Fear No Music

Articles & Reviews

• FearNoMusic: An audacious and brilliantly conceived centennial commemoration, The Oregonian, February 19, 2012
• Swimming with the whales and John Cage, Oregon Arts Watch, February 19, 2012
• FNM/Gabriel Prokofiev bridge gap between classical and club music- The Oregonian, March 14, 2011
• Fear No Music lives up to its promise of being a 21st-century ensemble- The Oregonian, October 22, 2010
• fEARnoMUSIC lives up to its name — The Gathering Note, April 26th, 2008
• Weekend arts: Wrapped with a bow — The Oregonian, April 20, 2009
• Fear no film music — Northwest Reverb, April 19, 2009
• fEARnoMUSIC: twin sensations of “seeing music” — The Oregonian, April 19, 2009
• Fear no description: a little loose music talk — Art Scatter, April 19, 2009
• fEARnoMUSIC: seriously good — The Oregonian, April 18, 2009
• fEARnoMUSIC gives Oregon a homegrown birthday concert for Oregon’s 150th — Northwest Reverb, February 10, 2009
• Best of 2008 — The Oregonian, December 22, 2008

Acclaim

“If I were giving out MVP awards for this arts season, this adventurous new music ensemble — FearNoMusic — would be a top contender.”
— Willamette Week

“FearNoMusic…play with a felicitous combination of easy rapport and tight ensemble.” —The Oregonian

“FearNoMusic… just played the rockinest set that’s ever included a waterphone, I’d wager.”
— Pdxpop Now

“…a concert that dared actually feature composers from our own place and time qualifies as a momentous event. Which isn’t to disparage the remarkable efforts of one of the state’s most valuable performing arts ensembles, FearNoMusic — in fact, it shows just how critical they are to Portland’s artistic vitality.”
— Brett Campbell, Oregon Arts Watch

“The full FNM ensemble… managed to give Kyr’s euphoric piece (based on an Sacred Harp hymn) the robust energy and focus it demanded, ending the concert on a terrific high note, a satisfying original musical tribute to the state’s 150th birthday.”
— Brett Campbell, Willamette Week

“Every time I hear FearNoMusic, I’m amazed that these master musicians, most of whom play leading roles in the Oregon Symphony, can pull off these challenging, never-before-heard works so convincingly in spite of their crowded schedules and no doubt inadequate rehearsal time. It demonstrates their deep and admirable commitment, not just to brand new sounds but also to subsequent performances of older contemporary works, which give the worthiest pieces a chance to enter the repertoire. These intrepid musicians certainly live up to their name.”
— Brett Campbell, Northwest Reverb

“The pack-’em-in concert at Disjecta, called ‘Home Grown,’ added a fresh musical twist to the festivities surrounding the big 1-5-0.”
— David Stabler, The Oregonian

“I didn’t know I needed it until I saw it and heard it.”
— Barry Johnson, Art Scatter

“One of the Best Concerts of the Year… Modernism isn’t supposed to be this much fun.”
— Willamette Week

“…it would be hard to top a concert by a group that lives to its name — FearNoMusic… one of the most unusual programs of the year…”
— The Oregonian

“…they provide a refuge from conventional rules and a chance to listen with a fresh and youthful ear.”
— Willamette Week

“…music performed with energy, intelligence and technical polish… music the performers cared about…”
— Tacoma News Tribune

“Their whole concert showed a playfulness and unpretentiousness, coupled with a passionate commitment to the music, of whatever style, on their program.”
— Seattle Weekly

“…eclectic, intelligent taste in programming and a catchy way with a title.”
— Seattle Post-Intelligencer

“…they shaped phrases with a feel for the music’s language that more famous players at our perennial summer chamber festival have sometimes overlooked entirely.”
— Willamette Week

“…extraordinary intensity. The performance was fascinating.”
— The Oregonian

“…never expect fearNoMusic’s programming to be doctrinaire.”
— Seattle Weekly

http://www.oregonlive.com/performance/index.ssf/2012/02/fear_no_music_review_an_audaci.html