The photograph above is by Christopher Jones, and the dancer is Xin Ying, who will perform Immigrant.
Immigrant, a re-imagination by choreographer Virginie Mécene of one of Maratha Graham’s lost dances, will premiere on the Graham season titled Dances of the Mind at the Joyce Theatre in NYC, with performances on 4/3,6,9 and 13. The music comes from Shatin’s Adventure on Mt. Hehuan, for solo bass drum and option interactive electronics, which the composer recast in collaboration with the choreographer. More info and tickets here.
Regarding the dance, the program note mentions “There is little trace of Martha Graham’s original choreography for Immigrant. Virginie Mécène’s choreographic version of this early solo is inspired by a few photos and research into Martha Graham’s early career, made possible through a 2023/24 Fellowship from the Jerome Robins Dance Division, the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.”
Regarding the music, Adventure on Mt. Hehuan (Mountain of Joy in Chinese) is named for a mountain in Taiwan, where percussionist I-Jen Fang grew up. It is scored for solo bass drum and optional interactive electronics and is dedicated to Ms. Fang, with whom Shatin has explored the timbral worlds of percussion in collaborative detail. Ms. Fang premiered the piece in the version with interactive electronics with Shatin performing the electronics. The music speaks to the joy in the journey of timbral exploration and to its role in musical design. The title and compositional design were inspired by the mountain paintings of I-Jen’s father, and by this well-known and massive mountain in Taiwan. There is beauty and struggle in both. You can watch the premiere, with I-Jen Fang on the bass drum and Shatin on the electronics, here.