Festival Submissions

This year the Festival of Contemporary Music celebrates its 9th season.  We received sixty-seven pieces submitted by forty-seven composers.  Each composer is allowed to submit up to two pieces.  Listening to each submission and making selections for the FCM is a long process.  This year there are three of us in the selection committee which helped to make the process a little easier.  After listening to all of the submissions the committee convened to discuss the submissions and make selections.

As with any open call for scores we received a wide variety of pieces in style and quality.  Fortunately it was not all "questionable" or bad.  We received many quality compositions.  Not enough, however, to justify opening a third concert date in the future, but plenty to make two high-quality concerts.

The 9th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music is a two-concert event that will take place on Saturday, July 20, 2011 and Saturday, August 13, 2011 at the San Francisco Community Music Center.  For more information please visit: www.newmusicforum.com.

Opera & Song - An Autumn Concert: November 13, 2010

On Saturday, November 13, 2010 the San Francisco Cabaret Opera and Goat Hall Productions will present Opera and Song – An Autumn concert.  The concert will take place at 8:00 p.m. at the San Francisco Community Music Center and will feature new chamber operas and song cycles by Mark Alburger, John Bilotta, Edward Knight and Sylvia Rickard.

The Community Music Center is located at 544 Capp Street, San Francisco 94111.  Tickets are $15 general and $10 students.  There is a $2 discount when ordering tickets online at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/129847

Program:
Song Cycles:
John Bilotta – YEATS SONGS
Andrew R. White, baritone; Hadley McCarroll, piano.

Edward Knight – LIFE IS FINE on poems by Langston Hughes
Raina Simons, soprano; Hadley McCarroll, piano.

Sylvia Rickard – THREE CABARET SONGS on poems by Dorothy Parker
Elizabeth Henry, soprano; Keisuke Nakagoshi, piano.

Chamber Operas:
Mark Alburger – JOB: A MASQUE
Featuring Kate Bautch, Heather Klein,
Harriet March-Page, Maria Mikheyenko, Suzanna Mizell,
Marilyn Pratt.

John Bilotta – TRIFLES
Featuring Michael Desnoyers, Alexandra Jerinic,
Nathan Kondrat, Nathan Marken, Maria Mikheyenko.

CHAMBER ENSEMBLE for operas:
Susanne Rublein, flute
Nora Adachi, clarinet
David Ryther, violin
Stephen Moore, viola
Joan Hadeishi, cello
Keisuke Nakagoshi, piano
Martha Stoddard, conductor

Concert #2 of the 8th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music

On Saturday, August 7th the second concert of the 8th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music took place.  This concert featured seven pieces, four of which were acoustic pieces and three were for instrument and electronics.  This was the first year in which we programmed three such pieces in one concert.  Actually, prior to this year we had programmed only one instrument and electronics piece total.  The setup for this concert provided a different set of challenges than we were used to, but we were able to get through each of these without many problems.

The acoustic pieces provided a wide variety of styles of music.  The first piece on the program was Paul Hembree's Passion for soprano, clarinet, percussion and double bass.  The concert ended with the final scene of John Bilotta's chamber opera Trifles.  I feel that this was our most ambitious program on the Festival yet.  All of the music was wonderfully performed and in spite of our best efforts the concert came off smooth and professional.  I am excited to see what next year brings!

FCM 8 - Concert #2 - Tonight

The 8th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music conludes tonight at 8:00 p.m. at the Community Music Center in San Francisco. Tickets are just $10 general/$5 student, senior and ARTSCard. The Community Music Center is located at 544 Capp Street, SF, CA.

Tonight’s Program:
Paul Hembree – Passion for soprano, clarinet, percussion and bass
Peter Lane – Aeromancer for bassoon and electronics
Helena Michelson – Romance for alto flute and piano
Jean Ahn – Berkeley Arirang for piano and electronics

INTERMISSION

Bruce Bennett – Translucent Night for trumpet and electronics
Hubert Ho – Meccanico for piano
John Bilotta – Trifles, Final Scene a chamber opera

8th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music - Concert #2

Tomorrow, August 7th, the Festival of Contemporary Music concludes with a concert at 8:00 p.m. at the San Francisco Community Music Center, 544 Capp Street.  This program will feature a variety of music in both acoustic and electroacoustic genres.  Tickets are only $10 for general admission and $5 for students and seniors.  For more information please visit: www.newmusicforum.com

Program #2
Paul Hembree - Passion for soprano, clarinet, percussion and double bass
Peter Lane - Aeromancer for bassoon and electronics
Jean Ahn - Berkeley Arirang for piano and electronics
Bruce Bennett - Translucent Night for trumpet and electronics
Helena Michelson - Romance for alto flute and piano
Hubert Ho - Meccanico for piano
John Bilotta - Trifles, Final Scene for chamber opera

8th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music - Concert #1

Last Saturday was the first concert of the 8th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music.  Ten pieces by ten composers were masterfully performed.  This concert was focused primarily on acoustic chamber music.  This concert included four pieces for piano, two pieces for guitar, two sets of songs for soprano and piano, a piece for tuba and piano and a piece for harp and double bass.  While seven of the pieces involved piano the range of styles were dramatically varied.  The styles ranged from serious and abstract works like Kyong Mee Choi's Reminiscences for piano and my 4-5 for piano to more fun and somewhat simplistic works like Micheal Vickers's Home Movies and Sylvia Rickard's Three Cabaret Songs.

These concerts are great because they bring together old friends and create new ones.  Four of the composers on Saturday's concert have had music performed before on the FCM.  One of the composers Stacey Barelos, who also performed my piece, is a friend of mine from Bowling Green State University.  It was great to see her again.  I also enjoyed meeting the "new" composers and spending a little time getting to know them.

All-in-all these concerts are a lot of work, but they are fun to put on.  The reward and the enjoyment is definitely worth the effort.

FCM 8 - Concert #1 - Tonight

The 8th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music begins tonight at 8:00 p.m. at the Community Music Center in San Francisco. Tickets are just $10 general/$5 student, senior and ARTSCard. The Community Music Center is located at 544 Capp Street, SF, CA.

Tonight’s Program:
Kyong Mee Choi – Reminiscences for piano
Stacey Barelos – Letters from Jenny for soprano and piano
Micheal Vickers – Home Movies for piano
J. Richard Freese – Scattered Memories for guitar
Sylvia Rickard – Three Cabaret Songs for soprano and piano

INTERMISSION

Robert Denham – The Kraken’s One Day is as Another for tuba and piano
Alex Miller – Flatiron for guitar
Tara O’Brien – Mirroir and L’abysse for piano
Stephen Yip – Hundun for bass and harp
Brian Bice – 4-5 for piano

Upcoming performance of 4-5

This Saturday, July 17th I will have my first performance of the 2009-10 concert season.  4-5 for piano will be premiered at the first concert of the 8th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music.  This piece will be performed by pianist Stacey Barelos.  4-5 was composed in the fall of 2002 while I began work towards a Ph. D. in Music Composition at the University of Oregon.  The title 4-5 refers to the intervals of the 4th and the 5th upon which most of the musical material is built.

The 8th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music begins at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 17, 2010 at the San Francisco Community Music Center.  The address is 544 Capp Street, San Francisco, CA.  Tickets are only $10 general admission and $5 students/seniors/ARTS card and are available at the door.

8th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music - Press Release

The 8th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music will present two concerts—on Saturday, July 17, 2010 and Saturday, August 7, 2010.  Both concerts will begin at 8:00 p.m. at the San Francisco Community Music Center, 544 Capp Street.  This year’s Festival will feature twenty works by twenty composers.  Audience members will be able to meet the composers as all will be in attendance.  Tickets for each concert are $10 general admission and $5 for students, seniors and ARTSCard members.

The first concert, Saturday, July 17, 2010 will feature ten compositions of acoustic chamber music.  The spectrum of ensembles will include solo piano, solo guitar, and duos including voice, brass, piano, and harp.  The concert will include two world premieres of works by Brian Bice and Micheal Vickers as well as the American premiere of Canadian composer Sylvia Rickard’s Three Cabaret Songs.

The second concert, Saturday, August 7, 2010 will feature ten compositions of acoustic and electronic chamber music.  The spectrum of ensembles will include solo violin and solo piano, as well as works for acoustic instruments and electronics including bassoon, alto flute, soprano, clarinet, percussion, and bass.  This year we are pleased to end the Festival with the final scene of John Bilotta’s new chamber opera Trifles.

The Festival of Contemporary Music is presented under the direction of Brian Bice and John Bilotta.  Founded in 2003, the Festival of Contemporary Music has, prior to this year, presented 10 concerts featuring 82 compositions by 61 composers.  Among those works 15 have been world premiere performances.  This year marks the 8th Annual Festival and we are excited to present 20 more pieces during this two-concert event.

New Opera Premiere

Trifles a new opera by San Francisco Bay Area Composer is set to premiere on Thursday, June 17 and Saturday, June 19, 2010 at 8:00 p.m. at the Live Oak Theatre in Berkeley, CA.  The performances are a part of the Fresh Voices X Festival of New Works.  For more information visit the opera's website: www.triflesopera.com