Pablo Santiago Chin and Na’ama Lion | Faculty Artist Recital

Dark Wood, Bright Metal

Composed for the atypical combination of Baroque and modern flutes, Dark Wood, Bright Metal is a brief triptych made from notebook sketches of short pieces that also exist in other versions.

All three short movements create their own little rituals using verse forms (or made-up refrain structures). Mullover is the first in a potential series of musical “thoughts,” often bemused and reflective, and caught inside their own heads. This one mulls over phrases in exact rhythmic unison, often in oblique motion. Mostly Pleasant Back-And-Forth is a light, conversational fantasietta inspired by my mother’s highest compliment about new music she hears: “it was pleasant.” But there’s something a little uncomfortable anyway. The final lament, Weeping Motive, is somewhat more urgent than the previous movements, and features descending duple phrases to be played with tearful intensity.

This little triptych is dedicated with pleasure to its wonderful dedicatees, Na’ama Lion and Vanessa Mulvey.

by John McDonald

Centipede Dance

This piece is a movement from “Green Alter Egos” which is a virtual opera combining film, meditational electroacoustic music and poetry. It portrays anthropomorphized insects from the natural scenery of New York, recorded during silent quarantined times. Its libretti blends fiction with reality and sensitizes the viewer to the vulnerability of endangered insect populations.

Libros de Marc

In the span of 2 minutes this piece encompasses 4 perspectives on flute technique and mode of expression. The piece is both the result of recycling leftover material from a previous flute concerto, and of a request by photographer Marc Perlish to compose a piece after one of the photos from his Bookman’s Alley Project.

Three Burials

Three Burials departs from the conjoining, intersection, overlapping and coexistence of musical and visual materials alluding to death and burials. Three movements can be accompanied by the screening of two burial scenes, one from the 1936 film Redes (The Wave) originally scored by Silvestre Revueltas, and the other from Sergei Eisenstein’s “Qué viva México,” and a third scene alluding to a funeral within a dream from Irgman Bergman’s “Wild Strawberries.” The piece uses two versions of the same solo flute part (this could be a reference to Ferneyhough’s “Funerailles”) as pillars framing a middle movement featuring a succession of 71 microtonal clusters (a reference to Haneke’s 71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance?). This piece can be played with a chamber ensemble, or as a solo flute piece. The flute part is inspired and informed by music called “triste” for native flutes, from the Cajamarca and Colca Valley in Peru recorded by Smithsonian Folkways.

This piece was composed for my sister Dalia Chin to whom it is dedicated with warmness and admiration.

Solo for Melodic Instrument

I first heard “Solo” by Karlheinz Stockhausen many years ago at a summer workshop near Jerusalem, performed by Michael Barker on recorders. I was mesmerized by the music’s inventiveness, blending written music, improvisation, a live player, and electronics.

I didn’t have the score until later, when I found it at the Harvard library. I read the instructions but didn’t know where to start—how to assemble the score or how the electronics functioned. Some questions were answered by Benny Sluchin, a trombone player for IRCAM, but I still needed a partner to bring it to life.

A few years ago, Rane Moore performed it with Hans Tutschku at Harvard. I attended the performance, and my love for the piece was reignited. Prof. Tutschku clarified more about creating the performance score, and I then reached out to my colleagues at Longy. I connected with Pablo Santiago Chin, and we began working together a year ago, exploring Stockhausen’s materials. Once we rehearsed the first part with electronics, things became clearer.

“Solo” is played on any melody instrument, with the option of using multiple instruments for tone color changes. The performer creates the score from a form scheme and six pages of melodic material provided by the composer.

For this performance, I’ll be using a Baroque flute, my primary instrument, which connects the past and present. The electronic feedback mirrors Baroque imitation techniques, particularly the “Echo” effect, present in many Baroque pieces. There’s much to explore, but the piece can also be enjoyed simply.

Many thanks to everyone who helped, especially Pablo and the Longy students. I’m excited for our first performance and hope you enjoy it!

Na’ama Lion

Na’ama Lion is a versatile performer on historical flutes, well known in the Boston area. She has performed Baroque, Classical, and Romantic music with groups such as La Donna Musicale, Boston Baroque, and Handel and Haydn Society. She has also played medieval music with “Sequentia” and Renaissance music with the “Travesada” flute quartet. A committed performer of new music, Na’ama has premiered works by composers like John McDonald, Jorge Ibanez, and Leon Schidlowsky. Recently, she collaborated with “Rumbarroco” on Latin American music. Na’ama holds a Doctorate from Boston University, a Soloist Diploma from the Arnhem Conservatory, and a BMus from Tel Aviv University. She teaches at the Longy School of Music and directs a chamber music program at Harvard. A sought-after teacher, she leads summer workshops at Amherst Early Music and the International Baroque Institute at Longy. She has recorded for Deutsche Harmonia Mundi and Telarc.

Pablo Santiago Chin

Chin’s recent music draws inspiration from film, literature, phonetic structures in text, and unique transcription methods that explore pre-existing musical sources. His works have been performed across the Americas, Israel, Asia, and Europe, with commissions from Ensemble Recherche, ICE, Anubis Quartet, MAVerick Ensemble, Latino Music Festival of Chicago, and Ensemble Dal Niente. His music has been performed by artists including Fonema Consort, Nina Dante, Claire Chase, and Marino Formenti. Chin earned a DMA in composition and technology from Northwestern University, studying under Hans Thomalla, Jay Alan Yim, and Aaron Cassidy. He also studied with Alejandro Cardona in Costa Rica and Orlando García in Miami. Currently, Chin is Artist Teacher and Computer Music Director at Longy School of Music and Lecturer at Dartmouth College. He has released a portrait album, Three Burials, and his recent projects include works for harpsichord, electric guitar, and a string trio for the Fromm Foundation.

Dalia Chin

Dalia Chin, a Costa Rican flutist based in Chicago, is a fearless explorer of sound. With haunting flute melodies and vocal expression, she crafts intricate musical narratives as a performer, improviser, and collaborator. Recently Grammy-nominated for her participation in the Album Composition as Explanation with the Eighth Blackbird ensemble, Dalia’s artistry shines in groundbreaking projects. Her solo work Yo Soy Mi Ruta, supported by the DCASE Grant, blended improvised music, imagery, and community-sourced audio, captivating audiences at the 2022 Omaha Under the Radar festival. As a soloist and chamber musician with Fonema Consort, she champions collaboration, diversity, and artistic innovation.