Produced in conjunction with Phonochrome

Guerilla Composers Guild and Phonochrome chamber ensemble present a multi-colored collaborative project – Phonochromaticism. Featuring new works by six different composers, the program revolves around George Crumb’s underwater masterpiece for flute, cello, and piano – Vox Balaenae (Voice of the Whale). Crumb’s iconic Vox Balaenae envelops the performers in blue light, drawing the audience into a meditation on primordial history. As a reflection on Vox Balanae, the commissioning project asked composers to respond musically to a Roy G Biv color. This prompt has yielded fascinating results, ranging from an amorphous indigo work for piano four-hands to an explosive infrared quartet for flute, viola, cello, and piano.

For Phonochrome, this project is a playful exploration of identity. It is both a realization of the ensemble’s name and a journey into their curiosity about the intersection between the arts. This will be the third and culminating curated concert featuring newly commissioned works in the Guerrilla Composers Guild’s 2013-14 season. Commissioned composers include Mark Ackerley, Nick Benavides, Nathan Campbell, Alex Christie, Matthias McIntire, and Benjamin Pesetsky.

The concert features Phonochrome’s founders Allegra Chapman, piano; Laura Gaynon, cello; and Elizabeth Talbert, flute. They are joined by two wonderful guest artists: Pei-Ling Lin, viola; and Anne Rainwater, piano.



The Guerrilla Composers Guild was founded in San Francisco in 2012 by a few unruly souls, and serves to keep its finger on the pulse of the new music scene and promote both creation and listening. Everything is done for love of the art form, and we emphasize fun and participation over all else. We have worked with some of the best young talent in the Bay Area, and have got- ten music written for fantastic artists ranging from solo vocalists to the International Low Brass Trio. We are also active at the Center for New Music in San Francisco. We have commissioned and premiered dozens of new pieces as well as advocated the repeat performances of new music, as both are vital.

Phonochrome was founded by Allegra Chapman, piano; Laura Gaynon, cello; and Elizabeth Talbert, flute. This next-generation ensemble emerged from a series of conversations among friends at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Hailing from Carnegie Mellon, Yale, and The Juilliard School, Phonochrome’s three-woman core unites a flexible roster of dynamic young artists to increase the accessibility and impact of chamber music while maintaining unwavering dedication to performance at the highest level. Each concert is a thoughtfully woven musical nar- rative accomplished through innovative and thematic programming.