ORACLE HYSTERICAL

PERFORMANCE Saturday, May 13, 7:30–9:00pm

Oracle Hysterical unfurls new works of chamber pop with an ensemble of local virtuosos. Featuring Doug and Brad Balliett, Elliot Cole, Majel Connery, and conductor Steven Prutsman.

Part band, part book club, composer collective Oracle Hysterical combines eclectic musical influences with literary breadth, adapting great works of literature through the medium of song. The group has created hip-hoperas, art-rock song cycles, rap cantatas, and other genre-bending works all over America and Europe, collaborating with a variety of ensembles to cultivate a unique sound palette for each project. This year, Oracle Hysterical premieres a recent commission from A Far Cry, “Tales of Lapham” at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum; its latest album, Passionate Pilgrim, drops on Vision Into Art with a release event at National Sawdust.

This performance showcases works by Doug and Brad Balliett. Doug’s “Cleopatra” cantata stages tabloid observations of Cleopatra’s dalliances as penned by Suetonius, an historian of the early Roman Empire. Brad’s bassoon “Concerto in Triple Time,” which features his uncanny facility with multiphonics, was the subject of a recent New York Times profile.

Also featuring: Jill Henke (flute), Kyle Bruckmann (oboe), Jeff Anderle (clarinet), Owen Dalby (violin), Meena Bhasin (viola), Robert Howard (cello), Jeff LaDeur (piano), Jennifer Ellis (harp), and Nick Woodbury (percussion)

This performance lasts 1 hour and concludes with a 20-minute post-show discussion.