1B1 Featuring Gity Razaz, Damien Bassman, And Benjamin Schmid
Wednesday, May 4th 7pm
The young, energetic string orchestra 1B1 is finally back at National Sawdust, after a string of jaw­-dropping performances last November. The Norwegian­ based ensemble brings their fresh take on classical music to Brooklyn with inspired performances and hosts ten days of concerts with music as diverse as Vivaldi, Glenn Kotche, and Gershwin. For the opening show, National Sawdust composer ­in­ residence Gity Razaz is world premiering a new composition written specially for 1B1. The prodigious New York-based percussionist Damien Bassman will perform the piece with 1B1. The program also features one of Shostakovich' key works, String quartet NR 8 (1960), which he wrote in three days after two traumatic events in his life. The version performed is a transcription for string orchestra by Øystein Sonstad) as well as a rendition of "Concerto Funebre" (1939) from the great, but often overlooked, german composer Karl Amadeus Hartmann.
Gity Razaz
On her way becoming one of the major forces in contemporary music, Iranian composer Gity Razaz's will perform the world premiere of her newest composition written specially for Norwegian Grammy award-winning string ensemble, 1B1.
Damian Bassman
The New York-based drummer and percussionist Damian Bassman is a featured member in the internationally acclaimed Absolute Ensemble, where he performs everything from Mahler to Frank Zappa. Bassman has toured and recorded with legendary musicians and artists like Joe Zawinul, Barry Manilow, and Paquito Di Rivera. He is the percussion professor and orchestra coach at Poland's I-Culture Orchestra and The Baltic Youth Philharmonic. He also teaches at Marymount Manhattan College and accompanies dance companies throughout NYC.
Other 1B1 Events
May 04, 2016 - 7:00pm On her way becoming one of the major forces in contemporary music, Iranian composer Gity Razaz's will perform the world premiere of her newest composition written specially for Norwegian Grammy award-winning string ensemble, 1B1.
1B1 Presents: A Night of Grieg
May 05, 2016 - 7:00pm Erlend Skomsvoll is an acclaimed Norwegian composer and a prominent name on the international jazz scene, having worked with names like Chick Corea and Pat Metheny. His "Recomprimprovariations" of Grieg's Holberg Suite won him and 1B1 a Norwegian Grammy in 2015.
1B1 Presents: Percussion Evening with Glenn Kotche
May 12, 2016 - 7:00pm Glenn Kotche, NS artist-in-residence and rhythmic anchor in Wilco – one of the most beloved rock bands on the planet – premiers his NS commission for percussion and string ensemble featuring Norwegian Grammy-award winning NS group-in-residence, 1B1.
Playground with 1B1, Benjamin Schmid, and Stian Carstensen
May 4, 2016 - 10:00pm A playful meeting between two highly original musicians and the young, Norwegian string orchestra 1B1.
The Great Beauty: Live Score with 1B1 and Choir of Trinity Wall Street
Nov 13, 2015 • 8pmThe string orchestra 1B1, a NS group-in-residence, collaborates with soloists of the highest quality. This Norwegian Grammy-winning ensemble explores a variety of musical genres. Taking the lead from rock, jazz, and world music, the ensemble continues to break the barrier between performers and audience. For this evening's program, they draw inspiration from the critically acclaimed soundtrack of the Oscar-winning film "The Great Beauty," performing works by Pärt, Tavener and Martynov with NS partner the Choir of Trinity Wall Street, under the direction of Julian Wachner.
1B1 in concert with Simone Dinnerstein
May 13, 2016 - 7:00pm The best-selling and celebrated pianist Simone Dinnerstein teams up with the young and energetic string orchestra 1B1, as a part of their ongoing residency at National Sawdust. Dinnerstein rose to prominence through a string of extraordinary Bach releases.
1B1 Presents: Simax Evening featuring Martin Kuuskman
May 10, 2016 - 7:00pm This is an evening celebrating the leading Norwegian label for classical music, with two leading instrumentalists and a young, progressive sting orchestra.
1B1 Presents: Vivaldi with Dan Laurin
May 07, 2016 - 7:00pm A night devoted to very fresh sounding baroque music, while also offering contemporary work written for the new instrument, the Eagle Recorder.
1b1 Presents: Holberg Variations & Album Release
Nov 12, 2015 • 7:00pm/Doors 6:30
1B1 – a National Sawdust group-in-residence – perform works from their recording of Edvard Grieg's "Holberg Variations," which recently won a Norwegian Grammy. The program includes an improvised version of Grieg's Holberg Variations - Part 2, "Recomprimprovariations," and "Romanian Folk Dances" by Béla Bartók. Performed by 1B1 and pianist Erlend Skomsvoll.
David Lang's YOUTH with 1B1 and Special Guests
May 08, 2016 - 8:00pm National Sawdust honors composer David Lang by featuring a reimagination of Paolo Sorrentino's critically acclaimed film, YOUTH, with works by David Lang, including his Oscar-nominated song, Simple Song No. 3, and NS Group in Residency, 1B1, a Grammy award winning Norwegian string orchestra, plus special guests.
In Situ: Ljova and the Kontraband
Mar 06, 2016 - 5:00pm Moscow-born, New York-based composer, arranger and violist Lev 'Ljova' Zhurbin writes and plays music that evokes forgotten memories of things you think you've heard before but haven't, while dreaming of Bartok and Piazzolla trundling through an early-morning Hungarian mist in a three-legged race to the village dance at the end of time. The ensemble features his close collaborators on accordion, bass and percussion, as well as the vocal of Inna Barmash.
NYU Contemporary Ensemble & 1B1 Present: Music By Arvo Pärt And Kaija Saariaho
May 14, 2016 - 3:00pm National Sawdust group-in-residence 1B1 partners up with the NYU Contemporary Music Ensemble for the performance of two iconic pieces of Northern European music: Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho's Graal Theatre, and Arvo Pärt's renowned Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten. While Cantus is an early example of Pärt's typical tintinnabulli style, Graal Theatre, on the other hand, is an exception in Kaja Saariaho's long body of work combining acoustic instruments with some kind of electronic extentions.
NY PHIL BIENNIAL: New York City Electroacoustic Music Festival Concert 7 1B1 String Orchestra