsal we were able to play through it using all the basic rules, and guerilla tactics [instances where the players themselves can secede from the rule of the conductor] were introduced. Cobra is basically a combination of small group improvisations. Luckily, almost everyone involved in this performance has played together already, and this sense of camaraderie in the group makes things easier. It's a hard piece, but everyone's having a lot of fun." Drury also offered a master class in contemporary piano music to piano students. Drury, named 1989 Musician of the Year by the Boston Globe, has concertized throughout the world with a repertoire that stretches from Bach to Liszt to the music of today. A champion of twentieth-century music, Drury's performances have received highest critical acclaim. Drury has commissioned new works for solo piano from John Cage, John Zorn, Terry Riley and Chinary Ung. In March 1995, he gave the first performance of Zorn's concerto for piano and orchestra with Dennis Russell Davies and the Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra. He has performed with Zorn in Paris and New York and conducted Zorn's music in Bologna, Boston, and San Jose (Costa Rica). He recorded the music of Cage, Zorn, Elliott Carter, Colin McPhee and Frederic Rzewski for Mode, New Albion, Catalyst, Tzadik, MusicMasters and Neuma. The concert organizers, David Reminick, a third-year double degree (saxophone/ psychology) student, and Emily Manzo, a sophomore pianist, hope that "with Drury's experience through both performing and conducting Zorn's music, the festival will have an integrity that just wouldn't be there, otherwise. All musicians involved will hopefully gain a tremendous wealth of knowledge of the music of John Zorn, and the performance will be shared by the entire Oberlin College community." Reminick, who was the director of the John Zorn EXCO for fall semester 1999, will perform selections from the Naked City and Masada songbooks, and in the group performance of Cobra. Manzo, who studied with Drury at the New England Conservatory for two years, and attended his Summer Institute for Contemporary Piano Performance, will perform Zorn's work for solo piano, entitled "Carny," which is dedicated to Drury.
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