ETHEL, The River with special guest Robert Mirabal

ETHEL, The River with special guest Robert Mirabal

Friday, November 22, 2019, 7:30pm

Established in New York City in 1998, ETHEL quickly earned a reputation as one of America’s most adventurous string quartets. Twenty years later, the band continues to set the standard for contemporary concert music.

Continuing a deeply successful six-year collaboration inspired by ceremonies dedicated to the Sun, ETHEL and Robert Mirabal, Native American musician, instrument builder, and three-time GRAMMY® Award winner, present their next evolution of the cross-cultural concert experience. The inspiration this time is Water as the embodiment of Spirit, and its essential role in Life on Earth. The audience is immersed in a flow of music, narrative, and ritual that evokes timeless Native American traditions through contemporary musical artistry. As delivered by these master performers, the effect is breathtaking, even ecstatic.

The program is an integral journey in instrumental virtuosity, song and storytelling, created uniquely for this event. From An Kha Na to Peace Calls, through rushing rapids and still, sacred spaces, ETHEL and Robert Mirabal evoke the magic and majesty of The River which connects us all. In retreat together, at Mirabal’s home on the Taos Pueblo, each of the artists brought original musical or poetic works with special significance to the group: Mirabal’s own An Kha Na, his Taos-traditional Wi-Wa, Kip Jones’ Tuvan Ride, Jay-Red and TSOMA, Dorothy Lawson’s Gat’té, Ralph Farris’ Rana-Run and Tsintskaro Memory (after the Georgian traditional Tsintskaro). As the Pueblo River rushed past the door, storms came and went, and coyotes howled in the night, the pieces grew in scope and depth, each player contributing layers and insights. Influences were drawn in from Hawaii, Arizona, Mexico, Ecuador, Morocco, Nigeria, India, Mongolia, Tibet, Japan, and the country of Georgia. In sum, the sound is dazzling, and the spirit full of generosity, love, and gratitude. Every audience will find their hearts healed and their hope raised.

Guest Artist Biography:
Musician, writer, singer and storyteller, Robert Mirabal is Native America’s most dynamic and best-selling artist. In addition to the music and instruments he creates, he is also a celebrated painter, poet and playwright. He is the author of A Skeleton of a Bridge, a book of poetry, prose and short stories. Mr. Mirabal is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Award, three GRAMMY® awards and the New York Dance and Performer’s “Bessie” Award for composition.

Adult $27.50 ♦ Senior/Military $22.50 ♦ Student $16

 

Educational Series Sponsors: Homer A. & Mildred S. Scott Family Foundation, Robbins Dermatology, Whitney Benefits, Wyoming Arts Council, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Sponsored by Sheridan College and John & Jeanette Trohkimoinen

This project received support from the Wyoming Arts Council, WESTAF (the Western States Arts Federation), and the National Endowment for the Arts along with a grant from the Western Arts Alliance Advancing Indigenous Performance Tour Fund and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation