Archives 2009-2011

Posted on September 29, 2013

May 22, 2011 News:

Well, as of April 30, we now live in Asheville, North Carolina!!  The move went very well and currently we are staying in a cabin in the Appalachian Mountains just outside of the city until we figure out where we are going to live.

If you are in the New York City area a week from today, at 1pm on May 29, be sure to go see the FREE concert by harpist Alyssa Reit at Jan Hus Church!!  As part of the program she’ll be playing my short piece Ephemera along with the other winners of the Vox Novus 15 Minutes of Fame Call for Scores for Solo Harp!

BIG COMPOSITION NEWS TIMES THREE!!!

Since I last posted, I have also learned that my short piece Exaleípsas for flute and marimba was one of the winners in the Vox Novus 15 Minutes of Fame Call for Scores for Flute and Marimba and will be performed by Laura Jordan and Sarah Carrier at Jan Hus Church in New York City on June 5, 2011!!

Also: my short piece for solo guitar, Susurration, was one of the winners in the Vox Novus 15 Minutes of Fame Call for Scores for Solo Guitar and will be performed by Kenji Haba at Jan Hus Church in New York City on June 26, 2011!!

And: my Seven Haiku for Wind Quintet was one of the winners in the College Music Society National Conference Call for Scores for Wind Quintet and will be performed by the Moran Quintet at the conference in Richmond, Virginia on October 20!!

NEW!!! FINALLY, I have posted the mp3s of my String Quartet #1 premiered by the JACK Quartet at the 2011 University of Alabama Huntsville New Music Festival, the flattery of fire premiered by thingNY on Bb clarinet, soprano saxophone, violin, and contrabass at their Spam 2.0 Concert, and my Percussion Quartet performed by the Indiana Wesleyan University Percussion Ensemble at the 2011 Ball State New Music Festival.  They are all available on the Listen page.  Sorry for the delay!  ENJOY!!

April 6, 2011 News:

Sorry it’s been a while since I last posted!

BIG PERSONAL NEWS:  Johanna and I have decided to move to Asheville, North Carolina in May as soon as the Ball State University school year concludes.  We are very, very excited about this because not only will it put us closer to her family, but we will also be living in one of the most beautiful parts of the country I have ever seen, plus Asheville is a very cool city!!  Johanna has been able to transfer with her job and I will once again seek teaching employment there just like when we relocated from California to Indiana.  Of course, I will continue to work as a freelance composer, researcher, and writer on music.

BIG COMPOSITION NEWS: I was just informed today that Ephemera, a short piece for solo harp, was one of the winners in the Vox Novus 15 Minutes of Fame Call for Scores for Solo Harp and will be performed by Alyssa Reit at Jan Hus Church in New York City on May 29, 2011!!

My piece the flattery of fire was given a great performance by thingNY in New York City on February 25!  The piece is a graphic score for four unspecified performers; they performed it on Bb clarinet, soprano saxophone, violin, and contrabass.  Johanna and I were there and had a great time!  Not only was it great hearing my piece, the whole show (lasting around 4 hours!) was very cool!!  You can see a highlights video on their website as well as peruse the other interesting things they have done and are doing.  (There is a link over on the right of this page.)  I do have an mp3 of the performance and will post it within the next few days.

My Percussion Quartet was also given a great performance at the Ball State University Festival of New Music on February 26 by the Indiana Wesleyan University Percussion Quartet led by Marc Wooldridge.  I was unable to attend the event because we were in NYC, but I did hear that it was very well received.  I do have an mp3 of the performance which I will also post within the next few days.

Sadly, the clarinetist who was slated to perform my Psalm 119:41-48 at the BSU New Music Festival on February 24 came down with pneumonia two days before the concert and had to cancel.  Hopefully she may yet play the piece later this year.

Lastly, I finally have an mp3 of the JACK Quartet playing my String Quartet #1 at the University of Alabama Huntsville New Music Festival that I will also post in the next few days.

February 17, 2011 News:

JUST ADDED: As promised, I have added the recording of the premiere of my Three Haiku (for flute, clarinet, violin, ‘cello) as performed by The Definiens Project at the 2010 Fresno New Music Festival to the Listen page.  I hope you enjoy it!  I should also be getting a recording of the Los Angeles performance any time, which I will post as well for you to compare.

MORE BIG NEWS: My piece the flattery of fire for four unspecified performers was a winning work in thingNY’s “Spam v. 2.0” call for scores and will be premiered there at the LaGuardia Performing Arts Center at 7:30pm on February 25, 2011!  This will be a most interesting show blending aspects of performance, visual media, and text into a big collage of music and graphic art.  The show will feature a good number of premieres, so if you’re in the area come see it!!

Also, my Percussion Quartet and Psalm 119:41-48 (solo clarinet) were both selected works in the 2011 Ball State University Festival of New Music and will be performed there on February 24 at 7:30pm (Psalm 119) and February 26 at 3:00pm (Percussion Quartet)!!  If you’re in the area for the Ball State New Music Festival, it runs from February 24-26 and will feature A LOT of awesome music.  You should definitely go see it!!

I also have a work TBA slated to be performed sometime this semester or next at Butler University; and there are several other performances in the works that I will post as soon as I know details.

February 14, 2011 News:

We just got back from the 2011 University of Alabama Huntsville New Music Festival where my String Quartet #1 was given an AMAZING, AMAZING performance by the JACK Quartet!!  As soon as I get an mp3, I will post it on the Listen page.  We also had a great time there hearing other cool performances and getting to know a number of really nice composers and performers!

November 28, 2011 News:

BIG NEWS:  My String Quartet #1 was selected as one of the winners in the University of Alabama Huntsville New Music Festival Call for Scores and will be premiered by the JACK Quartet at the festival February 10-12, 2011!!!  This is a tremendous honor especially since the JACK Quartet is one of the best quartets on the planet, so I know they will give the work an amazing performance!  Once I know the exact date of the performance I will post the details.

My piece Three Haiku was given a great performance by the Definiens Project at the Fresno New Music Festival on November 6!!  They performed it again at Hope United Methodist Church in Los Angeles on November 21!  I was told they would try to get me recordings of both performances; when I get them I will post them on the Listen page.  I believe they may eventually post one of the performances on YouTube as well.  Johanna and I had a very good time at the festival and my presentations at The Master’s College in Santa Clarita also went very well.  It was also so great to see so many good friends there!!

October 31, 2010 News:

We’re off Thursday to California to hear the Definiens Project give the premiere of 3 Haiku for flute, clarinet, violin, and cello at the Fresno New Music Festival.  They have also announced that they will perform the piece again on November 21 in Los Angeles at Hope United Methodist Church, and a third time in southern California, date TBA!

While in California, I will be giving two presentations on November 4 and 5, ‘John Rutter’s Gloria: Aspects of Performance and Interpretation’ and ‘An Introduction to Romantic Lieder,’ at The Master’s College in Santa Clarita where I taught from 2006-2009!  It will also be great to see our good friends there again!!

My Percussion Quartet was successfully premiered on October 15th at the 2010 CFAMC National Conference at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Indiana!  It went excellently!! As soon as I get a recording I will post it on the Listen page.

I have also learned that the Indiana Wesleyan University Percussion Quartet is going to come down to Ball State University in February and perform my Percussion Quartet again at the Ball State University New Music Festival (date TBA).  Also, two other works of mine are expected to appear on the festival program as well: Psalm 119:41-48 (clarinet solo) and My Supplication Unto the Lord (alto saxophone solo).

The March 15 premiere by Richard Ratliff of my work in memoriam (hommage a Chopin) for solo piano was rebroadcast on WICR Indianapolis on October 23 and 24.

I also have several other performances potentially in the works, so be watching for upcoming posts.

On a personal note: our in-home care duties of my father were happily resumed by my brother as of two weeks ago.  This has permitted Johanna and I to relocate to nearby Muncie, Indiana to eliminate the long commute to Ball State.  We had to pack and move in a very short time, yet we are finally situated and enjoying Muncie.

September 9, 2010 News:

BIG NEWS: I was hired as Visiting Assistant Professor of Music Theory at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana as of about 1 month ago!!  I teach Music Theory 111, Form and Analysis, 20th Century Counterpoint, and Composition Lessons.  This all happened quite abruptly, but I am very glad to be there and am enjoying myself immensely!

A new piece of mine, Three Haiku for flute, Bb clarinet, violin, and ‘cello was one of the winners of the 2010 Fresno New Music Festival Call for Scores and will be performed by The Definiens Project on November 6, 2010 in Fresno, California!  This is quite exciting and Johanna and I will be there for the premiere!

I was also selected to present my paper ‘Music and Meaning in Ben Johnston’s Songs of Loss‘ at the 2010 SCI Region V Conference at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, October 1-2, 2010!

My piece, Psalm 119:17-24, was performed by Patrick Crossland on trombone on August 13, 2010 at St. Georgenkirche, Waren (Müritz), in northern Germany!  While he was unable to get a recording of the performance, Patrick did say he thought it sounded “lovely” in the church and that the work received compliments!

April 12, 2010 News:

As promised, I have uploaded four new recordings for your enjoyment on the Listen page:

in memoriam (hommage a Chopin)for solo piano from the March 15, 2010 premiere at the University of Indianapolis, with Richard Ratliff of the University of Indianapolis at the piano (the work is dedicated to him and he commissioned it);

deplori, for solo trombone, from the January 16, 2009 Bremen, Germany premiere, with Patrick Crossland playing trombone (the work is dedicated to him);

Eulogetos, for women’s choir, written for and dedicated to Carolyn Simons, director of The Master’s College Women’s Chamber Choir.  This recording was made a few days after the April, 2009 premiere (which was also recorded, but the sound quality of this one turned out a bit better);

Three Haiku, for string sextet, from the April 29, 2009 premiere at The Master’s College in Santa Clarita, California.  The work was written for the String Techniques class, so the performers are all beginning string players (two are violinists, but are performing on a different string instrument).

April 7, 2010 News:

First of all, I apologize for the long delay since the last post; it won’t happen again.  It’s been a VERY crazy, yet still productive year as you’ll discover.

By Monday, I will have FOUR new recordings on the Listen page: in memoriam (hommage a Chopin) for solo piano, deplori for solo trombone, Eulogetos for women’s choir, and Three Haiku for string sextet, so be sure to visit again and listen!

Personal News:

Johanna and I successfully returned to Indianapolis last May and have assumed care of my elderly father.  After a tremendous changeover entailing a lot of cleaning and remodeling, we now live in his house (the house in which I grew up) and assist him in his daily routine, including multiple weekly visits to my mother at the extended-care facility.  He also loves to go to concerts with us, and we are glad to be here and to be able to help.  He’s awesome!

I have also been able to pick up a bit of adjunct teaching at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Indiana, for this school year, teaching Ear Training 1-3 and the music portion of an Intro to Fine Arts class!

Composition News:

This SATURDAY and SUNDAY!  April 10 and 11, Richard Ratliff’s March 15th ‘Celebrating Chopin’ concert from The University of Indianapolis featuring the premiere of my new work for solo piano in memoriam (hommage a Chopin) will be played on WICR 88.7 in Indianapolis; and you can stream it on the web if you’re out of the area.  The Saturday airing is in the evening on HD2 radio; the Sunday airing is at 7pm.  My piece is early on in the program, so be sure to tune in on time.  I will have the recording on the Listen page by Monday.

I also have upcoming performances of a new work for percussion quartet, and a new song for tenor and chamber ensemble slated for premieres in the Fall semester at Indiana Wesleyan University and Butler University respectively.   In addition, my work for solo viola, “All flesh is as grass” (Isaiah 40:6-8), will finally be premiered in Indianapolis.  I will post the dates as soon as I know them.  A few more Indiana premieres are materializing, as well, and I’ll post the info as soon as I get it.

As stated, on March 15th, at the ‘Celebrating Chopin’ concert at The University of Indianapolis, Richard Ratliff gave the premiere of in memoriam (hommage a Chopin), my new work for solo piano (which he also commissioned for the occasion).  The work was well received and described in the Indianapolis Star as “a brooding work whose sonorous deep octaves underlined its earlier stark flashes of foreboding.”  It was great to see so many supporters there to hear it!  Again, the mp3 will be available on the Listen page in a few days.

Speaking News:

Earlier today (April 7), I spoke at the University of Indianapolis on Elliott Carter’s ‘The Rose Family.’  Several weeks ago (March 17), I spoke there on the influence of Chopin on modern music.  Both presentations were very well received.

At Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, I presented my paper, ‘Music and Meaning in Ben Johnston’s Songs of Loss,’ at the March 13-14 colloquium “Ben Johnston and the American Just Microtonal Tradition.”  Ben Johnston himself was in attendance and described my presentation as “First rate.”  All of the presentations are apparently going to be published, though I have no further information at this time.

Last November, I went to Natchez, Mississippi, with Johanna, to the first conference (ever) on the music of William Grant Still, “Music and the Arts: Still Our Only Future.”  It was a very enjoyable time, and I presented my paper, ‘The Composer as Poet: Music and Text in William Grant Still’s Songs of Separation.’ I also got to try my first mint julep: it was awesome!

NEWS from April 2009:
In a few days, my wife, Johanna, and I will be leaving The Master’s College, Acton, Santa Clarita, and Southern California to return to Indianapolis to assist with in-home care of my elderly father and mother. We are so excited!! I will continue to work as a freelance composer, researcher, and writer on music, in addition to seeking a teaching position there. The Master’s College wholeheartedly supported me in this decision and sent me away very amiably with accolades, blessings, and prayers. I feel truly honored and grateful for the time I had there. Thank you, TMC, so much! Thank you, also, to all my students: you made me feel deeply loved and appreciated.

COMPOSITION NEWS:
On April 29, my Three Haiku for string sextet was premiered (performed twice) at the Music at Noon Concert at The Master’s College Recital Hall.

The previous Friday, April 24, the Women’s Chamber Choir at Master’s premiered my new work for them,Eulogetos.

Friday, January 16th, in Bremen, Germany, my piece for trombone solo, deplori, was premiered by Patrick Crossland. He performed it again in Freudenstadt on February 11 and 12.