Mary Halvorson and Jessica Pavone are a Brooklyn-based collaborative duo that have been working together for over seven years composing and performing a unique body of music, drawing from classical, jazz and folk traditions while experimenting with new forms. Their music explores improvisation and composition while utilizing amplification and electronic effects as well as acoustic presentation. The compositions in their current repertoire generally range in length from two to six minutes, with each of them composing separate pieces for the project.
Prairies, their debut album, was released in November of 2005 on the Lucky Kitchen label in Spain. Their second album, On and Off, was released on Skirl Records (www.skirlrecords.com) in August 2007. Their most recent album, Thin Air, released by Thirsty Ear, was announced as a a cover story for the magazine, Signal to Noise. They have been performing regularly in New York City since 2002, and have appeared at several music festivals throughout Europe. Since 2006 they have toured bi-annually throughout the East Coast, West Coast and Southern United States.
"Songs of Synastry and Solitude" is a collection of songs for string quartet influenced by an interest in the simple beauty of folk songs, the ghosts of all things lost and Leonard Cohen's encouragement to live outside this world.
QUOTIDIAN This Work was funded in part by the Composer Assistance Program of the American Music Center.
Performed by Till By Turning
Quotidian is a suite for violin, viola, cello, bassoon, and piano.
Composed in four movements: Hypnopompic, Post Meridiem, Weight of Dusk, and The Darkest Hour, it examines four temporal landmarks that occur within each single day.
Quotidian stems from a belief that the shifting balance between light and dark, as well as other environmental changes constantly affect us regardless of how conscious or aware we are of them. Our external environment has a direct effect on our moods and feelings and therefore, in a sense, has ultimate control overall living beings.
Erica Dicker - violin
Amy Cimini - viola
Loren Dempster - cello
Katherine Young - bassoon
Emily Manzo - piano
