Mary Chun, ondes musicales martenot

Mary Chun is one of only two professional ondistes living in the United States, placing her in a rarified circle of international players of this uncommon early electric instrument.

Ms. Chun’s first instrument was an early model ondes martenot that was loaned to the Berkeley Symphony by San Francisco rock ‘n roll guitarist Ronnie Montrose. At the invitation of Maestro Kent Nagano, she played the ondes martenot solo in the West coast premiere of Turangalîla with the orchestra. Primarily self-taught, her formal studies have included master lessons with the late Madame Jeanne Loriod, sister-in-law to composer Olivier Messiaen. Madame Loriod was the 20th century’s fiercest advocate and most famous player of this unusual electric instrument, whose sounds range from otherworldly darkness to celestial lightness. Messiaen was taken with this instrument inmediately upon hearing it and subsequently composed several pieces for ondes martenot and orchestra, Trois Petites Liturgies among them.

The instrument Ms. Chun currently plays is a concert model instrument from the final series of instruments produced by the Martenot Atelier in Paris. With this instrument she has concertized with orchestras including the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Houston Symphony and the Atlanta and Nashville Symphonies, to name a few. In addition to works by Messiaen, Ms. Chun’s repertoire of ondes music includes works by Honegger, Laderman, Faure, Jolivet and Frank Zappa.

Ms. Chun also performed in the U.S. premiere of Messiaen’s only opera, Saint François d’Assise, with the San Francisco Opera. She was one of three onstage ondistes that were a part of the 123-piece orchestra for this monumental work. In addition to playing the ondes in the orchestra, Ms. Chun was also the rehearsal conductor for the San Francisco Opera production.

When not playing the ondes, Ms. Chun conducts opera and specializes in new music. Since 2000 she has been the resident conductor for the critically-acclaimed San Francisco new music ensemble EARPLAY and she is a frequent guest conductor in Europe and the U.S. She has worked with many composers including Olivier Messiaen, Tan Dun, John Adams and just recently collaborated with American composer Libby Larsen when she conducted the world premiere of Larsen’s Every Man Jack, an opera based on the life of writer Jack London. Her recording credits include music direction for CDs of works by American composers Peter Allen, James Berenholtz, Jorge Liderman, Cindy Cox, Libby Larsen, Kurt Rohde and the sound score for filmmaker Canyon Sam’s The Dissident.

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