Author Archives: Pit Stop Players

PIT STOP PLAYERS PRESENTS: ‘Illuminations’

NEW YORK, N.Y. /ScoopCloud/ -- The Pit Stop Players, the genre-defying instrumental chamber group composed of veteran Broadway pit musicians, will shed light on three new works at the DiMenna Center for Classical Music's Cary Hall, 450 West 37th Street, on Monday, May 13, 2019 at 7:30 p.m.

WHO: Pit Stop Players
WHAT: "ILLUMINATIONS"
WHEN: Monday, May 13, 2019 at 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: DiMenna Center for Classical Music, Cary Hall, 450 W. 37th Street, New York, NY
TICKETS: $25 ($15 for Students) https://www.smarttix.com/Event/pitBE3
INFO: http://rosenblummusic.com/pit-stop-players/

Headlining the program is the American premiere of Kevin Lau's "Illumination," a Double Concerto for Piano, Percussion, and Strings, featuring brothers Garah Landes (piano) and Greg Landes (percussion), known collectively as the duo Synchronicity. "Illumination" is one of a very small number of works in the concerto genre that features piano and, in this case, fifteen different percussion instruments.

"It's going to be electrifying," says Pit Stop founder and music director Joshua Rosenblum. "It's a unique layout, with the piano and all that percussion out front, and these two virtuoso performers-who also happen to be brothers-going wild with all the gear accompanied by a string orchestra. We've never done anything like this before, and I'm certain our audience has never seen anything like this before!"

The third movement of "Illumination" is titled "Einstein's Dreams," and was inspired by Alan Lightman's bestselling novel of the same name. By coincidence, Rosenblum, also inspired by Lightman's novel, has adapted "Einstein's Dreams" as a musical theater piece. Prospect Theater Company will present the musical's Off-Broadway debut this fall at 59E59 Theaters. To complement Lau's piece, Rosenblum created a concert suite from his "Einstein's Dreams," incorporating themes from his musical.

The concert will open with the world premiere of legendary Broadway orchestrator Jonathan Tunick's "Serenade for Strings."

"I'm honored to be able to present Jonathan's wonderful composition," Rosenblum said. "He's a living legend as an orchestrator, and hearing his original music will be another kind of illumination."

The concert also includes a suite of movements from various pieces thematically connected by the concept of Time: Olivier Messiaen's "Quartet for the End of Time," Robert Rodriguez's "Musica por un tiempo" (which was directly inspired by the Messiaen piece), and Robert Muczynski's "Time Pieces" for clarinet and piano. Stravinsky's neoclassical masterpiece, "Concerto in D for String Orchestra" concludes the program.

Cited by "The New York Times" for their "flair," "spirited readings," and "playfully cohesive programs," "making an hour-long serving of modern works not just palatable but enticing," the Pit Stop Players remain at the cutting edge of New York's cultural landscape, bringing exciting contemporary music to new audiences, and upending conventional assumptions about concert programming. Founded in 2009 by conductor/composer Joshua Rosenblum, the ensemble is comprised of some of New York's top freelance musicians, commonly regarded as the best instrumentalists in the world.

Repertoire includes arrangements and transcriptions of great pieces from the recent past (encompassing numerous genres), as well as undeservedly neglected classical gems, but the primary emphasis is on new compositions that are both challenging and immediately engaging, written and orchestrated specifically for the group by today's most exciting creative talents.

Highlights have included the group's performance of "The Rite of Spring" in a specially-commissioned new chamber arrangement, as well as Rosenblum's own "Young Person's Guide to the Pit Stop Players," with guest narrator Cynthia Nixon. In 2016, the Players gave a joint performance with the Brooklyn-based dance company The Chase Brock Experience, a collaboration which zealnyc.com described as "perfecting perfection."

Learn more: http://rosenblummusic.com/pit-stop-players/

The Pit Stop Players, the genre-defying instrumental chamber group composed of veteran Broadway pit musicians, will shed light on three new works at the DiMenna Center for Classical Music's Cary Hall, 450 West 37th Street, on Monday, May 13, 2019 at 7:30 p.m.

PIT STOP PLAYERS PRESENTS: ‘Absolut Collusion’ – An Evening of Great Russian Music

NEW YORK, N.Y. /ScoopCloud/ -- The Pit Stop Players, the celebrated New York-based instrumental chamber ensemble composed of veteran Broadway pit musicians, will open their eighth season with "ABSOLUT COLLUSION," an all-Russian concert at Good Shepherd-Faith Presbyterian Church, 152 West 66th Street, on Monday, October 23, 2017 at 7:30 p.m.

Regarding the programming, music director Joshua Rosenblum said, "The spirit of Russian collusion seems to be all-pervasive these days. But we decided to make it musical and celebratory, instead of criminal and potentially impeachable. That's why we're going to play some of the greatest music Russia has given the world."

The selections will include: Leonid Desyatnikov's "Sketches to Sunset," Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov's "Procession of the Sardar," the second movement from Prokoviev's Symphony No. 5, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's "The Tsar's Bride Overture," Shostakovich's Jazz Suite No. 1, Grigory Smirnov's "Air," and Stravinsky's "Ragtime for 11 Instruments." The group will also present a special new arrangement of Rimsky-Korsakov's "Flight of the Bumble Bee," performed by pianist Garah Landes and percussionist Gregory Landes.

Cited by "The New York Times" for their "flair," "spirited readings," and "playfully cohesive programs," "making an hour-long serving of modern works not just palatable but enticing," the Pit Stop Players have taken their place at the cutting edge of New York's cultural landscape, bringing exciting contemporary music to new audiences, and upending conventional assumptions about concert programming.

Founded in 2009 by conductor/composer Joshua Rosenblum, the ensemble is comprised of some of New York's top freelance musicians, commonly regarded as the best instrumentalists in the world. Repertoire includes arrangements and transcriptions of great pieces from the recent past (encompassing numerous genres), as well as undeservedly neglected classical gems, but the primary emphasis is on new compositions that are both challenging and immediately engaging, written and orchestrated specifically for the group by today's most exciting creative talents.

Highlights have included the group's performance of "The Rite of Spring" in a specially-commissioned new chamber arrangement, as well as Rosenblum's own "Young Person's Guide to the Pit Stop Players," with special guest narrator Cynthia Nixon. Last year at Symphony Space, the Players gave a joint performance with the Brooklyn-based dance company The Chase Brock Experience, an artistic collaboration which zealnyc.com described as "perfecting perfection."

The Pit Stop Players, who collectively have played in pit orchestras for over 150 Broadway productions, include Ed Matthew, Steve Kenyon, Rick Heckman, and Don McGeen, woodwinds; Dan Culpepper, horn; Chris Jaudes, trumpet; Wayne Goodman, trombone; Robin Zeh and Suzy Perelman, violins; Denise Stillwell, viola; Peter Sachon, cello; Jeff Carney, bass; Scott Kuney, guitar; Gregory Landes and Andrew Beall, percussion; and Garah Landes, piano.

EVENT INFO:
WHO: Pit Stop Players
WHAT: "ABSOLUT COLLUSION"
WHEN: Monday, October 23, 2017 at 7:30 p.m.
WHERE: Good Shepherd-Faith Presbyterian Church, 152 W. 66th Street, New York, NY.

TICKETS: $25 ($15 for students). http://tix.smarttix.com/event.ashx?eventcode=abs56C

MORE INFO: http://rosenblummusic.com/pit-stop-players

Video (YouTube): The great Queen song "Killer Queen," transcribed for clarinet, violin, cello and piano, performed by the Pit Stop Players.
https://youtu.be/2li1FZYd7jQ

The Pit Stop Players, the celebrated New York-based instrumental chamber ensemble composed of veteran Broadway pit musicians, will open their eighth season with "ABSOLUT COLLUSION," an all-Russian concert at Good Shepherd-Faith Presbyterian Church, 152 West 66th Street, on Monday, October 23, 2017 at 7:30 p.m.

The Chase Brock Experience and The Pit Stop Players Team Up for ‘Extravaganza’

NEW YORK, N.Y., April 25, 2016 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) -- The Chase Brock Experience, a Brooklyn-based dance company, and the Pit Stop Players, a fourteen-member instrumental ensemble composed of veteran Broadway pit musicians, will present "Extravaganza: An Evening of Live Music and Dance" on Friday, May 20 at 8 p.m. at Peter Norton Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway at 95th Street.

The dancers will be performing to live renditions of music by Beethoven, Bolling, Diamond, Shostakovich, Sousa, and Zellnik, as well as two scores commissioned specifically by The Chase Brock Experience from Pit Stop music director Joshua Rosenblum. Tickets are $35, $15 for students, available at Symphony Space.

Artistic director Chase Brock said, "I'm thrilled for the opportunity to perform seven of our instrumental and orchestral dances with live music by the stellar Pit Stop Players, including the two pieces of music we commissioned from Josh Rosenblum in 2008 and 2009 - and to debut our 28th and 29th dances, 'Another Curious Episode' and 'The Shostakovich 5!'"

Composer/conductor Rosenblum added, "Chase is one of the most exciting and creative choreographers of his generation, and his work has been an ongoing inspiration to me. Performing live with his dancers is going to be a thrill for all of us, and, I hope, for our audiences as well."

WHO: The Chase Brock Experience and Pit Stop Players
WHAT: "EXTRAVAGANZA" - an evening of live music and dance
WHEN: Friday, May 20, 2016 at 8 p.m.
WHERE: Peter Norton Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway at 95th Street, New York.
TICKETS: $35 ($15 for students); Symphony Space.

The Chase Brock Experience, the Brooklyn-based "candy-bright company" ("The New Yorker") celebrated for its "stylized showbiz mayhem" ("The New York Times") has premiered 27 dances to music from Beethoven to Nellie McKay and six commissioned scores from Joshua Rosenblum to Michael John LaChiusa in New York seasons at Joyce SoHo, Abrons Arts Center, Dance New Amsterdam, Baruch Performing Arts Center and The Connelly Theater, and in Fire Island Dance Festival, Hudson Valley Dance Festival, Downtown Dance Festival and on tour from North Carolina to Maine. Learn more: https://www.facebook.com/chasebrockexperience/.

As Artistic Director of Brooklyn-based dance company The Chase Brock Experience, Chase Brock has commissioned six scores and made 29 dances. Choreography includes Broadway's "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" and "Picnic," Disney's "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (La Jolla Playhouse, Paper Mill Playhouse, Tokyo), this season's "RomÃ©o et Juliette" for The Metropolitan Opera, the video game "Dance on Broadway" (Wii, PlayStation Move) and several episodes of "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" (HBO). Learn more: https://twitter.com/chasebrock.

The Pit Stop Players have been cited by "The New York Times" for their "flair," "spirited readings," and "playfully cohesive programs," "making an hour-long serving of modern works not just palatable but enticing." Founded by conductor/composer Joshua Rosenblum, the group is comprised of some of New York's top free-lance musicians. Since their first concert in February 2010, the Players have performed works by Bernstein, Bartok, Ginastera, Stravinsky, John Psathas, William Bolcom, Danny Elfman, Lennon/McCartney and Freddy Mercury, as well as world premieres by Steven Burke, David Chesky, Gary William Friedman, Josh Green, Steve Kenyon, Jamie Lawrence, Raymond Luedeke, Josh Schmidt, Michael Starobin, Fay Wang, and David Wolfson. Learn more: https://www.facebook.com/pitstopplayers/.

Composer/conductor/pianist Joshua Rosenblum has led the orchestras for thirteen Broadway and Off-Broadway shows, with a specialty in flying vehicles ("Miss Saigon," "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang," "How the Grinch Stole Christmas"). Rosenblum wrote the score to the cult hit musical "Fermat's Last Tango," and he is the composer and creator of the musical revue BUSH IS BAD, which "Variety" called "a sensation." Recordings of his instrumental music include "Impetuosities" and "Sundry Notes," both available from Albany Records. A summa cum laude graduate of Yale, he now teaches Composing for Musical Theater at his alma mater. Learn more: https://twitter.com/RosenblumMusic.

More information: http://rosenblummusic.com/pit-stop-players/.

*PHOTO for media: Send2Press.com/mediaboom/16-0425-pitstop-players-300dpi.jpg

Twitter: @RosenblumMusic @chasebrock #PitStopPlayers

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