Friday, November 3, 2017 • 8:00 p.m.
New Music DePaul
DePaul Concert Hall 800 West Belden Avenue • Chicago
Friday, November 3, 2017 • 8:00 p.m. DePaul Concert Hall
New Music DePaul Compositions by Seung-Won Oh (b. 1969)
Program
Circle (2004)
John Corkill, percussion
So-Ri I for flute and guitar (2001)
Constance Volk, flute Jesse Langen, guitar
Canonic Phase (2008)
Sean Connors, percussion John Corkill, percussion Ian Ding, percussion Peter Martin, percussion
Aphonic Dialogue (2014)
Jess Aszodi, voice Alex Ellsworth, cello Ensemble 20+ New Music DePaul • November 3, 2017
Program Notes Circle Duration: 13 minutes The word circle emerged as a title when the piece was almost finished. Circle applies to the general structure of the piece, where later episodes continually return to a basic idea stated at the beginning. Upon each return, however, it will have developed somehow, mainly in timbre and rhythm. One of the most important goals of Circle was to realize a rich timbre within a limited setup, which is exemplified in the two ways Thai gongs are used. The gongs are initially played on the table with maximum muting. As the piece proceeds, selected gongs are gradually hung up for purposes of resonance in the last episode. The pitch collection of the gongs at the beginning differs extremely from the suspended gongs played at the end: chromatic versus pentatonic. The direction of the episode circles but eventually evolves to a quite unexpected section at the end.
Circle for solo percussion is written for Claire Edwardes and is commissioned by the Fonds voor de Scheppende Toonkunst. Canonic Phase concerns itself with two issues: canons and timbral transformation.
So-Ri for flute and guitar Duration: 10 minutes Though So-Ri I was originally written for flute, the initial sound world I was imagining at the time was that of Asian bamboo instruments such as the DaeGeum, the Shakuhachi or the Dizi. Especially for tonight’s performance, the flute part has been replaced by the DaeGuem, a situation for which I am very grateful.
There are no particular forms or musical goals in So-Ri I, it is rather an essay-like writing of chronological musical events as they occurred in my mind. What was more important in this piece was to be faithful to the natural sound world of the instruments, and I take advantage of idiomatic writing and gestures of each. Another point was to leave enough time for both players and listeners to appreciate what pleases their ears and to experience a stage of meditation. New Music DePaul • November 3, 2017 program notes So-Ri I, for flute and guitar, was commissioned by the Mostly Modern Chamber Music Society in 2001. It was premiered by Dan Lippel and Katherine Umble during the Aki New Music Series 2001 in Cleveland.
Canonic Phase Duration: 10 minutes Formally Canonic Phase is divided into five sections, each the result of canonic processes and their ensuing timbral treatment. The beginning and end are based on wood sounds, the middle on non- wood sounds. Between the three main sections are two transitions of timbral change: the first is a change from wood to non-wood sounds, the second from non- wood back to wood sounds. The non-wood section is the direct result of a practical issue: working with limited and un-specified instruments. The canons are based on two different processes built from prime numbers, the ‘themes’ of which are clearly stated in the opening. These two themes are later rewritten in mirror form, augmented rhythmically in various manners, then combined in layers of timbral polyphony. Like a painting, the same object is projected under different shades and viewed from different angles.
Aphonic Dialogue Duration: 16 minutes When thinking of two soloists – cello and voice- during my lowest point of personal turmoil in 2014, I simply had to address the pains of being trapped in stagnant, incomprehensible communication; regardless of whether the exchanged words and sentences are logical or not, to me, the whole conversations become completely useless if the listeners do not put their attention to hear each other and make an effort to understand the meaning, and catch the message from each other.
In Aphonic Dialogue, metaphorically I took the noise-oriented (and dissonant) sounds as incomprehensible communication and the pitch oriented (diatonic) sound as comprehensible one.
The ugly cello sounds and the fragmented vocal sounds in theatrical New Music DePaul • November 3, 2017 program notes nature gradually move away from it. By the end of the composition the path of these sounds finally reaches at absolutely diatonic music. In between these two contrasting states, the cello stirs up percussive dialogues with wind, brass and strings in the orchestra while the percussions, harp and piano co-exist with the hint of diatonic melody. The voice attempts to sing in the mid way but the lyrics do not make any sense at all; these non-logical sentences are the rework of the shuffled words within and from the lyrics that we hear at the end.
The music continues to change and eventually shift to a bold, skin crawling diatonic music at the end. The voice finally becomes a singer to serenade one long melody; “When she woke in the woods and the cold of the night, she reached out and touched a spear of blue moonlight.” The cello at the very end recalls the moments of incomprehension and chaos in the past but in a beautifully transformed random harmonics sounds.
Whether the cello and voice come to a mutually understanding state or not is completely open. By the time I was close to completing the composition, it was no longer important for me to resolve the issue of communication.
Aphonic Dialogue is dedicated to my dear friend Doris Hochscheid. Asko| Schönberg ensemble premiered Aphonic Dialogue during the International Cello Biennäle in the Netherlands in 2014. New Music DePaul • November 3, 2017
Biographies Praised as ‘Oh, a name to remember’ (De Volkskrant, 2005) Seung- Won Oh* (1969), a native of South Korea, is rapidly establishing her name as a composer with an individual voice. She is the recipient of numerous prestigious fellowships and awards, and has received commissions from ensembles and festivals including the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival (UK), Transit Festival (BE), Alicante Contemporary Music Festival (SP) the festival of the Tanglewood Music Centre (US), Aspen Music Festival (US) and Ultima Festival (NO) among others.
Music critic Mirjam Zegers writes, “Oh connects East and West, vibrant motion and stillness, pure sound and ritual theatre, stratified structures and transparency.” Her music has been further described as being “...exciting... refined and sharply cut” (De Volkskrant), and the Cleveland Plain Dealers said, she “brought Asian sensitivity and meditation”.
Writing in a contemporary idiom, Oh organically intertwines her Korean musical heritage with an innate sense of structural form and musical development. In 2009 her composition JungGa, concerto for oboe/musette and chamber ensemble (2009) won the Toonzetters award for best Dutch composition of the year. The virtuoso oboe part, based on the traditional JungGa singing technique from Korean Court music, uses a wide, ethnic vibrato and microtones. In her works, percussion often occupies a special place, with prominent percussion parts clearly marking the structure of her pieces. Oh’s formal ideas, as well as her affinity with traditional Korean music, are well represented in the versatility of her percussion writing, and she has written several works for percussion quartet and sextet as well as solo works.
In her works for music theatre, a unique category within her output, Oh searches for non-western topics while striving to optimize the balance between western techniques and non-western concepts. In the first part of her music theatre trilogy, Words and Beyond: Hwang Jin-Yi (2008), Oh combined a mezzo-soprano using specifically traditional Korean vocal techniques with percussion ensemble, a dancer and a site-specific installation. After its initial performance in The Hague, this work received so much acclaim from the press and audiences that New Music DePaul • November 3, 2017 biographies Slagwerk Den Haag later reprised it. The premiere of the second part of this trilogy, Words and Beyond II: Nan Sul Hun followed in the fall of 2014 and featured a traditional Korean JungGa singer and kŏmungo (a Korean 6-string zither), in addition to percussion ensemble and accordion.
Current commissions include a new recorder concerto written for the world-renowned virtuoso Erik Bosgraaf. The premiere will be part of the inauguration of a replica Schnitger organ in the Lutheran Church in Groningen, the Netherlands.
Oh studied at Ewha Womans University (BA, MM), the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (doctoral program), Brandeis University (MFA, PhD) and The Royal Conservatoire in The Hague (MM).] Previously she taught at Brandeis University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Florida at Gainesville, and Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Seung-Won Oh is currently Assistant Professor Composition at DePaul University in Chicago, USA.
*composer Seung-Ah Oh changed her name to Seung-Won Oh
Percussionist John Corkill is currently serving on faculty at the University of Chicago, Loyola University, and the Merit School of Music. As a chamber musician, John has played with groups such as Third Coast Percussion, Eighth Blackbird, Ensemble Dal Niente, and the University of Chicago New Music Ensemble. Similarly, he has held residencies at the Chamber Music Northwest, Norfolk, and Yellow Barn Festivals. He has also garnered awards at the Yale Chamber Music Competition and the Percussive Arts Society International Percussion Ensemble Competition. In the realm of orchestral percussion, John has performed with ensembles such as the Milwaukee Symphony, Elgin Symphony, and NOVUS Orchestra. He has also had the privilege of working with many of today’s leading orchestral conductors and composers such Marin Alsop, Peter Oundjian, Reinbert de Leeuw, Matthias Pintscher, Aaron Jay Kernis, Augusta Reed Thomas, David Lang, Oliver Knussen, and Krzysztof Penderecki. John received his Bachelor of Music from Northwestern University where he graduated cum laude and Master of Music Degree from the Yale University School New Music DePaul • November 3, 2017 biographies of Music. His teachers include Robert van Sice, Michael Burritt, and James Ross.
Sean Connors is Grammy-winning member and Technical Director of Third Coast Percussion. He has performed with Amphion Percussion, the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, eighth blackbird, the International Contemporary Ensemble, Signal, and Metropolis Ensemble, and he was the percussionist for 2 summers with the prestigious Aspen Music Festival Contemporary Ensemble.
As an educator, Sean served for 2 years as assistant professor of percussion at the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point, and taught elementary school and middle school music in the Chicago suburbs.
Sean holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music, a Master of Music degree from Northwestern University and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music.
Chicago-based freelance percussionist Ian Ding is a versatile performer specializing in contemporary music, experimental music, and orchestral percussion. He is a founding member & artistic director of New Music Detroit and currently serves on the percussion faculty at DePaul University and the University of Michigan.
Ian has been a frequent guest with orchestras such as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, among others, and has also performed extensively with chamber ensembles such as Bang on a Can All-Stars, Alarm Will Sound, Fulcrum Point New Music Project, Marc Mellits Consort, and the Virgil Moorefield Pocket Orchestra (Zurich). He is also the artistic director and producer of Strange Beautiful Music, New Music Detroit’s annual ‘marathon concert’ of contemporary and experimental music, and was a board member of the American Composers Forum from 2011-2013. New Music DePaul • November 3, 2017 biographies Ian previously served as Assistant Principal Percussionist of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra from 2003-2011 and was a fellow of the New World Symphony in Miami from 2001-2003. He is a graduate of the University of Illinois and the Juilliard School, where his teachers included Tom Stubbs, Thomas Siwe, Jim Ross, William Moersch, and Gregory Zuber.
Peter Martin is a member of the Grammy Award Winning ensemble Third Coast Percussion and has performed with many leading new music ensembles including the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), Eighth Blackbird, the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, the Atlantic Chamber Ensemble, Opera Moda, Tomorrow Music Orchestra, and Ensemble Signal. In addition to his work with Third Coast Percussion, Peter is a member of the award-winning contemporary music group Ensemble Dal Niente. His recorded work can be heard on the New Focus, New Amsterdam, Mode, Ears & Eyes, Harmonia Mundi, and Narooma labels.
As an educator, Peter was an Assistant Professor and Director of Percussion Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA from 2009-2013. He held previous teaching positions at Northwestern University and Trinity International University.
Peter holds Doctor of Music and Master of Music Degrees degrees from Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music and a Bachelor of Music Degree from Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. While a student, Peter was awarded first prize at the Percussive Arts Society International Solo Marimba Competition. His Teachers include Michael Burritt, She-e Wu, Leigh Howard Stevens.
Constance Volk (flute) is a graduate of DePaul University, where she completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Flute Performance in 2005. Constance is a founding member of Ensemble Dal Niente, with whom she performs regularly. She also performs with Bridging Memory Through Music, an ensemble that collaborates with music therapists to present concerts that aim to benefit those with memory loss and their family members. Constance has served as the principal flutist New Music DePaul • November 3, 2017 biographies of the New Millennium Orchestra, the Southern Illinois Music Festival Orchestra and the Highland Park String Orchestra. She has performed as soloist with the Advent Chamber Orchestra, the Spokane Symphony, and the New Millennium Orchestra and has collaborated with the International Contemporary Ensemble. Constance also sings, mainly in the jazz and metal genres, and has performed at such venues as the Velvet Lounge, the Green Mill, the Subterranean, the Abbey Pub, the Pritzker Pavillion, Reggie’s Rock Club and the Lake Shore Theater. Several of her compositions and arrangements were premiered at the Museum of Modern Ice Exhibit in Millennium Park and at the Hideout. Constance was awarded the Ella Fitzgerald Award for outstanding vocalist for her performance at the Essentially Ellington Competition at New York’s Lincoln Center. In addition to her musical endeavors, Constance works as a designer and visual artist, and is a founding member of the artist collective Catalyst Chicago. She resides in Oak Park with her husband and two daughters.
Jesse Langen studied guitar with Anne Waller at Northwestern University. He has played in master classes for Oscar Ghiglia, Sergio and Odair Assad, Bob Guthrie, Elliot Fisk, David Russell, Roberto Aussell, Nigel North, and Paul O’Dette. In the summer of 2002, he was a featured soloist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
On top of many performances in Chicago, across the United States, and in Europe, Jesse has played in the Minnesota Guitar Society Concert Series, the Chicago Segovia Classical Guitar Series (as a member of the Guitar Camerata), the Memphis “Imagine” New Music Series (as a member of the G-Force Guitar Quartet), and at Columbia University in New York.
An avid player of new music, Jesse has premiered dozens of pieces, many of which were written for him. He can be heard as a soloist, in chamber collaborations, and with critically acclaimed ensemble dal niente.
Conductor, educator, and writer Michael Lewanski is a champion of new and old music. His work seeks to create deeper and more New Music DePaul • November 3, 2017 biographies engaged connections between audiences, musicians, and the music that is part of their culture and history. He is Associate Professor at the DePaul University School of Music, where he has been on the faculty since 2008; he conducts DePaul’s Concert Orchestra, Ensemble 20+ (20th century and contemporary music), and works with other ensembles. He is conductor of Ensemble Dal Niente, a Chicago- based new music group. He was resident conductor of the 2017 SoundSCAPE Festival in Maccagno, Italy.
Michael has guest-conducted ensembles from Lyric Opera of Chicago, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, the Toledo Symphony Orchestra, the State Symphony Orchestra of Turkmenistan, the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), the Chicago Chamber Musicians, the Fifth House Ensemble, and many others. He has led over 100 world premieres. He was the Conducting Assistant for the Civic Orchestra of Chicago from 2010 to 2014. At the 2012 Darmstadt Summer Courses, Ensemble Dal Niente won the prestigious Kranichstein Music Prize under his direction. Michael has an extensive discography as both a conductor and a producer.
A native of Savannah, Georgia, he studied piano and violin; he made his conducting debut at age 13, leading his own composition. At 16, he was the youngest student ever accepted into the conducting class of the legendary Ilya Musin at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. Michael attended Yale University. His post-Yale education featured conducting study with Cliff Colnot and Lucas Vis.
Michael’s schedule for the 2017-2018 concert season includes concerts with DePaul School of Music Ensembles, performances with Ensemble Dal Niente (concerts at the Art Institute of Chicago, New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, residencies at Brown, Brandeis, Northwestern and University of Chicago), conducting engagements throughout the US and abroad, recording projects, and festival appearances.
Alex Ellsworth performs and teaches in Chicago, and in an increasing number of cities around the country and around the world. As a member of the performance ensemble Mocrep, Alex has lead a workshop at New Music DePaul • November 3, 2017 biographies the Internationales Musikinstitut Darmstadt, held residence at Mana Contemporary Chicago and this November Mocrep goes back to Europe to collaborate with artists in Germany, Denmark and the UK. Alex also travels regularly with cinematic shadow puppetry company Manual Cinema. Performances from the past six months include a run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland, a stay at the Admiralpalast theatre in Berlin, a week in Taipei as part of the Children’s Arts Festival and performances in Mérida, Mexico during the Capital Americana de la Cultura Festival. Alex teaches cello and directs the string orchestra at M.U.S.I.C. Inc. in North Lawndale Community, Chicago. He is an alumni of Civic Orchestra of Chicago, received his BM at the University of Maryland School of Music studying with Evelyn Elsing and David Teie and received a MM from the DePaul School of Music where he studied with Brant Taylor.
Dr. Jess Aszodi’s career could best be described as genre-bounding and label-defying. She has premiered dozens of new pieces, performed works that have lain dormant for centuries, devised new collaborative projects, sung roles from the standard operatic repertoire and worked with a constellation of artists from the far reaches of the musical palette. Her performances have been described as “..thrilling..” (LA Times) and “..intense..” (NY Times). Her voice has been praised for its “utmost security and power” (Chicago Tribune) while the media in her native Australia have dubbed her “one of the finest actress-singers in the country” (The Age).
She has been a soloist with ensembles as diverse as ICE, the Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide Symphony Orchestras, Pinchgut Opera, the Tirolean Symphony Orchestra, Victorian Opera, Sydney Chamber Opera, and in the chamber series of the San Diego and Chicago Symphonies. Her operatic roles include Eve (Stockhausen’s Dienstag aus Licht), Socrates (Satie’s Socrates), Aminta (Mozart’s Il re pastore), Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni), Sesto (Guilio Cesare), Popova (Walton’s The Bear), Rose (Elliot Carter’s What Next?) and Echo (Ariadne auf Naxos).
Jessica can be heard on recording for Chandos, Ars Publica and Hospital Hill and has sung in festivals around the world, including New Music DePaul • November 3, 2017 biographies Klangspuren, Vivid Sydney, BIFEM, the Melbourne and Adelaide Festivals, Aldeburgh, Tectonics and Tanglewood. Aszodi has twice been nominated for the Australian Greenroom Awards as ‘best female operatic performer’ - in both the leading and supporting categories. She is co-director of the Resonant Bodies Festival (Australia,), artistic associate of BIFEM, and a 2017 artist in residence at ‘High Concept Labs’ (Chicago). She holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts from the Queensland Conservatorium, a Masters of Fine Arts from the University of California, teaches voice, and has written scholarly articles for several books and journals. Gifts of every amount make an important impact on the next generation of musicians and support the mission of the School of Music.
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Upcoming Events Saturday, November 4 • 8:00 p.m. Concert Hall DePaul Symphony Orchestra
Sunday, November 5 • 3:00 p.m. Concert Hall Faculty Artist Series: Ilya Kaler, violin
Sunday, November 5 • 3:00 p.m. Student Center (Lincoln Park) Jazz Orchestra
Sunday, November 5 • 8:00 p.m. Concert Hall Guitar Ensemble Festival
Monday, November 6 • 7:00 p.m. Recital Hall Jazz Combos
Monday, November 6 • 8:00 p.m. Concert Hall Wind/Mixed Chamber Showcase I
Tuesday, November 7 • 6:00 p.m. School of Music Room 106 African Dance Workshop
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