Allyson Huneycutt
Clarinetist and Music Educator
New music by Jean-Patrick Besingrand
Many thanks to Jean-Patrick Besingrand for composing this work for us! The above video is the premiere of the piece. See more of his works at https://jeanpatrickbesingrand.com.
- ACE 5/11/16
Paintings to accompany performance of Quatuor pour la fin du temps
Since September 2015, Lîla Quartet has been studying, rehearsing, recording, and performing Olivier Messiaen's Quatuor pour la fin du temps (Quartet for the End of Time). As I learned more about the composer, I was inspired to create a visual accompaniment for our performances of his work. Messiaen had a form of synesthesia that caused him to experience colors when he heard or imagined music, and he included many of these vivid colors in his performance notes for this piece. I used a combination of this imagery, the programmatic story behind the music, and my own experiences as a performer to guide the creation of my paintings. My hope is that these pictures - which are intended to be projected onto a screen during performances - bring a lesser-known element of the piece to life and create a more engaging, welcoming experience for newcomers to 20th-century classical music.
- ACE 5/6/16
New York Counterpoint Video (Preview)
Steve Reich's New York Counterpoint was written while the composer was living in New York City, and the thematic material in the piece definitely evokes imagery of city life. In the process of recording the 11 overlaying tracks, I realized I was drawing inspiration from the city around me. Granted, Pittsburgh is considerably smaller than New York City, but the scenes I picture while listening to the music - busy streets, city parks, and night lights - are all there. So I created a simple video to accompany my Pittsburgh performance of this work. Enjoy this short sample - the full-length video will be posted in the near future!
-ACE 5/14/15
"Time Pieces" Series
I created each of these paintings while preparing a performance of Robert Muczynski's Time Pieces. The work consists of four highly contrasting movements, each of which I interpret as a different reaction to the intangible concept of time. These original paintings are intended to be displayed as their corresponding movements are being performed. I included quotes from famous writers and thinkers to give the audience some food for thought as they absorb the music.
-ACE 5/14/15
Recordings... more Coming Soon!
