Our season goes out with a bang, literally, with the power-house trio of percussionists Ji Hye Jung, Ayano Kataoka, and Ian Rosenbaum. You will be immersed in the musical spirit of Spain through Alejandro Viña’s Book of Grooves, a dynamic work for two marimbas. Takemitsu’s Rain Tree is an atmospheric meditation on natural phenomena depicted in the novels of Japanese novelist Kenzaburō Ōe. Weinberg’s Table Talk uses inventive “prepared vibraphone,” complete with stacks of paper and soda cans. The fusion of avant-garde techniques with non-Western musical traditions inspired Reich's Nagoya Marimbas and Xenakis’s astonishing Okho, scored for three djembes and a large-sized African membranophone. Finally, Mey’s Table Music is a theatrical highlight that proved to be one of the most memorable performances in all of String Theory’s fifteen-year history. We cannot wait for you to experience it!

Program

ALEJANDRO VIÑAO Book of Grooves  (IV. Dance Groove Drifting)
TŌRU TAKEMITSU Rain Tree
ALYSSA WEINBERG Table Talk
THIERRY DE MEY Musique de tables (Table Music)
STEVE REICH Nagoya Marimbas
IANNIS XENAKIS Okho

Paul Watkins, cello; Alessio Bax, piano; Gloria Chien, piano