Scores of Berkshire-ites made their way to Washington to celebrate the Inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States. What they may not have expected was to see some familiar faces performing!
Yo-Yo Ma and Itzhak Perlman, both regular Tanglewood guest artists, performed “Air and Simple Gifts,” a new work composed by former BSO conductor and Tanglewood Artist-In-Residence, John Williams.
In addition to the presence of these Tanglewood luminaries, the influence of some of the earliest Berkshire Creatives was present in Williams composition.
During the 18th and 19th century a sizable Shaker population flourished in the Berkshire region (visit Hancock Shaker Village to learn more about this innovative community). It was a Shaker Hymn, “Simple Gifts,” that Williams referenced for his inaugural composition. Anthony Tommasini of the New York Times wrote of of the new work; “Soon the clarinet enters, playing the first two phrases of “Simple Gifts,” the Shaker hymn. . .using the melody as the theme for an elaborate set of variations.”
Click here to read the full NY Times article !
Do you have an item you would like to share about the creative economy?
Suggest a Post to Berkshire Creative!
fantastic post, and thanks for the NYT link. Im finding that Shaker life is becoming trendy of late – it’s a simple, scaled-down way of life that people respond to, plus it’s inately ‘green’.
It was nice to hear Simple Gifts in such a lofty context, and Perlman and Ma (as well as the other musicians) made the arrangement seem effortless.