Concert Imaginaire
Founded in 2011, CONCERT IMAGINAIRE  is a dynamic ensemble that pushes the boundaries of music, drawing listeners into a world that is as much
psychological as it is visceral.
​CONCERT IMAGINAIRE WEBSITE
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THE ANTS
A Futuristic Musical Comedy

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SYNOPSIS
Another millennium has passed. The year is 2999, there are only 2 countries in the world.  One is governed by the Central Computer called SHE, who ruled over her happy workers, policewomen and nurses in charge of the new babies. SHE has just gotten a new baby girl—a perfect computer program called SHESHE developed by the only males in the country, programmers Hermann, Helmut and Hans. Among other things, the new program asks for the public execution of these three males. Now that they have fulfilled their mission in the world. Realizing their mistake, the programmers try to negotiate with SEH to avoid their tragic destiny.

At the same time, spies from the other country, ZAZA & FROUFROU, manage to trick the policewomen at the border and enter the SHE-State. They are trying to steal the new program, the baby girl SHESHE. The plot follows the adventures and misadventures of ZAZA & FROUFROU in the SHE-State, the quick growing up of baby SHESHE, her teenage rebellion and show-down with SHE, and the attempts of the programmers to re-program SHE. At the end, ZAZA & FROUFROU escape the SHE country, SHESHE fails in her rebellion against SHE, and the three programmers are executed.

In the Finale, the lonely SHE sings hers aria.  SHE admonishes the assembled crowd to mourn the programmers Helmut, Hermann and Hans, the only citizens of her state who could ever understand her. SHE tells the crowd to celebrate the lives of the three, then realizes her mistake and ends by saying: "You don't understand anything, neither tears, nor love, nor despair, nor feeling...obedience is all you can think. Go to work!"

The concept and  script of THE ANTS was created by Andrea von Ramm.
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3 Women from The Aeneid
I am now composing a piece that sets to music the speeches of three powerful women speeches from Vergil’s epic Aeneid.  All three speeches address the profound destructive effects of the war far beyond its physical boundaries in time and space.  They resonate strongly with our contemporary times in their foregrounding of the struggle between the culture’s war-promoting elements on one hand, and those that embody the fullness of peace lost in the war on the other.

The first speech is that of Carthaga’s queen Dido, who curses Aeneas for leaving the beginnings of home and for deserting his own “gentle, human ears” and his love of Dido, “who means the world to him,” in order to “obey his duty and seize far-off kingdoms.”  Dido’s speech curses Aeneas with the curse of the never-ending war:  “this is my curse—war between all our peoples, all their children, endless war!”  The second speech is that of a nameless aged mother of a dead soldier Euryalus, who addresses herself to her dead son in words of unbearable agony but also lucidity.  The third speech is the one by the goddess Juturna who senses the impending death of Turnus, her brother, and utters a lament of realization that without her beloved brother she has nothing left “that’s sweet to taste,” and of desire to accompany her brother into his death and not be immortal.

Composed in modern dramatic opera idiom, this piece will be scored for soprano voice, electronic sounds, unspecified instruments, and percussion.  Estimated length is 25 minutes, with the structure: prelude, 1st song, interlude, 2nd song, interlude, 3rd song, end.  Aside from musicians, the piece will also use minimal props, lights, and 3 costumes. 

ConneXions

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ConneXions (1995-97) performs contemporary chamber music making use of the "connections" between the classical voice, jazz saxophone, and rock-oriented electric guitar.  The electro-acoustic dynamic of the ensemble with a powerful operatic voice makes our music compelling and unique.  ConneXions is also about the trans-national connections (between America and Eastern Europe), suggesting a world without borders.  Our songs and instrumental pieces sometimes dramatize contemporary issues of concern, such as the war in the former Yugoslavia, the AIDS epidemic, and the general alienation of the individual in modern society.

In 1995, ConneXions received a grant from ArtsLink, a partnership of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Soros Foundation and the Trust for Mutual Understanding.  The purpose of the award was to foster artistic collaborations between artists in the US and those in Eastern Europe.  The group has performed at the Ribnjak Theater in Zagreb and its music has been broadcast on Zagreb Radio 3.
RECORDINGS
Below are some selections of music which ConneXions recorded in Zagreb, Croatia in 1995.
World Circus News 
is scored for alto sax, guitar, accordion, and tape.
​It originates from Western media to the conflict in the former Yugoslavia.
Like you thought... 
is scored for voice, alto sax, and guitar.
​It is a dissonant, repetitious rant.
'Tis Of Thee
for alto sax and guitar was composed as a eulogy for a friend who died.
Death Within Death
for voice, alto sax, and guitar on a text by Gordana Crnkovic.

The Boston Renaissance Ensemble

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THE BOSTON RENAISSANCE ENSEMBLE (1984-89) performed virtuoso repertoires of the 15th & 16th centuries, combining expertise in dance music and improvisation to capture the wit, vitality and invention or renaissance music. With recorder, viol, lute, and voice they recreate the diverse styles of the period from the extemporized counterpoint of the Burgundian basse danse, to elegant chamber music, to bawdy carnival songs and popular dances. While pursuing a shared interest in the latest scholarly developments in historical performance practice, these musicians demonstrate that artistry and levity can join hands and dance together.

Core members were: John Tyson (recorders and pipe & tabor), Magaret Pash (viola da gamba, voice, & lute), David Hahn (lute, cittern). Supporting musicians were gambists Carol Lewis and Jonathan Dunford and vocalist Andrea von Ramm.  The Boston Renaissance Ensemble toured extensively on the Eastern Seaboard, the US southwestern United States, Switzerland, Germany, and France.

In 1985, the Ensemble was awarded the Noah Greenberg Award by the American Musicological Society for excellence in the performance of early music.  This award helped support a concert tour with renowned vocalist, Andrea von Ramm. A poster of the ensemble is available HERE.

The Boston Renaissance Ensemble recorded 1500..., a collection of our concert repertoire, in 1983. You can download the liner notes for the collection HERE. Below are the recordings included on 1500.
RECORDINGS
Below are some selections from The Boston Renaissance Ensemble's 1500... CD
La Alfonsina - recorder, lute, & viola da gamba
Cela Sans Plus - recorder, lute, & viola da gamba
Nido d'Amore - recorder, lute, cittern, & viola da gamba
1500... Liner Notes
File Size: 9391 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

Reviews of The BRE

A unique opportunity to hear instrumental music of the Renaissance convincingly performed on authentic instruments.
                                                         -Volksblatt, Efring-Kirchen, Germany

All the sensitivity, the freshness, of renaissance music, the light clear sounds of the instruments, the outstanding talent of the musicians, and the remarkable hall of the priory of Mayanne recreated a captivating atmosphere.                                                                                                                                -Ouest France, Le Mans

The high point of the festival was the concert of the Boston Renaissance Ensemble.                       -Ouest France, La Roche-sur-Yon
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Zagreb Everywhere
ZAGREB EVERYWHERE (2002) is an audio-visual lecture on the City of Zagreb with texts  by Gordana Crnkovic, soundscape by David Hahn, and video by Victor Ingrassia. The piece was partially funded by the Artist Support Program 2000 of Seattle's Jack Straw Productions.  

 Watch Zagreb Everywhere online: ZAGREB EVERYWHERE