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| VOX NOVUS NEWSLETTER - New Music for the 21st Century |
| > POSTCARD: Sticking It Out |
| > REVIEW: All in the Variety |
| > Composer's Voice - December Dance |
| Vox Novus Calendar |
| ANNOUNCEMENTS |
| Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame with Hayk Arsenyan |
| Fifteen Minutes of "Infamy" - Robert Dick |
| Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame with Andrew White |
| OPPORTUNITIES |
| > Composer Opportunites on Music Avatar |
Sticking it Out
Deependra Dinklaker had been concertmaster of the Hoosegow Symphony for 15 years, most of which had been good years. But of late, a tic had developed in Maestro Pringler’s right hand, rendering his batonwork erratic. On umpteen occasions, Pringler had poked Dinklaker with the baton, which the great conductor idiosyncratically kept as sharp as a tack. Nevertheless, for the good of the orchestra, the violinist vowed to “stick it out.” How ironic those word became when a particularly violent twitch from Pringler caused the baton to “stick out” of Dinklaker’s forehead during the fencing scene in Romeo and Juliet. The audience, of course, loved the extracurricular drama, but Deependra had had enough. Once the concert was over and his wound bandaged, he called it quits. No matter orchestra management in the person of the lovely Harriet Nosebob tried to dissuade him, Dinklaker was resolute. He was much less so after Harriet had explained that a toxin on the tip of the baton was now coursing through his bloodstream and could only be managed by a regimen of antibiotics that orchestra management was happy to provide. At the conclusion of each concert. For the next 15 contract-non-negotiable years. Oh, Deependra vowed revenge, but that’s, you know, another story. 
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All in the Variety
Composer's Voice, October 12, 2014 The October 12 Composer’s Voice concert at Jan Hus Church is a blend of conventional instrumentation with quirky ideas. With subject matter ranging from molecular physics to meteorology, from parenthood to legalese, the compositions take chamber music into challenging new directions. 
Starting the proceedings is the CV’s trademark “Fifteen Minutes of Fame” medley, selected and performed by Joe Drew on a double-valve trumpet, which allows him to veer between full-throated trumpet lines and more muted tones with the flick of a finger-switch on his horn. This makes for a multicolored mix, from the call-and-response phrases of “Stop Copying Me” by David Wolfson (curator of the afternoon’s concert) to the outwardly concentric echoes of Blair Whittington’s “Double Identity” to the bursts of trumpet flurries offset by distant reverberations in Nuno Maura’s “60 Seconds.” At the end of the sequence, Eric Knecktges’ “Spark” features a melodic dance between the two tones in a bumblebee blur, then gives way to Louis Sauter’s ironic closer “Prelude,” in which muted lines rise into a full-throated crescendo and then softly fade away. 
Kitty Brazelton is next up with her own composition, “Bird of My Heart,” which she introduces as being about her daughter. Against delicate and somber minor arpeggios on electric guitar by Hui Cox, she sings long and mournful vocal lines that evoke the yearning of a parent bidding farewell as a child leaves the nest. After a section of roiling guitar figures, the piece shifts into a rumination on future destinations tinged with memories of earlier times, finally ending on a piece of truth ambivalently expressed: “I know I need a change.” 
Laura Leon takes the piano for the next piece, “The Apian Way,” by Steven Rosenhaus. It begins with triplets that rollick along like the surface of a moving stream, then segues into a more contemplative middle section, wandering down and up and down the keyboard to settle into a lull; then it kicks into a springlike section with a dancing rhythmic flow, which brings earlier motifs full circle and ends on a harmonious major chord. As guest curator David Wolfson sits at the piano for his composition, “Two Songs from The Particles,” he explains that the particles in question are electrons and neutrons. With soprano Sara Paar on vocals, he commences with a lively piano cadence while she sings lyrics that seem to express the futility of scientific inquiry: “I have no idea where I’m going to…” with operatic drama. The second song is softer and more reflective, with soothing chords, a soaring melody, and lonely lyrics: “All my life I haven’t interacted much…I’m only passing by.” The active and passive particles thus delineated, the final thought is whimsical: “I just wanted to say, ‘Oh!’” A scientifically valid observation. Having explored science, we move on to legalities. Joshua Rosemblum’s “Facsimile for flute and lawyer” is aptly titled, with Elizabeth Mann on flute and Philip Schatz playing “attorney-at-law.” While the lawyer rehearses an official-sounding yet vapid spiel of legalese — “and hereinafter,” “a subsequent version of or pertaining to…” — the flutist joins in with counterpoints, starting with breathy flutterings and building to melodic scales and then aggressive blasts. Like combatants in a city apartment, the two engage in a call-and-response and a dancing interplay between phrases and notes. At one point the flute takes over with a soliloquy as the puzzled lawyer looks on; then he acquiesces: “If the glove doesn’t fit you must acquit.” Just as the pair seems locked in a stalemate, he suddenly shuts up, turns around, and picks up a trombone — joining her in a jazzy musical duet to finish the piece. If you can’t beat ’em, join ‘em. David Wolfson returns to the keys for Robinson McClellan’s “Keyboard Pieces.” The first part begins with a series of dreamy, descending arpeggios and builds into a bright, awakening resolution. The second piece is more introspective, with church-like pipe-organ chords and phrases offset by popping bass notes, unfolding like a painting of abstract watercolor splatters, then ending on a melancholy series of chords, as if a life has come peacefully to rest. Closing out the afternoon is “Pulse Timbre Weather Agents,” by Elizabeth Adams, performed by a quartet featuring Vita Wallace and Aaron Packard on violin; Kristen McKeod on saxophones; and Jen Baker on trombone. The piece begins with a series of long, foreboding chords that resemble a cross between the scary scene in a horror movie and winds in a dark forest. From there it gets more mysterious. The discord and intensity grow as the pitches increase, with a closing segment that hangs like a thick cloud. The performers smile as they bow. It’s an unexpected ending to an adventurous afternoon of music. You can find more as well as see and hear some of the performances at the following link: http://www.ComposersVoice.com/media/ 
Jack Crager |
Composer’s Voice - December DanceSunday, December 14, 2014 at 1:00 pmDecember Dance — This concert of live music and dance is being curated by David Morneau and Andrea Skurr. The musicians will share the stage space with the dancers, making this a fully integrated performance. Diego Vasquez (clarinet) will perform a special Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame with Andrea, who will be choreographing based on suggestions from the selected composers. With music and performances by Zach Herchen, Erin Rogers, Stine Moen, Brenna Palughi, Kristen McKeon, and Geoff Landman.
The Composer’s Voice Concert Series is a collaboration between Vox
Novus and Jan Hus Church. Performances are short chamber concerts held at Jan Hus Church and are an opportunity for
contemporary composers to express their aesthetic and personal voice.
Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame with Diego Vasquez and Andrea SkurrSunday, December 14, 2014 at 1:00 pm
Diego is currently in his final year as a graduate student in clarinet performance at Mannes College The New School for Music. He received his Bachelor’s of Music from Ithaca College, with a minor in dance. He has studied clarinet with Edward Cabarga, Richard Faria, Janet Hilton, Thomas Piercy, and Charles Neidich. Diego is currently a member of the Mannes American Contemporary Ensemble, under the direction of composer Lowell Lieberman, and performs regularly with Ensemble Mise-en, a downtown contemporary music ensemble. He has performed at venus such as Alice Tully Hall and Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall. Dance performances with Pearson Widrig Dance Theater, Peter Kyle, and sculptor Roland Gebhardt. Daydreamer and visionary at heart, Andrea Skurr has ushered dance into sacred spaces and ordinary places since 2003. A childhood of gymnastics and piano lessons paved the way for earning her BA in Dance and Music from University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. There she discovered movement as her best medium through which to communicate, express, and inspire. She has enjoyed working with several modern/aerial dance companies including MeCo, Time Lapse Dance, General Mischief and Above & Beyond Dance. She has performed at Baryshnikov Arts Center, Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, Streb’s SLAM, the JCC and Zipper Theater and across the country. In 2012, she was blessed to engage with Vertigo Dance Company's first international training program in Israel and afterwards traveled around the world researching the arts and connecting with people.
Works selected for this Fifteen Minutes of Fame include: |
Upcoming Performances |
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Announcing results for Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame with Hayk ArsenyanFifteen-Minutes-of-Fame: Hayk Arsenyan for piano solo is to be premiered on January 10th, 2015 at the Brand Library & Art Center in Glendale, California. New York based pianist-composer Hayk Arsenyan, a native of Armenia, has appeared in numerous recitals in USA, Armenia, Russia, France, Italy, Spain, Canary Islands, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Argentina, Uruguay, Syria, and Lebanon. His performance venues have included Carnegie Hall (New York), Palaisd'UNESCO and Salle Cortot (Paris), Tchaikovsky Concert Hall (Moscow), "Petranka" House-Museum of Mozart (Prague), Auditorio de Miguel Delibes (Valladolid), Dar-Al-Assad Opera House (Damascus), and appearances at the Dame Myra Hess Concert Series in Chicago and the Phillips Collection Concert Series in Washington DC. At the age of 11 Mr. Arsenyan made his orchestral debut with the Armenian State Philharmonic Orchestra performing his own Requiem for the piano and orchestra, and at the age of 17, he made his European orchestral debut as a soloist with the Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra, where he was awarded a platinum medal by the City of Paris. Mr. Arsenyan’s concert repertoire is diverse and encompasses works from early Baroque to New Music. An avid chamber musician and collaborator outside of the classical music stage, he constantly strives to explore various experimental projects with Dance, Drama and Visual Arts, such as the “Visual Landscapes” multi-media project of all Alan Hovhaness piano works, which was The New York Times’ pick of the week in May 2011, and was reviewed as “…One of the coolest events in NYC to go to.” Currently Mr. Arsenyan teaches at New York University Tisch School of the Arts. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Iowa and a Master’s degree from the Gnessin Music Academy in Moscow. In 2007 he was awarded the full-tuition Yevgeny Kissin Award for the Professional-Studies performance program at Manhattan School of Music. Mr. Arsenyan also studied the piano in Paris at ÉcoleNormaleSupérieure de Musique de Paris Alfred Cortot and the Conservatoire National de Region D'Aubervillier La-Courneuve. He is a scholar of Iberian Early Music and has compiled a Performance Guide to Three Keyboard Sonatas of Antonio Soler as a part of his Doctoral Dissertation, published by the University of Iowa Press. In 1993 Mr. Arsenyan became a member of the French Society of Authors and Composers (SACEM) and two collections of his original works were published in Paris. Several of his original works have been choreographed by the dance departments of the University of Iowa and New York University. Mr. Arsenyan is also a member of the Ararat International Academy of Sciences in Paris and serves as the Academy’s representative in New York. Mr. Arsenyan is the director of the Performing Arts Department at the Armenian General Benevolent Union headquartered in New York City.
Works selected for this Fifteen Minutes of Fame include:
You can find more information here |
Announcing results for Fifteen Minutes of "Infamy" - Robert Dick - extended fluteThe flutist Robert Dick utilizing extended flute technique from his book the "Other flute". The 15 selected works will be presented on the Composer's Voice concert series January 25, 2015 in New York City. The one-minute pieces are to be written specifically for this project, which will be premiered by Robert Dick. "Dick held the audience in rapt attention with his spellbinding virtuosity" - Washington Post "There are few musicians that are truly revolutionary. Robert Dick is one of them." - Bill Shoemaker, JazzTimes "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...................." - Dizzy Gillespie With equally deep roots in classical music old and new and in free improvisation and new jazz, Robert Dick has established himself as an artist who has not only mastered, but redefined the flute. Known worldwide for creating revolutionary visions of the flute's musical role, listening to Robert Dick play solo has been likened to the experience of hearing a full orchestra. His performances typically include flute (with his invention, the Glissando HeadjointR)piccolo, alto flute, and bass flutes in C and F. On special occasions, he'll bring out the giant, stand-up contrabass flute. http://www.robertdick.net
Works selected for this Fifteen Minutes of Fame include:
You can find more information here |
Announcing results for Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame with Andrew WhiteFifteen-Minutes-of-Fame: Andrew White to be premiered on February 8, 2015 for the Composer’s Voice concert Series at the Jan Hus Church in New York City. Dr. Andrew White currently serves on the voice faculty of the University of Nebraska at Kearney. He holds a Bachelors and a Masters Degree, as well as an Artist Diploma and Doctorate from The Cleveland Institute of Music/Case Western Reserve University. Previous faculty positions include Indiana University of Pennsylvania, The University of Akron, Hiram College, Lake Erie College, Baldwin-Wallace College Conservatory of Music, and Ashland University. In 1995 he made his New York debut in Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in a program devoted to the songs of Frederick Koch with the composer at the piano. Ken Smith of New York Concert Review hailed Andrew White as "…a formidable interpreter… Every song composer should be so lucky with collaborators."
Works selected for this Fifteen Minutes of Fame include:
You can find more information here |
Opportunities on Music Avatar
Opportunities
Music Avatar is a great new way to upload works for composer opportunities hassle free! You will be able to submit, update, and modify your submission all the way up to the deadline date of the opportunity. www.MusicAvatar.org |
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