Ossia
Spring Break was fun for one reason - Ossia!!! As the winner of the 2nd International Ossia Prize, I was taken care of very well by the folks at Eastman, and encountered people who have forever changed my life, as well as some old friends.
After months of correspondence with Matt and Baljinder, it was great to finally meet them in person. Baljinder was extremely courteous, and bent over backwards to make sure me and the other guest composer enjoyed our time in Rochester. The city itself was a bit freightening, especially after hearing about the poverty and crime level, coupled with a recent mugging of one of the composition students. This inevitably made me fear leaving my hotel room at night. Luckily nothing of that nature happened to me or anyone around me while I was there.
The first day, I attended a lecture given by David Liptak. For some, he is a rather important figure. I had the opportunity to perform one of his pieces at Boston University - Commedia for violin, clarinet, and piano. I was surprised to find out that he was pleased with the performance, and still remembered me from 3 years ago! In the lecture, he played some of his short repertoire of vocal works. He mentioned that he previously worked with Mary Nessinger, and that sent my heart reeling. But my heart started doing backflips when I realized that Tony Arnold was to perform his latest piece in that seminar! She sang magnificently as Zuza accompanied her with the piano reduction of the wind ensemble part. After the lecture, I spoke with Ms. Arnold, mentioned some people we have in common, and she immediately suggested that I sign up for a time to meet with her, which is what I did, and the meeting was extraordinarily informative and soul-pleasing. Yes, I now have a crush on Tony Arnold.
After the lecture, I practiced a bit, then had some food with the genius conductor Matt Barber. Afterwards, Baljinder showed up, and we headed to the rehearsal. The musicians were obviously talented and well-prepared, and I had very little to say about the piece!
The next day brought a lovely breakfast, where I met the other guest composer, who flew in from Spain with his lovely wife, Blanca. Their english was only a notch better than my Spanish, so we had some interesting attempts at conversation, all with good intentions. I was off on my own to practice, then shower and change before the big premiere. The dress rehearsal went well, as expected, and that left me to wait for the performance.
One of the first faces that lovingly welcomed me was Andrew, a good friend from BU. He sat next to me during the concert. The evening started with a Birtwhistle piece for soprano and string quartet - rather tame for Birtwhistle, but uniquely belonging to the English avant garde, and more specifically to the Manchester School. This was followed by a muscular performance of Nono's "...sofferte onde serene ...", a work for piano and electronics that mimics the bells from a small town in Italy. It is one of Nono's most important, pivotal works, and the performance was well-executed with dilligence and enthusiasm. After an intermission came Daniel Tacke's "Die Nacht war kalt." Tacke, a grad student in California, was one of the honorable mentions for the Composition Competition, but he did not attend the performance. His piece was delicate and lovely. Next came Souto's "En Suspenso", a rigourous, technically demanding, brilliant work. The ensemble did work hard throughout, and the work paid off. The piece was excellently handled, and under the hands of Matt, the structure popped lucidly into view. The musicians handled the multiphonics with great musicality, and the percussionist's scary "just on time" entrances were fascinating!
The evening ended with my work, 3 Groups. A big change from "En Suspenso" (as well as the rest of the works on the program, for that matter), the ensemble really put in the extra performance synergy this evening. The pianissimos were as delicate and gentle as butterflies. The melding and transitions were skillful and seamless. The extended techniques were music rather than effects - the ensemble really proved to the audience that they knew what they were doing, and that they were intimate with the work. It was received well, and I was very honored by the many positive comments I received, as well as the admiration from Dr. Liptak. Afterwards, Andrew, Baljinder, Matt and his wife, Ramon and Blanca, Scott, Paul, and some others went out to eat, and I had some of the best hot wings ever!
The next day was parting day. I hung out with my new friends, and with my good friend Andrew, practiced, saw a bit of the Marriage of Figaro in rehearsal, and basked in the positive energy of Eastman University. I now miss Kilbourn Hall and the beauty of the school, the talent of the musicians, and of course Andrew, Dr. Liptak, Tony Arnold, and my new friends. I have the feeling, however, that we'll all keep in touch and try to do some work together in the future!
Yay!
After months of correspondence with Matt and Baljinder, it was great to finally meet them in person. Baljinder was extremely courteous, and bent over backwards to make sure me and the other guest composer enjoyed our time in Rochester. The city itself was a bit freightening, especially after hearing about the poverty and crime level, coupled with a recent mugging of one of the composition students. This inevitably made me fear leaving my hotel room at night. Luckily nothing of that nature happened to me or anyone around me while I was there.
The first day, I attended a lecture given by David Liptak. For some, he is a rather important figure. I had the opportunity to perform one of his pieces at Boston University - Commedia for violin, clarinet, and piano. I was surprised to find out that he was pleased with the performance, and still remembered me from 3 years ago! In the lecture, he played some of his short repertoire of vocal works. He mentioned that he previously worked with Mary Nessinger, and that sent my heart reeling. But my heart started doing backflips when I realized that Tony Arnold was to perform his latest piece in that seminar! She sang magnificently as Zuza accompanied her with the piano reduction of the wind ensemble part. After the lecture, I spoke with Ms. Arnold, mentioned some people we have in common, and she immediately suggested that I sign up for a time to meet with her, which is what I did, and the meeting was extraordinarily informative and soul-pleasing. Yes, I now have a crush on Tony Arnold.
After the lecture, I practiced a bit, then had some food with the genius conductor Matt Barber. Afterwards, Baljinder showed up, and we headed to the rehearsal. The musicians were obviously talented and well-prepared, and I had very little to say about the piece!
The next day brought a lovely breakfast, where I met the other guest composer, who flew in from Spain with his lovely wife, Blanca. Their english was only a notch better than my Spanish, so we had some interesting attempts at conversation, all with good intentions. I was off on my own to practice, then shower and change before the big premiere. The dress rehearsal went well, as expected, and that left me to wait for the performance.
One of the first faces that lovingly welcomed me was Andrew, a good friend from BU. He sat next to me during the concert. The evening started with a Birtwhistle piece for soprano and string quartet - rather tame for Birtwhistle, but uniquely belonging to the English avant garde, and more specifically to the Manchester School. This was followed by a muscular performance of Nono's "...sofferte onde serene ...", a work for piano and electronics that mimics the bells from a small town in Italy. It is one of Nono's most important, pivotal works, and the performance was well-executed with dilligence and enthusiasm. After an intermission came Daniel Tacke's "Die Nacht war kalt." Tacke, a grad student in California, was one of the honorable mentions for the Composition Competition, but he did not attend the performance. His piece was delicate and lovely. Next came Souto's "En Suspenso", a rigourous, technically demanding, brilliant work. The ensemble did work hard throughout, and the work paid off. The piece was excellently handled, and under the hands of Matt, the structure popped lucidly into view. The musicians handled the multiphonics with great musicality, and the percussionist's scary "just on time" entrances were fascinating!
The evening ended with my work, 3 Groups. A big change from "En Suspenso" (as well as the rest of the works on the program, for that matter), the ensemble really put in the extra performance synergy this evening. The pianissimos were as delicate and gentle as butterflies. The melding and transitions were skillful and seamless. The extended techniques were music rather than effects - the ensemble really proved to the audience that they knew what they were doing, and that they were intimate with the work. It was received well, and I was very honored by the many positive comments I received, as well as the admiration from Dr. Liptak. Afterwards, Andrew, Baljinder, Matt and his wife, Ramon and Blanca, Scott, Paul, and some others went out to eat, and I had some of the best hot wings ever!
The next day was parting day. I hung out with my new friends, and with my good friend Andrew, practiced, saw a bit of the Marriage of Figaro in rehearsal, and basked in the positive energy of Eastman University. I now miss Kilbourn Hall and the beauty of the school, the talent of the musicians, and of course Andrew, Dr. Liptak, Tony Arnold, and my new friends. I have the feeling, however, that we'll all keep in touch and try to do some work together in the future!
Yay!
posted by Anthony Green at 7.4.09
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