Hoff Barthelson Contemporary Festival To Feature Two World Premieres

Hoff-Barthelson Music School's 28th Annual Festival of Contemporary Music, held Monday, May 15, 2017, through Sunday, May 21, 2017 will include two world premieres commissioned by the School. The world premiere of Adam Birnbaum's "Sailing" will be performed by one of the School's advanced jazz ensembles during the "Jazz A to Z" concert on Monday, May 15, at 8:00 pm at the School, 25 School Lane, Scarsdale. The second piece, "Light List," for string quintet, by award-winning composer Steven Snowden, will be premiered at the Festival's culminating event on Sunday, May 21, at 7:00 pm at the Community Unitarian Universalist Congregation in White Plains.

"The School's relationship with Steven Snowden is made possible by Copland House, with which Hoff-Barthelson has had a long and mutually beneficial relationship," says Peter Seidenberg, Artistic Director of the Festival. "Both organizations are devoted to introducing students and audiences to contemporary music and to the nurturing and development of emerging composers."

A key component of the Contemporary Festival is the HB Compose Yourself! Project, a rare opportunity for students to interact with and receive feedback at a master class with renowned, award-winning composers. The 2017 guest composers are Louise Beach and Gregg Kallor. Works created for this project will be performed on the HB Compose Yourself! Project Recital, on Saturday, May 20 at 6 pm. A second event, Younger Composers' Workshop Recital, presents works by the School's very youngest composers and takes place on Monday, May 15 at 6:15 pm. Both performance are held at the School.

Faculty and student soloists and ensembles can be heard in recitals taking place at the School on Wednesday, May 17 at 8:00 pm; Thursday, May 18 at 6:15 and 8:00 pm; Friday, May 19 at 6:15 and 8:00 pm; and Saturday, May 20 at 2:00, 4:00, and 8:00 pm.

The Festival culminates on Sunday, May 21, 2017, at 7:00 pm, at the Community Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 468 Rosedale Avenue, White Plains. A highlight of the Festival, this concert features a wide-range of music including the premiere of Steven Snowden's string quintet performed by students Emily Spector and Clara Montgomery, violins; Ben Susswein, viola; Grace Dashnaw, cello; Aidan Pasquale, bass; a performance of Louis Calabro's "Music for Folks" by members of the School's cello faculty; the School's Chamber Choir; and concludes with a performance by the Festival Orchestra under the direction of Jun Nakabayashi of Leonard Bernstein's joyful "Overture to Candide." Admission is a suggested donation of $15. Students may attend for free. All events held at the School are free of charge.

"The Contemporary Festival is one of the most exciting, creative events of the school year here at Hoff-Barthelson," says Executive Director Ken Cole. "We hope you'll join us for this dynamic celebration of new music!"

About Steven Snowden:

The music of Steven Snowden has been described as "Beguiling . . . combining force with clarity" (San Francisco Classical Voice), "Wonderfully dynamic" (Interlude Hong Kong), "Rustic, red-blooded" (New Music Box), and "Marvelously evocative" (Cleveland Plain Dealer). Writing music for dance, theater, multi-media installations, and the concert stage, his work often deals with concepts of memory, nostalgia, and the cyclic nature of historical events as they pertain to modern society. While his musical influences are deeply rooted in bluegrass, folk, and rock, he utilizes non-traditional techniques and processes to compose works that don't squarely align with any single genre or style.

A native of the Ozarks countryside, he began studies in music composition in 2002 and received degrees from Missouri State University, University of Colorado at Boulder, and University of Texas at Austin. In 2012-2013 he was a Fulbright Scholar in Portugal, researching the implementation of motion tracking technology as a means to facilitate collaboration between music and dance. In 2013-2014, he was a visiting professor and composer in residence at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and is the co-founder/director of the Fast Forward Austin Music Festival.

About Adam Birnbaum:

Adam Birnbaum is emerging as one of the top young voices in jazz piano today and is a recognized composer and arranger. He is a presence on the New York City scene as a leader and sideman, performing in venues that include the Village Vanguard, the Blue Note, Birdland, the Jazz Standard and Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola.

Allmusic.com reviewer Ken Dryden said "Birnbaum's compositions prove immediately infectious, each with a hook that draws the listener along for the ride." A review of his album "Travels" praised the album's "stellar originals" (Jazz Times). In 2009 Birnbaum premiered "Dream Songs," a trio suite based on the poetry of John Berryman. The work was commissioned by Chamber Music America. In 2012 Birnbaum was a guest artist at the Chelsea Music Festival in New York, arranging Debussy and Japanese folk songs for his trio, strings, koto, woodwinds and operatic singers.

For Additional Information:

For additional information: 914-723-1169, hb@hbms.org, www.hbms.org.

About Hoff-Barthelson Music School:

One of Westchester County's most cherished and active cultural resources, Hoff-Barthelson Music School has achieved national recognition as a premier community music school for its unsurpassed leadership in education, performance and outreach. The School celebrates its 75th anniversary in 2019-2020.

Picture credit: Hoff-Barthelson