Weather is warming up, but we have a bunch of cool concerts happening here this time of year. Last week it was Duo SF, the Swiss sax-and-piano group, playing new music from Europe by Rico Gubler, Antoine Françoise, Hans-Jürg Meier and Laurent Estoppey. This Saturday night it’s nu plays new, our contemporary ensemble, reeling out a lineup of premieres by our student composers:
Dak Van Vranken: 5/13
Kyrie Antoinette: Baleine
Dayton Hare: The Hollow Men
Cheyne Runnells: Across Distances
Jessica Buford: Clara’s Theme
Zachary Mackey: Stephan’s Quintet
Brent Lawrence: Rest, Refocus, Repeat
Oliver B. Glynn: Fanfare
And the following Saturday Christopher James Lees leads the UNCSA Symphony in six premieres by some of the same students and others:
Alexander Umfleet: Elysia
Cheyne Runnells: Remembering the Shore
Brent Lawrence: The Apathetic Second Hands Make Expectations Sweeter
Ethan Swofford: Concerto Grosso
Derek Arnold: Transcendence
Dak Van Vranken: I Envy the Birds
Hearing all this challenging music coming to life makes me ever grateful to be in an environment that welcomes the new.