Amazing Performance, Amazing Composition: Cellist Maya Beiser & Steve Reich's Cello Counterpoint

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In March, cellist Maya Beiser had the privilege of appearing at the prestigious TED conference in Long Beach, California, which brings leading artists and thinkers together to exchange "ideas worth spreading." Other presenters included Bill Gates, Bobby McFerrin, Julie Taymor, Morgan Spurlock, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, and Roger Ebert. Maya's presentation consisted of two pieces for multi-tracked cello and video: Steve Reich's Cello Counterpoint with video by Bill Morrison and David Lang's World to Come with video by Irit Batsry, with remarks by Maya in between the works.

Her performance was captured in a stunning three-camera video produced by TED, which was streamed live to conference attendees around the world. It's by far the handsomest and most sophisticated video document of Maya in concert to date. I hope you'll take a few moments to watch, and post it to your site or feed. FYI, the above image and others from her performance are available on request.
On the horizon for Maya: a Nov. 11 performance in LA at UCLA's Royce Hall, sharing the bill with percussionist extraordinaire Evelyn Glennie. After playing individual sets, they will jointly perform a short, as-yet-untitled work written for the occasion by David Lang. Meanwhile, Maya is working on developing Elsewhere, a new project described as "a CELLoOpera." Elsewhere is an imaginative retelling of the Biblical legend of Lot's wife, created by the "dream team" of Maya, director Robert Woodruff, composers Missy Mazzoli and Eve Beglarian, writer Erin Cressida Wilson, and choreographer Karole Armitage.

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