NACUSA 2021 Virtual New Music Festival
Free (Free)
Ludwig van Beethoven — Grosse Fuge Op. 134 for piano four hands
Ben Kapp — Chromatic Limb
Lawson Fusao Inada — Selected works
Cascadia Composers and Lewis and Clark College host the National Association of Composers USA 2021 New Music Festival with 6 days of concerts and presentations!
2021 NACUSA Conference Schedule: April 17 — May 2, 2021
All presentations are via Zoom at 3:30pm Pacific, 90 minutes before the concerts, and will be followed by live Q&A with the presenter (Zoom link coming soon). All concerts will be livestreamed on the Cascadia Composers Youtube Channel (Youtube links for individual concerts coming soon).
Saturday, April 17th
3:30pm Pacific: Ben Kapp: Acoustic Ideas and the Development of Musical Structure
Kapp offers an analysis of his compositional process for the piece Chromatic Limb, written, and rewritten, for various groups of ever changing instrumentation, and ultimately two acoustic guitars… What is of compositional interest in a process such as this? What structures result? Is it music?
5pm Pacific: Fresh Finds
Cutting-edge works by student composers from Lewis & Clark College, Portland State University and The Evergreen State College, culminating in a performance of Violin Sonata No. 1 by 2019 NACUSA Young Composers’ Competition winner Zach Gulaboff Davis. Featuring local musicians including the Evergreen Experimental Music Ensemble.
Sunday, April 18th
3:30pm Pacific: Jeff Morris: Songs and Sandwiches – Student Vocabulary Reveals How Everyday Tools Manipulate Artistic Thought
An opportunity to reflect on how modern culture has significantly limited our default exposure to the world of music’s potential, how music can and does fit into our culture, and how general-purpose [software] tools can shape culture significantly, even if unintentionally. I tell students: A song isn’t the only kind of music, just like a sandwich isn’t the only kind of food.
5pm Pacific: In the ‘Hood
Chamber music by members of Cascadia Composers up and down the West Coast, from Bellingham, WA to the Los Angeles area, including composers in Portland, Forest Grove, Lake Oswego, Vancouver and Eugene. The concert features performances from Friends of Rain, Lewis & Clark College’s new music ensemble, with varying subgroups of the college’s music faculty.
Saturday, April 24th
3:30pm Pacific: Dr. Lisa Neher: Effective Text Setting = Happy Singers!
Effective vocal writing requires attention to text setting. Learn tools to make your vocal music sing beautifully, rehearse easily, and be understood by listeners. Bring your questions!
5pm Pacific: Beethoven's 251st
Last December 17th was the 250th anniversary of the birth of über-classic composer Ludwig van Beethoven, an occasion for celebration around the world wherever European classical music is enjoyed. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Cascadia Composers was unable to present its planned celebratory concert live in March of 2020, so we’re doing the next best thing, a year later. Along the way we’ve added two works, including a World Premiere, from the festspiel March Music Moderne VII: BTHVN 2020 which was also postponed. Featuring the incredible Duo Stephanie and Saar performing Beethoven’s own four-hand arrangement of his Große Fuge, Op. 134, and more!
Sunday, April 25th
3:30pm Pacific: Dr. Greg A Steinke: Music and the Poetry of Lawson Fusao Inada
A presentation on an array of musical compositions that utilize the poetry of Lawson Fusao Inada [fifth poet laureate of the state of Oregon], and reflect the poet’s (and the composer’s) perceptions of the Japanese Internment Camp experience. Presenter will share thoughts and ideas about working/interacting with the poetry, with short excerpts from several works.
5pm Pacific: Spring Fever!
Spring is a time of mercurial moods and itchy feet. NACUSA celebrates with this collection of members’ music composed, performed and recorded all around the USA. Featuring The Crossing, Sam Houston State University Symphony Orchestra, Texas Christian University Concert Chorale, Pacific University Chamber Singers, American Wild Ensemble, and members of the Portland Percussion Group and members of Ensemble Dal Niente.
Saturday, May 1st
3:30pm Pacific: Dr. Greg A Steinke: Music and the Poetry of Austin Kleon
A presentation on musical compositions that utilize the “blackout” poetry of Austin Kleon and reflect the poet’s (and the composer’s) perceptions of the current world milieu. Presenter will share thoughts and ideas about working/interacting with the poetry with short excerpts from several works.
5pm Pacific: Amplitude & Attitude
A one-hour, high-voltage concert of electronic, electroacoustic and media-only amusic from NACUSA members all across the USA. Features three delightfully absorbing videos, colorful and mesmerizing by turns.
Sunday, May 2nd
3pm Pacific: Nicholas Yandell: Composing Trauma
Yandell explores how art can help individuals express, comprehend, and confront trauma, whether as composers, performers, or listeners.
5pm Pacific: A Wider World
A celebration of acoustic chamber music from NACUSA members all across the USA, performed by Friends of Rain, members of the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), and local musicians.
There’s no charge to view concerts or presentations, but your donation helps us create events like this. Click here to donate to the Cascadia Chapter of NACUSA, and here to donate to Cascadia Composers.