Category Archives: Concerts
Myths and Legends: the Video
Jared Starr recently sent me the video recording of his performance. Check it out below:
In other news, I’ve just started in on a new string quartet. Details forthcoming . . .
Myths and Legends Premiered Tonight
Jared and the orchestra did really well and gave a performance that was filled with life and energy. In addition, it was a great concert all around, with pieces by C.P.E. Bach, Stravinsky, and Haydn. Afterward, I got to have a picture with some key players in the premiere.
Thanks as well to everyone who came! While I was excited to hear the piece, I even more excited to share this moment with you.
Stephen Jones (my teacher), me, Jared Starr (soloist), Kory Katseanes (conductor)
Field Guide Premieres in Utah
Less than a week after the successful premiere of my Clarinet Sonata (Kudos to Jaren Hinckley and Jed Moss! It was an electrifying performance!), A Field Guide to Natural History just received its Utah premiere this past week as part of BYU’s Group for New Music concerts. For those who weren’t there or who want to relive the experience, you now can in image . . .
An editor would use a red pencil as a baton. (Photo courtesy: Steve Ricks)
. . . and in sound:
Many thanks to the performers, Eric Hansen, Ray Smith, Scott Holden, and Ron Brough (whose head is hidden behind a music stand) and, of course, to the Barlow Endowment for making the night possible! As with the Clarinet Sonata, it was another great performance.
In other news, the BYU Chamber Orchestra recently began rehearsals of my still nameless violin concerto. Name suggestions are most welcome.
Countdown to San Francisco: 14 days
About a year ago, Eric Hansen and I talked about my writing him a chamber piece with the tentative title Book of Imaginary Beings. One year and a Barlow commission later, we held our first rehearsal of the piece—now titled A Field Guide to Natural History—in E251 of the Harris Fine Arts Center. The piece premieres two weeks from today at the 2011 convention of the International Society of Bassists in San Francisco.
Before I report on the awesome work Eric Hansen and the gang are up to, I thought I’d post some facts on the work itself and the compositional process.
By the numbers—
- 4 composers with whom I had lessons about the piece: Julian Anderson, Mark Applebaum, Stephen Jones, and Neil Thornock
- 4 parts, namely saxophone, bass, piano, and percussion
- 8 months, the time I spent working on it
- 9 “deleted scenes”—or rather, movements that didn’t make the final cut
- 10 movements in its final version
- 13 percussion instruments used, namely agogo bells, 2 bongos, glockenspiel, suspended cymbal, tam-tam, 3 tom-toms, triangle, vibraphone, and 2 wood blocks
- 20 minutes, the approximate duration of the piece
- 31 pages, the length of the score
- 43, the number of alternate titles I tried
The cover image for the score comes from E.H. Aitken’s 1905 book, A Naturalist on the Prowl.
More Trivia—
- The saxophone part was intended for Skyler Murray, who had asked me to write a piece for him after hearing my Clarinet Sonata. When Bill Gates nabbed Skyler for a summer internship, Dave Kjar jumped in to play the part instead.
- The eight months it took to write Field Guide are the longest uninterrupted stretch of time I’ve spent on a single composition. Although my Clarinet Sonata took longer, I took breaks between writing its movements whereas I didn’t in writing Field Guide.
- To date, this has been my most difficult piece for me to write. Part of the challenge stemmed from the ensemble. Although sax, bass, piano, and percussion lend themselves well to jazz writing, in a more classical context, these instruments are an unwieldy combination just to create a sense of ensemble unity. The combination also doesn’t do well with a linear musical narrative (e.g., Mozart), so instead I had to fill the twenty minute span with nearly fifty jump cuts between blocks of material (e.g., Stravinsky).
To be continued . . .
Twice in One Night
In case you haven’t been following my concert schedule (though that’s silly—of course you have!), the next six days will feature four performances of my music, including one night, Friday, when I have two performances. If you’re here in Utah, you have no excuse not to see one of these shows. They’re going to be great! So . . .
Tonight and Tomorrow (March 31 and April 1), BYU’s Contemporary Dance Theatre is putting on its “New Works New Voices” concert featuring choreography by Annie Garlick to my recent piano trio, “Gorre and Daphetid.” She’s created a powerful dance, “Reaching the Threshold,” that responds to the sadness of when one is helpless while loved ones suffer. The rest of the evening will be fabulous as well. Show starts at 7.30 pm at the BYU Richards Building Dance Studio Theatre. Tickets are $6; you can order them here. Also check out the article in the Daily Herald.
. . . But, as promised, there’s more!
Tomorrow and Tuesday (April 1 and April 5), Tara Hill and Mark Witmer will be premiering the first movement of my Clarinet Sonata. Tomorrow night’s performance is part of Tara’s senior recital. She’s assembled an exciting program that, in addition to my piece, features composers as far flung as Max Bruch, Elliott Carter, and Bela Kovacs. The concert starts at 9.30 pm in BYU’s Madsen Recital Hal, leaving you plenty of time to see “New Works New Voices” beforehand. Oh, and it’s free.
Finally, for those who will miss this weekend’s performances, as stated Tara Hill and Mark Witmer will be reprising their performance for the BYU Student Composers Recital on April 5. The concert starts at 7.30, is free, and will be followed by refreshments and witty banter.
I hope you all can make it to at least one of these concerts to see some really great music and dance!
