Events and Lectures in February

The Fireman’s Ball (1967, 73 minutes)
dir. Miloš Forman

The Czech New Wave is considered one of the richest eras of cinematic history. Made between 1964 and 1968, during a brief period of artistic freedom, these films are marked by a use of humor, tragedy, humanity, and surrealism often mixed with political commentary. The Fireman’s Ball chronicles a real party thrown by a small-town fire department where nothing goes right. Considered a political allegory, the film was banned by the Czech government in 1969.

Thursday, 6:15pm
624 S. Wabash, 6th floor, room 602

Jonas Dovydėnas, Iron Worker, Čikaga, 1969, © Jonas Dovydėnas. Bank of America Collection

THIS EVENT IS FULL.

Join us as curator Whitney Bradshaw leads a tour of this international, world-class photography collection that spans the history of the photographic medium, from 1839 –present. Nearly 700 artists are represented in this more than 5,000 photograph collection, including master photographers Julia Margaret Cameron, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Walker Evans, Robert Frank, Diane Arbus, Thomas Struth, and Rineke Dijkstra. Space is limited and preference will be given to member Levels II and above. Members, please call or email Sarah Miller for more details and to reserve your spot at 312-369-7794 or sarmiller@colum.edu.

Thursday, 4-5pm

7:30 p.m.

The ICE @ MoCP concert series continues with James Austin Smith and Nick Masterson, the two master oboists of the International Contemporary Ensemble. This evening of rarely-heard works for oboes solo and in duet will feature the Midwestern premiere of Brad Balliett’s Slow-Burning Sarabande, first performed by Smith in October but appearing here in a beefed-up version for not just one oboe, but two — double your oboe, double your fun. Other duo works include Christian Wolff’s exploratory For 1, 2, or 3 people and Michael Finnissy’s playful miniature Yso.

The duo will also each showcase their solo chops; Masterson will perform a complex canon with himself via tape delay on Jonathan Harvey’s Ricercare una Melodia, and Smith will tackle Berio’s boundary-pushing Sequenza VII, his performance of which was called “brilliant” by The New York Times.

Program
Christian Wolff: For 1, 2 or 3 people
Lucio Berio: Sequenza VII
Brad Balliett: Slow-Burning Sarabande, version for 2 oboes
Jonathan Harvey: Ricercare una Melodia
Michael Finnissy: Yso

About James Austin Smith
Praised for his “confident and controlled” performances by The Boston Globe and his “assured, polished and beautifully nuanced” chamber music collaborations by The New York Times, New York-based oboist James Austin Smith is a member of ICE, Sospiro Winds, and the Metropolis Ensemble, as well as a fellow of The Academy/Ensemble ACJW. Mr. Smith has performed with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, St. Luke’s Chamber Ensemble, East Coast Chamber Orchestra (ECCO), Speculum Musicae, as soloist with the Manhattan Sinfonietta and as chamber musician at Bargemusic. Mr. Smith’s principal teachers are Stephen Taylor, Christian Wetzel, Humbert Lucarelli, Hansjörg Schellenberger and Ray Still. For more information please visit www.jamesaustinsmith.com.

About Nick Masterson
Nick Masterson is currently a member of the Princeton Symphony Orchestra and the Symphony In C. Before relocating to the northeast, Nick was a member of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra in Charleston, SC for three years, where he held the position of Second Oboe and English Horn. An enthusiastic advocate of new music, Nick has been a member of ICE since 2003, with which he has played in many critically acclaimed performances including the American premiere of the Xenakis Opera Oresteia and most recently a John Adams concert at the Mostly Mozart Festival under the direction of the composer. Nick holds an undergraduate degree from the Oberlin Conservatory and a Master’s degree from Rice University.

About ICE
The International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) was founded in Chicago in 2001, and has rapidly established itself as one of the leading ensembles of its generation, performing over fifty concerts a year in the US and abroad. ICE is a uniquely structured chamber music ensemble comprising thirty dynamic and versatile young performers who are dedicated to advancing the music of our time. Through innovative programming, inter-disciplinary collaborations, and the creation of genre-defying new presentation and production models, ICE brings together new music and new audiences.

ICE’s 2009–10 Chicago season is generously made possible by the MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, the Arts Work Fund for Organizational Development, the Irving Harris Foundation, LUSES, a CityArts program grant from the City of Chicago, Department of Cultural Affairs, and the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency.

Friday, February 12, 2010
7:30 p.m.
Museum of Contemporary Photography
600 S. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL

Animation shorts by Jirí Trnka
including The Hand, 1965

The Czech New Wave is considered one of the richest eras of cinematic history. Made between 1964 and 1968, during a brief period of artistic freedom, these films are marked by a use of humor, tragedy, humanity, and surrealism often mixed with political commentary. Master puppeteer Jirí Trnka’s stop action animation short the Hand examines freedom of expression and oppression and was banned under communist rule.

Thursday, 6:15pm
624 S. Wabash, 6th floor, room 602

Mitch Epstein visits Chicago for a lecture, book signing, and reception. Copies of his latest publication, American Power, will be available for purchase.

Thursday, 6pm @ Ferguson Lecture Hall, 600 S. Michigan Ave., 1st Floor

Mitch Epstein, Green Mountain Wind Farm, Fluvana, Texas, 2005

American Power features images from Epstein’s series of the same name. Inspired by the sudden evacuation of an Ohio town after it was environmentally contaminated, images in American Power seek to document residential or other populated areas that are in direct contact with or have been affected by energy producing systems and structures. Epstein faced police resistance and worked around corporate security barriers in order to capture these peaceful, but highly loaded images. The book includes Epstein’s own essays in which he describes how the photographic experiences of this project deepened his political convictions and led him to reflect upon his role as an artist in U.S.