"Cultured Wrinkles," a composition by Associate Professor of Music Michael "Doc" Woods, will be premiered by the Albany Symphony Orchestra's (ASO) ensemble, the Dogs of Desire, on Thursday, March 31, at 8 p.m. The concert will take place in Revolution Hall in Troy, N.Y. This is the second of three pieces that Woods will debut for the ASO in two years. In 2004 he premiered a musical update of the spiritual "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" for the orchestra. His third piece will debut in December.
Woods describes "Cultured Wrinkles" as a six-minute work that contains many jazz influences. "My goal is to write pieces that help to give American orchestras an original voice," said Woods. "It's an opportunity to put an orchestra behind jazz music." He added, "America equates African Americans with blues but I don't think blues are African Americans' only dimension. I'm going beyond the genre."
According to the ASO Web site, "The 18-member ensemble, Dogs of Desire, celebrates 11 years of uniting culturally diverse artists and audiences. The Dogs will present newly commissioned works from eight of today's best young composers in a multi-media format. Over the last 11 years the ensemble has commissioned and premiered new music by artists ranging from Stewart Copeland, former drummer with the rock band, The Police, to jazz inspired Anthony Braxton, electronic musician Neil Rolnick and symphonist Kamran Ince. This year's featured composers include Caleb Burhans, David Mallamud, Evan Hause, John King, Kenneth Eberhard, Kevin Beavers, Michael Woods and Sean McClowry. Since 1994, the Dogs have commissioned more than 50 new works from emerging American composers. The Dogs of Desire has gained a national reputation among young composers as a proving ground for emerging talent."
Tickets for the performance are $20 and are available by calling the Albany Symphony Orchestra office, (518) 465-4755.
