Bmv.org is a portal for the Boston Music festival
Title
Boston Musica Viva
Description
Founded in 1969 by Music Director Richard Pittman as the first professional ensemble devoted to contemporary music in Boston, Boston Musica Viva has become one of the most highly respected ensembles of its kind, with an international reputation for innovation and excellence. BMV seeks to embrace the full range of compositional activity of our time, giving voice to music that might otherwise not be heard. With rare exception, a new work is premiered on each concert, usually a work that Music Director Richard Pittman has requested from an American composer. In its 36-year history, BMV has performed over 551 works by 229 composers, including 132 works written specifically for BMV, 143 world premieres, and 67 Boston premieres.
The press has lauded Boston Musica Viva for its high standards of performance. Andrea Musso from the Corriere di Torino praised “the superb versatility of the ensemble,” and Tim Page of The New York Times wrote that BMV is “justly celebrated as one of the finest new music ensembles in the United States.” According to T. J. Medrek of The Boston Herald, “BMV tradition means master musicians performing . . . with a curiosity and enthusiasm that can’t help but draw an audience into the composers’ sound worlds.” The ensemble’s recent performances of Shirish Korde’s Chitra and the world premiere of Blue Topeng received high praise from all three major Boston newspapers.
The strength of premiere performances by the ensemble has helped many pieces enter the modern repertoire. BMV is particularly proud to have been early champions of composers such as Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, John Harbison, Joseph Schwantner and Steven Stucky, each of whom later went on to win the Pulitzer Prize. BMV is unique in its consistent support of composers of challenging music and its assurance that their works will receive top-level premieres. As a result, the ensemble has served as a model for other new music groups both in Boston and in other parts of the country as interest in new music has grown.
Contact
- Boston Musica Viva
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- Cambridge Massachusetts
- US 02138
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- +1.6173546910
