IN A FIRST OF ITS KIND SYNERGY, AN ICONIC 19TH CENTURY ORCHESTRAL WORK IS BLENDED WITH RAP

BY EVAN MONROE

Typically, when one reads about classical music being combined with other forms, new century models have it spiced by or spliced with electronic music in the hands of such visionaries as Detroit techno gurus Jeff Mills and Carl Craig, or classically trained musicians like Francesco Tristano and Oliver Coates, who update traditional performance structure for Gen Y and millennial audiences.

In a first of its kind structure, however, Steve Hackman who is at once a composer, conductor, producer, and arranger has taken an iconic 19th century piece, specifically Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No.5, and added the work of songwriter, performer, and hip hop artist Drake

Kings Theater, Brooklyn will be the venue for this groundbreaking February 22 performance, in which the 60 piece Stereo Hideout Orchestra (its members selected by Hackman from among the finest virtuosos in the city) is joined by three vocal soloists: Brooklyn native India Carney (NBC’s The Voice and backup singer for Katy Perry), Malia Civetz (a Warner Chappell artist with over ten million plays on Spotify), Mario Jose (currently on tour with Postmodern Jukebox and Pentatonix), and rapper Jecorey “1200” Arthur, a leader of and force for change in the Louisville, Kentucky music scene.

Created and arranged by Hackman who has already melded the likes of Björk and Bartók, Bon Iver and Aaron Copland, and Radiohead and Brahms Tchaikovsky V. Drake is an experience, he explained, “that defies boundaries, genre, and definition, blending the music of two composer romanticists separated by almost a century.” Fifteen songs by Drake are woven into the symphony, complimenting and magnifying its emotional narrative: beginning in anguish (“Started from the Bottom”) and ending in triumph (“Jumpman”).

Why these two artists?

“Both are unabashedly transparent in their conveying of emotion through music,” said Hackman, a Curtis Institute of Music graduate, “and to me, there is a certain naiveté and innocence about their depiction of that emotion, especially in these pieces. They somehow remind of us of what it was like to feel love, heartbreak, tragedy, and joy for the first time.” A broader raison d’etre for this and his other hybrid work, he explained, is a commitment to bringing orchestral works to the masses, and to create music that is reflective of his work in both classical and popular genres.

“I began by looking at it as a hip hop producer would identifying sections of Tchaikovsky that could be paired with Drake’s raps,” Hackman added. “In tandem, I searched for symphony melodies that were of a similar enough contour to the melodies of Drake, then adapted the latter to work in counterpoint.”

“Steve has one of the most brilliant musical minds I’ve ever encountered,” said Kings Theatre general manager Tyler Bates, “and his technique of re-imagining classical compositions to make them accessible to a wider audience is revolutionary and ground breaking. This performance will be like nothing anyone has ever seen in the city.”

Kings Theatre
1027 Flatbush Avenue / 800.745.3000
kingstheatre.com