Kronos Quartet: Black Angels October 30, 2008

Black Angels by George Crumb
and
…hold me, neighbor, in this storm…
by Aleksandra Vrebalov

Continuing their 18-month residency at the Clarice Smith Center, Kronos combines George Crumb’s amplified string quartet Black Angels (1970) with the latest work from Serbian composer Aleksandra Vrebalov. Known as Crumb’s “Viet Nam” quartet, Black Angels was the inspiration for the formation of Kronos in 1973. The work has an explosive sensuality that still rings relevant and ominous. The premiere of …hold me, neighbor, in this storm…, which was inspired by the musical fusion of diverse cultures in the Balkans, was called “a vibrant tapestry of urgent, sinister passages with insistent rhythms, lyrical interludes, raucous folk melodies and microtonal whispers” by The New York Times.

This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.

Official Website: http://claricesmithcenter.umd.edu/2007/c/performances/performance?rowid=7407