The Rushes Ensemble will perform Michael Gordon’s Rushes. Rushes is a 55 minute tour-de-force that takes the listener on a meditative journey through rich, undulating harmonies captured by the velvety sound of seven bassoons. Composer Michael Gordon shifts polyrhythmic material not only through timbre and dynamics, but by weaving melodic lines into the kaleidoscopic waves of rhythmic texture. The work was commissioned in 2011 by the New Music Bassoon Fund, and premiered in 2012 at the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC) in Troy, NY. Established in 2012 to give the premier performances of Michael Gordon\&##39;s Rushes for seven bassoon, the ensemble is made up of some of the United States\&##39; leading performers of contemporary bassoon music: Dana Jessen, Rachael Elliott, Michael Harley, Lynn Hileman, Jeffrey Lyman, Saxton Rose, and Maya Stone. Supported in part by the Sally Fleming Masterclass Series.