Mason Bates, Author at Mason Bates

The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs: San Francisco Opera

Mason’s Grammy-winning opera, The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs, finally makes its premiere at San Francisco Opera in this new production with performances from September 22 – October 7, 2023.

“Under the baton of Michael Christie, Mason Bates’ score takes us on an operatic journey through the fragmented memory of love, betrayal, obsession, and death, weaving together classical lyricism and a techno soundscape formed from the sounds of early computing. A cutting-edge vision of opera and a meditation on the impact of technology in our lives.” – San Francisco Opera

“At long last, the Steve Jobs opera comes home to San Francisco! After travelling the globe in productions in 8+ cities, the opera comes to the place of its setting. One of the things that surprises people about this telling is the focus on the amazing role of Laureen Powell Jobs.” – Mason Bates

The (R)evolution of Steve Job’s was commissioned by San Francisco Opera, The Santa Fe Opera and Seattle Opera with support from Cal Performances and co-produced with Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.

Upcoming Performances:

Friday September 22, 7:30pm

Sunday September 24, 2:00pm

Wednesday September 27, 7:30pm

Saturday September 30, 7:30pm

Tuesday October 3, 7:30pm

Saturday October 7, 7:30pm

For more information and tickets visit San Francisco Opera’s website.

Blog: Mercury Soul with Juan Atkins

How often do you work with an artist who created a genre? This month I’ll reconnect with legendary DJ and producer Juan Atkins, who pioneered early techno music in Detroit in the early 1980’s, for Mercury Soul’s January 27 show at San Francisco’s Public Works. Juan will perform alongside a string orchestra that’s performing new arrangements of his music in addition to the music of JS Bach and Philip Glass.

Juan and I first collaborated at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. I invited him to headline one of my KC Jukebox shows because of his historic role in the creation of techno in early 1980’s Detroit. Amidst the continuing adulation of DJs from northern Europe, Juan Atkins stands apart for this astonishing vision and seriousness of purpose.

Many fans of electronic dance music don’t realize the genre emerged from the ashes of Motown, created by African-Americans who were hacking synths and drum machines in a kind of futuristic utopia. The so-called Belleville Three – Juan Atkins, Derrick May, and Kevin Saunderson – are credited with inventing techno in the abandoned warehouses and factories of Detroit.

Techno was the beginning of the soon-burgeoning genre of electronica, made up of a universe of different dance beats, from house to trance. Using jacked audio gear to conjure an Afro-futurist soundworld of robotic synths and beats, Atkins earned the moniker ‘godfather of techno.’

On Jan 27, Mercury Soul pairs this unique artist’s industrial sound-world with a string orchestra at San Francisco’s Public Works. The stunningly effective pairing of live musicians and Upper Midwest techno is a first for the Bay Area.

Key Atkins releases of that era will be featured, such as the groundbreaking “Clear” (from Atkins aka Cybotron). It’s a fun challenge to create arrangements for music this stripped-down, yet in some ways the electro-acoustic mix can be more successful than with more produced tracks. Having a bit more sonic space allows the strings to spread out more in the mix.

Leading up to Juan’s appearance will be performances of iconic classical works from JS Bach and Philip Glass. The Bach preludes feature mechanistic and motoric rhythms, while the Glass explores an early minimalist aesthetic. The richness of the string orchestra beautifully supports the futuristic sounds of Juan Atkins.

Also performing are DJ Milan Aerial, DJ Justin Reed (illmeasures), and yours truly, DJ Masonic. Rarely is Juan Atkins seen in the Bay Area, so don’t miss this very special event!

For more information and tickets visit Mercury Soul on Eventbrite.

Garages of the Valley: Kansas City Symphony

Mason’s Garages of the Valley, will be performed this weekend by the Kansas City Symphony under the baton of Francesco Lecce-Chong at the Kauffman Center.

“Mason has carved out a reputation as an innovator and he delivers on that promise with Garages of the Valley, a trek through the imagined music of Silicon Valley’s tech geniuses in their garage development days.” – Kansas City Symphony

Mason says: “Much of the Digital Age was dreamed up in the most low-tech of spaces. The garages that dot the landscape of Silicon Valley housed the visionaries behind Apple, Hewlett Packard, Intel, and Google. The imagined music of these tech workshops begins hyper-kinetically yet sporadically, filled with false starts. It soon flashes into a quicksilver world of exotic textures and tunings that is informed by the music of Frenchman Gérard Grisey (whose imaginative orchestrations sound electronic but are completely unplugged). The exhilarating finale reflects the infectious optimism of the great inventors of our time, who conjured new worlds within the bright Valley’s dark garages.”

Performances:

Friday January 13, 8pm

Saturday January 14, 8pm

Sunday January 15, 2pm

For more information and tickets visit Kansas City Symphony’s website.

Moonshot Studio x Philharmonia Fantastique at The REACH, Kennedy Center

Following the hugely successful launch of Philharmonia Fantastique: The Making of the Orchestra, the first-ever hands-on installation has just opened at The REACH at The Kennedy Center in Washington DC.

The new installation, hosted in the Moonshot Studio, features an array of hands-on arts projects inspired by Philharmonia Fantastique. Explore the intersection of music, motion, and visual art by filling your canvas as you listen to excerpts from the film – drawing what you hear and coloring what moves you. You can also unleash your creativity and build your own instrument or even try your hand at animation and create your own a zoetrope.

The installation is now open in the Moonshot Studio and it will run every Saturday and Sunday from 11am – 4:30pm until March 20, 2023.

Come visit and make something amazing!

For more information visit The REACH website.

Philharmonia Fantastique: The Making of the Orchestra is available to rent or purchase on Apple TV or stream on Apple Music.

The Grammy-nominated soundtrack, recorded by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and conducted by Edwin Outwater is available to listen on Sony Classical.

Mass Transmission with The Crossing broadcast on WRTI

Last week, The Crossing and Donald Nally performed Mason’s Mass Transmission as part of their annual Christmas concert. On Christmas Eve, the performance will be broadcast on WRTI. Starting at 4pm ET, you can listen online at wrti.org.

Riccardo Muti conducts ‘Alternative Energy’ on CSOradio

Mason’s Alternative Energy, performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and conducted by Music Director Riccardo Muti, is now available to listen on CSOradio.

Also on the programme is César Franck’s Symphony in D Minor, in celebration of Franck’s 200th birthday plus Honegger’s Pacific 231 and Mozart’s Symphony No. 35 and Divertimento in F Major.

Listen to the full broadcast on CSOradio until 1 May 2023.

Mercury Soul presents Juan Atkins Techno Symphonic

Mason rejoins legendary DJ and producer Juan Atkins (AKA: the Godfather of Techno!) for Mercury Soul’s next event at San Francisco’s Public Works on January 27th. This electric pairing of classical music fused with Detroit techno will be a first for the Bay Area.

Juan Atkins created techno out of jacked audio gear in Detroit in the early 1980s, earning him the moniker “godfather of techno.” His work has become closely associated with the Afro-futurism that rose from the ashes of Motown to then influence numerous artists including Kraftwerk, Parliament Funkadelic and pioneers of hip-hop.

Alongside Atkins performing his iconic tracks with strings will be short performances of complementary classical music – from mechanistic Bach to early minimalists. Also performing are DJ Milan Aerial, DJ Masonic (Mason Bates), and DJ Justin Reed (illmeasures).

For more information and tickets visit Mercury Soul on Eventbrite.

Philharmonia Fantastique “an example of the finest that music and film have to offer”

Mason’s Grammy nominated work, Philharmonia Fantastique receives a glowing review from Erica Miner of Broadway World.

“Bates and his cohorts have created a metaphor for the best, most inspiring aspects of life as we would like to live it. An example of the finest that music and film have to offer, Philharmonia Fantastique is sure to become a classic, worthy of many repeated viewings; a work that will last well into our century and beyond.”

“The film combines animation and live action and literally glows from within and without; and, not surprisingly, has been nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Classical Album.”

“It is groundbreaking; a state-of-the-art, pioneering, inventive, and thoroughly modern piece of musical and technological filmmaking.”

“Bates has created music that melds classical with jazz and electronic elements: melodically spirited and rhythmically fascinating.”

“The list of other renowned orchestras that will perform the work over the coming months reads like a Who’s Who of the greatest ensembles in the US and in Europe. There’s no doubt that Fantastique fervor will catch on in a big way to gain a huge following among classical music and film aficionados, and rightly so.”

To read the full review, visit BroadwayWorld.com

Upcoming live performances include:

January 29 2023 – Kansas City Symphony – Kauffman Center, Kansas City, MO, USA

March 4 2023 – New West Symphony – Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, Thousand Oaks, CA, USA

March 5 2023 – New West Symphony – Rancho Campana Performing Arts Center, Camarillo, CA, USA

March 8, 13 & 14 2023 – National Symphony Orchestra –The Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C. USA

April 2 2023 – The Cleveland Orchestra – Severance Music Center, Cleveland, OH, USA

April 30 2023 – Vancouver Symphony Orchestra – The Orpheum, Vancouver, BC, Canada

April 11 2023 – Utah Symphony – Noorda Center for the Performing Arts, Orem, UT, USA

April 15 2023 – Utah Symphony – Abravanel Hall, Salt Lake City, UT, USA

April 16 2023 – Aurora Orchestra – Southbank Centre, London, UK

Mass Transmission: The Crossing

Mason’s Mass Transmission will be performed at The Crossing’s annual holiday concert in Philadelphia on December 16 & 18, 2022, alongside a newly commissioned work by Caroline Shaw.

Performed by The Crossing choir add conductor, and Scott Dettra on organ with sound design by Paul Vazquez, Mass Transmission brings to life the true story of a distantly-separated mother and daughter speaking over the first long-distance radio transmissions between Holland and Java. Adapted from an obscure 1928 government publication about the technological advances made by the Dutch in communicating with their colonists, the piece explores how the advent of radio technology brought us closer, yet magnified our distances and loneliness.

Performance dates:

Friday December 16, 2022 7pm

Sunday December 18, 2022 5pm

2023 Grammy Award Nomination

Philharmonia Fantastique: The Making of the Orchestra has been nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Classical Album.

Philharmonia Fantastique is Mason’s most ambitious project to date designed to connect music, musicians, and audiences, and to explore the fundamental connections between music, sound, performance, creativity, and technology. Performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and conductor, Edwin Outwater, the album was engineered by Shawn Murphy, Charlie Post & Gary Rydstrom, and mastered by Michael Romanowski.

“Our engineers achieved an extraordinary result amidst the most challenging recording environment. In the depths of Covid, we had to record the instrumental families separately – which actually gave us amazing control in the studio later. And the process even illustrated the piece’s theme of “unity from diversity” – ie, the orchestra as a model of different materials and technologies fusing into one beautiful super-instrument.” – Mason Bates

The soundtrack is available to listen on Sony Classical and the film is now available to watch on Apple TV and Apple Music.

Philharmonia Fantastique can be seen live in concert in 2023 on both sides of the Atlantic, including:

January 21 2023 – Nashville Symphony – Schermerhorn Symphony Center, Nashville TN, USA