Posted on Sat, May. 30, 2009 10:15 PM
By MICHAEL PETTENGELLSpecial to The Star
Sometimes a combination of two art forms gives a performance greater beauty and impact.
That’s the case with the Bach Aria Soloists, who will collaborate with the Owen/Cox Dance Group in “Baroque in Motion,” a concert premiering 7:30 p.m. Saturday in UMKC’s White Recital Hall.
It may seem commonplace to bring dance and music together, but this time around the result is extraordinary and exciting, said Jennifer Owen, a lead dancer and co-founder of the dance group.
In most dance concerts the music, usually prerecorded, is almost secondary. But in “Baroque in Motion,” the choreography was created very closely with the musicians, Owen said.
“It is a wonderful way for music and dance lovers to get to enjoy both together in a high-quality, collaborative setting,” Owen said.
Tying the soloists and the dance performance together is violinist Elizabeth Suh-Lane.
Dancers Christopher Barksdale and Lisa Thorn rehearse at the American Dance Center in Overland Park. The Owen/Cox Dance Group will perform with the Bach Aria Soloists Saturday at UMKC.
“It is an ideal partnership,” Owen said. “I have the utmost respect for Elizabeth and the musicians that she works with. They are of the highest quality.” Rebecca Lloyd, Grammy-winning soprano from the Kansas City Chorale, said, “Elizabeth is so sensitive to the music and brings together so many wonderful artists that inevitably work to inspire each other. She has that knack of making an ensemble work as one.”
Paula Kosower, who studied with renowned cellist Janos Starker, will come from Chicago to play cello in the group.
“I’ve worked with Elizabeth before in the Kansas City String Quartet Program for students, and I look forward to doing so again,” Kosower said. “She is an extraordinary player.”
The accolades are well-deserved.
Before creating the Bach Aria Soloists, Suh-Lane for many years played in the London Symphony Orchestra, an organization at the forefront of innovations in classical recording and presentation. Suh-Lane said the orchestra is “a really exciting group with a demanding work schedule. They are constantly doing everything.”
Luckily for Kansas City, she decided to return here to raise her family as well as work with audiences and students to increase awareness of the finer points of the classical canon.
Always a lover of Bach’s music, Suh-Lane focused her study on the cantatas, music for voices and instrumentalists usually performed during church services.
“I love the repertoire,” she said. “It is an untapped treasure.”
Bach wrote more than 300 cantatas; only a handful are performed regularly today.
“I’m always discovering new arias,” Suh-Lane said, “and hopefully the audience will hear things that they have never heard before.”
Not only will guests hear music by Bach that perhaps will be new to them, but they will experience the music visually through choreography.
“It is unusual because we are combining the arias with contemporary dance,” Suh-Lane said. “You might think that the music of Bach has been overdone, but really we are offering a new way of seeing and listening to these pieces.
“And just as we are bringing together these different performers, we are hoping that this event brings in both dance and music enthusiasts, offering an exciting and intriguing experience — one whose impact will stay with them.”
Bach’s is not the only music to be featured in the concert. Chamber music by other composers whose work was influenced by Bach will be performed, including Purcell, Handel and Ravel.
In chamber music, in general, and with the Bach Soloists particularly, Suh-Lane said, “every single voice really matters. Every person becomes a soloist.”
In this case, each musician and dancer seems up to the challenge.
THE SHOW
What: ‘Baroque in Motion’ featuring Bach Aria Soloists
and the Owen/Cox Dance Group
- When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday
- Where: UMKC’s White Recital Hall, 4949 Cherry
- How much: $25 adult tickets; $15 students
- More: www.bachariasoloists.com or 816-235-6222