Winter YouTube Concert

Winter concert season is just about done for the year, so let's put together a YouTube concert of recent performances!  First up is the Wydown Chamber Orchestra, directed by Dr. Jan Davis of Clayton, MO performing Iroquois Journey.

Man, those kids can play! I love the tempo and their articulations are so precise. Best of all, they bring an energy and passion to the piece that pushes the performance over the top. Check out how the 1st chair violin is getting into it! Nicely done.

Next we have the MNPS Honors Orchestra performing Las Mariposas Exoticas. They don't start playing until 0:25.

It's just slightly too fast, but the group has a good sense of the style and delicacy required for the piece. Also, it's always nice to hear the optional percussion used. Way to go!

Up next is the SLJH Chamber Orchestra performing Agincourt.

This group has an excellent sense of dynamics and made the transitions and changes in energy feel seamless. They also have a good balance and intonation and kept up with the tempo beautifully. Great job!

Finally, Gauntlet, performed by the Mineola High School 8th Grade Orchestra, directed by Sarah Ramsingh.

There are a few little problems here, but I like the transitions between the fast section and the middle section and back again. I also like that they played what's written in measure three. A good performance - Nice job!

 

Conducting at IMEA

You guys!  I had such an amazing time on January 16th at the Indiana Music Educators Conference in Ft. Wayne! I cunducted an "open rehearsal" of three of my pieces - Avatar, Winstride and Gauntlet - and answered questions from teachers.

Johanna Marvin and her Riverside Middle School Orchestra rehearsed the music ahead of time, but we had never met in person before that day. They did such a great job and I think everyone had a good time.

I also got to meet orchestra teachers from around Indiana and participate in a reading session of new music , which was a blast. So how did they get me to come to the event? They asked. It was that simple. I usually charge a nominal fee and ask for expenses to be paid, but other than that, it's pretty straightforward.

Then I had to rush home because on the afternoon of the 17th, the OMEA District XIV Honors Orchestra performed their concert, which featured the world premiere of Victory At Home - a new piece they commissioned me to write.

It was a full weekend and one that I won't soon forget!  Thanks to Johanna Marvin, the IMEA, the ASTA, the OMEA and all the students of the Riverside Middle School Orchestra for being so great.

Online Concert Winter 2014

A quick announcement first: I'll be giving a presentation at the Indiana Music Educators Association conference in Ft. Wayne on January 16th, 2015. I'm going to lead an open rehearsal of three of my pieces - Avatar, Winstride and Gauntlet. Bring your scores to follow along, think of questions to ask me afterwards and listen to me show a talented group of young musicians how I like to hear my music performed!


On with the main event: Halloween concerts are done and it's Holiday concert time here in the States - and that means a bunch of new concert videos have popped up on YouTube. Let's have a look at a few of the really good ones:

Up first is the Vivace Advanced Orchestra killing it with Pioneer Sky at the Central Indiana All-Region middle School Orchestra Festival. They perform some nice dynamics and give the piece the right energy - bristling accents in the ostinatos, soulful legato in the lyrical parts. Nice job!

Next, the Mansfield Youth Strings of Mansfield, Ohio open their concert with North Pole Workshop, complete with percussion parts!  Fantastic tempo, nice precise playing and good style. I hope this one catches on. Great job, MYS!

Up next, Angie Cimbalo leads the Region 24 Sinfonia Orchestra at the Middle School Texas Music Educators Association All-Region Concert with a furious performance of Dragonfly. This is a piece that requires intense focus and these young musicians are right up to the task all the way through the end, never letting up. An arranger did a really great job with the harp parts as well - writing for harp is one of my favorite things to do but I seldom do it because so few school orchestras have harp players. But it really works well in this setting and it makes me wish I'd written that part myself. It's a fantastic performance.

Finally, the Olentangy Orange Middle School 7th Grade Orchestra performs Gauntlet. It's a good performance made all the more special by some awesome rock star stage lighting. Excellent tempo, nice expression, and they stick the landing beautifully. Nicely done!

Online Concert Spring 2014

The school year is wrapping up and that means lots of Spring concerts!  Let's have a look at some really good recent performances from YouTube.

Up first is the James Bowie High School Sinfonia Orchestra of Arlington, Texas performing Avatar.  They have a very precise and articulate sense of rhythm, their intonation is really good and, best of all, they do some really interesting things with dynamics. Please enjoy:

Up next is the Prelude Chamber Strings performing Across the Wind. They do a fantastic job navigating the corners and emotional changes and technical demands of the piece.

Next is a rousing performance of Dragonfly, performed by the Marina High School Orchestra. Very precise ensemble playing. Nice job.

Finally, here's a slightly older video of the ISTA Honor Orchestra in Iowa and their intense performance of Agincourt.  I appreciate the musicality and the dynamics. The intonation is good and they finish strong. Nice job, ISTA orchestra!

A quick note to YouTube posters: There are lots of videos that I'd love to feature on this blog but I can't embed them if you don't check that box on the upload page. Please make your concert videos sharable!  Also, if you could include more info about the location, conductor, and date of the performance when you write out the video's info, that's nice to know too.  Thanks!

You Tube Concert

It's the start of a new school year here in the States! Hooray! I thought I'd kick things off with another YouTube concert of performances of my music that I've discovered over the summer.

First up is a performance of Star of Valor, uploaded by the AFA Symphony Orchestra of the American Festival of the Arts Summer Music Conservatory at Pershing High School in Houston, Texas. They do a really nice job balancing the overlapping melodies and negotiating the tempo changes. Their intonation is really good. And just look at the concentration in their faces.

Here's a really nice performance of Westward Motion, performed by the CMS 8th Grade Orchestra. Again, there's no indication of where they're from, geographically. But they do a nice job with the piece. My only quibble: they clearly have timpani, chimes and a glockenspeil on stage and they're completely unmanned and silent throughout the piece! The percussion parts are optional, but I always prefer to hear them whenever possible.

I've saved a really good one for last: check out this performance of Gauntlet from the String Quartet Program of Northern Colorado Works in Progress concert. It looks like an all-ages group and they do a remarkable job bringing the emotion out of the piece. This is definitely one of the best performances I've heard of Gauntlet. The whole concert is great, but Guantlet starts at about 12:10.

There is another video of this same performance, just of Gauntlet, taken from a closer angle at stage level, but I wasn't able to link it to this post. It should be easy enough to find with a quick YouTube search, though.

YouTube Concert

It's time for another online concert! Let's start with a performance of Maharaja by the Marshall Philharmonic Orchestra of George C. Marshall High School in Falls Church, Virginia,

These guys get it. The tempo isn't too fast, leaving lots of room for expression and the stylistic nuances of their performance are excellent. Maharaja is a character piece and this group was able to see beyond the notes on the page to really bring the character to life. Bravi.

Up next is a performance of Star of Valor. I'm not sure which group this is, but it looks like it was performed at Oscar Smith High School in Chesapeake, Virginia.

Nice job! Star of Valor is like an emotional roller coaster and this group does a good job of navigating the turns. Lots of good stuff happening in Virginia.

Our final selection is Gargoyles, performed by the Concierto Solidario of the Conservatorio Superior de Música in Córdoba, Spain, led by D. Gabriel Arellano.

I can see that there's a lot of passion in this performance but, to be honest, this isn't the greatest rendition of Gargoyles I've ever heard. It's rather heavy-sounding and there's not a lot of dynamic contrast. So why am I featuring this video? Because it was made in Córdoba, Spain. In Andalusia.

BOOM!

INTERNATIONALLY FAMOUS COMPOSER!

 

Midwest Clinic 2012

I'm excited to announce that three of my compositions will be performed at the 2012 Midwest Clinic, a prestigious international conference for music educators held every December in Chicago! Groups that perform here are considered among the best programs in the country and getting selected to perform is a pretty big deal. I've had one or two performances in years past, but three is almost unheard of. I'm super-excited. 

If you're going to be at the clinic, please check out one (or all) of these performances:

Wednesday, December 19, 10:30am at Ballroom W190
The Edmond North High School Symphony Orchestra of Edmond, OK
performs Harrowland.


Wednesday, December 19, 4:00pm at ballroom W190
The Sinfonia Orchestra of Orange City, FL
performs Maharaja.

Friday, December 21, 9:00am at ballroom W190
The Douglas Anderson School of the Arts Chamber Orchestra of Jacksonville, FL
performs Samba Del Sol.

My pieces are right in the middle of each program, but these shows are always great and you'll enjoy the whole thing. Congratulations to the performers and directors for making it to Midwest and thank you for programming my music!

Online Concert

It's time for another online concert!

Up first, please enjoy Gargoyles, performed by the DPO on October 28, 2011. (Possibly California's Dos Pueblos Orchestra? There's no indication of who the conductor is or where the group is located.)

Fantastic musicianship and some great, precise playing! The articulations are perfect. It's exciting to see such a large group that doesn't feel the need to play loud all the time. Their pianos are exhilarating.

Up next is the LaVilla School of the Arts Orchestra of Jacksonville, Florida performing A Breeze In the Keys.

There's a really nice energy in that performance and good contrasts between the bouncy rhythmic parts and the legato sections. Kudos to the percussion section on this one.

Next, let's hear from the Philharmonic Orchestra of Hopkins High School in Minnetonka, Minnesota, led by Andrew Bast. They're performing Maharaja.

This is a tough piece and they pulled it off nicely. It's all about pacing, and making sure you don't get too loud or intense too soon and they did a great job. They also have a good sense of rhythm and an ear for the style.

Finally, let's jet over to Germany (Berlin, I think), where Jana Wirth leads the Kammerorchester MSO in a performance of Agincourt.

Small but mighty! Those are some good players. The crispness of their staccatos is absolutely delightful and their intonation is spot-on. They look like high school students but they sound like pros. Well, done!

 

Gauntlet, Zydeco Two-Step, Las Mariposas Exoticas

How about a little online concert?  Let's kick things off with Gauntlet, performed by the McMath 8th Grade Orchestra of Denton, Texas.

This might be one of the best performances of Gauntlet I've ever heard. Here's why:

1. The tempo is perfect.
2. The expression is really great (especially in the "hard part": mm. 56 to 80)
3. Fantastic intonation and rhythmic precision.
4. The articulations are dead-on perfect. Listen to how short those staccato notes are. They're so dry they're practically a fire hazard. You could go out and get a bite to eat between each of those notes.

Up next is the 2012 Middle School Honors Orchestra (there's no indication of what district or city, but I've been able to narrow it to the state of Georgia) performing Zydeco Two-Step (they start playing at 1:00).

Nice job!  It's a little faster than I'm used to hearing it, but it was handled nicely and the increased tempo adds a rollicking feel to the piece.  Also, nice use of dynamics. Everyone looks like they had a good time playing this one.

Finally, here's the Cooper Middle School Orchestra (possibly of McLean, Virginia?) performing Las Mariposas Exoticas.

Delightful!  They did a good job of making it sound delicate and light.  The key to this piece is to make the arco articulations match the sound of the pizzicato and this group did a great job, especially at the ends of phrases.

Well done, all!

A Breeze in the Keys Video

Check out this video of the string orchestra of l'Escola Municipal de Música de Calvià.  They open their show with"A Breeze In the Keys".

I'm not used to hearing it that fast, but for this piece a slightly faster tempo works. It also helps that they have spectacular musicianship and are able to make the piece sound effortless.  So where exactly is l'Escola Municipal de Música de Calvià?  Well, it's here:

In the western Mediterranean off the Spanish mainland.

BAM! INTERNATIONALLY FAMOUS COMPOSER!

I forgot most of my Spanish when I learned Italian, but gracias a Profesor László Füllöp!

 

Maharaja Video

It looks like my new piece "Maharaja" is really taking off! I've already found a few concert videos on YouTube and I think this one is the best. It's just a little too fast, but the intonation and rhythms are flawless and check out the bass player's fancy German bow grip! I also like that the Violin II player is really getting into the groove of those finger snaps at 1:40.

Anyway, please to enjoy the Encore Strings of East Lansing, Michigan in their Fall 2011 concert:

 

YouTube Concert

I thought I'd assemble a little YouTube concert from some recent videos of my music. Up first is the Crews Middle School 7th Grade orchestra playing Lemon Twist:

Nice job!  Very precise playing, a good laid-back tempo, and I like those sharp uniforms! Up next is the String Orchestra of the Community Music School at Webster University in St. Louis playing A Postcard From Tuscany.

A good sense of style on this one and it's good to see young players take their time with a more lyrical piece.  Next is the Monarch 7th and 8th Grade Orchestra, appropriately playing Las Mariposas Exoticas:

This is one of those pieces with interlocking parts, where the whole orchestra works as one and I think they did a pretty good job of keeping it together.  They also did a nice job giving the piece the "lightness" it requires.  Let's finish with a classic.  Here's the Wilson Middle School Orchestra playing Gauntlet:

Nicely done!  Bravi to all the orchestras!

Online Concert

I thought I'd program a short online concert of some of my more popular selections today. 

Up first is the Cleveland School of Arts Orchestra performing Gauntlet.  They do a lot of tuning and warming up (and it certainly pays off), but if you're interested in getting to the good stuff, skip ahead to the 1:45 mark.

 Nice job! I especially like what they did with the "hard part" (mm. 56 - 80).

Up next is the Shaw Middle School Orchestra performing Zydeco Two-Step:

Excellent!  The keyboard player did a great job.

Our final group is the Traverse City Symphony Strings - a civic orchestra - performing the heck out of Agincourt.

"Out of This World" is certainly an apt description of this group!  They're a small ensemble, but they play with all the ferocity and musicianship of a group three times their size.  I was also blown away by the production of this video - the multiple angles and great editing do the ensemble justice.  Here's my favorite shot:

"Energy" at the end! A well-marked part is a joy for a composer to see.