In the Dutchess County Spotlight
"Bridge Music" Unique Quad Event, Premieres in Poughkeepsie & Highland
Think you have heard every kind of new music out there? Think again. Joseph Bertolozzi used the railings, spindles, fences, trusses, panels, cables, and suspender ropes of the Mid-Hudson Bridge in Poughkeepsie to create the unique "Bridge Music". The suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River has become an instrument itself. Bertolozzi stated, “Everything vibrates. The tines on a fork, your toothbrush bristles, why not a bridge?”
Bertolozzi came up with the original, inventive way to create new music in 2004. The bridge represents an ensemble including xylophones, chimes & bells (vehicular guard-rails, handrails, panels, and spindles), metallic drums (trusses, towers), rasps (fencing, grates), anvils (cable, girders), bass guitars and marimbas (suspenders) and deep, sustained organ-like tones (traffic light supports blown from actual pipe organ wind chests).
The premiere of Bridge Music is Saturday, June 6, in Waryas Park Poughkeepsie. Made up of ten suites, it honors the Quadricentennial, the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson's voyage of discovery. This project has brought Bertolozzi sustained international attention, as the music contains no other sounds than those of the bridge itself.
To create his composition, Bertolozzi used various mallets to strike the bridge's surfaces such as guardrails, spindles, girders, suspender ropes, etc., and sampled them into a computer. The resulting sounds allowed him to categorize them by location and note/sound value. Bertolozzi’s Bridge Music can be heard by the public after June 6 on demand, by the touch of a button at two Listening Stations on the bridge's towers. Additionally, his music can be heard by an FM stereo transmission 24 hours a day on 95.3FM within the parks surrounding the bridge.
Bertolozzi has had an extremely successful career already, playing at such diverse venues as The Vatican and The US Tennis Open. Groups from the Grammy-winning Chestnut Brass Company to The Eastman School of Music perform his music. Bertolozzi's works range from those for full symphony orchestra to solo gongs. Born in Poughkeepsie, he began organ lessons at age 9 as well as composing music. He received his B.A. in music from Vassar College, and studied further at Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena Italy, Westminster Choir College, and The Juilliard School.
CDs of Bertolozzi’s music are available from Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com, CDBaby.com, and from his website.
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