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Leonard Cohen's and Philip Glass's Book of Longing is two-hour concert work performed by a seven-piece instrumental ensemble and four singers. Philip Glass will perform on keyboards on the show's premiere at Spoleto Festival. The concert work includes
Leonard Cohen's pre-recorded voice and also the screenings of his artwork.
World premiere (Canada): June 1-3, 2007, Luminato, Toronto Festival of Arts & Creativity, Elgin Theatre
US premiere: June 6-8, 2007, Spoleto Festival, Charleston, USA
June 12-13, 2007, Ravinia Festival, Illinois
July 14-15, 2007, Lincoln Center Festival, New York
October 9, 2007, Stanford Lively Arts, Canada
October 17-18, 2007, Wales Millennium Center, Cardiff, Wales
October 20, 2007, Barbican Center, London, UK
October 23, 2007, Noor Nedelands Orkest, Groningen, Netherlands
October 27-28, 2007, Madrid Autumn Festival, Madrid, Spain
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Official announcement from Pomegranate Arts / philipglass.com:
Book of Longing
Conceived and Composed by Philip Glass
based on the poetry of Leonard Cohen
A new work by Philip Glass based on the poetry of Leonard Cohen, Book of Longing has been conceived as an evening-length concert work composed for ensemble, singers, spoken word and imagery. The culmination of years of mutual admiration between two of the most celebrated musical artists of their generation, the piece will feature new music by Glass inspired by Cohen's most recently published book of the same name.
Comprised of Cohen's poetry and sketches created over the course of the past 20 years including the eight years spent at the Mt. Baldy Buddhist monastery, Book of Longing is signature Leonard Cohen - at once meditative, playful, erotic, and provocative.
The poems are a diverse collection that can loosely be collected into the categories of long "ballads", love poems, autobiographical works, spiritual meditations written at Mt. Baldy, and short comic pieces that Philip Glass has nicknamed "the limericks".
Philip Glass has conceived the concert as a collection of poetry from each of these loose categories that will run as a continuous evening rather than a traditional song cycle. The music is currently being written for an ensemble of seven musicians including electronic keyboards (one played by Glass himself),
flute/bass clarinet, hand percussion, violin, cello, upright bass, and oboe/English horn that will be visible on stage throughout the evening. The music will be directed by Glass's longtime musical director Michael Riesman.
Four singers (Soprano, Mezzo, Tenor and Baritone) will sing lyrics pulled from Cohen's poetry as a quartet and in a variety of combinations throughout the evening and will be staged and likely visible for the majority of the evening. Leonard Cohen's voice will be recorded delivering selections of the poetry which at times may be underscored by the musical ensemble. The visual artwork of Leonard Cohen has never before been seen in conjunction with his music and they will be incorporated into this work. Exact means of their incorporation is still to be determined.
Philip Glass has chosen to work with choreographer/director Susan Marshall, with whom he created the opera Les Enfants Terribles, to stage the musicians and singers. Set by Christine Jones, Lighting by Scott Zielinksi, and costumes by Kasia Walicka Maimone.
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January 2, 2007: Spoleto Festival, USA, has announced American premiere of Book of Longing:
Spoleto Festival USA presents the American premiere of Book of Longing, the long-awaited new concert work by Philip Glass, one of the most influential composers of our time, and based on legendary poet and singer Leonard Cohen's recently published poetry collection, his first in over 20 years. The culmination of years of admiration between two of the most celebrated musical artists of their generation, Glass sets Cohen's words – at once playful, erotic, meditative, and singularly provocative – to a new score performed by an ensemble of singers and musicians, drawn from indie rock, classical and new music circles. Glass himself plays keyboard.
More info and tickets at http://tickets.spoletousa.org/eventperformances.asp?evt=13.
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PhilipGlass.com, December 2006 press release:
A new work by Philip Glass based on the poetry of Leonard Cohen, Book of Longing has been conceived as an evening-length concert work composed for ensemble, singers, spoken word and imagery.
Commenting on the unprecedented collaboration with poet, novelist and singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, Philip Glass says, "I found Cohen's work intensely beautiful, personal and inspiring. Six years in the making, our stars are finally aligned. For me, this is both a departure from my past work and a fulfillment of an artistic dream."
Book of Longing by Leonard Cohen is a collection -20 years in the making- of 167 new poems and 43 original illustrations by Cohen himself.
Scheduled Premiere: June 1, 2007 at Luminato Festival at Elgin Theatre in Toronto, Ontario (Canada).
Additional Performances:
June 2-3, 2007 at Luminato Festival at Elgin Theatre in Toronto, Ontario (Canada).
Dates TBD: North American Tour.
Dates TBD: International Tour.
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Luminato Festival press release, November 29, 2006
Max Dean's "Robotic Chair", The Gryphon Trio, Philip Glass and Leonard Cohen's Book of Longing... All to be part of Toronto's Inaugural Luminato Festival
It's been six years in the making, the culmination of mutual admiration between two of the world's most celebrated artists of their generation. Toronto will be the first to experience the musical achievement of Philip Glass' new concert work based on the poetry of Leonard Cohen's Book of Longing. Just one example of how imagination comes alive at Luminato, Toronto's inaugural multi-disciplinary arts festival taking place June 1-10, 2007.
"Here's an open invitation to audiences of every background to experience artistic excellence and to connect with the community's creative spirit," said Janice Price, CEO, Luminato. "Let's celebrate collaboration, embrace diversity and provide access to art from around the corner and around the globe. It's all about imagination stirred in a new Toronto tradition, served up Canadian style and peppered by the world."
Three new program announcements today include:
- A presentation in partnership with the Art Gallery of Ontario - The debut of "The Robotic Chair" is a kinetic installation and collaboration between artists Max Dean, Raffaello D'Andrea and Matt Donovan
- The Gryphon Trio presents Christos Hatzis' Constantinople - A multimedia theatre event that interweaves visual art with instrumental and vocal music performance that envelops the audience
- The world premiere collaboration between Canada's beloved poet, novelist and singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, with critically acclaimed international composer Philip Glass, in a debut evening-length concert work based on Cohen's Book of Longing
Commenting on the unprecedented collaboration, Philip Glass says, "I found Cohen's work intensely beautiful, personal and inspiring. Six years in the making, our stars are finally aligned and I am very excited to open the performance in Toronto. For me, this is both a departure from my past work and a fulfillment of an artistic dream."
"Today's announcements exemplify the kind of innovative, original and multifaceted programming that reflects the spirit of Luminato," says David Pecaut, founder and Co-Chair of Luminato. "We trust that people will discover a new community of global ideas - encountering superb art in the most spontaneous ways."
NEW LUMINATO EVENTS
WORLD PREMIERE - Book of Longing: A new work by Philip Glass based on the poetry of Leonard Cohen
June 1-5, Elgin Theatre
For the first time, world-renowned composer Philip Glass collaborates with Canadian icon Leonard Cohen for a remarkable musical performance based on Cohen's most recent collection of poetry, Book of Longing, at Toronto's Elgin Theatre. Philip Glass, in the year of his 70th birthday, is currently composing a new score set to Cohen's first poetry collection in over 20 years. Cohen's words will be eloquently expressed in an evening-length concert work performed by a seven-piece instrumental ensemble and four singers, with Glass on keyboards. This unprecedented occasion represents a once-in-a-lifetime experience for audiences of all backgrounds.
Source: http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/061129/to492.html?.v=9
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