Darius Milhaud Concert — Mills Music Now
Friday, September 27, 2024, 8 – 10pm PDT
Music Building Littlefield Concert Hall 202
Presented by Mills College at Northeastern University and Mills Performing Arts
Program:
Lou Harrison - Homage to Milhaud (1948)
Darius Milhaud - Le printemps, Vol. 1, Op. 25 (1920)
I. Modéré
II. Souple
III. Doucement
Steed Cowart - Blackberry Winter (2007)
Sidney Corbett - From the Garden (2023)
-Intermission-
Lou Harrison - New York Waltzes (1944-1945)
I. Waltz in C
II. Hesitation Waltz
III. Waltz in A
Darius Milhaud - Le printemps, Vol. 2, Op. 66 (1921)
I. Doucement
II. Vivement
III. Calme
Zeena Parkins - LACE 2. Action Cards (2010-2020)
Erik Satie - Embryons desséchés (1913)
I. d'Holothurie
II. d'Edriophthalma
III. de Podophthalma
Brett Carson is a composer, pianist, improviser, poet, and theater artist based in Oakland CA. His compositional work, which has been described as "fascinatingly intense" (Stephen Smoliar, SF Classical Voice), explores the juxtaposition of a gleefully chaotic plurality of musical approaches. This is combined with a penchant for surreal world-building and an exploration of the bizarre and uncanny, along with a commitment to writing for the voice and the stage.
Notable projects include the song cycle Mysterious Descent (2017) which was partially written in an invented language "Kôktimo", Just Visiting (X-Ray Vision) (2018), a post-apocalyptic chamber opera, The Killing Jar (2021) a dystopian meditation on the COVID-19 pandemic, and The Secret Life of the Paramecium (2022), a multimedia song cycle combining the tarot and microbiology. His most recent project Tell Me a Bedtime Story ABRAXAS, an experimental opera about Gnosticism and amphibians, was created in collaboration with the Friction Quartet and saw its premiere in July 2024 at the Dresher Ensemble Studio in Oakland.
In addition to his compositional work, he enjoys a career as a pianist, keyboardist, and synthesist, having performed internationally in the realms of free improvisation, contemporary classical music, jazz, and rock. Performing venues and festivals include the Chicago Jazz Festival, Sons d'hiver, Roulette, the Barbican, the Kennedy Center, the Broad (LA), and SESC Pompeia (Brazil). He has worked with a wide variety of composers/performers including Bill Baird, Brian Baumbusch, Nicolas Collins, Sidney Corbett, Vinny Golia, George Lewis, Nicole Mitchell, Roscoe Mitchell, Bill Noertker, Zeena Parkins, Rent Romus, and William Winant. From 2019-20, he performed as the pianist for the legendary jazz unit the Art Ensemble of Chicago.
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The Darius Milhaud Concert is funded by the Mills College Class of 1945 Darius Milhaud Performance Endowment. Established in 1995 by the Mills College Class of 1945 at its 50th Reunion, the endowment has supported annual concerts featuring the music of Darius Milhaud. The Class of 1945 was among the first to graduate during Milhaud’s tenure at Mills College. Their vision and generosity is a fitting tribute to his inspirational teaching and artistry. Mills College at Northeastern University is grateful to the Mills College Class of 1945 for ensuring that Milhaud’s music will continue to exert a strong influence in the years to come.
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