Mad Music 2 with Jeremy Podgursky

Derek is back with Mad Music Part 2. Here he talks with composer Jeremy Podgursky immediately following his first read-through of Our Bliss, it Comes in Waves. Check it out...

after the first reading

No train-wrecks, thankfully, but lots of rhythmic issues, all my fault. David Gier was patient and quickly worked through untangling those knots. We lost a good 10 minutes on issues that could have been resolved had I been more careful with simplifying my rhythmic notation, but once the CSO grasped what I intended, they rocked hard.


-Yotam Haber

caption:
1. Delta David Gier conducting the Colorado Symphony Orchestra.

Thoughts from Ed Harsh...

We're lucky to have Ed Harsh, president of Meet The Composer, with us for these readings. Aside from giving time for individual consultations with each of the particiapnt composers in this reading, he's also tweeting about his experience hearing each of these new works as they roar through the hall. You can follow him here: http://twitter.com/MeetTheComposer
Or follow our hashtag for the event: #ESCOread

Here are a few of his reactions from hearing Jeremy Podgursky's Our Bliss, It Comes in Waves conducted by Delta David Gier:

-Pungent brass and bell scrambles vs. silences. Sustained strings transmute to smears of sliding color
-Shimmer and scramble again, two restrained roars. Chroma and economy
-Delta David Gier on podium: an image of assurance and commitment. Attending to details, elegantly bringing out the music

20 minutes before go-time

Just heard Jeremy, Tim, and Angel's pieces read -- all were incredible, diverse, and beautifully (actually, miraculously) read by the CSO. Now we are on a 20 minute break and then it's my turn before the firing squad.

-Yotam Haber





caption:
1. fellow composer Jeremy Podgursky looks over Yotam's score Forward Ornament as the orchestra prepares to read it for the first time.

Mad Music! Part 1

Minutes before the first reading, Derek Bermel talks with composer Tim Sullivan and conductor Fergus Macleod about the preparations before heading into day 1 of the readings session...

And Away We Go...

It has actually started. After many long flights and grappling with time changes and altitude (this is the mile-high city after all...) I'm sitting in Boettcher Concert Hall listening to the orchestra's first pass through of Angel Lam's piece In Search of Seasons. Aside from the fact that the music unfolding is delicate, sensitive, and just plain lovely to hear, there is a palpable energy in the air. The musicians, the composers, all focusd on this very concentrated moment, the first stab at a new work.
Imagine what it felt like the first time Mahler threw a downbeat on his first "Titan" Symphony. Or the moment when Beethoven first heard three brash E-flat major chords blared out by an orchestra as he gave a sucker-punch to the symphonic world. Or better yet, don't. Come by tomorrow morning and hear and feel it for yourself. There is an undeniable energy to the first run-through of a new work... a terror, a joy... let's face it, it's just pretty darn cool.

-John Glover, Ops Manager

caption:
1. Delta David Gier leads the Colorado Symphony Orchestra.

You Can't Miss the Bear

Well, here we are. Finally in Denver for the readings! After arriving last night, I've been spending the morning working with the folks at the Colorado Symphony and preparing for everyone's arrival. It is sort of wonderful how many different folks are descending on Denver today. All of the composers (both our young participants and the mentor composers who will be giving them critiques and guidance throughout the three days), industry folks like Ed Harsh from Meet the Composer and Michael Geller from ACO/EarShot, conductors David Gier and Fergus Macleod, and of course there are all of the hard working people here at the CSO who have so generously taken part in this reading. And then of course there are the students and new music enthusiasts in the area who are coming out of the woodwork to observe a seminar this evening and also the public readings on Friday morning at the concert hall downtown.

While I was trying to find my way to the performing arts complex (which is so fantastic) from my hotel, I got directions from a few folks. The consistent bit of information was "You can't miss the bear..." Indeed. On my way to the hall, walking down 14th street, I passed what might be my favorite piece of public art ever. I suppose he's holding up the convention center?

Looking forward to three terrific days!

-John Glover

Looking Forward to the Readings

I'm in Milwaukee, WI, visiting family for the last four days, spending every moment I can submerged in cool Lake Michigan. I Flew in from Rome, Italy, where I'm living now, on July 10th, and am flying to Denver tomorrow morning. After reading the blog posts from my fellow composers invited for the readings, I am relieved to hear that I'm not the only one that has nightmares about part extraction and the spectacular train wrecks that could happen....
I wrote this piece in May 2009, at the MacDowell Colony. I had just started reading Italo Calvino's fascinating American Lessons - the Norton Lectures that he wrote for Harvard - and was inspired to begin a series of works based on each of the lectures, which I believe are universal, not just for writers.
For me, the most nerve-wracking part of launching a piece into the world is the first time I hear musicians rehearse it. Sometimes performers don't like to have a composer present at a first rehearsal, and I completely empathize. It's very difficult to make sense of a fresh score, never played before.
What is a modern, major orchestra like, I ask myself. Is there still a sense of the old totalitarian regime that once reigned under Toscanini? If the 4th desk second violin player has a problem, does he whisper it to the 1st desk 2nd violin, who whispers it to the concertmaster, who gingerly asks the conductor? What will happen if I want to say something to the orchestra? Will I be able to?
I know I won't sleep tonight, nervous and excited for the adventure to come. I'll see you all in Denver!
Thank you to all the hardworkin', fantastic folks at ACO and in Colorado who have made this amazing event possible -- I am really honored to have been selected.

-Yotam

The new work

I'm honored to be able to take part in the EarShot Colorado Symphony Orchestra Reading. This is a very exciting opportunity because I cannot wait to hear this piece come alive.

This work has many meaningful memories for me, and it was a joy to complete this work as I reminisce on the beauty of seasonal changes and the unforgettable events and people that are associated with these seasons. Here are my original inspirations behind the work:

"I was born in Hong Kong and moved to Huntington Beach, California as a child. Strictly speaking, these two cities never gave me any true feelings of the seasons. Recently, I had the opportunity to further my graduate studies in the American Northeast. There, I finally experienced the real delight of seasonal changes.

Should I tell you some of my favorites?

Winter is always a mystery. Star-shaped, diamond-shaped and square-shaped snowflakes fly like mist in the red sky; they explode into a wild dance in the silent air. The long stormy nights often send me into deep thoughts. The most memorable moment is closing the door to the harsh cold world behind me and being embraced by the warmth of home. The joy is beyond what words can describe.

The end of winter is marked by the first roar of thunder from the distant sky. It is Spring's thunder--her awakening call. Suddenly the earth cracks and splits, the whole world turns into a running fragrant stream. We must hurry, the wonders of the world are waiting for our discovery.

In autumn, trees one by one catch on a fiery red. The sky is crisp and the air is light. I like to take a break while the northern wind is still friendly, to travel into the mountains looking for bears.

Summer is most mesmerizing. I lay in nature's never-ending greens while I watch the afternoon sun shine through the leaves. The southern breeze massages my lazy soul and I slowly drift into a dream. I would spoil myself and nap until the street lamps light. I love summer long.

As time goes by, I begin to understand more about the seasons. Seasonal change is a witness to our lives. The more splendid the scenery, the more romantic the atmosphere, the more details you know of their stories, the easier you feel lonely. We desperately need someone with whom to share and witness these beautiful moments together.

Occasionally, I come back to Hong Kong. It is busy, noisy and crowded, as always. However, the nature of this city keeps me high-spirited.

During these years, Hong Kong has changed a bit, somewhat, somehow. She has added to herself a firework season – firework festival every night at the harbor.

If you are planning to enjoy the fireworks tonight, don't forget to bring along that special someone, somebody to share the joy of the season with you – to be a witness to the glory in your life.

Have you found your favorite season yet?"

Hey everybody-

We're very excited to welcome you to the Earshot readings in Colorado! It was inspiring to see so many great scores submitted; it's a shame they can't all be part of the readings. But we're very excited to hear these new works come to life, and we're all looking forward to two days of intense music-making and compositional growth.

Derek Bermel