How to Become an Idea: Christopher Otto plays Samuel Clay Birmaher

This concert presents the world premieres of two works for solo violin by Samuel Clay Birmaher that attempt to recall the experience of existence before life. Both pieces were written for Christopher Otto—a founding member of the JACK Quartet—and this performance will be his first public solo concert.

The sparseness of the music magnifies every natural variation in the violin’s sound, allowing the entirety of Otto’s technique to come into focus. Its sound guides and lulls the listener into an altered state, attempting to rewind awareness into a state of pre-existence in order to experience something that can’t be experienced.