Filius Prodigus, for bass clarinet, was composed based on the Parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15, 11-31). Peter Stoll performed the world premiere on the 15th March 2016 at the University of Toronto (Canada) and Thiago Tavares performed the Brazilian premiere on the 22nd November 2016 at "Série Compositores" at UNIRIO (Rio de Janeiro). Thiago also performed it on the 26th November 2016 at Palácio da Justiça (Rio de Janeiro) at the Panorama da Música Brasileira Atual.
The Introduction shows a happy ambiance at the father’s house. Part A presents the younger son away from his father’s house and his consequent grief, expressed by multiphonics. A transition to part B may be associated to the return of the younger son and the run with compassion of his father towards him. Part B shows the father’s merry reception, having forgiven his contrite son. A multiphonic, showing the envy of the elder son, is played again bringing back tension to the piece. Part C refers to this tension and to the dialogue between the father and his elder son. The festive ambiance returns at the end of the piece, part B’, showing the happiness of the father for having his young son back to life. A Coda, reminding the Introduction, reinforce the festive ambiance.
I wrote The Blonde Moon Whispers thinking about the imagery and feelings associated with something I have always been enthralled by - nighttime. The piece as a whole is a reflection on the beauty of the night, and each section attempts to embody the imagery in its title.
The first section, Reflections of the Artificial Light, is characterized by a steady pulse which is constantly being jolted by complex and uneven rhythmic figures, which although may seem random and chaotic, still exist within that established pulse. This is similar to the sporadic dance-like motion of the reflections of lights on the nighttime road, just after it has rained. The titular section, The Blonde Moon Whispers, is representative of the minutiae of the midnight landscape, in contrast to the artificial cityscape captured by the first section. The melancholy motif, along with the airtone in the saxophone serve to relay how one might feel and interpret this secluded setting. The third and final section, Les étoiles qui rient, is a continuation and development of the first two sections, while containing a distinct motif of its own. Its title translates to "The stars that laugh", and is a paraphrase of a quote from The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Its motif is first introduced in the piano, but is presented in a fractured rhythmic state. As the piece progresses this motif begins to take its full form, and by the time the climax of the piece is reached, this motif will be fully realized.
Pictures This piece's two movements were written about three years apart from one another. The inspiration for the music was straightforward -- each movement arose from a different, striking scene: the first of the clouds at night from my backyard in Somerville, the second of a long walk home during the 2015 blizzards. For me, the movements also function like before and after photos, documenting my change in interests over the past few years. The first movement reflects my current fascination with the perception of time, while the second is concerned with pitch and traditional modes of counterpoint.
Excursions, for clarinet, percussion, and cello, is a five movement work wherein each movement depicts a short journey at a specific time of day. The movements occasionally share musical material when similar locations or moods are being conveyed. The five movements individually and collectively explore the use of retrograde on small and large scales—formally this illustrates the start and end of each brief excursion.
Four Pieces for Two Violins – written last spring - might be hailed as an “ordinary” work but I feel that I have changed from it. First of all, it freed me from a kind of intellectual mysophobia (a fear of germs), but most importantly, it helped me to realize that I do not compose musical works, but rather, I am like a secretary who transcribes notes on manuscript paper. It took more than ten years until I suddenly realized this, but I believe that I arrived along the fastest route.
Frankly, this work went a totally different direction than where I first planned. Maybe because of my strong will and high standards, I was getting stressed out and hesitating more than normal. I sighed many times and this piece is my journey employing those sighs as a compass. Let me introduce the keywords for each piece: Sigh, Fever, Groove, and Song. I thought that I was just following along with the music, going where the composition took me, but now I realize that each piece is a self-portrait.
"Inside" is the first part of a project called "Spaces of absence". The three works of the project deal with the idea of emptiness. Around my twenties I studied mathematics in Florence University and I was fascinated by the most interesting ideas and theories about the number zero. What I examine here is the idea of emptiness in oriental cultures: if we see the word emptiness as a lack of something (generally with a negative meaning), in Zen Buddhism and Taoism emptiness is a fundamental part of reality, that part that permits the natural flow of everything. For example considering the relation between man and nature, world and cosmos, but also in smaller part of reality, for example in every existing being, every organism can be considered a small universe. In “Inside” I point attention to breath, which is one of the processes that show the necessity of emptiness: by breathing an organism takes air from the outside, fills each part it has inside, than empty itself giving back something to the outside again; it is no more simply air, but something new, something changed, full of its inside emptiness.
Out in the Storm consists of four uninterrupted movements depicting the stages of a typical Florida afternoon thunderstorm. The first movement, Clouds Gathering, uses small gestures in the piano, and an ominous melody in the violin to signal the oncoming storm. The second, Raindrop Montuno, uses the first sprinkles of rain to create rhythms of a typical Cuban dance. The third, Thunderclap Bassdrop, has the piano playing loud thunderclaps, while the violin plays a frantic, stormy line. The closing movement, Orange Sunset, has the clouds clearing away, ending the piece with warm, sun-lit harmonies.
Composer Bios
Born in Brazil, Henrique Coe is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in composition at the University of Toronto, studying with Norbert Palej. His piece “Defend us in Battle” was premiered in February 2017 by the Windsor Symphony Youth Orchestra, and his piece “Romaria Brasileira” was selected to be premiered in 2018 by the Winds of the Scarborough Philharmonic, both in Canada. His piece Filius Prodigus, for bass clarinet solo, figured in the program of the Panorama da Música Brasileira Atual, in Rio de Janeiro, and his piano trio piece was selected for the “Late Night at National Sawdust” reading in Brooklyn (New York) in 2017.
While maintaining a traditional language, Henrique combines medieval sonority, modalism, and some modern harmonies and contemporary techniques. His works include a symphony for orchestra and choir, a string quartet, a piano trio, a brass quintet, among others. Some videos of his compositions can be watched at henriquecoe.com.
In 2016, Henrique was awarded as the best Brazilian composer in two categories in the International Composition Competition “Maurice Ravel” (Italy). Henrique was also the composer-inresidence at the University of Toronto Chamber Orchestra (2016), at the Women’s Chamber Choir of the University of Toronto (2015/16) and at Ensemble Kô and Choeur de Jeunes de l’Université de Montréal (2013/14).
Moreover, Henrique has played saxophone with the Orquestra Sinfônica Brasileira Jovem and he was a Teaching Assistant in Harmony and Counterpoint at the Conservatório Brasileiro de Música, and a Teaching Assistant of Music Theory I at the University of Toronto.
Steven Gudino is a full-time undergraduate student at the Hall-Musco Conservatory of Music at Chapman University where he is double majoring in Music Composition BM and Guitar Performance BM. He has studied Composition under Dr. Sean Heim and Dr. Vera Ivanova.
Jeremy Rapaport-Stein is a Boston-based composer, teacher, and arts administrator. His creative work explores visual art and gesture, improvisation, time, voice, and euphoria. Jeremy is an active member of the vibrant Boston new music community, enjoying frequent collaboration with local musicians and arts organizations as both a composer and an administrator. Recent and ongoing projects include new concert works for Yarn/Wire, SPLICE Ensemble, and a sound installation in collaboration with journalist Cynthia Fernandez. A native of New Jersey, he holds a BA from Swarthmore College and is currently a PhD student in music theory and composition at Brandeis University. At Brandeis, he is a teaching fellow in the music department and studies composition with Erin Gee. For more information and to hear his music, visit jeremyrapaportstein.com
Uruguayan composer Sofia Scheps, graduated from the Universitary Music School of the University of the Republic (Uruguay), where she is currently an assistant professor to the chairs of Composition and Orchestration. From 2015 to 2017 she moved to Spain where she completed a masters degree in Sound Art, at the University of Barcelona.
She works and investigates in the frontiers of experimental music, electroacoustic music, mixed media music, chamber music, and sound art, and has premiered several works in concerts and festivals in Uruguay, Chile, Spain, USA and Germany. In addition, she devotes part of her time to Sound design, music composition and audio postproduction for audiovisual pieces and scenic arts.
Charles Corey is an American composer holding a Ph.D. in Music Composition and Theory from the University of Pittsburgh, where he studied with Mathew Rosenblum, Eric Moe, Amy Williams, and Trevor Björklund. His approach to composition exploits and subverts the relationships that exist between different tuning systems; the results of this process range from pieces that use standard tuning systems in unique ways to works that involve multiple tuning systems working in concert. Corey's compositions are known for their unexpected, evocative harmonies and their strong dramatic arcs. His music has been played in North America and Europe by a variety of performers including Cikada Ensemble, IonSound Project, Iktus Percussion, entelechron, and Relâche, and his writings have been published in several languages.
Charles Corey is the Director and Curator of the Harry Partch Instrumentarium and Affiliate Assistant Professor of Composition at the University of Washington in Seattle and the Director of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra Young Composers Workshop. His current research involves the microtonal compositions of György Ligeti and the total-theater works of Harry Partch.
Born in Cuba, Evelin Ramón completed a Master in Composition at the Université de Montréal, under the direction of composer Ana Sokolovic. She continues her doctorate studies in composition at the Université de Montréal under the direction of Pierre Michaud. She studied piano, choir direction and singing at the Music Conservatory in Santiago de Cuba, as well as composition at the University of the Arts of La Havana with Cuban composers Juan Piñera and Louis Aguirre.
Evelin Ramón has won first prizes in composition at the Music Festival of the Universidad de las Artes de La Habana, she also won the Serge Garant Composition Competition in 2011. In 2014, she was one of the four composers that formed part of the Génération Competition 2014 organized by the Ensemble contemporain de Montréal (ECM+) under the direction of Véronique Lacroix.
Evelin Ramón is one of the hosts of the radio program Pulsar, dedicated entirely to contemporary music on CISM 89.3 in Montréal. Her music has been played in Canada, Spain, Germany, Venezuela, France, Mexico, Denmark, Greenland, Chile, United-States and Cuba. Evelin Ramón has received scholarships from the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ) and many excellence grants from the Université de Montréal, the Fonds de Recherche du Québec - Société et Culture (FRQSC). Her professional work includes interpretation, improvisation, composition and teaching.
Her first album, Cendres (Ashes) for voice and electronics has been released on November 24, 2017 as part of a concert that was organized by New Music Edmonton in Alberta, Canada.
After receiving prizes in competitions in South Korea, Jee Seo began his international careers and was awarded the prizes at Val Tidone International Music Competition “Egidio Carella” Composition Competition in Casa Berni (Italy), the International Antonin Dvorak Composition Competition in Prague (Czech Rep.) and the International Composers’ Forum and Competition BRUNO MADERNA in Lviv (Ukraine). His works have been selected and performed at festivals including KALEIDOSCOPE chamber orchestra Call for Scores in Los Angeles (US), the International Symposium of New Music in Curitiba (Brazil) and Hawaii Public Radio Art Song Contest. And his works are published by Aldebaran Editions (Italy). Jee is currently preparing to move to New York.
After the degree in violoncello, Elvira Muratore graduated in composition obtaining the magna cum laude and, immediately after, she attended a one year master class with the composer Ivan Fedele. She also attended master classes with composers such as Andrea Portera, Nadir Vassena, Klaus Huber, Alessio Elia. As composer and arranger she works with Budapest MAV Symphony Orchestra, The Polish Baltic Frédéric Chopin Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra del Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Sanremo Symphony Orchestra, Arte National Orchestra, Saccisica Youth Orchestra, Dédalo Ensemble, DMC Ensemble, Ascanio Quartet; her works were conducted by musicians such as Támas Vásáry. Furthermore she writes music for art installations, videos and theatrical performances, collaborating with personalities such as Moni Ovadia, David Riondino e Paolo Bessegato. In 2014 she was the unique Italian composer selected to take part in Atelier para jovens compositores 2014 with Orquestra Clàssica do Sul (Portugal); the previous year, she was finalist at 2nd IFCM International Composition Competition and in 2011 she won the second price at the Assisi Suono Sacro – Internazional Composition Competition; she also was finalist in 2008 in Second Composition Competition – ISME Belgium. Her compositions and arrangements has been created in: Italy, Poland, Hungary, New York, Belgium, Finland, Portugal, Argentina. Her music is published by Editor Sconfinarte and she is represented by agency StudioMusica (WEC spa).
Kevin Wilt composes music that balances sophistication with accessibility and experimentation with craftsmanship. His music has been performed across the world by beginning musicians up to professionals of the highest caliber.
Kevin recently won the Fresh Squeezed Opera Call for Scores with his chamber opera, Prix Fixe. He was a finalist for the Symphony Number One Call for Scores 3, the ASCAP/CBDNA Frederick Fennel Prize, the American Prize in both the band and chamber music categories, and in the Musical Chairs Chamber Ensemble Composers Search, and was awarded second place in both the Van Galen Prize and SHUFFLE Concert Competitions. He was awarded a grant by the Atlantic Coast Conference Band Directors Association to create Urban Impressions, a new multi-movement work for large wind ensemble.
He is equally at home composing for film and television, providing scores for many short films and documentaries, earning him a Michigan Emmy® Award Nomination for Best Musical Composition.
Kevin holds degrees from Michigan State University (D.M.A. and M.M.) and Wayne State University (B.M.). He is Assistant Professor of Music and Composer-in-Residence at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton.
