April 25, 2014
Mizzou composers, New Music Ensemble
develop new works inspired by Forest Park
Forest Park in St. Louis is the site of all sorts of musical performances, from the sounds of Broadway at the Muny to the St. Louis Symphony’s annual concert on Art Hill to the rock, pop and hip-hop of LouFest, and more. Now, the park itself has become the subject of music, as four Mizzou students have been commissioned by the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation to compose new works for the Mizzou New Music Ensemble to perform at “The Sounds of Forest Park,” a private event next month for members of Forest Park Forever‘s Leffingwell Society. In February,…
April 23, 2014
Oratorio premiere draws media attention
The impending premiere this week of Stefan Freund’s Civil War oratorio is drawing plenty of attention from Columbia media. Last week, Freund was interviewed by Trevor Harris of KBIA, and on Sunday, the Columbia Tribune published a feature story by Amy Wilder previewing the production. Mizzou’s news service also had a preview story about the premiere, as did the Columbia Missourian. Though the latter article now is available only to subscribers, the Missourian also produced a short video to go with it, which you can view in the embedded video window below. The world premiere…
April 8, 2014
New oratorio by Mizzou’s Stefan Freund reveals
Missouri’s Civil War history through music
Though the Civil War ended nearly 150 years ago, it remains a continuing subject of fascination for historians and in pop culture, inspiring poems, songs, novels, films and more. Now the war’s divisive effects on the state of Missouri are the subject of a new oratorio by Stefan Freund, an associate professor of composition and music theory at the University of Missouri and co-artistic director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative. The world premiere of “The War Amongst Families and Neighbors: The Civil War in Missouri” will be presented by the University of Missouri School of…
Feb. 24, 2014
Missouri Composers Orchestra Project chooses works
by Clark, Strobel and Williams for performance on Sunday, March 16
For a composer of orchestral music, getting a new work performed by a live orchestra represents not only the culmination of many hours of hard work but also the realization of a dream. Now, three Missouri composers will see their work rewarded and hear their dreams realized, as the Columbia Civic Orchestra (CCO) and the Mizzou New Music Initiative have announced the selection of three orchestral works written by Missouri residents to be performed by the CCO at a concert on Sunday, March 16 in Columbia. The winning compositions were chosen in a statewide competition conducted under the auspices…
Sep. 13, 2013
Mizzou New Music Ensemble to open 2013-14 season
on Friday, October 11 at Whitmore Recital Hall
The Mizzou New Music Ensemble will open their 2013-14 season with a concert at 7:30 p.m., Friday, October 11 in Whitmore Recital Hall, 135 Fine Arts Building on the University of Missouri campus. Admission is free for Mizzou students, $5 suggested donation for the general public. The program will include works by the acclaimed contemporary composers Daniel Asia and Nico Muhly, as well as the world premieres of four pieces written by composers affiliated with Mizzou. Daniel Asia’s ”Breath in a Ram’s Horn” (2003) is a song cycle based on five poems by writer Paul Pines,…
July 17, 2013
Composers Festival Spotlight: Mizzou New Music Ensemble
Mizzou New Music Ensemble Although resident ensemble Alarm Will Sound understandably attracts a lot of attention during the Mizzou International Composers Festival, let’s not forget that the “Mizzou New Music” concert on Friday, July 26 at the Missouri Theatre will showcase the Mizzou New Music Initiative’s “home team,” the Mizzou New Music Ensemble. Comprised of graduate students on scholarship, the Ensemble is directed by faculty composer and Alarm Will Sound member Stefan Freund. They serve as the flagship group of the Mizzou New Music Initiative, collaborating with student, faculty and visiting composers throughout the…
July 16, 2013
Mizzou International Composers Festival to include free events
In addition to the ticketed concerts at the Missouri Theatre, the 2013 Mizzou International Composers Festival includes a number of events that are free of charge. All the presentations by the Festival’s guest, resident and faculty composers are free and open to the public, and will take place in Room 145 of the Fine Arts Building on the MU campus. The resident composers will give presentations on their work from 9:00 a.m to 12:00 p.m. and 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. on Monday, July 22 and from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 23.
Feb. 4, 2013
Missouri Composers Orchestra Project selects works
by Stephanie Berg, Dustin Dunn for performance in March
Stephanie Berg Continuing their collaborative efforts to spotlight the work of Missouri composers, the Columbia Civic Orchestra (CCO) and the Mizzou New Music Initiative have announced the selection of two orchestral works written by Missouri residents to be performed by the CCO at a concert in March. The two winning pieces were chosen in a statewide competition conducted under the auspices of the Missouri Composers Orchestra Project (MOCOP). The winners will receive a $500 honorarium from MOCOP’s sponsor, the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation. The work chosen in the Open category is Ravish and Mayhem by Stephanie Berg,…