PROGRAM NOTE

The Moscow Contemporary Music Ensemble (MCME) was founded in 1990 by Yuri Kasparov under the patronage of the famous Russian composer Edison Denisov. The ensemble focuses on promoting 20th- and 21st-century music. It is Russia’s foremost contemporary chamber ensemble and consists of some of the best Russian musicians specializing in modern music.

MCME has strong educational goals and works closely with both Russian and international cultural foundations to bring contemporary music to a wide range of audiences. As part of this goal, MCME organizes the annual fortnight International Young Composers Academy (Tchaikovsky City, Ural) to bring together both young composers and internationally recognized composers in workshops.

The ensemble’s repertoire is extensive and has included the premieres of almost 1000 different works. In particular, they champion the music of Russian composers of the 1920s, such as Nikolai Roslavets and Alexander Mosolov. Additionally, they regularly perform music by the “Shestidesyatniki” (1960s Russian composers) and the composers Edison Denisov, Alfred Schnittke and Sofia Gubaidulina. MCME regularly performs in diverse locales across Russia (80 cities) and elsewhere in the world (28 countries). MCME has performed on the best concert stages, and taken part in some of the biggest international festivals such as “Moscow Biennale for Contemporary Art”, “DiaghilevFest” (Russia, Perm), “Radio-France presences” (Paris), “FrankfurtFest”, “Maerzmusik-Berlinerfesrspiele” (Germany), “Gaudeamus music week”, “The Night of the Unexpected” (the Netherlands), “Warsaw Autumn” (Poland), “Klangspuren” (Austria), and “Tranasrt” (Italy).

MCME has collaborated with some of the world’s leading composers, including Iannis Xenakis, György Kurtág, Frederic Rzewski, Louis Andriessen, Beat Furrer, Klaus Lang, Philippe Leroix, Mark Andre, Enno Poppe are among them. MCME has recorded more than 50 CDs for leading CD labels, including Olympia (UK), Harmonia Mundi (France), Triton (Japan), Donemus (The Netherlands), and Fancymusic (Russia).

Each season MCME gives around 70 concerts in Russia and abroad. A special place in their repertoire is allocated for the music of young Russian and foreign composers. The ensemble also takes an active part in international multimedia and theatrical projects. In 2009 MCME won the award ACTION in support of theatrical initiatives, and were awarded the GOLDEN MASK in 2013.

The present program will feature 20th and 21st century works by Russian, European, and American composers such as MCME founder Yuri Kasparov, Alfred Schnittke, Galina Ustvolskaya, Morton Feldman, and Nick Norton, as well as the West Coast premiere of Jason Barabba’s Torschluβpanik and the Los Angeles premiere of Vera Ivanova’s Children’s Games. Composer Vera Ivanova and members of the MCME will lead a pre-concert symposium from 6–7pm. The program and the MCME residency – which is supported in part by the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation – serve as a celebration of the unique cultural and musical ties between Russia and the United States.