In Friday’s (11/28) Sentinel-Tribune (Bowling Green, Ohio), David DuPont writes about a reading session last week at which five Bowling Green State University composition students “had the chance to hear their compositions played by the Toledo Symphony Orchestra…. Guest composer Steven Stucky … said he was especially impressed with the variety of the works presented…. Some had robust sections that evoked a movie soundtrack; some had passages of great tenderness. [Brian] Sears’ ‘Fractured Spirits’ celebrated the human spirit as it confronts life’s traumas. [Alan] Racadag’s ‘ONE’ seemed to give voice to mathematical formulae. The pieces required the orchestra to articulate serpentine rhythms with the utmost precision. A couple pieces had the musicians making up some sounds on the spot. The orchestra, conducted by Michael Lewanski, handled it all with aplomb, Stucky said.… [Lydia] Dempsey said she was struck by how full her piece ‘Passage’ sounded. It was originally written for eight wind and string players before she decided to expand the orchestration…. Stucky said the chance for students to hear their pieces performed by a professional orchestra is rare.… It’s all about getting professional experience, [composition professor Chris] Dietz said. The students work with a professional orchestra and then have their works critiqued by a professional composer.”
Read Symphony magazine’s article about programs by orchestras for teen composers here.
Posted December 1, 2014
