by David Kulma
The Madison-based powerhouse Clocks in Motion, one of the percussion quartets currently making a name for themselves, returned for their third visit to Cleveland on Monday, September 23 on CSU’s Cleveland Contemporary Players series at Drinko Recital Hall. Clocks — Megan Arns, Matthew Coley, Christopher G. Jones, and Sean Kleve — have taken seriously their mandate to bring new work to life, and offered four works written over the last five years. [Read more…]
by Jarrett Hoffman
Last month on the podcast The Three Questions with Andy Richter, comedian Jim Gaffigan said he always thinks he’ll be “metaphorically escorted into a room of luxury” after achieving something special, though he’s learned that doesn’t exist. But if you’re a composer interested in writing for percussion, there’s a room that might provide similar validation, and plenty of new ideas.
I’m talking about a 2,000-square-foot warehouse in Edgerton, Wisconsin, where Sean Kleve, music director of the percussion quartet Clocks in Motion, houses a collection of instruments, some of them rare and built by the group. They call the space their “Instrumentarium,” and composers who collaborate with them can go there to survey their wide and varied options.
One of those visitors has been Andrew Rindfleisch, professor of composition at Cleveland State University. His years-long collaboration with Clocks in Motion continues on Monday, September 23 at 8:00 pm, when the ensemble will visit CSU’s Drinko Recital Hall to premiere his Chroma.
by Mike Telin
Creating your niche in today’s crowded chamber music world is not an easy task. However with talent, hard work and a bit of creative ingenuity many young chamber music ensembles are finding their place in that world and winning over skeptical presenters and audiences.
On Monday, March 10 at Kent State University and Thursday, March 13 at the Oberlin Conservatory, the bi-coastal A/B Duo, comprised of percussionist Christopher G. Jones (Rochester, NY) and flutist Meerenai Shim (Campbell, CA), will present concerts that feature a variety of fun, intense and thought-provoking new works, most of which have been written for A/B Duo. The concerts will include Matthew Joseph Payne’s Echoloquacious for flute, percussion and Gameboy/LSDJ, Ivan Trevino’s Things We Dream About for flute, bass flute, vibraphone and drums, Carolyn O’Brien’s Nocturne for contrabass flute and djembe and the premiere of Zack Browning’s Sol Moon Rocker for flute and vibraphone. If seeing is believing, check out A/B’s video of “Fun” from Things We Dream About. [Read more…]