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★★★★ ½ “A brilliant performance by Sonya Lifschitz of George Crumb’s 1972 piano cycle Makrokosmos, Volume 1, in tandem with wildly funny classroom lessons from Christine Johnston ... covering everything from Latin to bird calls and a wordless (but remarkably effective) masterclass in the interpretation of graphic scores, including a wonderful vocalisation of a fish drawing. While Lifschitz coaxed rumbling, primeval sounds from under the piano’s lid in Crumb’s Zodiac-themed pieces, it was Johnston who tackled The Magic Circle of Infinity movement, linking the two facets of the performance in a storm of vocal effects that brought together everything that came before.”Limelight

 

A witty and instructive music theatre work, the singer drolly scene-setting the 70s with reference to her childhood, hair styles, music and politics. She then interpolates among Crumb’s movements introductions that include how to sing graphic scores and wryly performs examples of exquisite Australian birdsong including, astonishingly, the kookaburra. In a parallel universe, Lifschitz, sits at or hovers over or invades her grand piano, stroking, plucking and muting strings, uttering cries and isolated words, magnificently unleashing the full range of the thunderous keyboard and its finer capacities, generating, as Crumb intended, a cosmos beyond conventional pianism... This is quite a collaboration: long may it play.” – RealTime Magazine

Crumb's-Lyre-web.jpg

★★★★ ½ “Brilliant performance... wildly funny." Limelight

Renowned for the exceptional artistry in their own genres, pianist Sonya Lifschitz and vocalist Christine Johnston (Madame Lark) are one of Australia’s most dynamic powerhouse duos. 


The worlds of classical music, performance art and comedy collide in this breathtaking performance, showcasing Sonya and Christine’s consummate musicianship, thrilling audacity and daring imagination. 


In this critically-acclaimed reimagining of George Crumb’s groundbreaking Makrokosmos, Book 1, piano maverick and virtuoso Sonya Lifschitz is joined by performance artist Christine Johnston (The Kransky Sisters) as Madame Lark to unleash their duelling scores. Part cabaret, part recital, this audacious reinterpretation places Crumb’s zodiac-inspired fantasy pieces amidst sounds of the Antipodes. As Sonya conjures mythical, primordial sounds from inside the piano, Madame Lark takes to her musical saw and overhead projector. Together they bring George Crumb’s masterwork to life in an intriguingly whimsical and altogether unexpected way.

Crumb's Lyre

SONYA LIFSCHITZ, piano/voice/concept

CHRISTINE JOHNSTON, voice/musical saw/OHP/concept

 

PROGRAM:  George Crumb - Makrokosmos, Book 1

★★★★ ½ “Brilliant performance... wildly funny." Limelight

Renowned for the exceptional artistry in their own genres, pianist Sonya Lifschitz and vocalist Christine Johnston (Madame Lark) are one of Australia’s most dynamic powerhouse duos. 


The worlds of classical music, performance art and comedy collide in this breathtaking performance, showcasing Sonya and Christine’s consummate musicianship, thrilling audacity and daring imagination. 


In this critically-acclaimed reimagining of George Crumb’s groundbreaking Makrokosmos, Book 1, piano maverick and virtuoso Sonya Lifschitz is joined by performance artist Christine Johnston (The Kransky Sisters) as Madame Lark to unleash their duelling scores. Part cabaret, part recital, this audacious reinterpretation places Crumb’s zodiac-inspired fantasy pieces amidst sounds of the Antipodes. As Sonya conjures mythical, primordial sounds from inside the piano, Madame Lark takes to her musical saw and overhead projector. Together they bring George Crumb’s masterwork to life in an intriguingly whimsical and altogether unexpected way.

★★★★ ½ “A brilliant performance by Sonya Lifschitz of George Crumb’s 1972 piano cycle Makrokosmos, Volume 1, in tandem with wildly funny classroom lessons from Christine Johnston ... covering everything from Latin to bird calls and a wordless (but remarkably effective) masterclass in the interpretation of graphic scores, including a wonderful vocalisation of a fish drawing. While Lifschitz coaxed rumbling, primeval sounds from under the piano’s lid in Crumb’s Zodiac-themed pieces, it was Johnston who tackled The Magic Circle of Infinity movement, linking the two facets of the performance in a storm of vocal effects that brought together everything that came before.”Limelight

 

A witty and instructive music theatre work, the singer drolly scene-setting the 70s with reference to her childhood, hair styles, music and politics. She then interpolates among Crumb’s movements introductions that include how to sing graphic scores and wryly performs examples of exquisite Australian birdsong including, astonishingly, the kookaburra. In a parallel universe, Lifschitz, sits at or hovers over or invades her grand piano, stroking, plucking and muting strings, uttering cries and isolated words, magnificently unleashing the full range of the thunderous keyboard and its finer capacities, generating, as Crumb intended, a cosmos beyond conventional pianism... This is quite a collaboration: long may it play.” – RealTime Magazine

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