TUESDAY, APRIL 16, 2024
THE TOWN HALL PRESENTS
GHOST TRAIN ORCHESTRA and KRONOS QUARTET play MOONDOG with special guests
DAVID BYRNE
JOAN AS POLICE WOMAN KAREN MANTLER MARISSA NADLER
KRONOS QUARTET
David Harrington, violin
John Sherba, violin
Hank Dutt, viola
Paul Wiancko, cello
GHOST TRAIN ORCHESTRA
Brian Carpenter, trumpet, vocals, harmonica
Dennis Lichtman, clarinet
Andy Laster, alto saxophone, flute
Matt Bauder, tenor, baritone saxophones, bass clarinet
Sara Schoenbeck, bassoon
Curtis Hasselbring, trombone, guitar
Ron Caswell, tuba
Brandon Seabrook, guitar
Chris Lightcap, bass
Rob Garcia, drums
David Cossin, percussion
Welcome! And, may I add, congratulations. You are attending one of New York’s and America’s essential meeting houses, music venues and cultural institutions. I know that you will find the Town Hall Presents programming you are attending tonight to be timely and compelling. And each of our productions is an expression of our commitment to bring you significant, unique, eclectic and down right delightful events throughout the calendar year.
There is no place like The Town Hall. Founded “to promote good citizenship, social justice and general enlightenment through the education and expression of public opinion,” our hall’s world-class acoustics quickly became a calling card, and for over a century, playing The Town Hall stage continues to be a ‘must’ for musicians and singers from all genres and backgrounds.
Whether visiting our storied auditorium for the first time, or returning to experience yet another great night live on our stage, you can feel the vitality in the room. The Town Hall is truly contemporary; purpose-built to open its doors to art, ideas and especially to you.
Upon its dedication in 1921, The League for Political Education opened the building you are now sitting in with the watchwords:
“It does not matter who you are, what you are, or from where you come, you are welcome.”
As president of the non-profit organization that preserves our landmarked auditorium and produces the Town Hall Presents events like the one you are attending tonight, I thank you for coming to The Town Hall. On behalf of the Board of Trustees, and our incredible staff of professionals, I echo the sentiment of our founders and assure you that you are always welcome here.
Nevin Steinberg
An idiosyncratic composer, musician, performer, poet, inventor of musical instruments, and compelling countercultural figure, Louis Thomas Hardin, aka Moondog, lived on and off the streets of Manhattan for roughly thirty years. In the 1960s, he made himself a New York City living monument, albeit a performing one, staking his place for a while right on 6th Avenue and 53rd Street. A blind, tall, white-bearded Viking in a black tunic, doublehorned headdress, holding an eight-foot spear, he may have been dismissed by many who walked by him then as just another New York City curiosity. But Moondog, an honorary member of the New York Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall in the late 1940s, was a profoundly original artist whose work, captured on several records beginning in the mid-50s, earned him the respect of major musicians, including Benny Goodman, Charlie Parker, and Leonard Bernstein.
Moondog drew inspiration from Native American music, jazz (most apparent in his early recordings), classical music, and
sounds from his surroundings, ranging from city traffic and subway trains to babies crying. The requirements of his creations led him to invent several musical instruments, some of which were played on studio albums or in live performances. His sprawling output, surveyed in Songs and Symphoniques: The Music of Moondog (Cantaloupe Music, 2023), includes madrigals, songs, symphonic pieces, and string quartets.
Philip Glass and Steve Reich have cited his work from the 1940s and 1950s as a significant influence on their music. Steve Reich called Moondog “the godfather of minimalism.”
Glass, in whose apartment Moondog stayed for a year, told Robert Scotto, Moondog’s biographer, that he “learned more from Moondog than he did at Juilliard.” In fact, Moondog inspired broadly disparate artists, including jazz organist Jimmy McGriff, guitarist and composer Frank Zappa (who called his work “Dada clockwork”), producer Daniel Lanois, and singer Janis Joplin, who recorded “All Is Loneliness,” one of Moondog’s early compositions, on her first album with The Holding Company.
Moondog, who took the moniker in honor of his childhood pet, “who used to howl at the moon more than any dog I knew of,” was born in Kansas on May 26, 1916. After years in New York City and upstate New York, he moved to Germany in 1974 and died in Münster on September 8, 1999.
In a conversation with Kronos Quartet’s founder and artistic director David Harrington captured in the booklet accompanying Songs and Symphoniques, Brian Carpenter, the leader of Ghost Train Orchestra, notes that Moondog is “someone who wrote music across genres – chamber music, jazz, songs with lyrics, choir music, music for percussion.” And while his music eludes a specific style, “everything has his unmistakable signature. There are not many artists who have the ability to write in all of these different styles convincingly.”
Moondog, he marvels, “is not looking at music in silos or genres; he’s looking at it as all one music.”
Both ensembles have an intimate knowledge of the music. Brooklyn’s Ghost Train Orchestra has performed Moondog’s music several times in concert. The San Francisco-based Kronos Quartet recorded a piece the composer wrote for them in 1998.
The backstory of the piece began with Harrington writing to Moondog who at the time was already living in Germany, where Kronos would be soon be performing. The exchange led to dinner and the composer attending one of the quartet’s concerts.
“And then he went home, and he wrote two pieces for us, and in two weeks, we received the manuscripts. ‘Synchrony No. 2’ is the one that’s on the Early Music album,” recalled Harrington. “It was just this instant connection. So when Brian Carpenter mentioned the idea of a large exploration, I just thought — Wow, this is cool, because I knew there was a lot of music that I had never heard and had no idea what it was like, and that it would be a really great adventure for us.”
Songs and Symphoniques: The Music of Moondog and the subsequent tour have a special meaning for Kronos Quartet as they are part of the group’s 50th anniversary season. Moreover, this concert at The Town Hall will be one of the last Kronos shows featuring longtime members violinist John Sherba and violist Hank Dutt, who will be retiring from the group at the end of June. Dutt joined in 1977. He and Harrington recruited Sherba to join Kronos in 1978.
ABOUT KRONOS QUARTET
Moondog, aka Louis Hardin, was one of the 20th century’s most imaginative composers. He lived in NYC from the late 40s up until 1972, during which time he could be found costumed in Viking attire, busking on 6th Avenue and 52nd Street, selling records and performing poetry. Blinded as a teenager, he wrote hundreds of beautiful songs, madrigals and symphoniques in Braille which inspired minimalist composers such as Philip Glass and Steve Reich, who deemed Moondog “the godfather of minimalism.”
For 50 years, San Francisco’s Kronos Quartet—David Harrington (violin), John Sherba (violin), Hank Dutt (viola), and Paul Wiancko (cello)—has reimagined what the string quartet experience can be. One of the most celebrated and influential groups of our era, Kronos has given thousands of concerts worldwide, released more than 70 recordings, and collaborated with many of the world’s most accomplished composers and performers across many genres. Through its nonprofit organization, Kronos Performing Arts Association (KPAA), Kronos has commissioned more than 1,100 works and arrangements for quartet. Kronos has received more than 40 awards, including the Polar Music, Avery Fisher, and Edison Klassiek Oeuvre Prizes.
Integral to Kronos’ work is a series of long-running commissioning collaborations with hundreds of composers worldwide, including
Terry Riley, Aleksandra Vrebalov, Tanya Tagaq, Philip Glass, inti figgis-vizueta, Fodé Lassana Diabaté, and Steve Reich. In its most ambitious commissioning effort to date, KPAA has recently completed Kronos Fifty for the Future. Through this initiative, Kronos has commissioned—and distributed online for free—50 new string quartet works written by composers from around the world.
In recordings, Kronos has collaborated with artists including Wu Man, Zakir Hussain, Asha Bhosle, Mahsa Vahdat, and Nine Inch Nails. Kronos has performed live with the likes of Paul McCartney, Allen Ginsberg, Rokia Traoré, David Bowie, Rhiannon Giddens, Caetano Veloso, and The National, among many others.
The quartet tours for several months each year, appearing in celebrated venues, including Carnegie Hall (New York), Palacio de Bellas Artes (Mexico City), the Barbican (London), the Muziekgebouw (Amsterdam), Shanghai Concert Hall, Suntory Hall (Tokyo), and the Sydney Opera House.
Kronos’ expansive discography on Nonesuch includes three Grammy-winning albums—Terry Riley’s Sun Rings (2019), Landfall with Laurie Anderson (2018), and Alban Berg’s Lyric Suite (2003)—along with dozens of other acclaimed releases. Kronos’ most recent recording is Songs and Symphoniques: The Music of
Moondog (2023), a collaboration between Kronos and the Ghost Train Orchestra revisiting Moondog’s vital and uplifting music for a new generation. Kronos’ work has also featured prominently in many films, including the “live documentary” A Thousand Thoughts, written and directed by Sam Green and Joe Bini, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2018.
Based in San Francisco, the nonprofit KPAA staff manages all aspects of Kronos’ work, including commissioning, concert tours and local performances, recordings, education programs, and an annual Kronos Festival in San Francisco.
GHOST TRAIN ORCHESTRA
Ghost Train Orchestra is a large ensemble based in Brooklyn and founded by Brian Carpenter in 2006. The group is known for their unique re-imaginings of under-appreciated and often obscure composers. They have recorded and performed extensively in NYC and beyond. They have released five albums, each one critically acclaimed for its originality and vision.
We i nvi t e yo u t o s uppo r t the Hall a t a n y l evel , and e n j oy the exclusi ve bene fi ts of be coming a Tow n H all Me m be r.
Advance Ticket Access Notification of Presale & Discounts for concerts and Events Member Discounts at local restaurants
Access to PATRON CIRCLE SEATS
Reserved Seats to Town Hall Presents concerts and other select events ( with special pricing, when available )
THE TOWN HALL FOUNDATION
The Town Hall’s mission is to provide affordable world-class entertainment by new and established artists to a diverse audience; to inspire the youth of our community to appreciate and participate in the arts at The Town Hall and in schools through our Education Outreach Program; and to preserve and enhance The Town Hall as a historic landmark venue for the enjoyment and cultural enrichment of generations to come.
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
PRESIDENT
Nevin Steinberg
PRESIDENT EMERITUS
Tom Wirtshafter
Marvin Leffler
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT
Susan Zohn
VICE PRESIDENT & GENERAL COUNSEL
Ellen Miller-Wachtel
TRUSTEES
Teniola Adedipe
Anne Frank-Shapiro
Frederick Gabriel
Gita Gupte
John A. Jenkins
Natalie Wexler
James Shackelford
Madhu Southworth
LIFE TRUSTEES
Phyllis Putter Barasch
Mary Dettling-Wright
Bruce S. Leffler
THE TOWN HALL STAFF
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Ted Lambert
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Melay Araya
DIRECTOR OF MARKETING
Jeff Mann
DIRECTOR OF MEMBERSHIP, SUBSCRIPTIONS AND ADMINISTRATION
Helen Morris
DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT
Donna Banks, PhD
DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION
Taione Martinez
DIRECTOR OF BOOKING AND EVENTS
Paul Cameron Hardy
PRODUCTION MANAGER
Carl Acampora
PUBLICIST
Cindy Byram
VICE PRESIDENT
Rita Robbins
TREASURER
Tom Wirtshafter
SECRETARY
Timothy Stambaugh
ADVISORY COUNCIL
Kathleen Rosenberg, Chair
Nancy Berman
Sandy Horowitz
Elizabeth Iannizzi
Candace Leeds
Zita Rosenthal
Rhoda Rothkopf
ARTS IN EDUCATION
ADVISORY COUNCIL
Michael Fram, Co-Chair
Dr. Eloise Messineo, Co-Chair
Barbara Murray
Dr. Pola Rosen
George Young
TECHNICAL DIRECTOR
Bill Dehling
SR. DIGITAL MEDIA MANAGER
Alex Koveos
PROGRAMMING MANAGER
Gloria Lee
EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT
Luis Santos
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
Britni Montalbano
BOX OFFICE MANAGER
Angel Rodriguez
CHIEF ENGINEER
Steve Franqui
HOUSE MANAGER
Johnny Lee Green
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
Dennis Rakauckas
WARNING
The photographing or sound recording of any performance or the possession of any device for such photographing or sound recording inside the theatre without the written permission of the management is prohibited by law. Violators may be punished by ejection and violations may render the offender liable for monetary damages.
FIRE NOTICE
The exit indicated by a red light and sign nearest to the seat you occupy is the shortest route to the street. In the event of fire or other emergency please do not run, WALK TO THAT EXIT.
Thoughtless persons annoy patrons and endanger the safety of others by lighting matches or smoking in prohibited areas during the performances and intermissions. This violates a city ordinance and is punishable by law.
-FIRE COMMISSIONERDIRECTORY OF THEATRE SERVICES
ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES: 212.997.1003 Mon-Fri 9:30 am to 5 pm, for rental & membership info
BOX OFFICE: 212.840.2824 Mon-Sat 12 noon to 6pm. 24/7 Recording
TICKETMASTER: 800.982.2787 to charge tickets by phone.online Ticketmaster.com
LOST AND FOUND: 212.997.0113
CELL PHONE POLICY
Cell phones should be silenced prior to the performance as a courtesy to the performers and audience.
LOBBY REFRESHMENT BY Theatre Refreshment Company of NY
