Catalog

A is for Azimuth and Arnica, for found objects and found texts, is a collection of six activities, written for San Francisco-based percussionist Chris Froh, with additional versions by Yarn/Wire members Ian Antonio and Russell Greenberg, and for Geneva Prize winner Aiyun Huang. The title of the second work, Mediations, Tenors, a duo for marimba with metal and vibraphone with wood, refers to the psalm-tone recitation formula of medieval chant. The work of Ben Carson, Associate Professor of Music at the University of California, Santa Cruz, has been recognized at numerous and international festivals of new chamber music, experimental music, and improvisation.

This recording of world premieres commissioned and performed by the Texas Christian University Percussion Ensemble is highlighted by Eric Ewazen's Symphony for Percussion Ñ a joyful celebration of the world of percussion with its kaleidoscope of colors and expressive possibilities. Conductor Brian A. West has developed a percussion program at TCU that is recognized for excellence in performance and education. Under his leadership, the TCU Percussion Ensemble has twice won the Percussive Arts Society International Percussion Ensemble Competition. A fascinating exploration of new works for percussion ensemble.

The Moores School Percussion Ensemble serves as the cornerstone of the Department of Percussion Studies at the University of Houston. Directed by Dr. Blake M. Wilkins and established in 1997, the ensemble's selection as a winner in the 2003 Percussive Arts Society International Percussion Ensemble Competition and its appearance at the 2003 Percussive Arts Society International Convention distinguished the ensemble as a premier collegiate percussion ensemble. Winning the competition again in 2006 marked the ensemble's second such success in consecutive opportunities, and its selection once again in 2010 solidified its reputation internationally as a leader in percussion performance. The ensemble has also emerged as a leader in the advancement of new music for the medium. In the fall of 2002, the Moores School Percussion Ensemble initiated a commissioning project to encourage new works for large percussion ensemble. Since the inception of this project, the ensemble has commissioned twelve major works from such composers as Donald Grantham, Pierre Jalbert, Rob Smith, Marcus Karl Maroney, and David Heuser. Their third recording on Albany Records includes a selection of superlative new works for percussion ensemble that surround the classic Ionisation by Edgard Varèse.

This recording is a tribute to composer-percussionist Michael Manion (1952-2012). Manion suffered a disabling stroke in 2009 and a concert in his honor was presented by the University of Illinois Percussion Ensemble directed by William Moersch, including the premiere of Robert Fleisher’s Maniondala, originally composed for Mr. Manion. The broad spectrum of percussion music here, written between 1927 and 2009, includes some of the earliest percussion ensemble compositions—by Alexander Tcherepnin, Amadeo Roldán, Henry Cowell, Shostakovich, and John Cage & Lou Harrison. Three world premiere recordings by living composers complete the album: Fleisher’s Maniondala, Manion’s Long Roll II, and Stephen Lett’s Junta. The University of Illinois Percussion Ensemble was established in 1950 and specializes in the performance of traditional and contemporary repertoire for small and large groups. Gregory Beyer, the soloist for Maniondala is a Fulbright Scholar, composer, educator, and “prodigiously talented percussionist.”

Lou Harrison was one of the most influential percussion composers and innovators in the United States. In fact, he was one of the great composers of the 20th century -- a pioneer in the use of alternate tunings, world music influences, and new instruments. The percussion ensemble at Utah Valley University with violinist Donna Fairbanks perform some of his major works including a concerto for violin and percussion. Percussionist Doug Smith, director of Percussion UVU, is also an active freelance musician in Salt Lake City with groups includng the Utah Symphony, Utah Opera, and Ballet West. He is a graduate of Rice University and the University of Central Missouri. Violinist Donna Fairbanks has presented recitals and masterclasses in Europe, China, Mexico, Brazil and throughout the United States. She has recorded for MSR Classics, 4TAY, Tantar and Albany Records. Pianist Hilary Demske, who performs in the Varied Trio, has performed in prestigious venues across multiple continents, appearing annually in China since 2011. She is a Steinway Artist and has recorded multiple CDs for Albany Records.

For its second recording on Albany Records, the famed TCU Percussion Orchestra performs seven works written by composers from Texas, the Midwest and Oregon in world premiere recordings. Under the direction of Brian A. West, the ensemble has commissioned and premiered more than 20 works. The TCU Percussion Orchestra has been showcased at the Percussive Arts Society's International Conventions in 2005, 2008 and 2011. Dr. West, an active clinician, composer/arranger, and adjudicator for a variety of percussive events, is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Indiana University of Pennsylvania and the University of North Texas. He is the Percussion Artistic Director for the International Festival of Winds and Percussion.

New works for percussion ensemble written between 1993 and 2009 are performed by the Columbus State University Percussion Ensemble on this recording. Offering a unique listening experience, two of the works are for saxophone solo with percussion ensemble and one is for organ and percussion ensemble. The recording and two of the works came as a result of a residency program that commissions a new work for the CSU Percussion Ensemble each year. Directed by Paul Vaillancourt, the CSU Percussion Ensemble performs and records music from the traditional percussion ensemble as well as commissioning and premiering works by internationally known and emerging composers. Saxophonist Amy Griffiths is on the faculty at Columbus State University and has made countless appearances as a soloist, chamber musician, and recitalist.

The works recorded on this compact disc represent some of the finest contemporary American works for percussion ensemble. All of the works utilize a large array of instruments and are scored for between eight and twelve players. All the works were commissioned and premiered by the University of Oklahoma Percussion Ensemble; thus we have David Maslanka's Crown of Thorns in a performance by the group that first commissioned it. Blake Wilkins' Twilight Offering Music is one of the most distinctive pieces in the ever-growing body of American works for large percussion ensemble. With a duration of 27 minutes it is by far one of the longest and most expansive compositions for the medium and this alone secures its singularity. Compendium in a way is the opposite of Twilight Offering Music in that it lasts only 11 minutes and as the name implies distills into a brief period of time many of Wilkins' ideas about coherent Organic structures, disparate closed-ended processes, virtuosic playing and new worlds of sound. Michael Hennagin was a professor at the University of Oklahoma from 1972 until he retired in 1992 to devote himself full time to composition. He has composed in all mediums including film, television and stage. Dan Welcher was born in Rochester, New York. He is one of the most popular composers of his generation. Currently he has composed over 60 compositions.

The innovative Jeremy Muller is active as a percussionist, composer, and multimedia artists. He has performed as a featured soloist at many venues throughout the United States, Canada, and Australia and given world premieres of works by many composers including some included on this recording. Alexandre Lunsqui's Materiali includes layering of pulses and velocities generated from the exploration of materials such as clay, wood, metal, plastic, water, and air. Javier Alvarez's Temazcal is an early example of electroacoustic music. Cristyn Magnus; Pitch vs. Computer is a work that treats video games as scores, while Herbert Brün's Stalks and Trees and Drops and Clouds are very early computer work and one of the earliest conceived for a solo percussionist. Matthew Burtner's Glisten of Places is a composition and a collection method for living in the world through sound.