Kansas City, Part 3
Oct. 13th, 2004 09:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kenjariOct. 8, 2004 - day
I didn't have time to write more yesterday because I got back to the hotel very late after a busy day. It was a wonderful day, though.
I spent the afternoon exploring campus a bit more. It took me a while to get there, though. It kept pouring such that I had to duck into doorways for a few minutes until the rain lightened up. I walked around the Performing Arts Center, just seeing what was on the other floors - all the composition classes are on the fifth floor.
Then I went to the advanced orchestration class with Chen Yi. She is amazing - very energetic and perceptive. The class was really good - it was based around presentations of what the students were working on.
After the class, I had an impromptu meeting with Dr. Chen. She told me lots of wonderful things about the school, and knows people I studied with both at Boston Conservatory and Wesleyan. Then, because it was getting late and close to the time of the evening's Musica Nova concert, Dr. Chen took me out to dinner with her husband, Zhou Long. She said, "I'll take care of you". We went to nearby Chinese restaurant where I also got to talk to some more composition students. It looks like everyone from the department goes there.
I was just amazed by Checn Yi's warmth and kindness. By everyone's kindness, actually. I have never been treated this well when visiting a grad school. This is the first place at which I have been repeatedly invited to hang out with the students and faculty. I feel like I'm already going here. This is clearly the place for me.
The Musica Nova concert was terrific. The performances were really good, and the pieces were atttractive. Here's the rundown.
Give 'Em Hell
by James Mobberley
This piece for solo piano was inspired by Harry S. Truman and commissioned by the Truman Library. I really liked it - it had a lot of variety without ever seeming disjointed. It flowed along beautifully without lulling the listener. There was a lot going on, yet it was all clear and coherent.
Words of the Sun
by Zhou Long
This piece for a cappella choir and tenor soloist was gorgeous. The text was an English translation of a work by 20th century Chinese poet Ai Qing. The words and the music worked so well together the I can't imagine one without the other. The piece was beautiful in a way I'm finding hard to describe.
Two Poems by Amy Lowell
by Nathan Woodward
These two songs were very well written amd scored for soprano, cello, and vibraphone. The combination sounded great. The vocal line didn't linger over the words and was actually fairly straightforward. It worked very well.
Cendres
by Kaija Saariaho
This piece was I think the strangest one on the program. Saariaho has a unique soundworld, particularly with the strings. I think she used just about every sound that can be made using a bow. The pianist also had to play directly on the strings at times. And the flute part used a lot of breath sounds. It all made for a fascinating work. I would definitely like to hear more of Saariaho's music.
Night Thoughts
by Chen Yi
I found this work to be quite different from the other works of Hers I'd heard at a BMOP concert last year. This piece was a lot less tonal-sounding. She did alot of really wonderful things with the flute line. The piece was overall more intricate than the other things I'd heard. I was impressed.
Two Marsden Hartley Songs
by Paul Rudy
The first of these, "Bach for Breakfast", was delightful. It had humor without being frivolous. And I loved the way Rudy used references to Bach's music and style. The second song, "Fisherman's Last Supper", was hauntingly beautiful.
Barcarolle
by Robert Maggio
This piece was beautiful and still. It also had a strong theatrical aspect. I confess to often finding myself slightly suspicious of works that require theatricality not required by the music itself. It can seem like a gimmick. I'm on the fence about this one. The theatrical element wasn't strictly necessary to the music, but it didn't intrude on it, either.
After the concert, the professors and composition students went to a local bar for drinks and food. I was invited to go along, and I went. It was a good time. Everyone really does get along well here. I've had a great time talking to folks, both students and teachers. They've all made me feel really comfortable. One of the doctoral students is even going to drive me to the airport on Sunday morning.
This is the place for me, and I want to go here very badly now. I really hope I get in, and I'm afraid and anxious that I won't. I hope my music is good enough. Dr. Bell thinks so, and he should know. I just wish I felt sure.
I didn't have time to write more yesterday because I got back to the hotel very late after a busy day. It was a wonderful day, though.
I spent the afternoon exploring campus a bit more. It took me a while to get there, though. It kept pouring such that I had to duck into doorways for a few minutes until the rain lightened up. I walked around the Performing Arts Center, just seeing what was on the other floors - all the composition classes are on the fifth floor.
Then I went to the advanced orchestration class with Chen Yi. She is amazing - very energetic and perceptive. The class was really good - it was based around presentations of what the students were working on.
After the class, I had an impromptu meeting with Dr. Chen. She told me lots of wonderful things about the school, and knows people I studied with both at Boston Conservatory and Wesleyan. Then, because it was getting late and close to the time of the evening's Musica Nova concert, Dr. Chen took me out to dinner with her husband, Zhou Long. She said, "I'll take care of you". We went to nearby Chinese restaurant where I also got to talk to some more composition students. It looks like everyone from the department goes there.
I was just amazed by Checn Yi's warmth and kindness. By everyone's kindness, actually. I have never been treated this well when visiting a grad school. This is the first place at which I have been repeatedly invited to hang out with the students and faculty. I feel like I'm already going here. This is clearly the place for me.
The Musica Nova concert was terrific. The performances were really good, and the pieces were atttractive. Here's the rundown.
Give 'Em Hell
by James Mobberley
This piece for solo piano was inspired by Harry S. Truman and commissioned by the Truman Library. I really liked it - it had a lot of variety without ever seeming disjointed. It flowed along beautifully without lulling the listener. There was a lot going on, yet it was all clear and coherent.
Words of the Sun
by Zhou Long
This piece for a cappella choir and tenor soloist was gorgeous. The text was an English translation of a work by 20th century Chinese poet Ai Qing. The words and the music worked so well together the I can't imagine one without the other. The piece was beautiful in a way I'm finding hard to describe.
Two Poems by Amy Lowell
by Nathan Woodward
These two songs were very well written amd scored for soprano, cello, and vibraphone. The combination sounded great. The vocal line didn't linger over the words and was actually fairly straightforward. It worked very well.
Cendres
by Kaija Saariaho
This piece was I think the strangest one on the program. Saariaho has a unique soundworld, particularly with the strings. I think she used just about every sound that can be made using a bow. The pianist also had to play directly on the strings at times. And the flute part used a lot of breath sounds. It all made for a fascinating work. I would definitely like to hear more of Saariaho's music.
Night Thoughts
by Chen Yi
I found this work to be quite different from the other works of Hers I'd heard at a BMOP concert last year. This piece was a lot less tonal-sounding. She did alot of really wonderful things with the flute line. The piece was overall more intricate than the other things I'd heard. I was impressed.
Two Marsden Hartley Songs
by Paul Rudy
The first of these, "Bach for Breakfast", was delightful. It had humor without being frivolous. And I loved the way Rudy used references to Bach's music and style. The second song, "Fisherman's Last Supper", was hauntingly beautiful.
Barcarolle
by Robert Maggio
This piece was beautiful and still. It also had a strong theatrical aspect. I confess to often finding myself slightly suspicious of works that require theatricality not required by the music itself. It can seem like a gimmick. I'm on the fence about this one. The theatrical element wasn't strictly necessary to the music, but it didn't intrude on it, either.
After the concert, the professors and composition students went to a local bar for drinks and food. I was invited to go along, and I went. It was a good time. Everyone really does get along well here. I've had a great time talking to folks, both students and teachers. They've all made me feel really comfortable. One of the doctoral students is even going to drive me to the airport on Sunday morning.
This is the place for me, and I want to go here very badly now. I really hope I get in, and I'm afraid and anxious that I won't. I hope my music is good enough. Dr. Bell thinks so, and he should know. I just wish I felt sure.
