New Music USA must have a crack team of film editors on staff because they somehow managed to find a minute of footage from our planning session in Chicago with no profanity.
In Memoriam
Thinking about Ezra Laderman today, honorary wise grandpa to all Sleeping Giants.
I’m particularly partial to his Nonet of the Night, which, it seems, nobody has recorded. Get on that!
Conference Crawl
Six composers in five cities getting pretty good at Google Hangouts.
Introducing “Hand Eye”
Sleeping Giant recently flew to Chicago for a workshop with eighth blackbird on our new piece Hand Eye. While we were there, Maren Celest created a video trailer for the piece. In it, you’ll hear bits of new music by, in order, Chris, Timo (me), and Rob, as well as a stunningly articulate Timo (still me) explaining a bit about the project. We are still working on Brain-Mouth, obviously.
Snow Falling on Giants
We Giants look back on 2014 as a long, structural crescendo leading to the fortissimo that will be 2015. Two big projects will have their long-awaited premières: Hand Eye, our evening length collaborative work for eighth blackbird, and our re-imagining of Mozart’s Requiem for Albany Symphony.
Almost all the Sleeping Giants released albums of their own in 2014: Jacob’s Silver Threads, Rob’s RE: you, Andrew’s Play, Andrew and Ted’s Law of Mosaics, and Chris’s Invisible Cities, which was also a Pulitzer Prize finalist. We’re an industrious bunch, despite our collectively slow pulse and heavier-than-average limbs.
Speaking of industry, you may have noticed we have a new domain: sleepinggiantcomposers.com. Please update your links; our old site will stop working shortly.
The Latest Snooze
Hi! We’ve been busy, sorry for the radio silence.
Histories, our first collaborative work, recently surfaced in New Orleans, where it was performed by a group of New Orleans Symphony musicians, led by the fearless trombonist Matt Wright.
And, looks! We’re the proud recipients of a 2013 Music Alive Grant, which will fund a two-year residency with the Albany Symphony. In a couple of days, we’re headed to the League of American Bicyclists Orchestras conference in St. Louis to hatch some plans for that.
Then we’re off to Detroit, to hatch yet more plans, these for our next collaborative piece for eighth blackbird. We couldn’t be more excited.
Also, we are not a Christian rock band. Quite sorry for that as well.
History, Pt. 1
Two thirds of our first collaborative piece, Histories, was premièred last week in New York. Andrew, Jacob, Chris, and Rob all contributed to this initial outing, and as a mere onlooker, I (Timo) can say that it was fantastic. Ensemble ACJW gave an energetic, committed rendition of the (sometimes very difficult) work. Ted & I can’t wait to write our additional movements for the follow-up performances by Deviant Septet in New York and Washington, D.C.
And look, we even got a quite objective New York Times review.
Getting Hammered all Month
Heads up, giant fans! The six of us are curating a radio program called Hammered! for New York’s WQXR online stream. We’ll be exploring the broadest possible definition of “keyboard music” by playing some of our own music, some of other peoples’ music, and talking at you for a short time. Check us out over here.
Here are some photos
”…from our 2011 Fall Fundraising Party. Thanks, Laura Grey!
Feeding the Giant: Sleeping Giant Fall Fundraising Party
Friends, Family, Fun Folk, we’re having a fundraiser! This season Sleeping Giant will attempt its first ever collaborative project. Teaming up with Ensemble ACJW and the Deviant Septet, your Sleepy Gs are ganging together to write a companion piece to Stravinsky’s L’Histoire du Soldat. One portion of this project premieres Valentine’s day 2012 at Carnegie Hall, details here, and the complete set premieres later that Spring featuring the Deviant septet, with performances in both New York and Washington, DC. In support of this project we’re raising funds. Funds pay musicians, cover production costs, and help publicize the event. You know how it goes…
To meet this goal we’re throwing a super fun fundraising party at a lovely Brooklyn Heights residence with stunning views of the Brooklyn Bridge and Manny Hattan. There will be food, drink and performances by Bang on a Can All-Star Ashley Bathgate, new music diva Mellissa Hughes, the Deviant Septet, and members of Sleeping Giant.
Admission is by donation. $40 suggested donation ($20 for students).
Come on down! We would LOVE to see you.
Sunday, October 23rd 430-730PM
8 Old Fulton St. #1-S
Brooklyn, NY 11201