Emerging New Music Series
The Kenosha Creative Space launched an educational “New Emerging Music Series” last November at Kemper Center with a master class/concert designed to connect the most advanced Kenosha Unified School District music students with high quality musical expression outside the school environment and connect them with a professional, dynamic group of professional musicians.`
On Thursday, February 16 at the Anderson Arts Center, Latitude 49 will come back for another installment of this series to offer KUSD students with another influential musical experience
“It is our sincere hope that the local high-school students who attend these concerts feel that they are not simply being entertained but that they are personally engaging in a spirit of creativity and exploration through music, one that will enrich their personal lives”
Latitude 49 is a dynamic mixed-chamber ensemble exploring new sounds, engaging diverse audiences, and holding hands with composers of today. From its beginnings at the University of Michigan, L49 has grown into a major presence on the new-music scene with performances and residencies throughout the Midwest and beyond.
The ensemble’s 2016/17 season is headlined by an appearance at the Ear Taxi Festival in Chicago, where it will premiere a new version of Pulitzer-Prize winner Shulamit Ran’s “Birkat Haderekh—Blessing for the Road II”. Ran’s work will also appear on Latitude’s new program She, developed for a performance at the Listening to Ladies Series at Western Michigan University. L49 has become known for a vibrant, passionate onstage presence, which the group has brought to past performances at the Ravinia Festival, Chicago Cultural Center, Constellation Chicago, the Detroit Institute of Art, and New Music Detroit’s annual Strange Beautiful Music. This past March, Latitude ventured to NYC for appearances at Le Poisson Rouge and the Juilliard School, where the ensemble joined with the Attacca Quartet for the premiere of Jared Miller’s Fuse. The past season also saw the unveiling of Labyrinths, a program weaving together new musical works with the poetry of Ovid, W.H. Auden, and William Carlos Williams into an exploration of labyrinths both ancient and new, mythological and real.
L49 carries its contagious energy beyond the concert hall, with extensive educational work at colleges throughout the Midwest. During the 16/17 year, Latitude is very excited to return to Ann Arbor for a residency at the University of Michigan, which will involve work with composers and performers through the EXCEL entrepreneurship program. This season will also include three educational programs at the newly-constructed Kenosha Creative Space. Past seasons have included two years as ensemble-in-residence at the University of Illinois-Chicago, where L49 worked closely with composition students of Prof. Marc Mellits, as well as an appearance as featured ensemble at the 2016 MGMC Composers Conference, jointly hosted by the University of Chicago, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Northwestern University. The ensemble has also presented workshops on commissioning and entrepreneurship as part of residencies at University of Western Kentucky, Concordia College, Elmhurst College and University of Toledo.
