The genre-bending ensemble of Christopher Mallet and Thomas Flippin, in a program featuring newly-commissioned works by female composers
“Figments [by Duo Noire] is a unique and entrancing album that exists at the unusual intersection of minimalism and impressive classical guitar technique.” – I CARE IF YOU LISTEN blog
Wednesday, May 24, 2017, at 7:30 PM
The Diller-Quaile School of Music
24 East 95th Street
New York
Tickets: $20 / $15 for students, seniors, and NYCCGS members. Join now.
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Program:
MARY KOUYOUMDJIAN Byblos
COURTNEY BRYAN Soli Deo Gloria
GITY RAZAZ Four Haikus
GABRIELLE HERBST Glitter Whisper (world premiere)
GOLFAM KHAYAM Night Triptych (world premiere)
GABRIELLA SMITH Loop the Fractal Hold of Rain
CLARICE ASSAD Hocus Pocus
Duo Noire is an innovative classical guitar ensemble that is breaking new ground through their genre-bending programming choices, first-rate premieres, and their startlingly original transcriptions and arrangements. Consisting of the pioneering American classical guitarists Thomas Flippin and Christopher Mallett, Duo Noire has been hailed as a “virtuosic pair” and has performed across the world in distinguished venues such as the Norfolk Music Festival, the 92nd Street Y, Peking University (Beijing), the Times Center, and the St. Louis Classical Guitar Society as recurring Artists-in-Residence.
Their debut album, Figments, consisted of “a substantial piece … recorded in crystalline sound” (Soundboard), which was written for them by the award-winning Juilliard professor Raymond Lustig. Praised for its “impressive technique … Flippin and Mallett definitely don’t disappoint” (I Care if You Listen), the album has been broadcast on WNYC, WQXR, and Radio Arts Foundation St. Louis. Additionally, the duo has been featured in articles by Acoustic Guitar magazine, Classical Guitar magazine, Gendai Guitar, and on the cover of the Guitar Foundation of America’s quarterly publication, Soundboard.
In 2015 the duo began their “Women of Guitar Commissioning Project,” to remedy the lack of gender diversity in classical guitar repertoire. Made possible through funding from the Diller-Quaile School of Music, where Flippin is on faculty, Duo Noire is commissioning some of the most talented female composers of their generation to write for two guitars, including Drs. Courtney Bryan and Clarice Assad. The project will culminate in a full length album in 2017.
