Hello!
I’ve been working so much lately on new projects that I haven’t taken the time to fill you in on what they are! 2018 has been a super busy year so far with music and yoga projects filling my days and nights (and weekends!) Here’s a little bit of what I’ve been up to:
Cool Commissions and performances:
I’ve been really enjoying writing for a variety of ensembles, and am always impressed and honored to be a part of great projects. In particular I’m pretty excited about the LunART Festival this summer where I’ll be the composer in residence. I get to visit Madison, WI (never been!) and hear a bunch of performances of my works, work with emerging composers in the “From Page to Stage” workshop, give some talks, and be a part of this inaugural season of this festival that celebrates women in the arts. My friends Iva Ugrcic and Laura Medisky are planning the whole thing, and these women deserve a serious round of applause for what promises to be an incredible three days of music and art. I’ll have a premiere here along with other performances of my works – my work “The Great Sand Dunes” for flute and marimba tells the stories of the Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado. You should come join me in Madison June 28-30, 2018 for this great festival!
Steven Cohen, a New York City based horn player, commissioned me to write a new work for horn and piano for him to record and premiere this summer. He’s put together an entire project of American composers that he’ll record and then premiere during the International Horn Symposium this summer. It’s been really fun to write for the horn – I wrote a horn choir piece for premiere during another IHS festival in Ithaca (The Great Sea) and I’ve enjoyed getting to discover the beauty of the horn through writing this new work for Steven. Stay tuned for more info on CD release soon!
My friend Katherine Powers is the director of vocal arts at the California School of the Arts – San Gabriel. This is their inaugural year as a school, and they wanted to commission a new work for their SATB choir to premiere. I got to work with Ryan Brown and his lovely choir to write “Two Immigrants” for SATB, cello, and piano. It was an extra special project because it was commissioned for the choir by Theresa Patzakis who wanted to tell the story of her Greek parents and their families coming to Ellis Island to start a new life in America. The poetry was written by Maya Porcelli, a ninth grader at the school, and I am super impressed with this young woman’s ability to capture a story with her words. Premiere took place at the end of March – I got to go and hear the choir and enjoy being a part of this inaugural season!
Upcoming projects:
I have three big upcoming projects that will keep me busy through the beginning of 2019. I’ll tell you more about those next time, but I’ll tell you that I’m working with the Akropolis Quintet and Christin Schillinger on a bassoon concerto and Darrel Hale on a work for bassoon, mezzo-soprano, and harp. I’ll also be writing 45 minutes of a new opera based on life of Paderewski with my dear friend librettist Oliver Mayer. We were chosen to develop our 15 minute treatment from a competition last year (check out this link to learn more). I’m SO excited to develop this project further, and I’ll have more on that soon.
Yoga-ing: I teach a bunch of great classes in the Long Beach area, including prenatal yoga! If you ever want to geek out about yoga with me, let’s be in touch! I love talking anatomy, posture and alignment, love designing workshops and classes to fit groups and individuals. Check out my other favorite project Bloom Yoga!
Okay! Next time I’ll talk a bit about time organization and how I’m trying to keep everything on track. In the meantime, drop me a note, let me know what you are doing, and check out my current works and recordings!
Musically yours,
Jenni