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Multimedia Professor Premieres New Composition
The newest full-length work by Bruno Louchouarn, Occidental College assistant professor in the theory and practice of multimedia, will be performed by acclaimed pianist Vicki Ray and the Los Angeles Percussion Quartet tonight as part of the 2009 "Arts & Ideas" Festival in Pasadena.
Louchouarn's composition, titled Alcances ("Reaches" in Spanish),
explores the festival's theme of "Origins" and is presented as a
complement to an exhibition titled "Tools" now in the Art Center
College of Design's Williamson Gallery.
The 40-minute work is the first work of art specially commissioned by
the Pasadena Arts Council for the biennial festival. It explores music
as a creative extension of the mind in constant evolution, employing
musical tools from simple every day objects such as bowls to complex
instruments including the marimba and piano.
Louchouarn is one of a group of talented composers on the Occidental
faculty. Original compositions by Louchouarn, assistant professor of
music Andre Myers, and adjunct assistant professor of music Jennifer
Logan were debuted at the Oct. 24 inauguration ceremony of Occidental's
new president, Jonathan Veitch, who commissioned the pieces for the
occasion.
Louchouarn was born in France and raised in Mexico City, where he
directed a Latin American music ensemble. He studied artificial
intelligence in Paris and earned a Ph.D. in composition at UCLA. He has
extensive film, theater, and commercial credits, including the
futuristic cantina music in Total Recall and the score for Charles
Randolph Wright's new play, The Night Is a Child, staged this fall at
the Pasadena Playhouse.
Alcances will be performed tonight, Friday, Nov. 6 at 7:30 p.m. in the
Art Center College of Design's Ahmanson Auditorium, 1700 Lida St.,
Pasadena. The performance is free and open to the public.