We went out last Monday for our inaugural Los Angeles new music experience. The NYC-based Argento Chamber Ensemble returned to LA's Monday Evening Concerts, presented at the Colburn School’s Zipper Concert Hall. Justin Urcis’s exceptional Monday Evening Concerts series remains a Southern California haven of thoughtful, adventurous programming, and the longstanding Argento Chamber Ensemble serves as one of new music’s most dedicated advocates in the States, maintaining a well-deserved reputation for cutting-edge choices and world-class performances. Needless to say, the concert was fantastic. Ferneyhough, Pesson, and Sciarrino occupied the first half with density, playfulness, and fragility. However, this collection principally served as exceptional amuse-bouche for the second half of the show, which consisted of a dynamic West Coast premiere of Fausto Romitelli’s Professor Bad Trip (so much fun!).
An informal discussion was held following the concert, for which a healthy quorum of aficionados remained. More than one audience member posed a question to Argento conductor and point man Michel Galante regarding the nature of new music audiences, and something that Michel said in reply to one of these struck me. He remarked that, as opposed to the typical classical music fan (who "know what they like and like what they know"), new music audiences tend to be interested in ideas – basically that one of the defining characteristics of a new music audience member is the quality of creative curiosity. I agree with this, but besides that, I just like the idea. It also reminds me of something Walt Whitman once said, that “To have great poets, there must be great audiences, too.” We may not have a lot of resources nor a huge audience, but one thing I can say for our new music audiences is that they are indeed great and we are lucky to have them.
