Sunday, May 18, 2014
Parade Route
Saturday, April 26, 2014
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
The Chapel Hill NC Music Makers Festival
I am honored to be featured as part of the Chapel Hill NC Music Makers Festival. I haven't been back to Chapel Hill in over 10 years, but I did live there for my first 17. Here's a link:
I wrote this short reminiscence of music in Chapel Hill for their website:
I am especially grateful for the 13-plus years I got to study violin with Mary Frances Boyce. She took my ideas seriously from a very young age and always encouraged me to focus on whatever most interested me, whether it was composition, music history, or playing in a rock band. When I left Chapel Hill to study at a conservatory, I met many musicians whose talent and technique far surpassed my own but very few who had as broad musical experience or as much enthusiasm for pursuing their own creative vision—two
traits especially cultivated by the Chapel Hill music scene.
Growing up in Chapel Hill in the 80s and 90s.
Chapel Hill is well known for its combination of cosmopolitan intellectual life and laid-back, small-town Southern charm. These qualities certainly characterized the musical world I grew up in there during the 80’s and 90’s and created a culture of openness and curiosity in the arts. Between Suzuki group lessons, seasonal guest teachers and conventions, youth orchestras, and summer
camps, the opportunities to play violin were considerable. Additionally, good local musicians of all stripes were friendly and accessible, authentic bluegrass jam sessions were held out in Orange County (if you could find them), and most Cat’s Cradle shows were all ages.
Chapel Hill is well known for its combination of cosmopolitan intellectual life and laid-back, small-town Southern charm. These qualities certainly characterized the musical world I grew up in there during the 80’s and 90’s and created a culture of openness and curiosity in the arts. Between Suzuki group lessons, seasonal guest teachers and conventions, youth orchestras, and summer
camps, the opportunities to play violin were considerable. Additionally, good local musicians of all stripes were friendly and accessible, authentic bluegrass jam sessions were held out in Orange County (if you could find them), and most Cat’s Cradle shows were all ages.
I am especially grateful for the 13-plus years I got to study violin with Mary Frances Boyce. She took my ideas seriously from a very young age and always encouraged me to focus on whatever most interested me, whether it was composition, music history, or playing in a rock band. When I left Chapel Hill to study at a conservatory, I met many musicians whose talent and technique far surpassed my own but very few who had as broad musical experience or as much enthusiasm for pursuing their own creative vision—two
traits especially cultivated by the Chapel Hill music scene.
Friday, June 7, 2013
My short opera – complete with subtitling – is now up on youtube!
It is scene from Stephen Crane's short story "The Open Boat" which recounts his own personal experience as a survivor of a shipwreck off the coast of Florida in 1897. I adapted the libretto from the story and incorporated several of his poems into the scene as well.
The performance is from this May in Paragraph Gallery in Kansas City. It features three truly wonderful singers: Stacey Stofferahn, Jessica Salley, and Anna Louise Hoard as well as stage and art direction from Lisa Cordes and Alison Heryer. Produced by Black House, conducted by John Chittum, with audio and recording by KcEMA.
It is scene from Stephen Crane's short story "The Open Boat" which recounts his own personal experience as a survivor of a shipwreck off the coast of Florida in 1897. I adapted the libretto from the story and incorporated several of his poems into the scene as well.
The performance is from this May in Paragraph Gallery in Kansas City. It features three truly wonderful singers: Stacey Stofferahn, Jessica Salley, and Anna Louise Hoard as well as stage and art direction from Lisa Cordes and Alison Heryer. Produced by Black House, conducted by John Chittum, with audio and recording by KcEMA.
Monday, May 20, 2013
Skip Distance
Rites of Being - Kansas City, May 2013
This photo is from the dress rehearsal of my opera scene — "A Night on the Sea" from The Open Boat. The scene is based on the 1897 Stephen Crane story of the same name, and I created the libretto from that story as well as Crane's poetry. This was presented in two sold out shows this past weekend as part of Rites of Being, a collaboration of Kansas City musicians and artists to produce 6 new opera scenes. The amazing sopranos pictured are Stacey Stofferahn, Jessica Salley, and Anna Louise Hoard. Alison Heryer did Art Direction and Lisa Cordes did Production and Stage Direction. Hunter Long of Blackhouse Collective produced the whole thing with funding from several arts institutions. John Chittum conducted an ensemble made up of the composers and a handful of ringers. I even got to play violin in the ensemble. It was exciting to be a part of an event with so much buzz around the area and wonderful to see my opera produced. This was a project I'd been imagining for a few years now.
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Hybrid Structures tonight.
KcEMA presents Hybrid Structures tonight at La Esquina. I'll be doing electronic improv with Eric Honour on alto and bari sax. Our second time performing my Improv Modules. Got some new tricks up my sleeve for tonight! Here are the details:
https://www.facebook.com/events/226335290835362/
https://www.facebook.com/events/226335290835362/
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Breathe vid
Here is a video of my performance last month with Jane Gotch for Carrie Scanga's Breathe installation at PLUG Projects. I'm hidden in the corner playing the violin/electronics. Amazing night!
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Quartet SMACKDOWN
Hey Austin folks:
I've got a couple o' free tix to this if any of ya'll want to check it out (and vote for MEEEEEEE!). Should be a blast.
(Alternate hook: Do you love the NCAA basketball tournament? Do you love contemporary chamber music? If you answered "yes" to either, then, please, read on...)
The Green Hornet Project is hosting the Tosca Quartet for an event like none I've ever hear of before. 16 composers have entered, one will "win" based on audience voting. They've formed a single-elimination bracket and will play a minute of each piece in the first round, 2 minutes in the second, and so on, until there is a single champion. Crazy! My piece, "Thunderstorm over I-80 in the plains" is a dark horse candidate...
Saturday, Nov. 3rd, 8pm at the Scottish Rite Theater,
207 W. 18th, 512/472-7247
(Let me know if you want the free tix.)
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Sunday, August 19, 2012
buZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!!!
I'm currently working on music for an upcoming installation by Carrie Scanga (check out some amazing images of her past work on her site). The work is inspired in part by Bee colonies. In that spirit, Carrie has invited me and a few other artist to work collectively on the piece, hive-style. The opening will be September 21 at Plug Projects (a fantastic gallery in the West Bottoms) and will include music, dance, and food.
MIC CHECK
The fabulous Assembly Quartet premiered MIC CHECK last month in St. Andrews Scotland. Here's the video and my program notes are below. I think you can tell from the video that the quartet really took hold of the piece and made the music feel very much alive. The most magical part of a premier for
me is if/when the piece begins to take on expressive or sensory qualities that go are beyond the score and beyond my imagination of it. The Assembly Quartet definitely did that here with beautiful phrase-shaping and ensemble playing.
When I saw news coverage of the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations that began in the fall of 2011, I was immediately intrigued by the impromptu “human microphone” technique adopted by the protesters. Because of the prohibition on bullhorns and electronic amplification, an orator’s words—delivered in short, discrete phrases—were repeated in unison by members of the crowd gathered immediately around him or her. Additional repetitions were required for larger audiences, emanating outward in concentric circles from the original speaker. A leader would begin by saying, “Mic check,” and would then wait for the audience to respond with a, “Mic check!” to make sure the process was in place. In this piece — inspired in part by the musical potentials of the human microphone — the members of the quartet constantly echo each other in different ways, building resonance through repetition and imitation, sometimes joining collectively in song, and sometimes splitting off in opposite directions. MIC CHECK is dedicated to the Assembly Quartet who commissioned the work to premier at World Saxophone Congress XVI in St. Andrews, Scotland.
me is if/when the piece begins to take on expressive or sensory qualities that go are beyond the score and beyond my imagination of it. The Assembly Quartet definitely did that here with beautiful phrase-shaping and ensemble playing.
When I saw news coverage of the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations that began in the fall of 2011, I was immediately intrigued by the impromptu “human microphone” technique adopted by the protesters. Because of the prohibition on bullhorns and electronic amplification, an orator’s words—delivered in short, discrete phrases—were repeated in unison by members of the crowd gathered immediately around him or her. Additional repetitions were required for larger audiences, emanating outward in concentric circles from the original speaker. A leader would begin by saying, “Mic check,” and would then wait for the audience to respond with a, “Mic check!” to make sure the process was in place. In this piece — inspired in part by the musical potentials of the human microphone — the members of the quartet constantly echo each other in different ways, building resonance through repetition and imitation, sometimes joining collectively in song, and sometimes splitting off in opposite directions. MIC CHECK is dedicated to the Assembly Quartet who commissioned the work to premier at World Saxophone Congress XVI in St. Andrews, Scotland.
Saturday, August 11, 2012
The St. Joe News-Press is featuring a new live Still Lost Bird Music video every week of August. Check it out HERE.
Friday, July 13, 2012
World Saxophone Congress 2012, St Andrews
Excited about the upcoming premier of MIC CHECK, a piece I wrote for the Assembly Quartet:
World Saxophone Congress 2012, St Andrews
World Saxophone Congress 2012, St Andrews
KcEMA @ KC Fringe Fest
Article on KcEMA at KC Fringe Fest later this month. Will feature my improv sax and electronics collaboration with Eric Honour.
http://kcmetropolis.org/issue/early-july-2012/article/new-music-festival-debuts-at-the-kc-fringe-festival
http://kcmetropolis.org/issue/early-july-2012/article/new-music-festival-debuts-at-the-kc-fringe-festival
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Dock and Load video up!
Great video excerpt from the project that Gideon Fink Shapiro and I did this fall. Thanks to UT-A, musicians and crew. So excited this is finally up!
MIA-AIM: "Dock and Load" from CAAD on Vimeo.
MIA-AIM: "Dock and Load" from CAAD on Vimeo.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Article on Classical Music in Tunisia
Here's an article I was interviewed for about classical music in Tunisia. It mentions the work of my friend, pianist Kimball Gallagher and my skype composition student Souhayl Guesmi.
http://www.csmonitor.com/The-Culture/Music/2012/0209/After-the-revolution-arts-bloom-in-Tunisia
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