Corey Rubin had a deep appreciation and love of Bach, but he found it disappointing that, as a vocalist, he hadn’t had the opportunity to perform Bach’s The Art of Fugue. The Art of Fugue, BWV 1080 was Bach’s final masterpiece, and is performed today by many different types of instruments and ensembles, but rarely by choirs. The piece is a study of the many ways a single musical subject, or theme, can be presented. Inspired by his desire to sing this great work, and by the open scoring of the piece, which allows it to be easily arranged for different ensembles, Rubin decided to stage a concert featuring all 14 of the fugues performed by 14 different ensembles. This massive and exciting undertaking involves 40 student musicians from Cleveland State University’s Music Department, where Rubin is a composition and vocal performance major. Watch the Cool Cleveland video interview with Corey Rubin here.
If you love music, but you aren’t familiar with fugues, never fear. Corey Rubin and the Cleveland State University Double Reed Quartet members Zachary Randolph, Jeff Kish, Carolyn Hupalowsky and Dorian Neuendorf met with CoolCleveland to share some information about the upcoming concert, and to offer a little bit of fugue education. Check out the video interview to learn more and hear a preview.
A truly unique concert experience, Bach: The Art of Fugue, begins at 7PM on Sun 4/17 @ Cleveland State University’s Drinko Recital Hall. Admission to the concert is free. Drinko Recital Hall is located in the Music and Communication Building on the campus of Cleveland State University at 2121 Euclid Avenue, on the Northwest corner of Euclid and E 21st Street. Parking is available off of E 21st Street between Chester and Euclid, and on Chester Avenue.
Bach: The Art of Fugue features performances on piano, harpsichord, organ and more. The evening will include string, woodwind, brass, guitar and marimba quartets. The fugue will also be performed electronically, in homage to Wendy Carlos, who famously recorded Bach as performed on the Moog Synthesizer in Switched-On Bach. A vocal quartet will pay homage to the Swingle Singers, who brought a touch of jazz to singing Bach. The concert will also feature several other small and large mixed ensembles.
Watch the Cool Cleveland video interview with Corey Rubin here.
The concert, Bach: The Art of Fugue, begins at 7PM on Sun 4/17 @ Drinko Recital Hall on the Campus of Cleveland State University. For more information about the concert and to RSVP, visit the concert’s event page on Facebook.
Julie Cajigas is a Cleveland girl who grew up on the East & West Side and now lives near Akron – she’s got the whole town covered. Cajigas holds degrees in Communication & Music from Cleveland State University and is currently pursuing her Masters in Communication at CSU.