Contemporaneous

(WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.) — Contemporaneous, a 21-member new-music ensemble that performs the works of living composers through innovative concerts, commissions, recordings, and educational programs, performs a free concert at the Clark Art Institute on Saturday, September 12, 2015, at 3 pm. The concert will be held outdoors on the Spencer Terrace at the Clark’s Lunder Center at Stone Hill. The program includes Dylan Mattingly’s “A Way a Lone a Last a Loved a Long the Riverrun,” Conor Brown’s “Weave,” and Frederic Rzewski’s “Coming Together.”

Based in New York City and active throughout the United States, Contemporaneous has performed over 80 concerts at a wide range of venues, including Lincoln Center, (le) poisson rouge, Merkin Concert Hall, Baryshnikov Arts Center, St. Ann’s Warehouse and the Bang on a Can Marathon.

Contemporaneous has premiered more than 60 works, many of them large-scale pieces by emerging composers. Through its commissions and readiness to play challenging music, the ensemble encourages composers to take risks and defy constraints. Contemporaneous’s debut album, “Stream of Stars — Music of Dylan Mattingly” (Innova Recordings), has been featured on radio programs around the world, including WNYC’s “New Sounds” and WRTI’s “Now is the Time.”

Contemporaneous also leads participatory programs for public school students in the communities where the ensemble performs. These workshops are designed to instill a passion for new music and to convey the power of careful listening and meaningful expression through music. The ensemble has held residencies at the University of New Orleans and Williams College and is currently an ensemble-in-residence at Bard College, where the group was founded in 2010.