Terry Riley's pioneering work of minimalism "In C" (1964) is a truly elegant and unique composition. Comprising 53 brief musical "cells" lasting anywhere from a half a beat to 32 beats, "In C" can be played by any number of musicians, on any instruments of their choosing. The piece shifts from cell to cell by unspoken collective will, becoming a hypnotic ritual of musical community. "In C" can last anywhere from twenty minutes to several hours and beyond. At various moments, "In C" sounds like a cascade of laughing birds, a mountain lake humming to itself, or mating season in a herd of wild pianos. At all points, it is beyond beautiful. Ghostly International and Wordless Music present the Grand Valley State University New Music Ensemble's exemplary performance of Terry Riley's "In C", recorded live at NYC's Le Poisson Rouge on November 8th, 2009. The 16-person ensemble—including special guest NY electronic producer/composer Dennis DeSantis on laptop and effects—plays "In C" in a trim 65 minutes, filling the room with pulses, note clusters, and undulating walls of sound. As DeSantis' electronic noises dance around the periphery, Riley's masterpiece has never sounded more otherworldly. This is Ghostly's first classical release, and the first in a new series of collaborative releases with Wordless Music, a NYC-based organization devoted to the idea that the worlds of classical and contemporary instrumental music share more in common than most might think, pairing artists from the classical and indie/electronic worlds for one-of-a-kind concerts. Past Wordless Music performers include Flying Lotus, Sigur Ros, Nosaj Thing, Four Tet, Beirut, Andrew Bird, and Explosions in the Sky. ABOUT THE GRAND VALLEY NEW MUSIC ENSEMBLE The Grand Valley State University New Music Ensemble was founded in 2006 by director Bill Ryan. The group hit the national stage in 2007 with a stunning at-dawn performance of Steve Reich's Music for 18 Musicians at the 25th Bang On a Can Marathon in New York, and immediately began receiving critical acclaim, landing on numerous Best of 2007 lists, including those by the New York Times, Washington Post, LA Weekly, Calgary Herald, Time Out New York, and New York Magazine. Their CD reached #1 on the iTunes and Amazon classical charts, and spent eleven weeks on the Billboard charts. Recent GVSUNME events included a performance at Carnegie Hall as members of as all-star ensemble assembled by the Kronos Quartet to perform on the "In C" 45th Anniversary concert at Carnegie Hall, and a high-energy CD release party/performance at New York's Le Poisson Rouge. PRODUCT NOTE: Terry Riley: In C is now available in three different formats: digital only, as a limited press CD from GVSU + download, and as a very limited print + download. In honor of Grand Valley State University New Music Ensemble's celebrated recording of Terry Riley: In C, The Ghostly Store is offering a special art-print featuring artwork by Michael Cina created exclusively for the new, limited CD pressing from GVSU. The Ghostly Store has secured 10 editions from an extremely limited run of 30, each signed by the artist. Generously sized at 15.75" x 11.75" (unframed), they are printed using archival pigment ink on cotton rag paper. Each print includes a download link for the album.
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