Burr Van Nostrand

Alto Flute, Prepared Piano, and Cello

Note about this piece from Robert Stallman, flutist:

"I well remember our Jordan Hall performance, now almost 40 years later (!). . . Herman Weiss playing inside the prepared Steinway grand, and the eloquent Jay Humeston singing and playing cello. Each page of Burr's manuscript is a visual work of art and deserves to grace an art museum wall. When I recently heard a tape of our performance, it seemed incredible that three instruments could create such a rich landscape of tone color and atmosphere, or that we could have managed to perform this extremely demanding piece at all. As it turned out, Burr's "Fantasy Manual" got a very positive review in the Boston Globe. Gunther Schuller (composer and president of NEC) was in the audience and greeted Burr and the three of us excitedly on stage after the performance. Now I am looking forward to returning to NEC to hear the April [2012] "revival" performance of this original and evocative work.