The University of Oregon will present a unique, mixed-media event incorporating both auditory and visual components on Friday, Jan. 10. "American Luminosity: Our Poets, Our Composers, Our Art" will feature a concert by soprano Laura Decher Wayte (a faculty member in the voice area of the UO School of Music and Dance) and pianist Nathalie Fortin, with original stage dressing by renowned Eugene artist Helen Liu, represented by White Lotus Gallery.
The event will be at 7:30 p.m. in historic Beall Concert Hall on the UO campus. Tickets are available at the door or in advance from the UO Ticket Office, 541-346-4363, tickets.uoregon.edu. General admission is $10; $8 for students and seniors.
The concert, which will celebrate Americana music and will spotlight living American composers, will include "Living," five songs by UO composer Nicole Portley on texts by Denise Levertov, with string trio; "Walt Whitman Songs," three songs composed by Karen P. Thomas on poetry by Walt Whitman; "Academic Songs," three songs with text and music by UO composer Lawrence Wayte; "At Last," a song cycle by Richard Pearson Thomas on text by Emily Dickinson; and "Five Appalachian Songs," traditional music arranged by Jack Jarrett. Featured performers will include UO string musicians Steven Pologe, cello; Kathryn Lucktenburg, violin; and Holland Phillips, viola.
“Musicians spend so much time rehearsing alone, that it is always a treat to closely collaborate with others,” Wayte said. “It feels wonderful to interpret poetry with Nathalie, and Helen's visuals add so much to our interpretation of the repertoire.
“I feel like a kid playing at performance art camp,” Wayte said.
Wayte and her colleagues are longtime collaborators; they are neighbors in Eugene, and their children know each other from music lessons. In 2013, Wayte presented a well-received recital of the work of Debussy that included stage dressing by Liu.
Accompanist Fortin says that the event will offer her a chance to introduce the Eugene audience to both excellent modern composers, and a rare talent in visual artistry.
"With this particular program Laura and I are hoping to make our public realize how varied the current American repertoire is and hopefully provoke the desire in other performers to explore its richness further, " explained Fortin. "And with the help of Helen's gorgeous art, we are adding an extra layer to our audience's experience."
- from the UO School of Music and Dance