RUISKAMER #6: Mary Jane Leach / Marjolein Vernimmen, Jenna Vergeynst & Roel Das

MARY JANE LEACH

New York composer Mary Jane Leach, who along with such wit and contemporaries as Julius Eastman, Arnold Dreyblatt (featured on RUISKAMER #5) and Philip Corner made the bustling New York of the 1970s unsafe, comes to the conclusion of her latest tour de force on the MIRY organ.

Leach often composes specifically for particular spaces and instruments. Her work focuses on the physical and acoustic qualities of sound - and their interaction with the environment. A wonderful example of this is the compelling organ composition "Pipe Dreams" (1989), composed for and performed on the organ of Cologne's Sankt Peter Church. Especially for RUISKAMER, Leach will come to play a brand new composition on the majestic MIRY organ. So don't miss this world premiere, as it is a rare opportunity to see this grande dame live at work!

Leach's work is performed internationally and has been released on labels such as Die Schachtel, XI Records and Editions Blume. A new release is planned on Shlom Sviri's Modern Love label. Along with Renée Levine Packer, she is co-editor of the book "Gay Guerrilla: Julius Eastman and his Music.

MARJOLEIN VERNIMMEN, JENNA VERGEYNST & ROEL DAS

'Echo Yes No' (2019) by American composer Mike Svoboda, written for two harps and electronics, is not a cheerful piece. It explores the inner struggles involved in making difficult decisions. During its performance, you experience such a moment of struggle live: the sounds circulating through the hall via the arrangement of surround speakers create a unique experience at each seat. 

In this concert, Marjolein Vernimmen and Jenna Vergeynst (together the harp ensemble Vireo) experiment with the spatial aspects of this piece, assisted by Roel Das (see below) on electronics. Never before has your choice of seat been so decisive! The trio combines Svoboda's "Echo No Yes" with "Refraction," a short piece by Belgian composer Benjamin Van Esser, whose work plays with disorienting metrical effects, consonance and dissonance, and unseen harmonic complexity.

After a brief career as an electronics engineer, Roel Das retrained as a musician. He works as a sound engineer and electronics musician for renowned ensembles, and provided sound direction, recordings and music electronics for several contemporary composers, on both Belgian and international stages. He also works as a composer, arranger and copyist. He builds electronic instruments, develops sound installations and works as a sound designer. Since 2018, he has been teaching in the Live Electronics Department at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels.