Brownstone

What would a house sound like if it could sing? On Monday, May 16, 2016 at 7pm, Metropolis Ensemble will invite an intimate number of guests to enjoy Brownstone, an experiential treasure-hunt of sound, taste, and color inside a five-story Beaux Arts limestone at 991 Fifth Avenue. Steps from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, visitors will be transported into a jewel-lit, multi-sensory exploration of interlinked “sound bites” co-curated by Brazilian-born composer and electronic artist Ricardo Romaneiro, and food prodigy Jonah Reider of Columbia University dorm pop-up Pith. The event is part of Metropolis’ expansive Resident Artist Series, presented in collaboration with Ricardo Romaneiro. Throughout the night, rooms will reveal performers in an original, site-responsive set of electro-acoustic compositions. This enticing experiential path will link “soundbites” with dishes staged to evoke the acoustic texture of each room–from foam soup of purple caulifower, to oyster in champagne gelée. Compositions then unfurl into the night, starting with Brownstone by Jakub Ciupinski. Memory Palace by Chris Cerrone will gather listeners on sprawling pillows under chandeliers for crickets and kick drums. The night will culminate in Romaneiro’s The Coarse Air (set to the poetry of Chris Cahill) , which asks listeners to embed themselves throughout a chamber orchestra set up in a parlor overlooking Fifth Avenue. Featured musicians include percussionist Ian Rosenbaum and the “luminous,” “searingly painful and revealing” soprano Ariadne Greif (New York Times). A roving after-party with live electronic improvisation set by electronic artist NOISION (Ravi) and bass clarinet by soloist Vasko Dukovski will follow, and include additional snacks. Lighting design by John Houle | live visuals by Christian Hannon | engineered by Leo Leite “Brownstone is a culmination of a series of evolving collaborations that play with intimacy, space, and permission,” said conductor Andrew Cyr, Artistic Director Metropolis Ensemble. “Metropolis Ensemble is thrilled to expand the imagination of classical music to include innovative food design and 360-degree composition.” All proceeds from the event will benefit Metropolis Ensemble, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that helps build the careers of young and emerging artists by producing, commissioning, and disseminating new works.