The Quest for the Crimson Grail
The reason that I volunteered for A Crimson Grail was simple: I wanted to participate in something that I had never experienced before, and could experience in no other way. It might be plain to all who consider the prospect that playing in a huge guitar orchestra would fit that bill; what only a few realize is exactly what it feels like to outright wail in tandem with a group of that size, all parts equal in scope but individual in execution, creating a wall of sound that violates any number of city ordinances. read more
By Trevor Hunter
Published: 9/1/2008

Remembering Donald Erb
Donald Erb (1927-2008) lived by an astute intuition in dealing with people, and also in composing music. Those of us who were Don's students knew him not just as a creative and forceful composer, but also as a man of deep emotions and compassion. read more
By Margaret Brouwer
Published: 8/15/2008

Sound Investments: The Commissioning Portfolio of Kathryn Gould
In 2002, venture capitalist Kathryn Gould did something that probably seemed quite normal to her but that was rather unusual for the new music field. Through a program designed and carried out by Meet the Composer—an organization that encourages individuals of all sorts to involve themselves in the commissioning of new music—Gould launched Magnum Opus through which she personally funded the commission of not one, but nine new pieces for orchestra because she believed in the voices of the composers she herself had selected. Now she's back for a second run... read more
By Molly Sheridan
Published: 8/8/2008

Required Listening: The New Albion Festival
If I were going to imagine the perfect summer music festival, it would be pretty much identical to the New Albion festival at SummerScape, which runs through August 10th in the Spiegeltent at Bard College. Beginning last Friday with Lou Harrison's sublime Varied Trio, performed by the Abel-Steinberg-Winant Trio for whom he composed it, and concluding August 10th with the Deep Listening Band, with dozens of New Albion favorites in between—what could be better?... read more
By Sarah Cahill
Published: 8/6/2008

New Music News Wire
Over $6 million in grants announced by Chamber Music America, more than $1 million awarded in MAP fund grants, and Norman Dello Joio remembered. read more
Published: 7/25/2008

Inescapable Creativity: Composing 365
Composers write music on very different schedules, but what if creativity was put on a very short choke chain? Every day for the past year David Morneau has produced a new 60-second composition and distributed it via the Internet. His personal creative marathon is over on June 30, 2008, when he'll post his last composition in this series, and it seemed like a great time to check in and see how the project has impacted his life and work. He was kind enough to indulge our curiosity... read more
By Molly Sheridan
Published: 6/30/2008

New Music News Wire
Seven composers have been selected to participate in the 2008-09 Minnesota Orchestra Composer Institute, which will be held in Minneapolis from November 1-8, 2008. The Sphinx Commissioning Consortium selects Roberto Sierra for inaugural commission to be performed by 12 American orchestras. The 2008 Jazz Journalists Association Awards. The Jazz Journalists Association presented held its 12th annual awards ceremony at the Jazz Standard in New York City, and Maria Schneider won in four categories. The National Endowment for the Arts has announced the six recipients of the 2009 NEA Jazz Masters Award: George Benson, Jimmy Cobb, Lee Konitz, Toots Thielemans, Snooky Young, and Rudy Van Gelder. Jeff Fairbanks was awarded the BMI Foundation Charlie Parker Composition Prize and Manny Albam Commission at the 20th anniversary showcase concert of the BMI Jazz Composers Workshop. Three living jazz legends—bassist Ron Carter, composer-arranger and saxophonist Bill Holman, and tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins—along with three posthumous honorees—trumpeter Bunny Berigan, drummer Art Blakey, and arranger/composer/pianist Tadd Dameron—were inducted into the ASCAP Jazz Wall of Fame. In addition, pianist/composer Gonzalo Rubalcaba was presented with The ASCAP Foundation Vanguard Award and 27 young jazz composers received ASCAP Foundation Young Jazz Composer Awards. ASCAP also honored 26 orchestras and 4 chorus who have demonstrated exceptional commitment to contemporary composers in special Awards Presentations held in partnership with the League of American Orchestras and Chorus America during the National Performing Arts Convention. read more
Published: 6/27/2008

The Final Review
NPAC is over, and the three chief missions with which we've been tasked—impress communities with our relevance, improve arts education, and increase diversity—are broad but by no means insurmountable goals... read more
By Colin Holter
Published: 6/16/2008

The Impact of NPAC
I returned home from Denver with a renewed focus and excitement about what I'd like to accomplish this summer. That kind of clarity is a byproduct of the vibration that comes from being surrounded by several thousand art-makers and art-supporters, and I can't think of the last time I was part of a specialized herd that large. It's reassuring to know just how many of us there are out there... read more
By Alex Shapiro
Published: 6/16/2008

Oh, the Places You'll Go!
I've felt for a while that the greatest beneficiaries of the arts are not necessarily the audience members, but the participants. That's one of the reasons why it’s so hard to make the case for supporting the arts to people who are not themselves artists. Sure, you can talk about the arts as a driver for urban and regional economic development or their effect on kids' math and science scores, but it’s impossible to communicate to someone who hasn't experienced it the feeling that one gets from participating in genuine artistic creation. It's a feeling that you're alive again somehow, and a feeling of connection with the people around you on an almost physical dimension... read more
By Ian Moss
Published: 6/14/2008

Intersections
NPAC feels like the most gigantic family reunion ever; the folks you see regularly are all in attendance, but so are the distant cousins you've heard all those stories about over the years, not to mention relatives you didn't even know about. There is a fascinating person to meet around every corner! read more
By Alexandra Gardner
Published: 6/13/2008

But Can You Balance a Checkbook?
Apparently 85 percent of music majors end up working "in the field," although fewer than five percent are full-time professional performers. These are some pretty telling figures: Most music students will be doing something in music–teaching, administration, and so forth—but not what they went to college to do... read more
By Colin Holter
Published: 6/13/2008

Light Bulb
Four caucus meetings are taking place during NPAC (two down, two to go); these are the conference participants' opportunities to voice our thoughts on the "challenges and opportunities" facing the arts in America today... read more
By Colin Holter
Published: 6/12/2008

NPAC is Very Large
I just arrived at NPAC, a Major Arts Event about which you'll be able to read many impressions from many observers on NewMusicBox this week. I feel like a small-town girl in a Busby Berkeley picture. NPAC's enormity is such that I can't voice my thoughts about it in prose... read more
By Colin Holter
Published: 6/11/2008

National Performing Arts Convention 2008: Reporting Live From Denver
If you can't find your favorite performing artist or arts presenter this week, check to see if they have packed their bags and headed for Denver. Don't worry, they'll return to you at the end of the week—hopefully armed with some new ideas and new connections formed during the National Performing Arts Convention 2008. We'll do our best to keep you up to date with daily reports posted here on NewMusicBox, so check back often. read more
By Molly Sheridan
Published: 6/9/2008