T H E ST E I N WAY
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CHRONICLE S P I R I O I N S T I T U T I O N A L N E W S F R O M S T E I N WAY & S O N S
Janice Carissa and Alistair Coleman made early history for Spirio | r and Steinway & Sons with a cutting-edge collaboration at the Curtis Institute of Music.
M U S I C A L S T O RY T E L L I N G W I T H S P I R I O | r TA K E S A DY S T O P I A N T U R N AT C U R T I S spirio | r’s advanced technology
“It’s a beautiful story I wanted to tell
brought to life Alistair Coleman’s
through the medium of ‘composed
futuristic vision for Klara and the Sun, an
theater,’’ a topic that Curtis composers
original composition based on the
are studying under the mentorship of
best-selling dystopian novel by Nobel
Amy Beth Kirsten that infuses both
Laureate Kazuo Ishiguro. The piece
musical and theatrical elements,” said
premiered in May at the Curtis Institute
Coleman, who holds a bachelor of music
of Music in Philadelphia.
degree from Curtis and an artist diploma
The young composer said Spirio | r was a “natural and exciting choice” to capture the relationship of Ishiguro’s two characters: Josie, a young girl leading a totalitarian existence, and Klara, her AI robotic friend.
from The Juilliard School. He wrote the piece expressly for Indonesian pianist Janice Carissa to represent the erudite Josie, with Klara
The Curtis Institute of Music.
personified through spirio | r. Continued on Page 2