Relevant Tones

We celebrate the beginning of the Year of the Ox with music by composers from countries that celebrate the lunar new year.

For more than twenty years the Tribeca New Music Festival has brought bold new classical music infused with American pop culture to audiences in New York City and, increasingly, to the world.

We talk with composer and Artistic and Executive Director Preston Stahly about their mission, history and creative pivots during the pandemic.

We celebrate a string of palindromic dates - 1/20/21 to 1/29/21 - with music written in palindromic form.  Music by Martha Horst, Ben Johnston, Frank J. Oteri, Andrew Norman, Ted Hearne, Joseph Schwantner and Bela Bartok.

We take a break from our chaotic world to listen to music from composers inspired by utopian visions from Ursula K. LeGuin, Thomas More, Plato, HG Wells, John Milton and Greek myth.

Two exciting commissioning projects were a bright spot during this very dark year. They are Thomas Piercy's Moments in this Time and Los Angeles-based piano duo Hocket's #What2020SoundsLike. 

For each project composers were asked to write short pieces that represent an incredible array of styles and mental states as we all navigate this difficult time. 

We talk with the performers and feature a sample of the 90 - that's right, 90! - commissioned pieces. 

The symphonies of Gloria Coates have been hailed as "the spirit of an expressionistic-apocalyptic-mystical world view" by German musicologist Ludwig Finscher.  Over sixteen symphonies, Coates has created an indelible, absolutely unique and highly personal sound world. 

We talk with her and feature movements from symphonies 1, 4, 7 and 14. 

Begun by composer Stephen Lias in 2012 Composing in the Wilderness is a "shared wilderness experience for adventurous composers at all levels." 

Participants spend two weeks in the wilds of Alaska drawing from that inspiration to write a new piece that will be performed at the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival. 

Applications for 2021 close on November 1st, 2020. Apply at composinginthewilderness.com 

Clarice Assad is a highly acclaimed composer, pianist, singer and arranger renowned for her musical scope and versatility. 

A prolific Grammy nominated composer, Clarice Assad’s numerous commissions include works for Carnegie Hall, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Orquestra Sinfônica de São Paulo, Chicago Sinfonietta, San Jose Chamber Orchestra, the Boston Youth Orchestra, the Bravo! Vail Music Festival, Queen Reef Music Festival and the La Jolla Music Festival, to name a few. 

Her compositions have been recorded by some of the most prominent names in the classical music, including percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, violinist Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, and oboist Liang Wang.

In short, she's a badass and we're thrilled to chat with her and feature a sample of her wonderful music. 

There are a variety of reasons that people decide to leave home for good and settle in another country.

But according to the U.S. State Department there has been a veritable  exodus lately with a 47% spike in expatriation in 2019 over 2014.

We talk with four composers living abroad about their lives and music.

MUSIC

A Winter Sketchbook, mvmts I and III by Jane O'Leary

Earthly Chants mvmt I. The Singing Wall; Tools mvmt VIII Telescopic Ladder; Wood Burn by Ned McGowan

When the Waves Crash, mvmt III by Colleen Schmuckal

Among the Asteroids by Gloria Coates (excerpt)

This is a pivotal moment for Hong Kong as it fights for political autonomy and searches for a national identity. Hong Kong has long been a global hub for artists and musicians but the future is uncertain. 

We talk with Antony Dapiran, author of City on Fire: the Fight for Hong Kong, about the protest movement and William Lane, the founder of the Hong Kong New Music Ensemble, and we feature the music of several composers active in Hong Kong's burgeoning new music scene. 

Music by Fung Lam, Mei-Fang Lin, Austin Yip, Galison Lau and Hin Yan Austin Leung.