CONTACT! Series at Symphony Space

In its third season, the New York Philharmonic’s new music series CONTACT! is doing as well as ever. The series, the brain-child of Music Director Alan Gilbert, is dedicated to “the most interesting, innovative, and engaging music of our time”. As well as providing opportunities for audiences to experience new music, each performance seeks to educate the audience with commentary from the composers and performers themselves. The performances are by a small chamber orchestra made up of members of the New York Philharmonic, with various conductors leading the group (in the past Alan Gilbert or the composer-in-residence, Magnus Lindberg, have taken up the baton). The past seasons’ performances received favorable reviews from both the press and attendees. The New York Philharmonic was going out on a limb with this kind of series, programming that most assume wont draw crowds, but as The New York Times noted, the series is definitely “a dynamic addition to the Philharmonic’s offerings beyond Avery Fisher Hall.”

Of course, much credit has to go to Maestro Gilbert for bravely and unflinchingly pursuing more adventurous programming that includes newer works. Besides the CONTACT! new music series, in 2010 Gilbert led a four performance run of a concert-version of György Ligeti’s Le Grand Macabre which was sold out at each performance and attracted many younger patrons. The success of this run and the attraction of a less than expected age demographic at a symphony performance proves that new and modern music shouldn’t be shunned. Gilbert’s imaginative integration of old and new works on Philharmonic subscription programs, implementation of a new music series, and high-profile performances of modern and post-modern works is a much welcomed change to the regular performance programming practices of most large ensembles. Mr. Gilbert is proving that the stigma about how audiences approach new music is often untrue.

One of the reasons for the success of the series is that Gilbert includes education as part of the program. At each performance the conductor, performers, and composers speak about the music that they are about to hear. In this way, they audience is given a better understanding of a style that some might not be familiar with. Even those that are regulars on the new music scene stand to gain something from these pre-performance talks! The performances are also held outside of the large and formal-feeling setting of Avery Fisher Hall. The ensemble performs around the city in venues such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Symphony Space. These locations allow for a more intimate setting and more approachable environment.

The next performance in the CONTACT!’s series doesn’t takes place until June. The composers that are represented on the program are Carter (yet another World Premiere), Michael Jarrell (whose work was co-commissioned by the New York Philharmonic), and Boulez. The performance will be lead by David Robertson.