Dear Friends,

I hope you are faring well and safe. I spent my summer composing and workshopping a new piece with the vocal ensemble Roomful of Teeth. The composition, entitled “Friday’s Saints,” is written for the low voices of the ensemble and uses recordings taken in Sicily of various singing traditions and merges them with new music and text. The work will be premiered next season — I can’t wait to share it with you. Here we are after 2 long days of work:

This coming year, on October 29, Ensemble VONK from Tilburg, Netherlands gives the world premiere of “Fog in the Mouth of the Mountain” with a text written by my friend, the poet Andrés Cerpa, as part of their “Songbook of Rare Feelings.” A fews days later, I’ll be in residence at the University of Michigan where my good friend Lindsay Kesselman gives the first of many performances of “Darkening, The Brightening,” a new work that premiered in April of this past year. She will perform the work seven more times with the UNCG wind ensemble: on November 21 and throughout March, when they reach the CBDNA convention. 

On November 17, Vanessa Wagner gives the French premieres of two recent piano works, “Passagework” and “Area of Refuge” at the Philharmonie de Paris. (There’s a recent video of David Kaplan playing “Passagework” available below):

After a brief stint as a resident at the Copland House, I’ll dive into rehearsals for the NYC premiere of my opera, “In a Grove” as part of the PROTOTYPE festival. With a libretto by Stephanie Fleischmann and direction by Mary Birnbaum, this is something we’ve worked towards since the premiere of the work two years ago, and we’re thrilled to partner with Prototype, Beth Morrison Projects, Pittsburgh Opera, and Metropolis Ensemble to make this happen. Tickets go on sale on October 1 for members and the 15th for the general public — we have an extraordinary cast that I’m thrilled to share very soon. We have five shows from January 16-19, 2025.

Later in January, Roderick Cox gives the UK premiere of “The Insects Became Magnetic” with the Hallé Orchestra on January 23 and 26, 2025, in Manchester. You can hear the amazing account he gave last year with the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin:

In May, there will be two more world premieres: a new harp work for Stef Van Vynckt which premieres on May 18 at De Graaf in Ghent, Belgium, and a new large work with electronics for Hub New Music for Hub commissioned by Hub, Rocket City New Music, CAP UCLA, and Elizabeth and Justus Schlichting, which will receive its premiere on May 22 in Huntsville.

There’s lots more on the way that you’ll hear more about, including a new album with Sandbox Percussion, a new work for Catherine Gregory and David Kaplan, and other yet-to-be-announced projects that I’m really excited to share.

In the meanwhile, Beaufort Scales, is available everywhere from Cold Blue Music. Stream it on your favorite platform or buy a CD or download from Bandcamp. Beaufort Scales was commissioned and performed by the incredible Lorelei Ensemble and conducted by Beth Willer. It’s been receiving great reviews, and I really hope you can take a listen.

As always, you can find a complete listing of upcoming performances on my website — there are many more things I can’t fit into a single email.

Thank you, as always, for reading!
Chris