The Portfolio Composer

Julia Adolphe’s music has been described as “alive with invention” (The New Yorker) and “colorful, mercurial, deftly orchestrated” (The New York Times). Current commissions include a viola concerto for the New York Philharmonic and a large choral work for James Conlon and the Cincinnati May Festival. Adolphe has received numerous awards including a 2016 Lincoln Center Emerging Artist Award and a 2015 Charles Ives Scholarship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

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Julia Adolphe discusses how to balance her time between composing and working on her composition business.

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Reena Esmail is a composer of orchestral, choral and chamber music. She is a graduate of Yale and Juilliard, and a recent Fulbright grantee to India. Her music explores the spaces between Indian and Western classical music. She has received awards from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and ASCAP, and she has written commissions for the American Composers Orchestra, Albany Symphony, and the Kronos Quartet, among many others. Reena currently lives in Los Angeles, CA.

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Composer Reena Esmail discusses how she found her nice and gives advice on how you can, too!

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World music, minimalism and romanticism influence Worthington’s compositional style. Worthington’s music takes “…ideas of American musical style to a new place – like a walk in a familiar, yet very different park.” and “music which speaks to the senses, is packed with real emotion and, most important of all in contemporary music, really communicates.” Two upcoming highlights include an orchestral premiere of Tracing a Dream, and a CD release of orchestral music, Dream Vapors.

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Composer Rain Worthington discusses the process and importance of creating an album of your music.

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After Rain and I finished the email she sent me this message to be included in the show notes because many of you might find it helpful:

"One key point that I realized I didn’t mention in terms of doing recordings of my music was that the first step I took was to research Fiscal Sponsorship programs.
This was before the whole crowd sourcing thing was happening, and I wanted to set up something so that people could give me donations as tax-deductible contributions. I had looked into various funding and arts organizations, and decided to sign up with an organization in NYC called The Field. So, I’ve been a Sponsored Artist with them for years now and that’s how I have been able to receive tax-deductible donations toward my recordings."

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This week marks the one-year anniversary of the Composer on Fire podcast. I decided this would be a good time for me to reflect on some of the many lessons I've learned from interviewing composer, performers, entrepreneurs, and other thought leaders. These lessons are what have stood out to me. There are many more. What have you learned from listening to the podcast? Share in the comments below.

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Garrett reflects on seven lessons learned while interviewing the Composer on Fire guests over the first year of the podcast.

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Soprano Ann Moss, acclaimed champion of contemporary vocal music, performs and collaborates with a dynamic array of American composers. Her high, silvery, flexible voice has been singled out by Opera News for “beautifully pure floated high notes” and by San Francisco Classical Voice for “powerful expression.” In addition to working closely with well-known composers such as Jake Heggie, John Harbison, and Aaron Jay Kernis, Ann seeks out and performs music by emerging voices at forums and festivals across the USA. A co-founder and Artistic Director of new-music repertory group CMASH, Moss has been personally responsible for the creation of over eighty art songs, vocal chamber music and operatic works, and has been a featured soloist with Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, SF Contemporary Music Players, Earplay, Eco Ensemble, the Ives, Alexander, and Hausmann String Quartets, and at FENAM, Other Minds, Fresno New Music, PARMA and Switchboard Music Festivals, among others. Moss has lectured about vocal composition at schools including MIT, UC Davis, Longy School of Music, NYU Tisch School For The Arts, Sacramento State University and CSU Los Angeles. Her debut album Currents (Angels Share Records, 2013), produced and recorded by multi-GRAMMY® award winner Leslie Ann Jones at Skywalker Sound, features extraordinary new and recent American music Ann has championed over the past decade. Ann Moss has recorded for PARMA, Naxos, Albany, Navona Records and Jaded Ibis Productions labels.

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Soprano and CMASH Artistic Director Ann Moss discusses the importance of meeting deadlines and providing value through partnerships.

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Born in Alabama and after years of traveling America, living in Nashville, L.A. and Austin, William has seen and done almost every career in the music business, from booking agent to PR, to consultant for studios and labels, to brokering partner deals with Fortune 500 companies and major studios, to sales director for startups in media, to film composer for orchestras, and to guitarist for bands of all genres. William now runs www.howtobeamusicsuccess.com, a site that teaches musicians marketing, sales, and entrepreneurship.

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Composer and music entrepreneur William Tait discusses how composers can add value to their music.

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Brian Balmages has had his music performed throughout the world, including premieres at the College Band Directors National Conference, the Midwest Clinic, Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. His music was also performed as part of the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Prayer Service, which was attended by the President and Vice President. As a conductor, he enjoys regular engagements with all-state and regional groups as well as international appearances including Australia, Canada and Italy.

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Composer and conductor Brian Balmages discusses the importance of thinking in business and the key to being a successful composer.

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Tim Chatwood (ASCAP) is an American composer and percussionist. He received his Masters in Music Composition from the University of Nevada, Reno. He has studied composition under Dr. James Winn, Dr. Jean-Paul Perrotte, Dr. Stephen Blumberg. His works have been performed by the Central Michigan University New Music Ensemble and the University of Nevada, Reno Contemporary Music Ensemble. He continues to compose new works in his studio and is endorsed by Innovative Percussion.

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Composer, teacher, and percussionist Tim Chatwood shares how composers can sell themselves.

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Dr. Greg A. Steinke is retired, former Joseph Naumes Endowed Chair of Music/Art and Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies, Marylhurst University, Marylhurst, Oregon; Associate Director, Ernest Bloch Music Festival (‘93–97) and Director, Composers Symposium (‘90–97) (Newport, OR); served as the National Chairman of the Society of Composers, Inc. (1988–97). Composer of chamber and symphonic music and author with published/recorded works and performances across the U. S. and internationally.

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Dr. Greg Steinke discusses what it takes to build a career in academia including conquering the job search.

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Chris Foss grew up in southwest Iowa and graduated from Millikin University with a BM in Commercial Music. After a short two years at the University of Nebraska directing the Vocal Jazz program and earning his MM in Choral Conducting, Chris relocated to the Twin Cities and has been proud to be a part of Cantus since then. Recent appearances with other professional vocal groups include: Minnesota Bach Ensemble, Four Shadow, Omaha Chamber Music Series, Chapter 6, Voices of Omaha, Dulces Voces and Home Free. Chris also teaches as a part of the voice faculty at McNally Smith College of Music in Saint Paul.

Deemed “indisputably unique, confident, and innovative” through the American Prize, Paul John Rudoi’s award-winning compositions have been commissioned and performed by various ensembles and artists worldwide, and supported through grants from the NEA, the Jerome Foundation, the American Composers Forum, and ASCAP. His music is published through PJRMusic along with Graphite, Santa Barbara, Walton, Morningstar, and NCCO music publishers.

Adam Fieldson’s credits include performances as Nicely Nicely in Guys and Dolls and Galahad in A Connecticut Yankee at Ohio Light Opera Company, Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus at New York Opera Exchange and Jack in Into the Woods at Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre. Adam holds both a Bachelors and Masters of Music from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where he performed the title role of Candide, Nerone in L’incoronazione di Poppea, Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Romeo in Roméo et Juliette

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Cantus vocal ensemble members Chris Foss, Paul John Rudoi, and Adam Fieldson discuss the commissioning process and how to speak with performers.

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