[NewMusicEvents] Mills Music Now: Iva Bittová Concert - Oct 15 - Mills College

[Steed Cowart]

The Mills College Music Department and the Center for Contemporary Music present:

Mills Music Now
Thursday, October 15, 8:00 pm Littlefield Concert Hall

IVA BITTOVÁ
Czech violinist, singer, and composer

To hear a sample recording of Iva Bittová's music, please go to:
http://musicnow.mills.edu/concert3.php

"The soul of a gypsy, the voice of a troubadour, and the mind of a genius."

 "One of those truly rare musicians capable of an artistic balancing act that maintains a nodding acquaintance with the musical rule book while having a passionate affair with non-conformity."  —Jazzwise, UK

"… an innovative artist who shows how even one small body can transform a world of noise into stunning music." —Los Angeles Times

"Traces of Bittová’s life, from her formative years in tiny villages to her apprenticeship in a toy shop to her performances with an avant-garde theater troupe, creep into every shadowy corner of her music." —L.A. Weekly

Thursday, October 15, 8:00 pm
Littlefield Concert Hall
$15 general, $10 seniors and non-Mills students
Tickets may be purchased at the door, or online at:
http://www.boxofficetickets.com
Free to Mills students, faculty, and staff
Wheelchair accessible

Iva Bittová, the Czech singer and violinist, describes her work as "my own personal folk music." A charismatic performer with an established reputation both in Europe and Japan, Bittová first toured North America as a solo performer in 1992. She returned in 1998 upon the release of her eponymous album on Nonesuch Records, selling out concerts in Boston, New York, and Berkeley. As much at home in classical music as in avant-garde and folk, she has sung the role of Donna Elvira in the Mozart opera "Don Juan in Prague" as well as performing songs by Leos Janácek. In 2005, she began collaborating with the Bang On A Can All-Stars, recording the CD Elida (Cantaloupe Music), and performing together at Carnegie Hall, in Philadelphia, and Los Angeles, as well as London and Prague. Other recent recordings are Mater by Slovakian composer Vladimír Godár (ECM), Leos Janácek's Moravian Folk Poetry in Songs with the Skampa String Quartet (Supraphon), and Moravian Gems with bassist George Mraz.

Since moving to the United States in 2007, Bittová lives with her son Antonin in the Hudson River Valley, just a few hours from New York City. She now performs more frequently in the US and Canada, as a soloist as well as in collaborations with her fellow countryman Mraz, pianist Lisa Moore, clarinetist Don Byron, guitarist Marc Ribot, drummer Hamid Drake, and the Wendy Osserman Dance Company.

Iva Bittová was born in Bruntal, in northern Moravia. Her father, a classical double bass player, relocated the family often. Bittová attended violin and ballet classes as a child and also appeared in the Silesian Theatre of Zdenek Nejedly. As a teenager she attended a local conservatory and studied music and drama. Upon completion of school in Brno, she won a contract at the avant-garde Theatre On A String. She has since appeared in multiple television and film roles, including the award-winning film about Fred Frith, Step Across The Border, and Zelary, one of the most successful Czech movies in recent years, which was nominated for an Academy Award for best foreign film in 2003. She received a Czech "Oscar" and the Best Actress Award at the Syracuse International Film Festival for her starring role in the 2007 film Tajnosti (Little Girl Blue.)

Reflecting on her life-long work as a performer, Bittová has said, "I have found the way to myself and thus also to others. I understand there are many hearts in the world, and each beats differently."

Mills College
Music Department
5000 MacArthur Blvd
Oakland, CA 94613
http://musicnow.mills.edu
Concert Line: 510 430-2296