The Goethe-Institut Boston Will Present New England Conservatory's TRIO GAIA

The Goethe-Institut Boston present New England Conservatory's graduate piano trio in residence Trio Gaia in a concert that shows an uncommon perspective of musical life in Germany, featuring three global figures of classical and avant-garde art whose careers began, ended, or were shaped by their time in Germany: Mauricio Kagel, Clara Iannotta & Clara Schumann.

This program will look at these three composers whose varied careers offer a broader view of German artistic identity and recenters the migrant creatives who continue to redefine and enrich the cultural life of the country and beyond. 

This event is presented in tandem with the Harvard Art Museums' s exhibition “Made in Germany? Art and Identity in a Global Nation," which opened September 13 and runs through January 2025. 

With her 61-year long career, Clara Schumann is at once an archetype of the 19th-century European virtuoso, yet also a formidable figure who defied social expectations by continuing to teach, travel, and perform in spite of the obligations of marriage and motherhood. Meanwhile, two “ausländers” from opposite ends of the 20th century present intriguing challenges to traditional assumptions of assimilation and homogeneity in German artistic life. 

Amidst significant cultural renewal post-World War II, we meet Mauricio Kagel of Argentina and Clara Iannotta of Italy; both are part of a new wave of artists drawn to Germany's rapidly expanding avant-garde community who make Germany their new home in different ways. Kagel moves to West Germany at the age of 26 and stays on in Köln for the rest of his life, eventually succeeding Stockhausen as director of the Cologne Courses for New Music and making numerous indispensable contributions to the city's musical life. Still based in Berlin today, Iannotta's story stands worlds apart from her namesake, constantly crossing boundaries of geography and art as her music pushes the standards of experimentation and exploration. 

Trio Gaia, New England Conservatory's most recent graduate piano trio in residence, formed in 2018 and is dedicated to offering audiences dynamic, personally relevant experiences inside and outside the concert hall. The trio has won 1st prize at the 2022 WDAV Young Chamber Musicians Competition, as well as prizes in the 2022 Premio Trio di Trieste International Music Competition, 2021 Chamber Music Yellow Springs Competition, and the 2019 Plowman National Chamber Music Competition.

Dedicated to sharing classical music in the community, Trio Gaia is sought-after for its educational programming for students, seniors, and everyone in between. Previously, Trio Gaia served as Community Performance & Partnership fellows at NEC, and most recently they were invited to perform and teach at PRIZM International Music Festival in Tennessee. Over the years, the trio's mentors have included Vivian Weilerstein, Don Weilerstein, Kim Kashkashian, Yeesun Kim, Ayano Ninomiya, Merry Peckham, Max Levinson, Laurence Lesser, Itzhak Perlman, and members of the Brentano Quartet and Horszowski Trio. 

Recomposing Home – An Uncommon Perspective of Musical Life in Germany   

Trio Gaia performs Mauricio Kagel, Clara Iannotta & Clara Schumann

November 15, 2024 at 7:30 PM

Goethe-Institut Boston, 170 Beacon Street, Boston MA 

Free Admission

More info at https://www.goethe.de/ins/us/en/sta/bos/ver.cfm?event_id=26005556 

Performers:

Ariel Mo, piano

Grant Houston, violin

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