# Kronos Quartet at Hertz Hall, April 6, 2014

[Cal Performances](http://calperformances.org/events.php?event=8663) presents the world premiere of _Beyond Zero: 1914—1918_, a new work for quartet with film featuring [Kronos Quartet](http://www.kronosquartet.org/)  
2014-04-06  
[Hertz Hall](http://www.calperfs.berkeley.edu/)  
[U.C. Berkeley, Bancroft Way at College Ave, Berkeley, CA](http://maps.google.com/maps?q=U.C.+Berkeley,+Bancroft+Way+at+College+Ave,+Berkeley,+CA&hl=en)  
7:m PM, Sunday, April 6, 2014

[[2014-04-05|Back to the previous event]] ☸ [[:#section2014|Back to the 2014 yearbox]] ☸ [[:2014#april_events|Back to the 2014 event list!]] ☸ [[2014-04-07|On to the next event!]]

## One Set

### Part One — Prelude to a Black Hole

[6:58 PM, pre-show recordings]  
[7:09 PM lights down, band enters in darkness]

01. [7:12 PM] Byzantine Chant (arr. Aleksandra Vrebalov (b.1970)): _Eternal Memory to the Virtuous_ (2013)

### Stravinsky: Three Pieces for String Quartet (1914)

Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971): Three Pieces for String Quartet (1914)

01. [7:16 PM] Dance
02. [7:17 PM] Eccentric
03. [7:19 PM] Canticle  
[work ends 7:23 PM]

### Four short pieces

01. [7:23 PM] Geeshie Wiley (1906-1939, both dates uncertain) (arr. Jacob Garchik (b.1976)): _Last Kind Words_ (1930)
02. [7:27 PM] Tanburi Cemil Bey (1873–1916)(arr. Stephen Prutsman (b.1960)): Eviç Taksim
03. [7:34 PM] Maurice Ravel (1875–1937)(arr. JJ Hollingsworth (b.19xx)): _Trois beaux oiseaux du Paradis_ (1914–1915)
04. [7:37 PM] Traditional (arr. Jacob Garchik): _Smyrneiko Minore_

### Webern: Six Bagatelles, Op. 9

Anton Webern (1883–1945) Six Bagatelles, Op. 9 (1911–1913)

01. [7:40 PM] Mäßig
02. [7:41 PM] Leicht bewegt
03. [7:41 PM] Ziemlich fließend
04. [7:42 PM] Sehr langsam
05. [7:43 PM] Äußerst langsam
06. [7:45 PM] Fließend  
[work ends 7:47 PM]

### Two short pieces

01. [7:48 PM] Charles Ives (1874–1954): They Are There! Fighting for the People’s New Free World (1917)
02. [7:49 PM] Serge Rachmaninoff (1873–1943)(arr. Kronos): Nunc Dimittis, from _All-Night Vigil_ (1915)  
[set ends 7:52 PM]

### Part Two: Aleksandra Vrebalov: Beyond Zero: 1914–1918

Aleksandra Vrebalov (b.1970): _Beyond Zero: 1914–1918_; A new work for quartet with film (World Premiere),  
Bill Morrison (b.1965): filmmaker.

01. [7:53 PM] (played without pause)  
[show ends 8:32 PM, no encore, off after a few minutes applause]

## Performers

### Kronos Quartet

[Kronos Quartet](http://www.kronosquartet.org/)

* Hank Dutt: viola;
* David Harrington: violin;
* John Sherba: violin;
* Sunny Jungin Yang: cello.

### Support

* Drew Cameron: creative consultant;
* Bill Morrison: filmmaker.

## Notes 

Tonights show was an interesting mix of compositions, anchored by the long (?30 min) and weighty (subject-wise) debut of _Beyond Zero_. The use of prerecorded snippets both before, between and during the short pieces that preceded _Beyond Zero_ was well done, though at times, it made it hard to distinguish the transitions between the individual sections. Similarly, being based on degraded film stock nearly 100 years old, it was also difficult at times to make sense of the video content that accompanied _Beyond Zero_. Certainly, some transitions seemed to emphasize the decrepit and decayed nature of the source material, spinning pseudo-kaleidoscopic splotches into patterns that would cover the current scene and then dissolve into the next. Very artful! While the "narrative" content of the video was somewhat oblique, stressing neither the actual horror of battle nor the stridently patriotic political theatre that accompanied it, the same cannot be said for Vrebalov's composition, which began in rather calm, hushed tones, then steadily added layer after layer of angst, fear, tension and strife, building steadily until the penultimate "screaming" section, only to give way at last to a peaceful requiem, signaled by bell tones from huge cut brass shell casings, hung like tubular bells, and struck quietly by David and John.

After the show, we spent some time in the lobby looking over XX's _Combat Paper Project_ prints, which collected collage-like prints of visual elements from DM's film, wet-printed onto hand-made paper sourced from old military uniforms donated by combat veterans for this piece. It was an interesting work, both conceptually and in technical execution, but the actual pieces didn't really stimulate me as much as the general notion motivating the creation of the portfolio.

{{tag>music film Kronos_Quartet Hertz_Hall Hank_Dutt David_Harrington John_Sherba Sunny_Jungin_Yang Bill_Morrison Aleksandra_Vrebalov Igor_Stravinsky Geeshie_Wiley Tanburi_Cemil_Bey Maurice_Ravel Jacob_Garchik Anton_Webern Charles_Ives Serge_Rachmaninoff}}

[[2014-04-05|Back to the previous event]] ☸ [[:#section2014|Back to the 2014 yearbox]] ☸ [[:2014#april_events|Back to the 2014 event list!]] ☸ [[2014-04-07|On to the next event!]]