Morsel Trio is a new Seattle-based ensemble, comprised of young artists that have performed all over the United States. Made up of Emily Acri (violin), Chris Young (cello) and Steven Damouni (piano), Morsel Trio is dedicated to performing works by a wide assortment of composers and in a wide variety of places. This concert takes a traditional genre with a rich history and explores many new ways it can be enhanced using twentieth century techniques and aesthetics.
This concert is a great representation of this group’s diverse musical influences and their abilities to expand on the traditional technical abilities of their instruments. This concert will involve three commissions from local Seattle-based composers. Luke Fitzpatrick‘s trio titled Morsel reflects on his earlier composition for the Partch Ensemble; the 44-tone scale is incorporated, as well as the use of improvisation, the voices of all performers, and a varied orientation for the instruments involved. Charles Corey‘s evocative work, Memories from Within a Valley Fog combines sonorous, hazy sounds with sweeping, technically dazzling gestures. Daniel Webbon‘s The old is dying and the new cannot be born provides a third distinct character, one of intensity in rhythmic demand and cohesion. Throughout this work a wide variety of textures and extended techniques are explored. The program will close with the renowned composer Kaija Saariaho’s 2014 work for piano trio entitled Light and Matter.