Food and Music: composer Richard Pearson Thomas

Great Falls native’s cantata a big hit in the Big Apple

By POLLY KOLSTAD For the Tribune
During a recent trip to New York City, my husband and I sank our teeth into the tasty musical talents of Great Falls native Richard Pearson Thomas.
We were invited to his ninth premiere, “Know Thy Farmer,” a cantata celebrating music and food.
As part of this visit, Thomas later escorted us to Blue Hill at Stone Barns Restaurant in Pocantico Hills to enjoy the food of Dan Barber, a two-time James Beard award recipient, with whom Thomas collaborat­ed for his cantata.
Seated next to us in the full audience of “Know Thy Farmer” at Merkin Concert Hall, Thomas’ mother, Marillyn, recalled her son’s youthful days when she and his sister, Marlie, would sing songs to his piano accompaniment. To him the results didn’t always turn out quite right.
“He had his own rendition; he was already composing in grade school and just kind of rolled his eyes,” Marillyn said.
As a teenager growing up in Great Falls, Thomas was the organist for Our Savior’s Lutheran Church and played for the Virginia City Players in Virginia City.
He’s had works performed by the Boston Pops, Houston Grand Opera, Manhattan Chamber Orchestra and River­side Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir. His songs have been sung in Carnegie Hall, the Lin­coln Center, the Kennedy Cen­ter, Merkin Concert Hall and before the U.S. Congress.
He’s currently on the faculty of the Teachers College/Colum­bia University and is a compos­er- in-residence at the Gold Opera Project, Young Audi­ences in New York. In that capacity, he has composed nearly 90 operas with students in New York City public schools
See CANTATA, 4L

Cantata: Food and music mix successfully
FROM 1L
and was awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Clin­ton for this work.
Two years ago Tobe Malaw-i­sta, president and artistic direc­tor of Mirror Visions, presented Thomas with the opportunity to pair music with food. She sent him menus from Blue Hill at Stone Barns restaurant, challeng­ing him to write about sustain­able food.
“I looked at the menu and put stories in my mind, picturing all these things blooming,” said Thomas, a graduate of the East­man School of Music and Univer­sity of Southern California.
The concert a la carte played out with the help of three singers, violin, violoncello and piano.
“If you love food, if you love music, you’re in the right seat,” tenor Scott Murphree said.
Malawista called it an “extraor­dinary experience, to see a mere thought transformed into thrilling music.”
Thomas’ work only made us more hungry for the tasty ingre­dients that were his inspiration.
A fortnight later, we took the train from Grand Central Station to Tarrytown, a lovely half-hour ride along the Hudson River. Taxis then carried us through the rolling hills to Blue Hill at Stone Barns on land once owned by the Rockefeller family.
At Blue Hill, more than 200 varieties of crops are grown year­round, many of which are served in the restaurant’s elegant dining room. We strolled through the fields and barns of the farm before being treated to an amaz­ing evening of creatively pre­pared food. Chiogga beets, romano beans, purple cauliflower, honey, Berk­shire pork, eggs from their resi­dent hens, and handcrafted breads made from exotic wheat varieties are just a handful of the foods produced on this farm.
Back in the city, we had tickets to two Broadway plays and the opera, “Carmen,” at the Metro­politan Opera House.
But no performance was more emotionally rendering than Thomas’ presentation of his orig­inal composition, “Race for the Sky,” at the Philoctetes Center in Manhattan.
After 9/11, the local historical society commissioned Thomas to put to music memorials left by people in the streets near Ground Zero. He chose a poem by Hilary North, which expresses how her life would never be the same. Thomas was joined by violinist Stephanie Chase and vocalist Hope Hudson.
After the last note was played, Chase reflected on the evening.
“I’m unable to think about the words, because Richard’s music is so powerful,” she said.
“In a way, it is so healing for me,” Hudson said. “Long after I’m gone, I hope people sing the American song tradition. Richard has written 16 songs for me, some not premiered yet.”
Since 9/11, Thomas’ “Race for the Sky” has been sung in many places, including Carnegie Hall and the Lincoln Center.
His busy schedule keeps him hopping.
We had barely packed to leave New York when he was off to Boston for another performance of “Know thy Farmer.”