Life Returns

March 24, 2022 | Metropolitan Museum of Art

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Concert Overview

Metropolis Ensemble and RAJAS Ensemble presented the World Premiere performance of Life Returns by composer Matthew Evan Taylor. Music that trumpets resilience in the face of despair, and the triumph of light and color over darkness.

The evening-length new work, co-commissioned 2021-2022 by The Met Museum and Metropolis Ensemble, will feature musicians from the group RAJAS who explore resonances among Indian music, jazz, and other improvisational forms (led by mrudangam artist Rajna Swaminathan), Metropolis Ensemble's chamber orchestra, Ganavya (solo voice), and Taylor himself performing on solo winds and looping station.

On February 14, 2023, MetLiveArts presented the digital premiere of our “Life Returns” concert via YouTube. Prior to the premiere, Limor Tomer from MetLiveArts moderated a Zoom discussion about the composition process and its lasting impact with composer Matthew Evan Taylor, conductor and Metropolis artistic director Andrew Cyr, and RAJAS founder and mrudangam artist Rajna Swaminathan.

A musical performance on a stage labeled 'The Met,' featuring various musicians playing instruments including a double bass, piano, and drums. Audience members are seated in dim lighting. The stage is illuminated with spotlights.
A woman in a white dress sings into a microphone on a stage, accompanied by musicians playing various instruments, including a drum. A colorful cloth is draped over a stand in front of her.
Musicians performing on stage, including a person playing a double bass and another speaking or singing into a microphone, with a backdrop and audience visible.
Musician playing saxophone with fellow band members on stage during a live performance.
A diverse group of musicians performing on stage with a variety of instruments, such as saxophones, a double bass, and drums. A female singer is in the center, and the backdrop features "THE MET" in large letters. The audience is visible in silhouett
Musical group on stage performing with various instruments, including percussion and saxophones, in a concert setting.
A jazz band performing on stage, featuring a saxophonist, drummer, and pianist, with musical instruments and a colorful fabric draped over the piano.
Musicians performing on stage at The Met with various instruments including saxophone and drums.
Musicians performing on stage; one playing a drum while seated, another playing a flute, with a drum set in the background.
Musicians performing on stage with a vocalist, double bassist, and other instrumentalists.
Musician playing flute on stage with band in background.
Person playing a traditional drum seated on a stage with microphones and a water bottle nearby.
A woman singing into a microphone on stage with a band, including a guitarist and a drummer, at a live performance. A large "The Met" logo is visible in the background.
A musician performing on stage, passionately singing into a microphone, dressed in a light-colored outfit.
Two musicians performing on stage, one playing a trumpet and the other playing a saxophone, with red curtains in the background.

“Matthew reconciled his artistic identity as a classical composer focused on social justice, Black expressive culture, and experimentalism.”

—I Care If You Listen

Recent Press

News
Life Returns on WQXR
Concerts, Radio
Life Returns on WQXR
Concerts, Radio

Listen on-demand to Metropolis artists on WQXR’s Young Artists Showcase hosted by Emi Ferguson, including excerpts from Matthew Evan Taylor's Life Returns.

Concerts, Radio
Slipped Disc: Life Returns Review
Concerts
Slipped Disc: Life Returns Review
Concerts

“Life Returns is a monumental work that melds free improvisation and through composition to celebrate resilience and triumph in the face of despair."

Concerts
WQXR: Young Artists Showcase
Concerts, Radio
WQXR: Young Artists Showcase
Concerts, Radio

Emi Ferguson: Tonight, you’ll hear a roster of recent fellows performing powerful music by Richard Strauss, Earl Kim, Matthew Evan Taylor, and Carl Fruhling.

Concerts, Radio
Vermont Public: A Conversation with Matthew Evan Taylor
Interview, Concerts
Vermont Public: A Conversation with Matthew Evan Taylor
Interview, Concerts

“Middlebury College professor and composer Matthew Evan Taylor's "Life Returns" celebrates the coming of Springtime, and will have its digital premiere on February 14th.”

Interview, Concerts
MetLiveArts: Gift From Adrienne Arsht
Concerts
MetLiveArts: Gift From Adrienne Arsht
Concerts

“Resilience has been central to many of the projects supported by Ms. Arsht, including Life Returns , which reflected on the resilience of individuals in the face of unprecedented adversity.”

Concerts
ArtNet: Life Returns at The Met
Concerts
ArtNet: Life Returns at The Met
Concerts

MetLiveArts and the Metropolis Ensemble commissioned Life Returns, an evening-length composition from composer and saxophonist Matthew Evan Taylor.

Concerts
The Journey to Life Returns
Concerts
The Journey to Life Returns
Concerts

Witness a yearlong time-lapse musical performance of an original work by composer and saxophonist Matthew Evan Taylor.

Concerts
Broadway World: Premiere Of Matthew Evan Taylor's Life Returns
Concerts
Broadway World: Premiere Of Matthew Evan Taylor's Life Returns
Concerts

Composer and saxophonist Matthew Evan Taylor's Life Returns is an evening-length composition that draws on African American, South Indian, and European musical practices.

Concerts

Project Details

  • Dave Adewumi

    Timothy Angulo

    Sasha Berliner

    Juniper CreativeArts

    Stephan Crump

    Andrew Cyr

    Mark Dover

    RAJAS Ensemble

    Emi Ferguson

    Emma Frucht

    Ganavya

    Jay Julio

    Jia Kim

    Ayane Kozasa

    Utsav Lal

    Miles Okazaki

    Karen Ouzounian

    Evan Runyon

    Rajna Swaminathan

    Matthew Evan Taylor

    Theo Walentiny

    Paul Wiancko

    Aaron Wolff

  • Life Returns is commissioned and produced by MetLiveArts, The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Department of Live Arts, bringing the Museum into conversation with contemporary creators and encouraging the discovery of untested modes of performance. This program is made possible by the Adrienne Arsht Fund for Resilience through Art.

    Photos by Stephanie Berger, courtesey of The Metropolitan Museum of Art / MetLiveArts.

    Artwork by Juniper Creative LLC, commissioned by Metropolis Ensemble (2021).