Founded by Lee Elman and the late Albert Fuller, the Aston Magna Music Festival, now under the musical direction of Daniel Stepner, is America’s oldest annual summer festival devoted to music performed on period instruments.
Nico Muhly is a composer who has written a wide scope of work for ensembles, soloists and organizations including the American Ballet Theater, American Symphony Orchestra, Boston Pops, Carnegie Hall, Chicago Symphony, violinist Hilary Hahn, New York City Ballet, New York Philharmonic, Opera Company of Philadelphia, Seattle Symphony, and many others. Muhly has also lent his skills as performer, arranger and conductor to Antony and the Johnsons, Grizzly Bear, Usher and - all together now - many others. In 2011, Muhly’s first full-scale opera, Two Boys, was commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera, Lincoln Center Theater and the English National Opera. Oh, and by the way - he’s 32 years old.
Now, the Aston Magna Festival has commissioned Muhly to write a work inspired by The Aston Magna Estate in Great Barrington, MA.
The work will be performed in a program of Italian Trio Sonatas tonight at Brandeis University, at 8 p.m., tomorrow at Bard college at 8 p.m. and Saturday at Bard College at Simon’s Rock at 6 p.m.
