Ensemble Dal Niente presents Professor Bad trip

Jimi Hendrix and The Doors meet experimental classical music

Ensemble Dal Niente officially kicks off the 2011-12 season with the Chicago premiere of Fausto Romitelli’s psychedelic masterpiece Professor Bad Trip, a 40-minute piece in three ‘lessons’ inspired by the writing of Henri Michaux and 1960s pro-hallucinogenic activism of Dr. Timothy Leary. The untamed, florescent sound world of Romitelli is paired with new, unusual arrangements of Italy’s foremost Renaissance avant-garde homicidal composer: Carlo Gesulado. The concert opens with a short but uncompromising trio by Franco Donatoni – mentor of Romitelli and mainstay of 20th century Italian musical innovation – and kicks off at 6:30pm with Now Listen, a collective of scholars from the University of Chicago, who will examine Romitelli’s work and hallucinogenic inclination. This music has just as much to do with Pink Floyd as it does Pierre Boulez.

Franco Donatoni (1927-2000): About (1975) for violin, viola and guitar

Carlo Gesualdo (1566-1613)/arr. Fisher-Lochhead: Io parto e non piu dissi (1611/2011)

Fausto Romitelli (1963-2004): Professor Bad Trip, Lesson 1 (1998) for eight instruments and electronics

Carlo Gesualdo/arr. Gifford: S’io non miro (1611/2011)

Fausto Romitelli: Professor Bad Trip, Lesson 2 (1999) for ten instruments

Carlo Gesualdo/arr. Gifford: Merce, grido piangendo (1611/2011), arranged for electric guitar

Fausto Romitelli: Professor Bad Trip, Lesson 3 (2000) for ten instruments