SIUC will have the chance to see a rare performance tonight that not many people throughout the world have seen. The Archeus Ensemble, from Bucharest, Romania, will perform works by Romanian and American composers.

Dr. Frank Stemper, director of the Center for Experimental Music at SIUC, has written Modern Rituals For A Primitive Society strictly for the Archeus Ensemble to perform. Stemper met the eight-member crew in 1993 in their hometown of Bucharest, Romania, for the ten-day International Contemporary Music Festival, where the group asked him to write this experimental piece.

I have had pieces performed at this festival, Stemper said. It’s just a fantastic thing to witness.

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All eight members are accomplished musicians who have performed jazz in the past but stick to the artistic goal of performing contemporary music.

I’m sure they are all free-lance musicians in Romania, Stemper said. They teach at the conservatory in Romania.

The instrumentation of the ensemble includes an oboe, clarinet, bassoon, violin, cello, piano and percussion. The performance, which will be directed and composed by Liviu Donceanu, specializes in contemporary music and is the premiere ensemble in Romania.

People shouldn’t expect Mozart or rock n’ roll, Stemper said. It’s just experimental.

The Archeus Ensemble will perform at 8 p.m. tonight in Shryock Auditorium. Admission is $3 or the general public and $2 for SIUC students.