Ensemble Modern

Those searching for reliability and clarity in current world affairs will certainly not find it in art, especially music. However, this very fact is what makes it so exciting, as demonstrated by the Ensemble Modern's exhibition, conducted by Xizi Wang, which concludes their subscription cycle for this season. Despite their different forms of expression, linguistic means and compositional concepts, what connects the scores by Missy Mazzoli, Ted Hearne, Bastian David, Alessandro Baticci and Enno Poppe? Inspiration from other media or phenomena — from visual art in Hearne's work to Poppe's enigmatic, matter-of-fact, object-like titles, such as 'Koffer' (Suitcase) — and a focus on experimental sound research. This eventful evening sees different generations of composers confidently demonstrate how the boundaries between acoustic reality, electronic manipulation and perception can be shifted.