PRISM’s annual concert series in New York City
MACHINE (NYC, pay-what-you-wish)
MACHINE /məˈSHēn/ A: an apparatus using or applying mechanical power and having several parts, each with a definite function and together performing a particular task. B: an assemblage of parts that transmit forces, motion, and energy one to another in a predetermined manner C: a coin-operated device PRISM Quartet presents a program of new music …
PRISM Quartet with Miguel Zenón – El Eco del Tambor (NYC, pay-what-you-wish)
PRISM Quartet joins forces with the Grammy Award-winning composer/saxophonist, MacArthur Fellow, and long-time collaborator Miguel Zenón in a program curated by Zenón featuring the world premiere of his newest work, El Eco del Tambor (The Echo of the Drum). Zenón writes, “El Eco del Tambor (The Echo of the Drum) is an extended, multi-movement saxophone …
PRISM Quartet’s GUITAR HEROES feat. Leyla McCalla, Rez Abbasi and Steven Mackey (NYC)
For more than 40 years, the all-sax PRISM Quartet has redefined the artistic boundaries of its medium, with collaborators ranging from PARTCH, So Percussion, Piffaro, The Crossing, Inti-Illimani, Ethel, and BMOP to leading jazz artists Melissa Aldana, Jason Moran, Susie Ibarra, Arturo O’Farrill, Rudresh Mahanthappa, and Joe Lovano. PRISM has worked across disciplines with several …
Generate Music (World Premiere)
Reaching for the Future Generate Music is a new collection of compositions exploring the ties between Black and Jewish Americans. Visit the Generate Music website for complete information, tickets, news, program notes, blog posts, and more. Co-curated by Helen Haynes and PRISM Quartet World Premieres by Yotam Haber, David Krakauer, Myra Melford, Diane Monroe, Ursula Rucker, …
PREMIERES (NYC) – FREE ADMISSION w/RESERVATION!
Hailed by The New York Times as a “bold ensemble” that “set the standard for contemporary-classical saxophone quartets,” PRISM Quartet presents a program of new music from an extraordinary collection of composers, including world premieres of works by Hannah Kendall, Andrew Litts, Renee Baker, David Bennett Thomas, PRISM’s first performance of Carlos Simon‘s “Elegy: A Cry from the Grave,” …
PRISM Quartet and Susie Ibarra: Record Release Concert (NYC)
An evening curated by Susie Ibarra Composer and percussionist Susie Ibarra joins PRISM Quartet for a concert celebrating the XAS Records release of their most recent collaboration: Ibarra’s “Procession Along the Aciga Tree.” The program, curated by Ibarra, also includes new arrangements of works by Ibarra and Filipino composer José Maceda, and the premiere of …
PREMIERES (NYC) – Marcos Balter, Adam Silverman, Helen Feng, Renee Baker, Alfredo Cabrera. FREE ADMISSION w/RESERVATION!
PRISM Quartet presents a program of new music from an extraordinary collection of composers, including world premieres of works by (pictured top to bottom) Marcos Balter, Adam Silverman, and Helen Feng, plus New York premieres from Renee Baker and Alfredo Cabrera. PROGRAM Pratigraha by Renee Baker (New York premiere, new arrangement) Yarn by Marcos …
PREMIERES (NYC) – Bright Sheng, Roberto Sierra, Jungyoon Wie, Flannery Cunningham, Julian Hofstetter
Old Tune Renewed (NYC premiere) by Bright Sheng Commissioned for the PRISM Quartet with generous support by the Fromm Music Foundation at Harvard University. Breath (NYC premiere) by Jungyoon Wie, winner of The PRISM Quartet/Donald Sinta Commissioning Award Oci oci (NYC premiere) by Flannery Cunningham, winner of PRISM Quartet’s Robert Capanna Commissioning Award Home For A While (NYC premiere) by Julian Hofstetter, winner …
PRISM Quartet Meets Bang on a Can
With over 300 commissions to its credit, the intrepid PRISM Quartet (Timothy McAllister, Zachary Shemon, Matthew Levy, Taimur Sullivan) presents a portrait of Bang on a Can‘s visionary co-founders in an all-saxophone program featuring the premiere of In a delirium by Michael Gordon alongside performances of Cha by Julia Wolfe and Revolutionary Etudes by David Lang. Both PRISM and Bang on …
World Premieres (NYC) 6/9/22
Due to unforeseen circumstances, this concert has been cancelled. All tickets will be fully refunded. Old Tune Renewed (world premiere) by Bright Sheng Breath (world premiere) by Jungyoon Wie, winner of The PRISM Quartet/Donald Sinta Commissioning Award Oci oci (world premiere) by Flannery Cunningham, winner of PRISM Quartet’s Robert Capanna Commissioning Award Home For A While (world premiere) …
World Premieres: New Music from Philadelphia (NYC)
Credited with more than 300 commissions since its founding, the intrepid PRISM Quartet (Matthew Levy, Timothy McAllister, Zachary Shemon, Taimur Sullivan) presents a program of new and recent works by composers with deep ties to the City of Brotherly Love. The program features world premieres by four extraordinarily talented composition students, each representing one of four eminent music institutions …
Heritage/Evolution Marathon with Melissa Aldana, Chris Potter, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Terell Stafford (NYC)
TICKETS AVAILABLE AT DOOR ONLY ON DAY OF CONCERT. Guest Artists Melissa Aldana, tenor Chris Potter, tenor Rudresh Mahanthappa, alto Terell Stafford, trumpet PRISM Quartet Timothy McAllister, soprano Zachary Shemon, alto Matthew Levy, tenor Taimur Sullivan, baritone IMPORTANT: Please see Covid-19 Protocols below. The intrepid PRISM Quartet celebrates the release of its …
Premieres (NYC)
We’re sorry to inform you that this program been postponed until next season in an effort reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). PROGRAM New York premiere of Graffiti II by Roberto Sierra World premiere performances of: New work by Flannery Cunningham, winner of PRISM Quartet’s Robert Capanna Commissioning Award New work by Jung Yoon Wie, …
Mending Wall
We’re sorry to inform you that performances of Mending Wall at Bryn Mawr College (March 21-22) and Roulette (March 23) have been postponed until next season in an effort reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Read our announcement: https://mailchi.mp/prismquartet/mending-wall-postponed or visit the MENDING WALL website for more details. WORLD PREMIERE Mending Wall is a …
Chamber Music America Showcase with Rudresh Mahanthappa
Program DEDICATIONS Inkling by Roshanne Etezady Speed Metal Organum Blues by Greg Wannamaker Bop by Jennifer Higdon Robert Schumann/Arr. by William Bolcom, Schumann Bouquet (from Album for the Young), 04:19 Leiber Mai (Beloved Maytime) Sehr langsam I WILL NOT APOLOGIZE FOR MY TONE TONIGHT by Rudresh Mahanthappa Featuring Mahanthappa
PRISM with Rudresh Mahanthappa (NYC)
PRISM Quartet Timothy McAllister, soprano saxophone Zachary Shemon, alto saxophone Matthew Levy, tenor saxophone Taimur Sullivan, baritone saxophone FEATURING Rudresh Mahanthappa, alto saxophone The fearless PRISM Quartet joins forces with Rudresh Mahanthappa, hailed by The Guardian as an “alto saxophonist who astutely fuses Western and Indian traditions with mind-bending jazz rhythms,” in a concert featuring an astonishing …
PREMIERES: New Works by Nina Young, Emily Cooley, Francesca Hellerman, Chris Biggs, Jacob TV – Philly and NYC
The PRISM Quartet presents a program of world premieres, featuring new works by Nina C. Young, Emily Cooley, Francesca Hellerman, and Jacob TV. The program also includes the East Coast premiere of Christopher Biggs‘s Surfaces and Essences, the title track of an upcoming PRISM album on XAS Records. Join us June 2, 8:00 PM at Settlement Music School, Mary Louise Curtis Branch, …
PRISM Quartet with Miguel Zenón and Susie Ibarra
PRISM Quartet Timothy McAllister, soprano saxophone Zachary Shemon, alto saxophone Matthew Levy, tenor saxophone Taimur Sullivan, baritone saxophone FEATURING Miguel Zenón, alto saxophone Susie Ibarra, drums/percussion The Concert The PRISM Quartet joins forces join forces with two distinctive composer/performers—Susie Ibarra and Miguel Zenón—to explore the intersection of global musical traditions with a recent body of music commissioned by PRISM. Zenón and PRISM …
Joan Tower and Friends at National Sawdust, NYC
In the tradition of Philip Glass @80 and John Corigliano @80 concerts, National Sawdust will honor Joan Tower on her 80th Birthday. “One of the most successful women composers of all time” (The New Yorker) and one of the most important American composers alive today, Joan Tower has made lasting contributions to musical life for …
The Anchoress: An Evening of Music by David Ludwig, Philadelphia and NYC
“…I left one stone-bright burial for another, my other, this cell” The Anchoress, a new monodrama by David Ludwig, “a composer with something urgent to say” (Philadelphia Inquirer), has its world premiere on Wednesday, October 17, 2018 at 7:30 PM at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia under the auspices of the …
Color Theory 2.0: Saxophones and Percussion / PRISM Quartet with Susie Ibarra and Tyshawn Sorey
Note: The June 3rd NYC performance has a new time and venue due to emergency building repairs at the DiMenna Center. Please join us at 3 p.m. at Christ & St. Stephen’s Church, 120 W 69th St., New York, NY 10023. Buy tickets here. The PRISM Quartet presents Color Theory 2.0: Saxophones and Percussion following the 2017 …
Heritage/Evolution Marathon with Dave Liebman, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Tim Ries, and Miguel Zenón (NYC)
PRISM Quartet Timothy McAllister, soprano Zachary Shemon, alto Matthew Levy, tenor Taimur Sullivan, baritone FEATURING Dave Liebman, tenor/soprano Rudresh Mahanthappa, alto Tim Ries, tenor Miguel Zenon, alto GET TICKETS Washington Square Contemporary Music Society and PRISM Quartet, Inc. present Heritage/Evolution Marathon: Celebrating the Saxophone. Heritage/Evolution is a groundbreaking project launched by the PRISM Quartet in …
Breath Beneath
Hailed by Chamber Music magazine for “pioneering achievements of the highest order,” the PRISM Quartet partners with Drexel University’s Westphal College of Media Arts & Design in Philadelphia and 3-Legged Dog in New York City to co-present Breath Beneath, a pilot project that explores the intersection of music, interactive technology, and durational visual art. The …
Heritage/ Evolution: PRISM Quartet with Joe Lovano at (le) poisson rouge (NYC)
Hailed by Chamber Music magazine for “pioneering achievements of the highest order,” the PRISM Quartet and (le) poisson rouge present the next installment of Heritage/Evolution, a groundbreaking project featuring world premieres of new works composed and performed by today’s most inventive jazz saxophonists. This time around, Heritage/Evolution spotlights saxophone luminary Joe Lovano, who will join …
Paradigm Lost, CD Release Concert (NYC)
The PRISM Quartet presents a program celebrating the release of Paradigm Lost on its new label, XAS Records, featuring music by Lee Hyla, Chen Yi, Bernard Rands, David Rakowski, Augusta Read Thomas, and John Adams. The record and concert are dedicated to the memory of Lee Hyla (1952-2014), a dearly missed friend whose beautiful saxophone …
The Art of the Transcription (NYC)
Hailed by The Los Angeles Times for “remarkable examples of virtuosity,” the PRISM Quartet presents stunning saxophone quartet adaptations of masterworks from the Western canon. The program features three anthologies: the New York premiere of A Schumann Bouquet, Pulitzer Prize-winner William Bolcom’s transcription of piano works from Album for the Young by Robert Schumann, presented as …
ECM CD Release Concert: The Crossing and PRISM Play “The Fifth Century”
PRISM joins Maestro Donald Nally and The Crossing (choir) at Trinity Church Wall Street in NYC for a CD release concert celebrating the world premiere recording of Gavin Bryars’ “The Fifth Century” on ECM. FROM THE CROSSING’s WEBSITE: To celebrate the release of our all-Bryars recording on ECM Records, we reprise The Fifth Century, Gavin’s …
Color Theory Concert: PRISM Quartet and Partch
Color Theory is inspired by the spirit in which scientists and visual artists have studied color throughout the centuries. In 1671–72, Sir Isaac Newton discovered the origin of color by shining a beam of light through a prism, splitting it into the colors of a rainbow. Visual artists have used color theory to develop a …
Color Theory Concert: PRISM Quartet and Sō Percussion
Color Theory is inspired by the spirit in which scientists and visual artists have studied color throughout the centuries. In 1671–72, Sir Isaac Newton discovered the origin of color by shining a beam of light through a prism, splitting it into the colors of a rainbow. Visual artists have used color theory to develop a …
World Premieres: PRISM with Special Guest Marilyn Nonken
The PRISM Quartet presents a breathtaking program of freshly minted saxophone quartets by Barlow Prize winner Ben Hjertmann; Goddard Lieberson and Guggenhiem Fellow James Primosch; Pew and Guggenhiem Fellow Anna Weesner; Jay Reise, whose work has been supported by the Fromm Foundation and National Endowment for the Arts;Kyle Bartlett, of counter)induction fame; and Jane Lange, …
New Works Concert at CMA Conference: “Cha” by Julia Wolfe
PRISM will perform Julia Wolfe’s “Cha” at Chamber Music America’s National Conference on Friday, January 8th at 8 PM at the DiMenna Center for Classical Music located at 450 W 37th St, New York, NY 10018. The New Works Concert is free and open to the public. Click HERE for more info. Also on the …
Heritage/ Evolution: PRISM Quartet with Chris Potter and Ravi Coltrane at Symphony Space
Hailed by Chamber Music Magazine for “pioneering achievements of the highest order,” the PRISM Quartet presents the next installment of Heritage/Evolution, a groundbreaking project featuring world premieres of new works composed and performed by today’s most inventive jazz saxophonists. This time around, Heritage/Evolution spotlights PRISM with saxophone luminaries Chris Potter and Ravi Coltrane. The program …
Wall to Wall World Premieres: Symphony Space
PRISM presents an electrifying program of world premieres of new saxophone quartets by Bang on a Can composer and 2015 Pulitzer Prize-winner Julia Wolfe; Grammy Award-winner Michael Daugherty; the Curtis Institute’s David Hertzberg; Princeton University’s Emma O’Halloran, Viet Cuong and Jonathan Russell; counter)induction’s Kyle Bartlett; Solon Snider and Mark Macaluso, winners of the PRISM/Walden School …
PRISM Quartet and Uri Caine at Symphony Space
Grammy-nominated pianist and composer Uri Caine, “A musical polymath with abundant improvising skills” (NPR), and the PRISM Quartet join forces for a concert of adventurous new music. PRISM and Caine will premiere Caine’s “The Book of Days,” a work that fuses modern jazz and new classical styles. The program also features music by Dutch avant-pop …
PRISM Quartet with Pianist George Emmanuel Lazaridis
Showcasing the music of one of Greece’s contemporary composers, the Onassis Cultural Center NY presents a concert of works by Giorgos Koumendakis, whose eclectic works range from chamber pieces to the music for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. The program, performed by the PRISM Saxophone Quartet and pianist George Emmanuel Lazaridis, features Koumendakis’s Typewriter …
Ice Cream Time – Nick Didkovsky Composer Portrait
PROGRAM The PRISM Quartet, composer/guitarist Nick Didkovsky, and sonic alchemist Thomas Dimuzio perform Ice Cream Time, an evening-length work by Didkovsky that uses electric guitar, an onslaught of saxophones, and real-time computer processing to explore the boundaries between human- and software-generated music. Didkovsky is best known for his work with Doctor Nerve, Fred Frith Guitar …
Cage: Beyond Silence – John Cage Composer Portrait
Cage: Beyond Silence John Cage Composer Portrait Curated by Dustin Hurt, Director of Bowerbird. The Philadelphia performance is part of the festival Cage: Beyond Silence, presented by Bowerbird in conjunction with the Philadelphia Museum PROGRAM Freeman Etudes #4, #8, and #16 for solo violin (1977-80) Sonata for Two Voices (1933) Music for Nine (1984-87) Four5 …
Chanting the Light – Terry Riley Composer Portrait
PROGRAM Chanting the Light of Foresight (1987) Tread on the Trail (1964) Mandala Miniatures (select movements,1999) The PRISM Quartet presents a program of music for saxophones by Terry Riley, who launched the Minimalist movement with his revolutionary 1964 composition IN C. Deeply influenced by jazz and Indian classical music, Riley’s own music has in turn …
Multiple Minimal
Born in the early 1960s in the underground scene in San Francisco and New York, minimalism and its offshoots (post-minimalism, totalism) have become wildly popular forms of new classical music. The PRISM Quartet performs music by two of its originators and long-time champions, Terry Riley and Philip Glass, along with composers deeply influenced by their …
PRISM Quartet and Music from China
World Premieres Music for Saxophones, Traditional Chinese Instruments, and Percussion by Bright Sheng, Fang Man, Huang Ruo, and Lei Liang The PRISM Quartet and the ensemble Music From China reunite after their groundbreaking 2009-10 tour and CD release (Antiphony, innova records), hailed by Chamber Music magazine for “shattering expectations” and “pioneering achievements of the highest …
World Premieres of Works by Bielawa, Goldstein, Haxo, Levy, Rakowski
The PRISM Quartet unveils freshly minted works by David Rakowski, Lisa Bielawa, Perry Goldstein, Matthew Levy, and Cara Haxo, the winner of the PRISM/Walden School Young Composer Commissioning Award. Program: Double Duet – Lisa Bielawa Filaments of Yesterday – Perry Goldstein The Giving Tree – Cara Haxo Lyric – Matthew Levy Compass – David Rakowski
DAVE, The Premiere
PRISM presents new music by guys named Dave, including world premieres by David Biedenbender, David Laganella, David Little, David Ludwig, and the New York/Philadelphia premiere of “Revolutionary Etudes” by Pulitzer Prize winner David Lang. The concert also features the world premiere of a freshly minted work by “Davey” Rainero-de Haan, winner of the 2010 PRISM/Walden …
25th Anniversary CD Release Concert
Since 2008, the PRISM Quartet has released no fewer than five recordings, encompassing an astonishing range of musical styles, from Middle Eastern laments to progressive rock to Highland bagpipes to Chinese folk music. To celebrate the group’s 25th anniversary, PRISM performs a CD release concert featuring music from each of the five albums, including compositions …
Saxophones and Voices
Cantori New York joins forces with PRISM in a riveting evening of international music for chorus and saxophone quartet, including world premieres by Efstratios Minakakis (Greece) and Kristin Kuster (U.S.), as well as works by Hugi Guðmundsson (Iceland), Giya Kancheli (Georgia), and Bernd Franke (Germany).
Low Blow: Music for Four Baritone Saxophones
The PRISM Quartet sheds their standard instrumentation in a ground-shaking evening of music for four baritone saxophones. Sign up now to hear daring works by Martin Bresnick, Michael Gordon, Olga Neuwirth, and world premieres by Roshanne Etezady and PRISM’s own Matthew Levy. They’re like regular saxophones, just bigger!
World Premieres
At the vanguard of modern music for over 20 year, PRISM unveils a crop of brand new sax quartets by Guggenheim fellow Martin Bresnick, Rome Prize winner Rand Steiger, and Villa Medicis Hors-les-Murs awardee Georgia Spiropoulos. The program also features the world premiere of a new work by Victoria Cheah, winner of PRISM’s Walden School …
PITCH BLACK: Music of Jacob ter Veldhuis
PRISM and the amazing Miro Dance Theatre perform the world premiere of Pitch Black, an evening-length multimedia production combining video installation by Tobin Rothlein and choreography by Amanda Miller. Pitch Black is set to music for saxophones and ghetto blaster by Dutch composer Jacob ter Veldhuis, featuring samples ranging from jazz singer Billie Holiday to …
Tribute to Steve Reich
October 15, 2006 Whitney Museum of Art Tribute to Steve Reich 945 Madison Avenue New York, NY more information