George Lewis String Quartet No. 1.5, "Experiments in Living" (and other cutting-edge music)
George Lewis is one of the most interesting people I've ever met. He has a brilliant mind, and his music does some of the things that excite me most about new music: it pushes boundaries, and it's full of experimental techniques. The first time I played a piece of his, it was in a large, conducted ensemble with only a few rehearsals, and I was asked to play on a pretty last-minute basis. That is to say, I didn't have too much of a chance to immerse myself in the piece.
That changed my second summer as a New Fromm Player at the Tanglewood Music Center. One of the pieces we were assigned was his String Quartet No. 1.5, subtitled "Experiments in Living". I originally figured that "Experiments in Living" was a simple nod to the experimental techniques used in the piece, but when I asked the composer, he said it was actually a quote from Utilitarian philosopher John Stuart Mill, whose picture graces the front page of this website. Here's a bit more context from Mill's On Liberty:
As it is useful that while mankind are imperfect there should be different opinions, so is it that there should be different experiments of living; that free scope should be given to varieties of character, short of injury to others; and that the worth of different modes of life should be proved practically, when any one thinks fit to try them. It is desirable, in short, that in things which do not primarily concern others, individuality should assert itself. Where, not the person's own character, but the traditions of customs of other people are the rule of conduct, there is wanting one of the principal ingredients of human happiness, and quite the chief ingredient of individual and social progress.
In contrast to my first time playing his music, our group was afforded the time to really get to know the piece; to live with it, to internalize it, and to work in depth for weeks. It was a great experience, learning the new sound worlds we could create through novel techniques like hitting the strings with chopsticks and rolling rubber balls on the backs of our instruments. I'll share more about the experience soon, but first, I recommend giving our performance of the piece a listen.
Let's go behind the scenes, because we had a blast preparing this, and it was a very collaborative process. We worked out ideas with the composer in real time, and he regaled us with fascinating stories of his life in music and let us know nuggets of information from his encyclopedic knowledge base. He showed us a video of him with the inventor of the theremin, and I geeked out with him when he told me he used to program in assembly language. He was around a lot that summer, and was a deeply supportive mentor to us. I'll always be grateful for that.
Ben Fryxell with New Fromm Players strings, composer George Lewis, and coach Ed Gazouleas
I was lucky to work with many composers that summer. If you want to see some more smiling faces of delighted musicians, you can peruse below.
With chamber music partners and composer Nico Muhly
With chamber music partners, coach Norman Fischer, and composer Joan Tower
