Original music for orchestral instruments, THISTLE is influenced by leader Thistle Jemison's formal studies in S. Indian classical, western classical, jazz, and folk. Her sophomore album, and the centerpiece of the program, "Mysterious Star: A Tribute to Poe," was described by Chamber Music America as angelic, beautiful, and hypnotic. The album consists of four of Edgar Allan Poe's poems rewritten as songs, as well as five of his stories told through music, including "The Raven" and "Masque of the Red Death."
Thistle Jemison is a graduate of the New School for Jazz & Contemporary Music (MFA in voice); she has also studied multiple genres of music at Hampshire College, Smith College, UMass, and Amherst Colleges. She has performed her music professionally all over the United States and Europe.
This afternoon, Thistle will be joined by internationally accomplished percussionist Roxann Jurkevich, who served for decades as Principal Percussionist of the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra and has performed with artists including Enya and Sting. The trio will also feature flutist Dominique Gagne, a veteran professional musician who has performed in New York City jazz clubs and around the world for decades.
The approximately 50-minute performance features THISTLE's Poe inspired album, creating an atmospheric musical journey through his mysterious and imaginative world."