News
Entertainment
Science & Technology
Life
Culture & Art
Hobbies
News
Entertainment
Science & Technology
Culture & Art
Hobbies
5 Questions to Arlene and Larry Dunn
In a 2023 concert review of the International Contemporary Ensemble featuring composer-performer Douglas R. Ewart, New York Times reporter Seth Colter Walls wondered how things would be different if Black artists like Ewart had regular opportunities to be treated like a headliner: presented as a mu...
In Remembrance of Patricia Martinez
I first encountered the music of Patricia Martinez (1973-2022) about ten years ago while searching for repertoire for my ensemble. I felt immediately taken by her music and intrigued by her life path, moving comfortably between very different music scenes in South and North America and Europe.
5 Questions to Augusta Read Thomas (composer)
As we approach Augusta Read Thomas’ 60th birthday, my memories of her visit to our undergrad composition seminar shortly before her 50th birthday are still quite clear – and it’s that fond, joyful kind of clarity: after all, the ebullience of her physical presence, her intelligence and sense o...
At the Sun Ra/ El Saturn Archive, the Iconic Bandleader's Legacy is Living Inspiration
In 2000, writer, curator, and collector John Corbett found himself on his hands and knees digging through stacks of ephemera inside the home of Alton Abraham, the founder of El Saturn Records and the manager of Sun Ra.
ListN Up Playlist: Lauren McCall (April 18, 2024)
ListN Up is a series of artist-curated playlists that offer an intimate sonic portrait of contemporary artists by showcasing the diverse and stylistically varied music that influences their creative practice. Lauren McCall is a composer, music technologist, and educator from Atlanta, Georgia.
In Enigmatic Debut Album, Composer James Díaz Recasts Violin as Electronic Instrument
Picture an electrically charged violin that buzzes and swells as it rotates inside a compressed magnetic field. Enhanced by electronics, the acoustic instrument bustles with kinetic energy, despite being confined to a narrow enclosure.
5 Questions to Samantha Rose Williams (singer and creative producer, "American Patriots")
Samantha Rose Williams is the creative producer of American Patriots, a new song-cycle that probes American identity. A mezzo-soprano and producer from New Haven, CT, Williams has workshopped the song-cycle with the Salina Symphony, Virginia Theological Seminary, and as part of Renegade Opera's Arti...
Pamela Z and D-Composed Foreground the Breadth of Black Artistry at Merkin Hall
Pamela Z is generous as both an artist and a teacher. The first time I saw her perform live was in 2018 when I was an undergraduate at Spelman College. Even then, I was struck by how her influence spans decades, yet her sound is still as unique and unparalleled as it was in the 80s.
Anatomy of a Commission: Rethinking Composer-Ensemble Commissions from a Visual Artist Perspective
Designed for both music creators and their collaborators, “Anatomy of a Commission” is a digital resource that aims to increase transparency about the commissioning process. For more information about the initiative, visit American Composers Forum’s website.
In "Plastiglomerates," Jess Rowland Tries to Break AI with Unexpected Musical Fusions
In her website bio, sound artist, musician, and composer Jess Rowland describes her music as being concerned with “the relationship between technologies and popular culture, continually aiming to reconcile the world of art and the world of science.
The Black Opera Project Reminds Us That Opera is a Tool to Tell New Stories
In July 2022, I reviewed Fierce for I CARE IF YOU LISTEN. The commission by Cincinnati Opera featured music by William Menefield and a libretto by novelist Sheila Williams, centered on the worries and dreams of four teen girls prepping their college entrance essays. It was a very non-opera story – or more accurately, a story I didn’t expect to see told through the medium of opera.
innova Recordings Announces Eight Projects from Fall 2023 Call
innova Recordings is pleased to announce the fourth collection of recording projects selected through its new business model. These artists illustrate the breadth and depth of artistry in the world today, with projects featuring electroacoustic improvisers, avant-garde bands, singer-songwriters, and...
MIZU Maps Terra Incognita on “Forest Scenes”
MIZU is an artist who knows how to distill the mosaic process of defining oneself. On her debut record, Distant Intervals (2023), the Brooklyn-based cellist (fka Issei Herr) navigated her gender transition while shifting from a frustrating, classically-focused practice to one that embraces agency v...
Video Premiere : Ashley Jackson Performers Daniel Temkin's "Circles"
The music of Daniel Temkin is a reminder that aural and visual expressivity are a powerful combination. This is clear in the Four/Ten Media video for “Circles,” featuring harpist Ashley Jackson and dancers Allie Gee and Nathaniel Hunt.
On "Akoma," Jlin Fuses Technical Precision with Boundless Imagination
Math and music are often said to be related, but for composer and producer Jlin, they’re inseparable. “Composition, for me, is like one big proof,” she told me in our recent interview. “I have all the answers, but I have to figure out what the question is.
Ekmeles' Sophomore Album is a Striking Display of Technique and Wild Experimentation
We Live the Opposite Daring, the sophomore album from the New York-based vocal sextet Ekmeles, is immediately magnificent. Released Feb. 16 on New Focus Recordings, the album is a tour de force in contemporary vocal music, featuring a massive variety of techniques, approaches, and styles, while neve...
Where Do We Find Resilience? The Practice of Persevering - I CARE IF YOU LISTEN
There are views you don’t forget: that first, perfect glimpse to the other side of a mountain pass; canyons closing in around you as you descend through tighter and tighter slots; paddling out through mountains of rising waves and churning, powerful, writhing salt water all around you.
TAK Ensemble and Jessie Cox Bring Earsplitting, Incisive Program to Brooklyn
Content warning: this review contains discussion of racial violence The Center for Performance Research (CPR) was awash in peachy-pink lighting as TAK Ensemble’s violinist Marina Kifferstein warned us that the two pieces we were about to experience would get uncomfortably loud; there were earplug...
Composer Mary Kouyoumdjian Meets Discomfort with Empathy
In one of my favorite photos of composer and documentarian Mary Kouyoumdjian, she is seated on a stool, leaning slightly forward, palm extended, a recording device in hand. To me, this image perfectly summarizes her essence: first and foremost, she is an open and empathetic listener.
5 Questions to Alex Paxton (composer, improvising trombonist)
As listeners, we often tend to organize artists into specific tropes and categorize their music as having a distinct “sound.” Just as we’re able to identify if it’s Katy Perry or Lana del Ray on the radio, our ears can readily identify motifs, pairings of instruments, or distinct harmonic st...