Sketching a new work for Taos Opera Institute

 Although it's not til 2028, I've started sketching a new opera for Taos Opera Institute's 20th anniversary. We did one excerpt from it on the showcase last week at TOI. This is Camryn Belle Creech as a singing magpie. The opera's working title is OVERHEARD. Thanks to Mark Craig, and TOI's predecessor/founders, Mary Jane Johnson and Linda Poetschke.

Catalogue, a work in progress

 I am working on an online catalog. It's part catalog. Part autobiography. It's a work in progress that I can update very easily. 

It's to help folks learn about my less well known pieces. It's to serve as a primary source for research. It's to keep keep things straight for my family. 

This wiki is done with great program called Obsidian. It's not working perfectly, but it will someday.

Click here to try it out. 

Flowing Gently, Sail out motor back, and 6483 available at Musicnotes

Although I've been an opera and vocal composer since my early twenties, there are plenty of other pieces of music in various instrumental genres. I'm exploring what to do with them. Ignore them. Put them up on IMSLP for free. These three, a new experiment, are up on Musicnotes, a sheet music site, for a couple of bucks to see if anyone might be interested. Here are the other two.

Catalogue (a work in progress)

A work-in-progress graph in Obsidian of my creative catalogue

So I'm in the beginning stages of trying to figure out a way that 99% of my material can be found by performers, producers, audiences, and researchers. This will probably end up being a website/wiki. I am going to try to do it through a program called Obsidian, which calls itself a "private and flexible writing app." (I've been using a program called Infoselect for years. It is solid and dependable--it works like a mountain of post-it notes. Very flexible and searchable. But can't do things like graphs and websites.) 

Composers and songwriters end up with a variety of publishing relationships during the course of their careers. Increasingly self licensing is a practical and profitable option too. But all of these different ways of getting music to the public can make tracking things down difficult. I have seen this with the estates of composers--once the composer is gone, the writer's family sometimes has a hard time tracking down where things are. And publishers lose track of things too. 

The graph illustrates that my work is mostly self published, with a several publisher relationships, the most important being with E C Schirmer Classical. I've also decided that there are works that I'd like to make available through IMSLP. These are things that are in genres--brass fanfares, string quartets--that I'm not known for, so there's no reason not to make them available for free. Eventually, I'll upload more works to IMSLP. What is less robust at this point is the archiving. I'm throwing out boxes of old manuscripts after scanning them, but haven't quite worked out where these electronic files (along with a few boxes of paper) will end up.

Eventually each of the nodes on the graph will be clickable for more information--collaborators, commissioner, performance history, and how to get hold of it.

Hazel Miner, opera in one act

 

In April of 2025, Northern State University in Aberdeen South Dakota will premiere my new one act opera, HAZEL MINER. The opera is based on a well known upper midwest story about a teen who saved her two younger siblings in a fierce early spring snowstorm in 1920. The treatment is by Marla Fogderud, who also co-wrote the libretto. 

Near Center, North Dakota. 1920. Despite unsettling weather, Hazel and her brother and sister go off to school. An early spring blizzard hits and school is let out. Although Hazel's father has come to bring them home, they are separated as the children's horse bolts, dragging the sleigh behind it. Stuck in a ditch, the children are forced to spend the night in the freezing weather. The frantic search party finally arrives, but Hazel has sacrificed herself, covering young Myrdith and Emmet with her body for warmth. The family and community grieve.

The piano vocal score to HAZEL MINER is available in my perusal score folder. A large production would require at least 16 singers (9 women/5 men/4 children/plus ensemble), and a small one 10 (6 women/2 men/2 children/no ensemble). There are lots of opportunities for smaller roles. The opera is for two keyboards, or just piano. It's about 35 minutes long. Until the premiere is recorded, here are audio demos.

The opera would be an ideal opportunity to collaborate with a local children's choir or school music program. Y'know, put a lot of kids on stage!

The opera has a sing-along round finale, something I'm rather proud of. Give it a listen.

VIARDOT at Music On Site

 

Both casts of NOTES ON VIARDOT

at Music on Site

Last production of the year--On December 20 and 21 Music On Site (MOSI) did the third production of NOTES ON VIARDOT. I came down to see the second performance. Until now, I've never been able to roll out a new show with three productions in its first year-the premiere at University of South Dakota, Vermillion, the second showing at Arizona State University, and now at MOSI.  This production featured the two keyboard version. 

Music On Site brought together 150 singers, directors, conductors, and coaches. It is cleverly timed to take place after school semesters are done and ends right before Christmas. A wide variety of performers participate, from undergrads, grads, young professionals, and experienced singers. It all takes place in less than two weeks!

This season's operas also included DON GIOVANNI, a scenes concert, and a tour of AMAHL AND THE NIGHT VISITORS. GIOVANNI and VIARDOT played on the same night in two different cities!

I'm not sure how long this will remain up, but there's a fb live link to the first performance.

MOSI was founded by Jen Stephenson Baker and Brad Baker. Although they don't work in Kansas anymore, they still come back in December to produce the festival. They still help design the productions and do much of the hands-on work. They are a gift to our field!  

Congratulations to USD

 

Congratulations to University of South Dakota, the department of music, and their opera program led by Dr. Tracelyn Gesteland. Their production of NOTES ON VIARDOT (2024) was recognized by the National Opera Association and won one of the divisions of their production competition. 

The third production of NOTES is coming up December 20 and 21, 2024 at Music On Site, Inc. MOSI has a clever niche in our opera ecosystem, producing after between the close of the fall semester and the Christmas/New Year holidays. 

An actual sheet music store!

We were in Utrecht yesterday and imagine our excitement to see an actual sheet music store. In the US, they are a vanishing breed, and apparently not so common here either. 

They had a nice collection of music, including study scores and some classical art song. The company, Broekmans & Van Pappel even have their own publishing company. 

I left with a couple of things, including some songs by a Dutch composer I didn't know, Jan Mul. I didn't know this--there aren't as many art songs written in Dutch as Dutch composers tended to set the music in more "standard" languages like German or French. 

 

New Two Key Version of NOTES ON VIARDOT

Michael, Polina, and Helen rehearsing at ASU

As Arizona State University has its run of NOTES ON VIARDOT this weekend, they will be premiering a new two keyboard version. The first keyboard is pure piano. The second keyboard is various orchestral sounds, operated by a program called Gig Performer. The musical theatre world has been doing this sort of thing for many years, mostly on the Mac operating system with Mainstage.

 

Second production of NOTES ON VIARDOT

I am very fortunate to have the second production of NOTES ON VIARDOT at Arizona State University, only six months after the premiere at University of South Dakota. It is being directed by Stephanie Sadownik and conducted by Michael Shannon. It is the premiere of a new two keyboard version, with keyboard #1 being pure piano and key #2 a variety of sounds, triggered by Gig Performer. The slot at ASU was designed to be a staged reading on book, but the cast has memorized their music and is fully staged--a very good sign! 

Thanks to ASU's Brian DeMaris for putting it on!