Tania León’s "In The Field" Premieres this Weekend with Ensemble 20/21

This Saturday, February 11, 2023, at 8:00 p.m, Curtis’s acclaimed contemporary music group, Ensemble 20/21, will present the world premiere of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, conductor, pianist, and educator Tania León’s In the Field in “Music of the Earth,” a nature-inspired concert with additional works by Jerod Tate, Kaija Saariaho, Gabriela Lena Frank, and Olivier Messiaen. Featuring Spanish and English text by Cuban American writer, playwright, and award-winning poet Carlos Pintado, recipient of the prestigious Paz Poetry Prize, the cycle was commissioned by the McCollin Fund and the Musical Fund Society of Philadelphia in celebration of the latter’s landmark bicentennial. Ensemble 20/21 and captivating Curtis student, soprano Sarah Fleiss, breathe life into León’s exquisite score and Pintado’s nuanced poetry, a meditation on the beauty, mythology, and historical complexity of Philadelphia’s iconic landmarks and its symbols of patriotism and justice. 

Learn more about “Music of the Earth” HERE.

Composer Tania León on In the Field:

“The inspiration for creating the song cycle In the Field came from the beauty and insights of Carlos Pintado’s poetry as he recently strolled through the city of Philadelphia. His poems allowed me to imagine the places vividly and feel their emotional power. Pintado connected to the invisible history of the icons we all cherish, and he saw the city with the eyes of his native language—a language we both share. The rhythm of his words touched me profoundly. In his last poem, written in English, he transmutes the love he feels for the city to an imaginary lover that is treated with the utmost respect, evoking the love we all feel for the multiple and diverse communities coming together to create a nation.”

Visit Tania León’s official website HERE.

Poet Carlos Pintado discusses In the Field:

“The first thing I felt in Philadelphia was the weight of poetry and music combined. I had visited the city following the typical tourist’s interest but not knowing—no one could possibly know—the incredible weight of poetry and music that hides and multiplied beautifully in every corner, every street, every bench. To the point that I have the conviction that Philly’s dazzling history and charm can only be narrated or interpreted through poetry and music. (Aren’t they the same thing? One written in the paper, the other floating in the air?)

“The sonorous plazas, the exercise of light and shadows attracted me.

“Of all the big cities I have had the pleasure to visit Philadelphia is the only one which has orchestrated its symbols as a perfect symphony with no premeditation needed. The city has accommodated with Time. It has settled itself with Time and it has created its own Time and that intrigued me. It’s History dancing a dance of eternity in its streets. And I’m grateful to have walked the historic places absorbing everything.
In Philly, I questioned myself about my own ideals of the foundational myths and I’m beyond grateful to say that I’m still questioning myself about the foundation of human nature as well. This is what great cities instill in us: a personal journey.

“I’m deeply grateful to have collaborated with my admired Tania León. If any composer is able to shine and vibrate through words and metaphors, that’s Tania León. Her flawless and almost humiliating power of navigating through images and sounds makes her a beautiful uncanny sacred monster. She approaches a poem like approaching a musical score and vice versa: she faces a score extracting the poetry of it. In Philadelphia I searched for symbols for my poetry and in Tania’s work I found that those symbols not only are perfectly portrayed but also elevated, giving them a new life.”

ENSEMBLE 20/21
Flexible in size and scope, Ensemble 20/21 performs a wide range of music from the 20th and 21st centuries, including works by Curtis students and alumni. The ensemble has appeared at major U.S. venues such as the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, and the Miller Theatre, as well as international venues. The ensemble has also presented concert portraits of iconic composers in residence Tania León, Alvin Singleton, Unsuk Chin, John Corigliano, George Crumb, Krzysztof Penderecki, and Chen Yi, among many others.

Ensemble 20/21 closes the 2022–23 season on Saturday, March 25, 2023, at 8 p.m. in Curtis’s Gould Rehearsal Hall, with a “Portrait of Aaron Jay Kernis,” featuring Earth and Goblin Market by the Pulitzer Prize and GRAMMY Award-winning composer.

Visit Curtis.edu/Calendar to view Curtis’s entire season of performances and events.

ENSEMBLE 20/21
Music of the Earth

Saturday, February 11, 2023, at 8 p.m.
Gould Rehearsal Hall, Curtis Institute of Music, 1616 Locust Street, Philadelphia

Micah Gleason, Rita E. Hauser Conducting Fellow
Jacob Niemann, Rita E. Hauser Conducting Fellow

PROGRAM

This event is sold out. Join the waitlist to be notified should additional tickets become available.

Single tickets for Ensemble 20/21 performances and the 2022–23 season start at $19: Curtis.edu/Ensemble2021. Season subscriptions are also available.

Generous support for Ensemble 20/21 is provided by the Daniel W. Dietrich II Foundation.

Photos of Tania León by Gail Hadani/EFE.  Photo of Carlos Pintado by Yimali Gonzalez. Photo of Sarah Fleiss, courtesy of artist’s official website.

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