World to Come

Last night we went to see cellist Maya Beiser. She was one of the founding members of Bang on a Can. She now does solo work, including a number of pieces where she performs with tapes of herself.

She did David Lang’s piece World to Come. It’s a very interesting piece. He wrote it in the aftermath of 9/11, so I was afraid that it was going to be one of those one-dimensional, emotional dramas, but it had a lot more depth than that. It also featured a nice video of moving water. You can hear it for yourself here.

Maya Beiser: “World to Come” by David Lang from Maya Beiser on Vimeo.

She also played Steve Reich’s Cello Counterpoint, which he wrote for her. This is another piece where the live performer plays against taped parts. There were a couple of other pieces, including a liturgical work from the 13th century. As an encore, she finished with Led Zeppelin’s Kashmir.

This was the first time we’d been to the Paramount theater, which Emerson College recently restored. It’s a really nice space. The seating is tall and wide, but not very deep. The Art Deco interior is really nice.