On any given day, MIT pulses to the beat of Bach cantatas and student compositions, solos and symphonies, showcasing MIT music-makers and welcoming guest artists from all over the world. The month of October features MIT talent and visiting musicians in a variety of performances, many of them happening over the next two weeks:
Kresge Auditorium is once again the site of what has become a yearly collaboration between the Office of the Arts, World Music and the Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center celebrating the music and dance traditions of Boston's immigrant communities. The Fourth Annual Boston Rhythm: Traditions of Dance takes place on Friday, Oct. 11 at 8pm, showcasing the movements of flamenco dancer and choreographer Omarya Amaya and Flamenco Sin Limites, the intricate footwork of a step dancer accompanied by 10-time Irish national fiddling champion Seamus Connolly, and the West African drum and dance of Senegalese musician Abdoulaye Sall and his dance troupe African Rhythm. Tickets are $15 or $5 for MIT students.
Edward C. Wu started playing the cello at the age of nine and has won numerous awards and honors in his home state of California. Now a junior majoring in materials science and engineering with plans to minor in musical performance, Mr. Wu will appear as soloist in Tchai-kovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme with the MIT Symphony Orchestra conducted by David Epstein on Saturday, Oct.19 at 8pm in Kresge Auditorium. The concert will also feature the world premiere of Ballet Scenes by Jeff Morrow '96. Tickets are $2 at the door.
Sonos, the "hands across the river" ensemble made up of professional musicians from the faculties of MIT and Boston University, presents their first concert of the 1996-97 season on Friday, Oct. 18 at 8pm in Kresge Auditorium. Bayla Keyes, violin; MIT Professor Marcus Thompson, viola; Andres Diaz, cello, and MIT Senior Lecturer David Deveau, piano, will perform music by Mozart, Brahms and Ellen Taafe Zwilich. Tickets are $10 (students and MIT community members admitted free with ID).
Felicia Brady is a senior staff assistant in the Research Lab of Electronics. She's also an active soloist, chamber musician and duo pianist who recently returned from a concert tour in Karachi and Islamabad, Pakistan with violinist Erik Chapman (see Arts News, this page). The duo will perform works by Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms on October 11 at 8pm in Killian Hall (14W-111).
A pioneer in bringing Indian classical music to the West since his first visit in 1955, sarod maestro Ali Akbar Khan has thrilled audiences around the world with his technique, expression and innovative composition. Tabla master Swapan Chaudhuri is known for his sparkling eloquence and accompaniment on the paired hand drums. The two will perform on Saturday, Oct. 12 at 8pm in Kresge Auditorium in a concert sponsored by MITHAS (MIT Heritage of the Arts of South Asia). Tickets are $50, $25, $15 ($3 discount with current MIT student ID).
A version of this article appeared in MIT Tech Talk on October 9, 1996.
