Zaka

Recorded live, January 27, 2013 Britton Recital Hall, University of Michigan School of Music video editing by Peter Leonard Performers: Latitude 49 Jani Parsons (pianist), Timothy Steeves (violin), Jeremy Crosmer (cello), Jason Paige (clarinets), Andy Hall (saxophones), and Chris Sies (percussion). Composer: Jennifer Higdon Program notes: Zaka was written for the Chicago-based new music ensemble, Eighth Blackbird, and featured on their Grammy-winning recording, Strange Imaginary Animals. This piece has been a "dream piece" for Latitude 49 from the moment we formed, and we unanimously included it in our repertoire selections for the 2012/13 season. As the dictionary might say: Zaka, pronounced "za!- ka"...verb: To do the following almost simultaneously and with great speed: zap, sock, race, turn, drop, sprint. Higdon pulls out all the bells and whistles in this work, with a distinctive approach to the instruments that calls for a variety of extended techniques including the use of crochet hooks and guitar picks, along with a variety of whistling and popping sound-effects found in the wind parts. An energetic and tightly focused work from the first drone of the piano, Zaka is full of driving rhythms, acrobatic melodies and unpredictable turns that will truly take you on a wild ride. A lighter, suddenly lyrical middle section allows a moment's repose before a sprint to the finish line. -Jani Parsons