News
Summer 2010
Premiere
- ROM Iconic Ming Tomb: General Zu Dashou
Michael Vincent’s latest work, Tombeau for an Ancient Chinese General for percussion and soundtracks, will be premiered on 7 May 2010 during the CanAsian International Dance Festival concert in Toronto’s , Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). The score will be performed by The TorQ Percussion Quartet. Dance and choreography will be performed by Vancouver Moving Dragon Dance (Jessica Jone and Chengxin Wei).
This work receives its inspiration from General Zu Dashou, a legendary in Chinese history, who was celebrated for his defense of the Ming dynasty against the Manchu invasion. The composition incorporates the play of changing perspectives between anachronistic time. The ostinato military-like percussion is integrated with samples of frozen Chinese choirs, evoking a haunting resurrection. The live dance component will ponder upon the gestures, and bring this reverent supplanted space into life again.
You can see a video on The Tomb of General Zu Dashou (Ming Tomb), which now stands in the Gallery of Chinese Architecture and is one of the Museum’s iconic objects.
- Chengxin Wei
- Jessica Jone
New Baby!
On May 13th, 2010 – my life was blessed with the birth on my first daughter 0 Ophelia Angelique Vincent. It has been a real transition but we are adjusting well and are happy as clams.
Film project Release
June saw the release on an independent film project titled Jane Corkin: Establishing the Still Image. It is a documentary on Toronto’s Jane Corkin, and was produced by some great young talent Divina Rimmer and directed by Rocco Barriuso. I was responsible for the music score. A nice subtle film which hopefully grows some legs.
New CD!
August 2010 will see a new CD release which will include my piece Dying Ain’t Bad Y’all. The CD – Playing With Words, also features works by Laurie Anderson, Pamela Z, and Paul Lansky, and I feel truly blessed to be in such esteemed company. This recording was done for the fine folks at CRISAP and will be commercially available in early September 2010. This project features all language inspired compositions.
The Transfiguration of Alan Lomax
Just completed a new piece for solo piano and tape. It is a work based on Alan Lomax, the great musicologist who was in part responsible for bringing the world blues and roots music from the southern US.
You can hear it here:
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and read more about it here
Slow to Grin
for tape
2010
This is a new piece based on a rendered song by Canadian pop singer Justin Bieber called U smile. It is the same exact piece, but slowed down 100 times, thus stretching it into a new sonic experience. By slowing it down we can hear the sonic nuances of the piece emerge, brightened as if under a microscope. A new world now emerges: A church choir, a young boy soloist – a piece form long ago. This work marks a haunting subversion of it’s original intention.
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