The 2019–20 season concludes with three weeks that shine a light on three hotspots
of classical music innovation: Berlin, Reykjavík, and New York.
Jaap van Zweden and the New York Philharmonic present the hotspots festival, featuring
World Premieres by Berlin-based Olga Neuwirth,
Nico Muhly, co-founder of Reykjavík's Bedroom Community collective,
and Sarah Kirkland Snider co-founder of the New York–based New Amsterdam Records.
"It's a very vivid city.
It's full of different kinds of people from all over the world and all these different
kinds of aesthetics in all the art forms.
So of course it's an exciting hotspot and I am very honored to have received this commission
by the New York Philharmonic, under the baton of John Adams."
"When we started talking about this program, I immediately thought of Olga Neuwirth.
I guess we have American mavericks, and she's an Austrian maverick."
"I've loved working in Reykjavík so much because there's a sense of rigor and a sense
of community and a sense of 'Let's experiment with this for a second.'
And I think work is being made in every possible context, and that to me is just really thrilling."
"I think it's very open to all aesthetics.
It's diverse in its embrace of all different kinds of musical perspectives.
There are so many different concert series and
different kinds of venues, and there's a network
you can really plug into."
Each composer will curate a new-music program as part of the Nightcap series, hosted by
Nadia Sirota.
"Sarah [Kirkland Snider] is an incredible citizen of the contemporary music community.
And not only that, her music is poignant and brilliant and touching and does such cool stuff.
Nico Muhly is fast-talking, whip-smart, works incredibly hard.
Sometimes his music sounds like being on a 15-lane highway where everyone is trying to
merge and change lanes all at the same time, but somehow it elegantly and beautifully happens,
and then there's, like, a sunset."
"Olga Neuwirth is writing some really incredible, sort of textural, toothy music.
It's going to be great not just to hear her big, symphony stuff, but also kind
of get a more intimate view as to what makes her tick and what's going on in her brain."
hotspots will also include a concert exploring the avant-garde in Berlin as part of the Sound ON series.
hotspots will be an international tour of today's new-music scene,
right here, in and around Lincoln Center.
Your guides?
Jaap van Zweden and the New York Philharmonic.