For many New Yorkers, the subway is the heartbeat of daily life. Getting to work, getting home, taking the kids to daycare, stopping off at that little deli that has the knish you just can’t live without—for many, the daily commute is simply a way of life.
For Anna Tonna and William George, their time on the train led them to dream up and found New Music New York, a classical chamber music group that challenges the status quo—and has fun doing it.
Three years ago, Tonna and George were commuting together on the N train to chorus rehearsals at the Metropolitan Opera.
“Working musicians at our level often end up doing so many gigs to pay the bills that we rarely get to perform the music that we would prefer to sing. The idea for New Music New York grew out of this desire to create our own opportunities,” says George.
So they decided to use a performance at CAMI Hall, which Tonna had already arranged with a friend, to inaugurate a new group. Each performer pitched in to pay for the hall and chose his or her own repertoire, which was all drawn from current composers who lived and worked in or around New York City. They called the performance “Songs of New York,” and with this, New Music New York was born.
The name New Music New York reveals the concept at the group’s heart. Their website says the word “new” has five definitions:
1. Having been made or come into being only a short time ago.
2. Still fresh.
3. Just found or discovered.
4. Not previously experienced or encountered.
5. Different from the former or the old.
“Our repertoire is definitely unique,” says George. “We define ‘new’ not only as an expression of time, but also as something that is fresh or unknown to the audience. So most of our pieces are going to be new to the ears of the audience, even if they were composed a century ago.
“We also try to add more instrumental flavors to our programs, rather than just standard voice and piano music,” he adds. “Our previous concerts have included guitar, saxophone, organ, and violin, and we are currently planning programs with flute, harp, and string quartet. We’re also very interested in developing relationships with composers, both established and unknown. We want to participate in the creation of new art, as well as share undiscovered gems. But mostly, we’re just artists who are performing music that we love and believe in, and want to share for arts’ sake.”
“We have to think outside the box as performers,” adds Tonna. “We’re all brainwashed in conservatory to think that opera singing is one thing and there’s only one way to do it, but it’s essential for the survival of classical music and for who we are as performers to find our own voice. There is a song or a piece or a work for every performer. I can’t emphasize that enough.”
“And besides,” she continues, “I feel compassion for these composers today. If their work doesn’t get performed, they don’t have a museum like painters do, and their stuff will simply sink into obscurity. And so much of it is great stuff!”
The “Mystics and Misfits” concert New Music New York presented for the first time in October 2005 clearly shows the group’s desire to support and showcase current composers. They decided to program music that featured composers whose works were heavily steeped in mysticism—such as Oliver Messiaen, Alan Hovhaness and Scriabin—and pieces that featured settings of the work of poets edging toward mysticism—such as John Donne, George Herbert and William Blake—as well as other spiritual “misfits,” like Hildegard of Bingen, Teresa of Avila and Rumi. The subtitle for the concert defined its theme: “an exploration of mysticism in contemporary chamber music.”
New Music New York not only chose music of little-known composers, but also commissioned two pieces for the program and featured other premieres.
“There were world premieres of three pieces on that concert: Lily Bart’s Aria from Myron Fink’s opera The House of Mirth, ‘Come Away’ by Ishmael Wallace, and ‘The Virtues,’ which I wrote, and the latter two were commissioned for this concert,” says George. “There was also the U.S. premiere of Kenneth Leighton’s ‘These Are Thy Wonders’ and the New York premiere of Myron Fink’s Ghost Aria from his opera The Conquistador.”
New Music New York specializes in vocal chamber music of the 20th and 21st centuries, but the group often features neglected and obscure music of the past. Along with the performance of existing works, they also collaborate with current composers to create the music of the future.
“Our goal is to provide our audiences with a moving musical experience, while introducing them to an artistic world they never knew existed,” explains George.
“We started this group for a fairly selfish reason,” says Tonna. “We thought these songs were cool and we wanted to perform them!”
“That first concert was definitely a success artistically,” says George. “We presented music by Elliott Carter, Christopher Berg, Ricky Ian Gordon, Lori Laitman, Marga Richter, John Musto, Chris DeBlasio and Augusta Read Thomas, as well as premieres of commissions by Chris Berg, Richard Gleaves, and myself. Ms. Richter and Mr. Gleaves attended the concert, as did the poet of the songs by the late Mr. DeBlasio. We had a good turnout, got a good recording, which is a very important tool for a new group, and received positive feedback.”
Since that time, New Music New York has presented two or three concerts each season, each focusing on a very specific theme, often pertaining to New York or American music in general. One upcoming concert is titled “Songs of Post-War New York,” for example. Other future concerts include “New Strings,” featuring music for string quartet and voice composed in the last 20 years, “Americans In Paris,” highlighting music by American composers who studied in Paris with Nadia Boulanger, and thematic concerts, perhaps featuring West Coast experimentalists, themes of nature, or programs composed for specific instrumental ensembles.
Tonna is especially excited about the group’s upcoming repertoire.
“I love being able to present music, these songs specifically, in an environment that’s surprising, and inventive, and unique. Our goal is to demystify classical music.”
“These kinds of concerts, or any kind of concerts, for that matter, are very hard to do by yourself,” she continues. “You must be able to draw from a community of collaborators. That is, colleagues that have skills that compliment your own. There can’t be any competitions and jealousies, otherwise this doesn’t work. For example, we’re able to feature the kind of music we feature because we’ve got friends who are string players, and singers, and saxophonists, and guitarists. Many opera singers only have friends who are opera singers, but having friends who have other skills leads to more diversified collaboration.
“There are so many examples of this! I have a dream of doing more multimedia concerts. We live in such a visual world; I just think it’s crucial. Because I’ve got a friend who’s a stage designer, we could have a collaborator to do that kind of thing. And one of our pianists, who of course joins us on classical [repertoire], is best known around the city in the jazz world, because she does Latin jazz and composes jazz liturgical music. I mean, isn’t that great?”
Tonna and George generally program according to who is available among their collaborators and what composers or specific pieces of music they want to highlight. From there, they’ve discovered that themes tend to emerge fairly quickly.
“Researching composers and pieces is the fun part!” says George. “There is so much fascinating repertoire out there that is rarely heard and deserves wider exposure.”
Since they present two or three concerts a year, an entire season can be planned at once, and thus planning for each concert can last from six months to a year and a half.
The question for any new group is not only how to survive as a performance entity, but how to thrive. Any new performance group faces the challenges of how to fund its endeavors, pay its performers, build a loyal and enthusiastic audience, and keep energy and vision to dream for the future when it’s often difficult to see past immediate needs. George and Tonna tackled these issues head-on.
Grants, they have found, are essential.
“Basically, at this point we apply for any grants we hear about that we are eligible for,” comments George. “Some grants are for specific areas, say for recordings or commissions, etc. If we hear of a commissioning grant, we come up with an idea for a commission and apply for it. The competition is fierce, and as we are an emerging and still very small organization, it makes it that much harder to compete against the larger, established groups. But we also don’t require as much at this point. Our immediate goal is to try to raise enough money to be able to compensate our performers adequately, and to cover our modest promotional expenses.
“The most difficult part of the process for us is audience building. In New York City there is so much going on all the time,” George continues. “Without the budget to hire a publicist or buy lots of advertising, it is difficult to even reach a potential audience to let them know what we are doing. In addition, our repertoire is esoteric, and—that dreaded word—modern. People assume they won’t like it.
“Our goal is to present contemporary music that, while it may challenge the listener, will also reward them. There is a huge range of styles in contemporary music, and if one piece doesn’t move you, the next one might. Our audience feedback has been excellent, and we hope word of mouth will gradually increase our audience for each concert.”
The “Mystics and Misfits” program is more than a concert that defines what New Music New York is about—it is also one of the group’s most important projects. Through the production of “Mystics and Misfits,” the group has been able to begin a relationship with various foundations, most notably the New York Foundation of the Arts.
“Every year, the New York Foundation for the Arts takes applications for fiscal sponsorship of projects from all artistic media. Last year, we applied for ‘Mystics & Misfits.’ Since we are not incorporated as a nonprofit organization, we are not eligible to apply for many grants. … Through our sponsorship by NYFA, we can use their non-profit status, so we can apply for more grants. But it is only for this specific project, not for general operating expenses. We were the only classical music project selected for sponsorship that year. In pursuing other grants, we hope to raise funds for a professional recording, as well as touring the concert.”
Audience building remains an ongoing challenge.
“I don’t feel we have really developed a demographic yet,” says George, “although an appreciation for contemporary music helps!”
“We like to blur the lines between classical music and other genres,” says Tonna. “When I write press releases or other publicity stuff, I try not to use the term ‘chamber music’ or even ‘contemporary’ to describe what we do. I like to call it ‘cultivated music.’ I mean, when New York is completely saturated with opportunities to attend different kinds of concerts, what will get a twenty-something person who’s looking for something different to come to our concert? There’s so much competition here in the city.”
Neither George or Tonna are short on vision and energy for the future of New Music New York, however. Their upcoming concerts and the commitment they have to building their business relationships, show their ongoing passion for the music they present.
A concert about which they are especially excited, “Songs of Post-War New York,” set for early May, exemplifies this well.
“We will feature eight singers and two pianists performing songs written by composers based in New York City between the years 1945-59,” George explains. “This was really the golden age of [classical] American songwriting. Composers whose work will be performed include the well-known—Rorem, Carter, Thomson, Bernstein, Weill, Hundley, Duke—those known more for their instrumental writing than their songs—Diamond, Cowell, Persichetti, Schuman, Imbrie—and composers who aren’t heard much anymore: Ferguson, Edmunds, Cortez, Quashen. Even though the dates only span a 15-year period, the styles range considerably, from traditional, Romantic style—for example what’s seen in works by [Otto] Leuning, [Celius] Dougherty, [Theodore] Chanler, and [Paul] Bowles—to more modern, forward-looking styles, like works by Richter and Babbitt. Renowned American song expert Paul Sperry will host the concert. We are very excited about it, and we hope some of the composers still living in the New York area will attend.”
George also describes some dreams the two have for the future.
“New Music New York was created as an outlet for artists to do the projects they want to do and wouldn’t get a chance to do anywhere else. Our goal is to see it grow into a respected musical organization, known for adventurous programming and high artistic standards. Of course, we would also love to see it become financially solid as well, becoming a nonprofit organization, and be able to pay professional salaries to the performers and administrators.”
And in terms of advice for others who want to create performance opportunities of their own, Tonna has this reminder to offer.
“It takes so much time!” she exclaims. “The time you put in to making this kind of thing work is incredible, the least of which is practicing for the concert. Everyone you work with brings their own skill set and their own list of possible people to draw in. Networking and marketing are skill sets of their own and you have to draw those people in. Partnerships are totally important. In our case, Bill [George] is better than I am at [the marketing and taking care of the details]. I’m good at the dreaming, and pushing us where I think we should go.”
New Music New York is growing and gaining respect because, to echo the words of Anna Tonna, they have found their voice. They present music they love, they pursue new ideas almost relentlessly, and they collaborate with a wide range of artists, capitalizing on the strengths of each. This is all within their desire to present and create chamber music that captures the imaginations of those who encounter the music.
For New Music New York, performers and audience members alike are mystics and misfits whose spirits can be stirred by encountering fresh presentations of art and who can be transported by the music we all create.
For more information, visit New Music New York’s website at www.newmusicnewyork.com. Their next performance, “Songs of Post-War New York,” will be Tuesday, May 2, at 8 p.m., at St. Peter’s Church at 54th and Lexington in Manhattan. For ticket information, email newmusicnewyork@aol.com.
