Guest Composer to Conduct Copland, Corigliano

The end of October marks the arrival of composer/conductor Matthias Pintscher in Buffalo. Pintscher will conduct the Slee Sinfonietta in a program consisting of crowd favorites: Copland’s Appalachian Spring and Corigliano’s Red Violin Suite (Soloist: Tim Fain).

Also on the program is Pintscher’s own songs from Solomon’s garden. Pintscher is fast gaining recognition internationally as a composer/conductor with numerous accolades. His recent activities include work with distinguished ensembles such as the BBC Scottish Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra and the Vienna Philharmonic. Tickets for the concert are available at the ticket office in Slee Hall at the University at Buffalo. (Advance: $12/$9/$5 Day of: $20/$15/$8) For more information on Matthias Pintscher, check out his very cool website.

Juilliard Composer Visits UB

This week, the Center for 21st Century Music and the UB Department of Music welcome the Emmy-nominated composer Bob Beaser.  Beaser will conduct master-classes for UB graduate composition students on Wednesday October 13th 2010 and lecture on his own works during the graduate composition seminar. Hailed as one of the most accomplished creative musicians of his generation, the Center is excited to host Beaser for this short residency in Buffalo. Beaser is currently Professor and Chairperson of the composition department at the Juilliard School.

CIKADA to Premier Work, Read Student Works

From October 17-22, the center will host Norway’s leading contemporary music ensemble CIKADA. Along with Magnus Andersson, the ensemble will premiere a new commission by David Felder, director of the Center for 21st Century Music and composition faculty of the UB Music department. The visiting ensemble will also conduct a workshop/reading session with the graduate student composers. The session will take place on Wednesday the 20th of October at 3.30pm and is free and open to public. The young composers involved include Chun-ting Pang, Joe Lake, Diana Soh and Jacob Gotlib.

Virtuosic Trio Plays New Music at UB

“Did you see that? There are Gods walking down the halls!” remarked Trevor Bjorklund, adjunct theory professor, upon bumping into the Trio of Magnus Andersen, Pascal Gallois and Rohan de Saram. Indeed, the center for 21st century music and the UB music department was fortunate to have powerhouse virtuosi Magnus Andersson, Pascal Gallois and Rohan de Saram visit for a week of masterclasses, workshops that culminated in an arresting evening concert. The concert program included contemporary music staples like the Berio Sequenza for Bassoon and Xenakis’s Kottos for Cello.
	Champions of their instruments, the trio have individually contributed to the development of contemporary music through their collaboration with established composers like Luciano Berio, and Ianis Xenakis to name a few. Now with the new formation of this yet unnamed trio, they are coming together to pass on their valuable experience and to spark a whole new genre of works for this instrumental combination. Student composers that benefited from the workshop include John Bacon, Felipe Ribero, Diana Soh, Ethan Hayden, Chun-ting Pang and Robert Philips whose piece was selected to be played as an encore in their evening concert.
Unassuming in their demeanor, they were approachable and generous with their time, offering anecdotes on their past experiences working with other composers and educating all that were in the room.