MUSIC

The Rice Universtiy - Department of Visual and Dramatic Art presents SYNESTHESIA 2: Electric Bugaloo, Thursday, August 26 through Saturday, August 28  at 7:00pm at 8:30 p.m.

Welcome to another fusion of light and sound starring Houston's Two Star Symphony, directed by Matthew Schlief.

Two Star Symphony is Houston’s most unusual string ensemble performing all original music. Since its inception in 2002, the group has played many venues from small bars to vast auditoriums, collaborated with local theaters and traveled to both coasts to perform. Their aim is to create new and diverse music that speaks to the collective conscience of a broad audience, with music evoking starkly sketched imagery: a drunken pirate walks the plank, a marionette gains its footing, a black cat turns and hisses, a poisoned apple is offered, and goblins attack.

Two Star Symphony’s instruments, designed and built by master luthier Anton Krutz of KC Strings, are an extremely unusual matched set. Each instrument was hand built by Anton personally, from the same batch of wood, with the same mix of resins and varnish. The result is a unique and powerful sound, as each instrument reverberates off the others and fills the audio spectrum with a deep, dark, melodic blend. www.kcstrings.com

Two Star Symphony is Jo Bird (viola/toy piano), Debra Brown (violin), Margaret Lejeune (cello/harp) and Jerry Ochoa (violin). Their extended band, Two Star Symphony Orchestra includes Chris Bakos (Bass), John Duboise (clarinet), Cathy Power (marimba, bells), and Kirk Suddreath (percussion, drums). Each member’s unique background brings together an eclectic variety of music styles, including gypsy, rock, hip-hop, metal, classical and electronic. Their hunger to experiment and explore this art form has captured the imaginations of the young and old, despite whatever previously held notions they may have had of musical ensembles.

Their love for composing soundtracks brought them to The Museum of Fine Arts Houston. Two Star Symphony Orchestra has performed live to films such as “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari” and 24 short films from Unseen Cinema:”Experimental Treasures from the World’s Leading Archives”.

Two Star Symphony continues to make breakthroughs in their collaborations with other artists. Two Star lived and rehearsed in New York City to bring the extended version of their composition “Goblin Attack” to the stages of the American Ballet Theater in the piece “Alchemy”, choreographed by Dominic Walsh of The Dominic Walsh Dance Company.

Two Star Symphony Orchestra performed “The Gashlycrumb Tines” at Diverse Works. Music inspired by Edward Gorey’s book by the same name and music written by John Dubiose Two Star has also explored the world of theater with Bobbindoctrin Puppet Theater. They have seen their music turned into sophisticated and dark puppetry art in the three-part collaboration, Danse Macabre.