GTMF samples composer Lau’s musical storytelling – JH News&Guide
Canadian composer Kevin Lau remembers going to “Jurassic Park” when he was 13. He was captivated by the genetically resurrected dinosaurs, of course, but what really struck him was John Williams’ soundtrack.
“It jolted me out my seat,” Lau said of the action on the screen, “but the music … the awe-inspiring score by John Williams, that planted a seed.”
Four works by Kevin Lau will be performed this season at the Grand Teton Music Festival, starting at Thursday’s Benoliel Chamber Music Concert, when his 2019 trio “A Simple Secret” will be performed.
Also on the “Brahms and Dvorak” program: a trio by Arnold Bax, Dvorak’s String Quartet No. 2 in G Major and Brahms’s Trio for Violin Horn and Piano in E-flat Major.
Another key incident in Lau’s journey came at 16, when he decided to write a novel.
“I wouldn’t call it any good, but the process was gratifying: imagining the scenarios, the characters, the visuals, and what the soundtrack would be like if was a movie,” he said. “I never thought of myself as a composer … for whatever reason, it inspired me to start.”
Thirty years on, storytelling remains a central part of Lau’s approach.
“Part of my fascination with music is it taps into a deep-seated affinity we have with narrative, mythology, day dreaming and imagination,” he said. “I like it when music brings us into a slightly surreal, otherworldly, subconscious space. A lot of my music is tied to those things.”
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