"A Soldier's Tale" told anew

Free ‘Soldier’s Tale’ Performance at Antioch College on April 23
Concert unveils famous Stravinsky story through lens of Kurt Vonnegut

The Johnstone Fund for New Music will present a concert performance of Igor Stravinsky's Soldier's Tale score and Kurt Vonnegut libretto in a contemporary music, theater and dance presentation at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 23, in South Gym at Antioch College, One Morgan Place, Yellow Springs, OH 45387.

Based on a Russian folk tale, The Soldier’s Tale, also known as L'histoire du soldat, follows a deserting soldier who sells his soul to the devil in exchange for a book that predicts the future. The virtuosic score that Igor Stravinsky composed for The Soldier’s Tale in 1918 has been re-conceptualized many times. In 1993, novelist Kurt Vonnegut revamped the story to explore the life of Eddie Slovik, the only American soldier executed for desertion in World War II, and the first since the Civil War.

This performance was coordinated by nonprofit recital series Sunday at Central, features Columbus Symphony musicians, and is made possible by major funding from the Johnstone Fund for New Music. The ensemble features David Niwa, violin; Gary Wasserman, bass; Robert Jones, clarinet; Betsy Sturdevant, bassoon; Tom Battenberg, cornet; Rich Howenstein, trombone; Bill Lutz, percussion; and conductor Olev Viro. Collaborating with the musicians are area director and choreographer Rani Deighe Crowe, and Melissa Heston and their company of local dancers and actors.

Free parking is available behind the Olive Kettering Library, 260 E. South College Street.

About The Johnstone Fund for New Music:
Columbus community leaders Jack and Zoe Johnstone founded the Johnstone Fund for New Music in 2008. It supports the continuing growth and vitality of new music and aims to position Central Ohio as a powerful incubator of this inventive art form. In addition to offering grants to commission the creation and performance of new works, the Fund inspires collaboration between composers and musicians. For more information, visit johnstonefund.org.