The past two nights have been close to sleepless in preparation for the UMKC Composition Workshop. Today is day one of the workshop, and so far it has been an outstanding experience, despite the sleep deprivation.
Today we were introduced to some of the composition faculty here at the University of Missouri – Kansas City. Namely, Paul Rudy, Mara Gibson, and James Mobberley. They are incredibly interesting and open-minded. I can’t wait to get to know them throughout this week!
Shortly after the panel discussion with them, we watched a wonderful presentation from the trio Ensemble of Irreproducibale Outcomes. They are a group of composers that create innovative scores for themselves that allow the players in the group to improvise and generate different outcomes for each performance. If you’re ever able to see these guys live, don’t miss it!
To end the first day we heard an excellent performance of some 20th century music. My favorites from the night were Robert Pherigo’s performance of The Alcotts from Ives’ Concord Sonata and Michale Hall (viola) and Pherigo’s performance of Berio’s Naturale.
More updates to come!