News and Updates

Greetings!  The Fall has settled in and has brought with it a new set of performances and competitions.  


The 2nd Annual Melos Music concert in San Francisco went over incredibly well, and the premier of Shooting Snowburst Spectacular Silhouette was very well received.  A review of the concert can be found here.

Amy Foote - soprano

Sungbin Choi - cello

Jeannie Psomas - clarinet

Daniel Temkin - percussion

Stepan Rudenko - piano

Greg Simon - conductor


Thea Brown - Poet

The concert next year will be in Philadelphia.  More information is on its way.


Angelus Novus received an Honorable Mention in the 7th annual Sun River Prize at the SiChuan Conservatory of Music in China.  Many thanks to Nora Epping for a great recording and the upcoming performance.

November 6 - University of Iowa Composer's Workshop Concert - Riverside Recital Hall

String Quartet #1
crawly - by Jason Palamara


I am coordinating the workshop concerts now, and it has brought me back to my Nextet days at UNLV.  This concert will feature the premier of the final version of my String Quartet #1.  The performers are


Megan Karls - violin
Colleen Ferguson - violin
Manuel Tábora - viola
Eunkyung Son - cello


I am also playing guitar in Jason Palamara's crawly, a duet for guitar and violin.  This is my first true performance since SpaceFuture at the Annoyance Theater.  It is incredibly fun to play and you should check it out if you are in the area.

November 12 -  Indiana University

Midwest Composer's Symposium

String Quartet #1

The folks that perform the premier on the 6th are joining us in Indiana to perform as part of this conference.  I am looking forward to seeing some old friends and colleagues as well as hearing some cutting edge new music.

November 15 - IHearIC - The Mill, Iowa City

Angelus Novus

Angelus Novus will be performed by flutist Nora Epping as part of the IHearIC concert.  This will be the first truly public performance.

November - ChuGye University, South Korea

Apoplexy

My first serious endeavor into the realm of electronic music, Apoplexy will get its international debut this month as part of the exchange between the University of Iowa and ChuGye University for the Arts.

Stay tuned for more updates as they happen.  There is another workshop concert on December 4, and many other concerts and conferences coming up as well!

Summer News

It has been so long since my last update and a lot has been going on!

The biggest news is the birth of my daughter.  Madeline Nicole Penkrot was born on April 1st of 2011 and has continued to be healthy and happy.  I look forward to getting to know her as she grows up.

Performances

This past spring saw the premiere of Interfacial Colloid on March 25th at the Midwest Graduate Music Conference at the University of Wisconsin Madison.  Many thanks to Jerry Hui and the ensemble for a wonderful performance.  The recording will be up on my website very soon.

The following night of March 26th saw the next performance of Interfacial Colloid as part of the Society for Composers Iowa Chapter concert.  Dan Houglum conducted Rolando Gaitan-Hernandez (flute), Marjorie Shearer (clarinet), Emily Rolka (violin), Jeehyung Moon (cello), and Younjung Cha (piano) in a spirited performance.  Two weeks later, they performed the piece again at the Exchange of Midwestern Collegiate Composers on April 9th.  I was unable to make the performance but was thrilled to hear the response and want to thank the performers for their time and dedication.  Recordings will be up on my website very soon.

I had the premiere of my first fixed media piece Apoplexy at the Electronic Music Studio of the University of Iowa concert on May 1.  It was a much different experience to hear my music in a large dark space.  I would expect to expect a few more acoustic works incorporating live processing and fixed audio parts in the future.

Upcoming Performances

Shooting Snowburst Spectacular Silhouette - August 19th, Community Music Center, San Francisco

For soprano, clarinet, percussion, cello, and piano and using an amazing text by poet Thea Brown.  This is part of the Melos Music 2nd Annual New Music Concert.  This is going to be a great concert if you are in the area.  (http://www.melosmusic.com/sfconcert2011.php)

Angelus Novus - November 9, Composers Workshop concert at the University of Iowa.  For solo flute, I have been working with Nora Epping on this since February, and am excited to have it premiere.  The odds of a performance before this is pretty good - I will let you know.

Apoplexy is scheduled to be played at the ChuGye University for the Arts this November in South Korea.

Olympus: Three Miniatures of Greek Gods has been selected by the Juventas New Music Ensemble (http://www.juventasmusic.com/) for performance.  Stay tuned for updates.

Performance

I have decided to expand my repertoire for guitar beyond rock and jazz and am looking to perform, beginning this Fall.  I have recently been looking at Reich, Murail, Romitelli, and Takemitsu and would expect to see a performance of one of these in the next few months.

I am also currently looking to put together a group of performers to perform graphic scores, improvisations, and musical processes.  A name and repertoire are in the works.

Other News

I had the good fortune to attend June in Buffalo this year.  I had a wonderful time and returned invigorated and excited about composing.

I was named the business manager for Melos Music.  I am thrilled to be working with a group of such talented and driven people.  I look forward to the future of the group.

I was named the Theory instructor in the certificate program at the Preucil School (http://www.preucil.org/).  I had a wonderful time teaching at their Chamber Summer Camp in June and look forward to meeting the kids this Fall.