I just got back from an almost two-week stay at the University of Oregon, where I participated in the Oregon Bach Festival Composers Symposium. This was a very cool experience. There were several diverse opportunities: performances of composers works, playing your instrument, singing in the choir, improvisation, gamelan, and conducting. This unsurprisingly attracted a really diverse group of people from all over the country, each of whom had their own distinctive compositional voices and personalities. It's fun to hang out with composers.
Undoubtedly, the highlight of the program was getting to work with the Portland-based new music group FearNoMusic. They played my string quartet Exuberant Turns, and boy did they play the hell out of it! They programmed it last on their recital because it's big and loud and fast, and that's how they wanted to end their show. They rock!
Because I didn't want to schlep my euph to Oregon, I did not perform. Instead, I conducted Jakub Polaczyk's clever trio for flute, bassoon, and piano called J-ete. The piece called for the performers to blow bubbles and drop ping pong balls.
I also participated in the Balinese Gamelan ensemble on a really beautiful instrument called the Reyong. I had heard a lot about Gamelan before, as it has been especially influential on 20th and 21st century composers in the west, but this was my first time to experience it fully. Gamelan is VERY loud, but it is also quite pretty and transcendent. As Rob Kyr says, Gamelan is a way of life.
I am a self-proclaimed concert addict. (I've been to over 140 concerts since August 2012, when I started counting). However, in this regard the OBF Composers Symposium might have been a bit much, even for me. I went to 14 concerts while I was there: American Creators Chorus, American Creators Ensemble, three Open Ears Workshops, Performer Showcase, Duo Damiana recital, FearNoMusic recital, four Wild Nights Cafe concerts (starting after 10pm!), His Majestys Sagbutts & Cornetts, and the Canadian Brass. #yaynewmusic
Overall, the OBF Composers Symposium was a great experience. Every participant got a master class with Chen Yi, which was really cool. Dr. Chen is a bundle of energy and is very knowledgeable. The indomitable spirit of Robert Kyr, the director of OBFCS, kept all of us going through several consecutive days of sleep deprivation.
I would recommend this program to other composers looking for a way to spend their summers productively. It's not too long, and there are a ton of opportunities. Also, Oregon has big trees.
I would recommend this program to other composers looking for a way to spend their summers productively. It's not too long, and there are a ton of opportunities. Also, Oregon has big trees.