Life Returns
Matthew Evan Taylor composer
Metropolis Ensemble | Andrew Cyr conductor & crtistic Director
RAJAS ensemble
Ganavya voice
Matthew Evan Taylor’s LIFE RETURNS seamlessly weaves together African-American, South Asian, and Western European musical traditions. Performed by the chamber orchestra Metropolis Ensemble alongside the South Asian jazz collective RAJAS, the piece unfolds as a series of intimate musical exchanges, blending composition with improvisation in a fluid and organic dialogue.
A co-commission by MET Live Arts and Metropolis Ensemble, LIFE RETURNS was composed during the pandemic lockdowns, emerging as a powerful testament to resilience and unity in the face of global adversity. The album captures the energy of its live premiere, recorded in March 2022 at The Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium within New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Track Listing & Credits
| # | Title | Composer | Performer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Pinpoints of Light | Matthew Evan Taylor; Rajna Swaminathan; Ganavya Doraiswamy; RAJAS; Metropolis Ensemble | Matthew Evan Taylor; Rajna Swaminathan; Ganavya; Metropolis Ensemble | Andrew Cyr, conductor; RAJAS | 20:54 |
| 02 | Stirrings Amid Stillness | Matthew Evan Taylor; Rajna Swaminathan; Ganavya Doraiswamy; Utsav Lal; RAJAS; Metropolis Ensemble | Rajna Swaminathan; Utsav Lal; Matthew Evan Taylor; Ganavya; RAJAS; Metropolis Ensemble | Andrew Cyr, conductor | 8:32 |
| 03 | Quickening and Enlivening | Matthew Evan Taylor; Rajna Swaminathan; Ganavya Doraiswamy; Utsav Lal; RAJAS; Metropolis Ensemble | Rajna Swaminathan; Utsav Lal; Matthew Evan Taylor; Ganavya; RAJAS; Metropolis Ensemble | Andrew Cyr, conductor | 14:46 |
| 04 | Life Returns! | Matthew Evan Taylor; Rajna Swaminathan; Ganavya Doraiswamy; Dave Adewumi; Mark Dover | Matthew Evan Taylor; Rajna Swaminathan; Ganavya; Metropolis Ensemble | Andrew Cyr, conductor; RAJAS | 11:34 |
METROPOLIS ENSEMBLE
Conductor & Artistic Director Andrew Cyr
Percussion Timothy Angulo, Sasha Berliner
Clarinet Mark Dover
Flute Emi Ferguson
Viola Emma Frucht, Jay Julio, Ayane Kozasa
Cello Jia Kim, Karen Ouzounian, Paul Wiancko, Aaron Wolff
Bass Evan Runyon
Saxophones/Flutes Matthew Evan Taylor
RAJAS
Trumpet Dave Adewumi
Bass Stephan Crump
Voice Ganavya
Piano Utsav Lal
Guitar Miles Okazaki
Mrudangam Rajna Swaminathan
Recorded Live at the Metropolitan Museum of Art/The Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium in New York NY
Mixing Machines with Magnets
Mastering Silas Brown – Legacy Sound
Commissioned and produced by MetLiveArts, The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Department of Live Arts, bringing the Museum into conversation with contemporary creators and encouraging the discovery of untested modes of performance.
This project is made possible by the Adrienne Arsht Fund for Resilience through Art.
Artwork by Juniper Creative LLC, commissioned by Metropolis Ensemble (2021).
Executive Producer Bob Lord
VP of A&R Brandon MacNeil
A&R Danielle Sullivan, Chris Robinson
VP of Production Jan Košulič
Audio Director Lucas Paquette
Production Manager Martina Watzková
Production Assistant Adam Lysák
VP, Design & Marketing Brett Picknell
Art Director Ryan Harrison
Design Edward A. Fleming, Morgan Hauber
Publicity Aidan Curran, Kacie Brown, Chelsea Olaniran
Digital Marketing Manager Brett Iannucci
Artist Information
Matthew Evan Taylor
Dr. Matthew Evan Taylor is an AfroPnuematic composer, multi-instrumentalist, and improviser who has “…wrestled with the societal boundaries of Black artistry only to blast them apart…” (Dr. Kori Hill, I Care if You Listen) through creating music that is “insistent and defiant… envelopingly hypnotic” (Alan Young, Lucid Culture). An artist at the intersection of concert music, free improvisation, and multi-disciplinary performance, Taylor has worked with many leading artists and ensembles including the Metropolis Ensemble, Turtle Island String Quartet featuring Cyrus Chestnut, Elliott Sharp, dancer Laurel Jenkins, and visual artist Dannielle Tegeder, in front of audiences at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the World Saxophone Congress 17, CineJazz Film Music Festival Paris, and the Perez Art Museum Miami. A “risk taker” (Neil De La Flor, Huffington Post), Taylor’s work predicated on connection and the embrace of humanity through its exuberance, frailty, virtues, and vices. In each piece, Taylor strives to express the capaciousness of lived experiences within an ever-expanding universe; an experience that is bounded by breath and spirit.
Metropolis Ensemble
Metropolis Ensemble is a Grammy-nominated nonprofit organization dedicated to commissioning and producing ambitious creative projects in contemporary music, and expanding opportunities for emerging professional composers and performers to collaborate and inspire new audiences.
With a particular focus on developing collaborative projects with today’s leading emerging musical artists, Metropolis partners with world-class musical artists and institutions to create, commission, and produce site-specific performances, new works, recordings, and digital experiences. Founded by Grammy-nominated conductor Andrew Cyr in 2006, NYC-based Metropolis Ensemble gathers independent expert musicians for each project, inspiring audiences through the creation of new instrumentations and dynamic collaborations.
RAJAS
Ensemble
Founded in 2013 and taking on various configurations over the years, RAJAS brings together stellar improvisers at the confluence of multiple musical approaches. “Rajas” is a Sanskrit word for the human quality that compels us toward action, creation, and change.
Described as “unlike any other on the scene” (New York Times), and having “wedded beauty by courting chaos, with the methods of loose-knit latter-day jazz at the service of a recognizably South-Asian melody and pulse” (Financial Times), the ensemble explores expansive resonances among South Asian music, jazz and creative music, and other improvisational forms.
While primarily working with Rajna’s original compositions as points of departure, the music is born from a collaborative process centering mutuality and multiplicity. The ensemble’s debut album, Of Agency and Abstraction (Biophilia Records, 2019), received much critical acclaim, and their newest album, Apertures, is out now (Ropeadope, 2023).
RAJAS has performed in prominent New York venues such as the Jazz Gallery, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lincoln Center Atrium, and Roulette Intermedium.
Notes
About the Project
Life Returns was written in the years between 2020 and 2022, a time of isolation, fear, and forced introspection.
When musicians opened their parts,
this is the message they saw:
This is a piece about resilience.
This is a piece about restoration.
This is a piece about resurrection.
This is a piece about re-entry.
This is a piece about growth.
This is a piece about meditation.
This is a piece about repose.
This is a piece about action.
This is a piece about light.
This is a piece about flowers.
This is a piece about seasons.
This is a piece for celebration.
This is a piece celebrating love.
Special Thanks
Heartfelt thanks to Leslie Berman,
Herman Taylor, Jasmine Taylor, Limor Tomer, Kate Gilmore, Eric Brewster,
The Hermitage Artist Retreat, and
Shashtra Summer Collaborative.
