The Phoenix Symphony Orchestra’s initiative to include living composers is very apparent this upcoming season. There are really easy to follow subscription packages available, one of which is to make your own package– all you have to do is choose at least four shows out of the entire season to get subscription pricing (starting at $24). There are more pricing options for students, teachers, and groups. To see the slew of new music being presented in 2017–2018, choose the following programs:
April 21st, 2017 to hear works by Earl Maneein and Christopher Cerrone (technically end of 2016-17 season)
Nov. 3–4 to hear Tina Tallon’s Sear
Nov. 10–12 to hear Timo Andres’ Bathtub Shrine
March 16–17, 2018 to hear Kenneth Fuch’s world premiere
April 13–14 to hear Nina Young’s Agnosco Veteris
June 1–2 to hear Adam Schoenberg’s new violin concerto
And if you want to throw in some oldies-but-goodies, here are our recommendations:
Sept 30-Oct 1, 2017 to hear Messiaen’s Les offrandes oubliées
Jan 26–28, 2018 to hear Britten’s Four Sea Songs and also to see the season’s only lady conductor, Karina Canellakis.
Feb Feb 9–11 to see Arnold Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht
Feb 23–24 to hear Webern’s Passacaglia
Want to meet the all-American cast of living composers selected?
Here you go:
Tina Tallon hails from San Diego and has a background in biological engineering, violin, and piano. She is currently pursuing her Ph. D. in Composition at University of California, San Diego. The program in November opens with Sear, so if the paired Mozart isn’t your thing, you don’t have to wait. The piece was premiered last year as part of the LA Philharmonic’s National Composers Intensive.
Timo Andres is a 31 y/o composer currently living in Brooklyn. He is an artist with Nonesuch Records. Andres’ orchestral work Bathtub Shrine (scroll down in the link to listen) is paired with Glass’ 1st Violin Concerto (note: it’s gonna be played by a saxophone on this concert). Andres travels with Glass, performing his piano Etudes. I hope most of you were able to see Phoenix’s own Ashley Oakley performing several of those Etudes alongside glass a few years ago in Gammage.
Andres has a collection of degrees from Yale and is part of the Sleeping Giant composer’s collective.
Earl Maneein I thankfully saw an ad on Facebook (it feels weird saying that) that not one, but two works by young, American composers are being included included on the program featuring Schubert’s 9th Symphony (April 21–22, 2017). Maneein is a violinist and composer by trade and the world premiere of his violin concerto “Dependent Arising” should not be missed. Maneein’s works can be heard performed by his hardcore/new music project, SEVEN)SUNS and his grindcore duo, Black Heart Sutra.
Christopher Cerrone is another composer hailing from NY and another member of Sleeping Giant. His work Invisible Overture is the opening piece to his opera, Invisible Cities, a participatory and immersive opera experience. You can hear his work along side Maneein in April.
Kenneth Fuchs’ new work was yet to be named as of the printing of my season guide. His first recording collaboration in 2005 with the London Symphony Orchestra resulted in two Grammy nominations. The BBC Music Magazine has written about Fuchs that he “writes tonal orchestral music of great imagination. He’s a master of orchestral writing.” I’ve listened to a bit on YouTube now and can tell his new work next to some Korngold is going to be a lot of fun.
Adam Schoenberg No, he is not related to that Schoenberg. There, that’s out of the way. This Schoenberg is currently one of the most performed composers by orchestras here in the US. He also writes film music and oversees the composition and film composition departments at Occidental College. You can hear his new violin concerto in June of 2018. If you don’t want to wait that long to hear his music, go watch the movie Graceland.
Nina Young is a young composer living in New York. In reading both Tallon’s and Young’s bios, I think it’s great to not only see almost half of the new works this season written by women, but to choose two women that are also computer musicians is just some sweet icing on a fat new music cake. Stepping back from that, it is still glaring that Tallon and Young are the only women in the Classics Series period.
Young is currently focusing on a ton of interdisciplinary projects which include working with the Nouveau Classical Project and the American Composers Orchestra Underground.