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Artist: Matt Haimovitz
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Matt Haimovitz:

Primavera IV - the heart

PRIMAVERA IV the heart is the fourth of six albums in a momentous series encompassing 81 world premieres for solo cello. This digital album presents 13 new commissions for groundbreaking, multi-GRAMMY nominated cellist Matt Haimovitz as part of THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT. A collaboration between Haimovitz, artist Charline von Heyl, and director Jeffrianne Young, THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT is inviting 81 composers to respond to two paintings, Sandro Botticelli’s enigmatic painting, Primavera (ca. 1480), and the prophetic large-scale triptych, Primavera 2020, by world-renowned contemporary artist Charline von Heyl.

Passing the halfway point of the commissioning cycle, PRIMAVERA IV the heart presents an eclectic mix of composers who gravitate to various themes in the paintings. Three approaches to the Graces – by MacArthur Genius Grant recipient Tyshawn Sorey, Pulitzer- prize winner Aaron Jay Kernis, and award-winning Justine F. Chen – offer three distinctive interpretations of the Graces. Justine F. Chen’s Iridescent Gest highlights the moto perpetuo kinetic energy of the dancers; Tyshawn Sorey’s Three Graces offers a dramatic, richly nuanced and complex arc through the interlocking gestures of the graces; and Aaron Jay Kernis’ Grace reimagines the heart of each of J.S. Bach’s Six Suites for Cello Solo, the Sarabande, in search of a timeless musical language.

Matt Haimovitz:

De Hartmann Cello Concerto w/MDR Leipzig Radio Sym

Cellist Matt Haimovitz, the MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra and its chief conductor Dennis Russell Davies present the first commercial recording of Ukrainian unsung composer Thomas de Hartmann’s cello concerto.

De Hartmann was an important compositional voice in his own time, connected to the greatest musicians and artists of his era, but has sunk into oblivion after his death in 1956. This EP release is part of the greater Thomas de Hartmann Project, aimed to reintroduce his colourful and compelling music.

The cello concerto was composed in 1935 and premiered in 1938 by the Boston Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Serge Koussevitsky. It was inspired by the anxiety of the 1930s, linking the persecution of Jews in Nazi Germany to de Hartmann’s own recollections of local Jewish folk musicians. While not being Jewish himself, de Hartmann felt a strong connection to Jewish traditions, and the piece is deeply influenced by Jewish musical folklore, as well Eastern- European folk traditions. This glowing and cinematic work, dedicated to and premiered by Paul Tortelier and hailed by Pablo Casals, is a hidden gem within the cello concerto repertoire, and the war in Ukraine makes a reintroduction of this glorious piece timelier than ever.

This is the first episode of a series of cello concerto EPs performed by Matt Haimovitz, produced by Oxingale and appearing on Pentatone.

“I, like many, am horrified by the cycles of history. Once again we find ourselves in the midst of a tumultuous war in Europe, with Ukraine at the heart of an existential struggle.

Matt Haimovitz:

PRIMAVERA III - the vessel

PRIMAVERA II the vessel is the third of six albums in a momentous series encompassing 81 world premieres for solo cello. This digital album presents 9 new commissions by The Primavera Project for groundbreaking, multi-GRAMMY nominated cellist Matt Haimovitz. Composers from diverse backgrounds respond to both Sandro Botticelli’s enigmatic painting, Primavera, and the prophetic large-scale triptych, Primavera 2020, by world-renowned contemporary artist Charline von Heyl. The Primavera Project is currently featured in collaboration with von Heyl’s Primavera 2020 in the 59th Biennale Arte 2022.

Referencing the time of Botticelli, PRIMAVERA III the vessel begins with Josquin des Prez’s Praeter Rerum Seriem, arranged for cello choir by Haimovitz and offering 500 years of perspective on the newly commissioned works. Stripped of the Latin text, Josquin’s repeating motives and ubiquitous canons are illuminated by the six celli (all recorded by Haimovitz at von Heyl’s artist studio in Marfa, Texas) in this contrapuntal tour-de-force.

The album includes two new works by legendary composer Philip Glass: the lyrical Philip’s Song, as well as Haimovitz’s haunting rendition of Glass’ Samsara which begins with the simplest of musical elements, winding its way as the cello metamorphoses into a tambura – the instrumental drone of raga. The themes of death and rebirth, darkness and light, possession and liberation permeate through the new works. Layale Chaker’s heartfelt lament Before Bloom takes the form of a Middle Eastern taqsim, evoking the flowers and leaves bearing witness to suffering, yet blooming defiantly each Spring. Annabelle Chvostek’s (formerly of the Wailin’ Jennys) Your Shadow and Inflorescence invites the cello into a bluegrass realm as she grapples with internalizing the darkness of Zephyrus’ assault and regaining her own breath. Tamar-kali sparingly uses col legno, pizzicato, and arco timbres in Little Bear Awakens to capture a dance of Spring. Lewis Spratlan’s One for Two leads us on a tour of the two paintings, the symbols, and figures. Marcos Balter’s ironically operatic Millefleur celebrates and demolishes the beauty of Botticelli’s elaborate garden. The sprightly overtones and microtones of Osnat Netzer’s Diaphanous Diaphony depicts the buoyancy and transparency of the three dancing Graces. Finally, Phonodelica transforms Botticelli’s cathedral forest into the drowning meadow of von Heyl’s Primavera 2020.

Matt Haimovitz:

de prez - Praeter Rerum Seriem / Glass - Samsara

Philip Glass’ “Samsara”
Legendary composer Philip Glass composed “Samsara” for multi GRAMMY®-nominated cellist Matt Haimovitz. The work is one of 81 solo cello pieces from THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT, a momentous commissioning project inviting composers to respond to two paintings, Botticelli’s iconic Primavera and Charline von Heyl’s prophetic Primavera 2020.

In this world premiere recording, Haimovitz’s haunting rendition of Glass’ “Samsara” begins with the simplest of musical elements, winding its way as the cello metamorphoses into a tambura, the instrumental drone of raga. As with nature’s seasons, “Samsara” reflects the cycles of death and rebirth.

Josquin des Prez’s “Praeter Rerum Seriem” (arranged by Matt Haimovitz for 6 celli)
Arranged for cello choir by multi GRAMMY®-nominated cellist Matt Haimovitz, Josquin des Prez’s magnificent “Praeter Rerum Seriem” offers 500 years of perspective on the newly commissioned works from THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT – a momentous series of 81 musical commissions responding to two paintings, Botticelli’s iconic Primavera and Charline von Heyl’s prophetic Primavera 2020. Stripped of the Latin text, the Josquin’s repeating motives and ubiquitous canons are illuminated by the six celli (all recorded by Haimovitz at von Heyl’s artist studio in Marfa, Texas) in this contrapuntal tour-de-force.

Playlist: Primavera a Venezia - A curated playlist of music for cellist Matt Haimovitz by Philip Glass, Missy Mazzoli, Tomeka Reid, and others for La Biennale di Venezia from THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT — a series of 81 commissions inspired by Sandro Botticelli’s iconic ‘Primavera’ and Charline von Heyl’s prophetic ‘Primavera 2020’.

Matt Haimovitz:

PRIMAVERA I - the wind

Multi-Grammy nominated cellist Matt Haimovitz’s next recording, PRIMAVERA I the wind, will be released on the PENTATONE Oxingale Series. The new digital album features the first fourteen of 81 new pieces written for Haimovitz, commissioned by THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT. This new initiative asks composers to write in response to Sandro Botticelli’s enigmatic painting, Primavera, and the prophetic large-scale triptych, Primavera 2020, by contemporary artist Charline von Heyl. Haimovitz recorded the album in January 2021 at von Heyl’s artist studio near downtown Marfa, Texas. More information about the project, composers, and pieces is available at THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT’s online hub, www.theprimaveraproject.com.

Matt Haimovitz will be performing music from THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT in six upcoming virtual and in-person concerts, including at Strathmore Music Center in North Bethesda, MD (June 10), Oregon Bach Festival (June 25, virtual), PS21 in Chatham, NY (July 5), Green Mountain Music Festival in Burlington, VT (July 16), Napa Valley Festival in Napa Valley, CA (July 20), and at his Bach Cello Suites Workshop (July 30, virtual). 

THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT is an exploration of music and art as sources of influence and inspiration for each other. During this time of global pandemic and social upheaval, both Primavera paintings’ composition, characters, symbolism, nature and flora, darkness and light, mythology, identity, and spirituality are ripe for new interpretation – as reflected by the newly commissioned pieces on this first installment. The project’s commissions began with nine composers, incorporating a variety of musical languages. Each composer then recommended colleagues to be considered as the next participating composers until a total of 81 composers were selected. All 81 resulting pieces will be recorded for commercial release, with Haimovitz making the next album in Marfa, Texas in late May. PRIMAVERA II will be released in fall 2021.

The distinct and diverse contemporary compositional voices on this album bridge the centuries, expanding and redefining the range and repertoire of the solo cello. Framed by Gabriella Smith’s bare and Lisa Bielawa’s Missa Primavera, Vijay Iyer, David Sanford, Nkeiru Okoye, Jorge Sosa, and others bring a multitude of influences from the world of Jazz and Latin music, to Vivaldi and Scriabin.

Matt Haimovitz:

PRIMAVERA II - the rabbits

On February 4, 2022, multi-Grammy nominated cellist Matt Haimovitz’s latest recording, PRIMAVERA II the rabbits, will be released on the PENTATONE Oxingale Series. The new digital album features the next 13 of 81 new pieces written for Haimovitz, commissioned by THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT, also featuring Haimovitz’s new arrangement of Josquin de Prez’s Kyrie (from Missa Hercules Dux Ferrariae). The project asks composers to respond to Sandro Botticelli’s enigmatic painting, Primavera, and the prophetic large-scale triptych, Primavera 2020, by contemporary artist Charline von Heyl. Haimovitz recorded the album in May 2021 at von Heyl’s artist studio near downtown Marfa, Texas. More information about the project, composers, and pieces is available at THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT’s online hub, www.theprimaveraproject.com.
ABOUT THE ALBUM:

PRIMAVERA II the rabbits is the second of six albums in a momentous series encompassing 81 world premieres for solo cello. This digital album presents 13 new commissions by THE PRIMAVERA PROJECT for groundbreaking, multi-GRAMMY nominated cellist Matt Haimovitz. Each composer responds to Sandro Botticelli’s enigmatic painting, Primavera, and the prophetic large-scale triptych, Primavera 2020, by world-renowned contemporary artist Charline von Heyl. The album also features Haimovitz's new arrangement of Josquin de Prez’s Kyrie (from Missa Hercules Dux Ferrariae).

PRIMAVERA II the rabbits begins where PRIMAVERA I the wind left off, referencing the time of Botticelli. Haimovitz plays all four parts of his arrangement of Josquin des Prez’s Kyrie from Missa Hercules Dux Ferrariae, bridging to Missy Mazzoli’s deconstruction of Josquin in her haunting Beyond the Order of Things (After Josquin). Haimovitz also overlays the four cellos of Texu Kim’s Beseeching, entwining Native-American rain dance drumming and old Korean melodies in voices of desperation and hope.

Matt Haimovitz:

The Bach Cello Suites According to Anna Magdalena

Fifteen years after his pivotal first recording of the Cello Suites by J.S. Bach, which launched the newborn Oxingale Records, Matt Haimovitz returns with a profoundly transformed interpretation inspired and informed by an authoritative manuscript copy by Anna Magdalena, Bach's second wife. In this second foray into the period-instrument sphere – following his revelatory recording of the complete Beethoven Sonatas and Variations with Christopher O'Riley – Haimovitz performs the Suites on baroque cello as well as cello piccolo, the five-string instrument for which Suite VI was likely intended. While on the surface, Anna Magdalena's version provides seemingly little guidance, the manuscript ultimately reveals interpretive insights and an idiomatic grammar to articulation and phrasing. The manuscript becomes a holy testament for Haimovitz in his new document of the Cello Suites. 

Matt Haimovitz:

Overtures To Bach

Matt Haimovitz's continuously-evolving and intense engagement with the Bach Cello Suites reaches a new zenith with Overtures to Bach, six new commissions that anticipate and reflect each of the cello suites. The new overtures expand upon the multitude of spiritual, cross-cultural, and vernacular references found in the Bach, building a bridge from the master's time to our own. Overtures to Bach, released internationally on the PENTATONE Oxingale Series in August, follows the 2015 release of Haimovitz's profound new interpretation of the Bach Suites, inspired and informed by an authoritative manuscript by Bach's second wife and performed on period instruments.

Matt Haimovitz:

Mozart the Mason

In celebration of W. A. Mozart's 250th anniversary year, Oxingale Records presents Matt Haimovitz and Mozart the Mason. Released just 3 days before the composer's January 27th birth date, this tribute includes arresting performances of one of Mozart's most important chamber works, including the seldom heard Divertimento for String Trio, K 563, as well as three pieces from Mozart's Preludes and Fugues K 404a.

Matt Haimovitz:

Vinylcello

Oxingale Records is proud to release: VinylCello, an album of new cello concertos written for Matt Haimovitz and unexpected ensembles--big band, choir, DJ and live electronics. Touring worldwide in concerto, solo, and chamber music performances, pioneering cellist Matt Haimovitz recently commissioned his "Buck the Concerto" series of new concertos for cello and non-traditional ensembles, beyond the symphony orchestra. Now on Oxingale's latest new release, VinylCello, Haimovitz brings together the first three commissions from the series, by composers Tod Machover, Luna Pearl Woolf, and David Sanford, with his own arrangement of Hendrix's Machine Gun. In the hands of Haimovitz and Uccello, his all-cello band from McGill University, this war song, with its epic electric guitar solo, becomes a concerto for solo cello and an orchestra of seven cellos.

Matt Haimovitz:

Goldberg Variations

Continuing his dedication to the music of J.S Bach, Matt Haimovitz joins McGill University colleagues, violinist Jonathan Crow and violist Douglas McNabney for Oxingale Records' new recording of the GOLDBERG VARIATIONS, as arranged for string trio by Dmitri Sitkovetsky. The beloved and monumental work is performed by the same superb trio featured on the 2006 release Mozart the Mason, which the Newark Star Ledger called "the most essential Mozart anniversary disc so far." Reviewing the CD, The New York Times' Allan Kozinn said: "The three young players navigate the [musical] extremes thoughtfully and fluidly...they bring the music's ample internal dialogues vividly to life and the give the lines a lovely glow." Inspired by Glenn Gould's theory of metric modulation, this Canadian trio has grounded their interpretation on the architecture created by the nine canons.

Matt Haimovitz:

Matteo

Matt Haimovitz's cello, made by Matteo Gofriller in Venice, Italy, turned 300 years old in 2010, coincident with Haimovitz' own milestone 40th birthday. For the joint celebration Haimovitz has created a signature program for solo cello, reaching across more than 300 years of Italian music. Dominic Gabrielli's seven Ricercare composed in the late 17th century, and the true precursors of the Bach Cello Suites are woven into a series of works by some of Italy's most important 20th century composers, plus a world premiere commissioned for the occasion.

Matt Haimovitz:

Goulash

Following his 50-state Anthem tour trailblazing cellist: Matt Haimovitz expands his timbral palette again with Goulash!, a new collaborative album which features legendary guitarist John McLaughlin and cutting-edge turntablist DJ Olive. Celebrating Bartok's fascination with the folk music of Transylvania, Hungary, Romania and Turkey, Haimovitz delves into his own Romanian/Middle Eastern ancestry to create a sonic tapestry that bridges genres, geographic distances and cultures.

 

Matt Haimovitz:

Odd Couple

Matt Haimovitz releases Odd Couple following the tremendous success of last season's solo cello recital After Reading Shakespeare. Odd Couple is a celebration of great American works for cello and piano with pianist Geoffrey Burleson, emphasizing the defiant individuality between the two nonetheless frequently-paired instruments. Odd Couple includes David Sanford's funk-driven 22 Part I, Augusta Read Thomas's Cantos for Slava both heard in their world premiere recordings - alongside Samuel Barber's powerful neo-Romantic classic, Sonata for Cello and Piano, Op. 6 and Elliot Carter's landmark 1948 work, Sonata for Cello and Piano. With this new release, Haimovitz and Burleson celebrate Carter's centennial year.