Slow and Pretty Things - Now Available for Free

The album Slow and Pretty Things is a tone poem, in nine sections about my final conversation with my grandmother, Elizabeth Huff. In the last year of her life, her dementia had progressed to the point where she had lost all sense of time. Her stories could go for hours, slowly ebbing and flowing, circling around themselves like an eddy at the edge of a river. And as she sunk deeper into dementia, her timelessness became more pronounced. The destination of her stories was no longer relevent; for her, it was about the journey—the act and art of communicating. I found myself intensely engrossed in these conversations. The humanity in her voice was clear as day, but her message was obfuscated. We achieved a kind of understanding–an elegant compromise where she and I both said a great deal, and neither of us understood. She meditated on her childhood and mine, holidays with family, her pig, the war, and our spouses. Our final conversation was a beautiful moment, suspended in time and space. It was only after she was gone that I started to understand what she was trying to say. This album is structured around the themes and mood of our last talk: real instruments are altered, repeated, and stretched as if they were afflicted with Alzheimer's. There is loss and sadness, but there is also beauty and hope. Each movement is a timeless ghost, who at some point long ago had a voice, a form, and a message. The titles of each movement form the poetry upon which my tone poem is based:

Slow and Pretty Things (Hunter Ewen, 2012)
Sea-foam cotton undertows
Our last forgettable conversation
Her wholeness struck
Out across delicate, bobbing adventures–
Soft curled tales
To buoy a grandson. In meantime
She surfaces, recognizably
And we finally speak–
Slow and pretty things

New Ultradian Bipolar Disorder Videos

Firstly, I am well aware that many of my recent posts have been videos.  A video section is on the way.  In the mean time, please enjoy this recording of Ultradian Bipolar Disorder.  If you want a mastered, excellent sounding version, please visit my compositions page.  I also have an excellent new shopping cart on that page if you are interested in scores.

Ultradian Bipolar Disorder: part 1 of 2

Ultradian Bipolar Disorder: part 2 of 2

New Novus Ordo Seclorum Video

Here's a new video from last month's premiere of Novus Ordo Seclorum.  I'm getting so many videos on this site, I think I'll make a separate page for them.  In the mean time, enjoy these new videos.

Part 1


Part 2

New Open Me Video

From the premiere, here is the video of Open Me.  The poetry is by Amy Pence, the music and graphics are mine.  

Movements 1-3

Movements 4-5

Cleveland Concert

If you're in cleveland Wednesday, drop by Amasa Stone at 12:30 for the premiere of my new piece "Harry Potter Returns to Hogwarts".  If you're not around, I'll post a youtube as soon as it's available.  I am also waiting on the youtube from last week's premiere "Novus Ordo Seclorum".

Premiere

My newest premiere is in Boulder, at CU, in Grusin hall.  It's called Novus Ordo Seclorum, and was commissioned for Constitution Day by the University of Colorado.  It uses a projected score, a series of dramatic readings, and I sing at the end (processed audio of course).  There also may or may not be fireworks.  If you can't attend, I'll post a youtube when it's up.

Moving Images

Experiencing moving images is a fairly common occurrence in modern society. Please see here if you don't know what I mean. My new piece, Novus Ordo Seclorum is going to explore that phenomenon. With a projected score, procedurally generated, the performers will be repeating short musical gestures (a la Riley's in C) that morph and evolve over time. The performance is celebrating Constitution day, and will be performed on Constitution day (9/17) at 7:30pm, Grusin Hall, University of Colorado at boulder. Please inquire with requests for score rental, if interested. I would be happy to send out the Max file.

Alarm Will Sound

I just learned that I was selected to have my newest composition "Ultradian Bipolar Disorder" read and recorded by Alarm Will Sound in January of next year. More details on the reading, as well as the premiere, as events warrant.

Harry Potter

If you are in Cleveland, I have a new piece I'm premiering on October 3rd, at Amassa Stone Chapel. The title is "Harry Potter Returns to Hogwarts". It is a solo electronic piece, controlled by bluetooth buttons+accelerometer (magic wand). The piece will be very theatrical and very interesting - I will post a video or two when it is done. If you're in Colorado, it is being played on October 31st, date and time tbd.

Novus Ordo Seclorum

I was recently awarded a large award and commission for my proposal for a premiere celebrating "Constitution day".  I will post a video of the premiere, date TBD.  A summary of my proposal is listed below:

Name: Novus Ordo Seclorum
Instrumentation: 8 Instrumental Musicians, 20-30 Vocalists, Orator, Conductor, Projection
Time: Approx 6-8. minutes
Tech Requirements: Computer, Wireless Controller, Projector

The United States Constitution is often considered the single greatest force in sculpting the landscape of 20th and 21st century politics, locally and internationally. Without blueprint, or precedent, our founding fathers drafted the most significant document of young America, hewn from the hopes and dreams of a nation that craved equality, authority, and liberty. They created. They eschewed tradition. They functioned in wild bursts of imagination and horror. They were artists.

Novus Ordo Seclorum, from the Great Seal of the United States, translates to "new order for the ages". The proposed composition is an attempt to capture the ethos of the political culture at the time of the Philadelphia convention.  The thrill of uncertainty and the joy of human collaboration are embodied in a unique vision, developed by me.  Novus Ordo Seclorum features a set of live performers, underscoring a series of dramatic readings, where the music is generated, and notated, by a computer.

The notated music is a tribute to the beautiful new graphical interface of MAX 5.  The score is best described as "Riley's in C, but moving".  Repeated harmonic and melodic patterns writhe and undulate under a series of dramatic readings that transport the listener on a journey through the rich history of the American Constitution.  The procedural modulations are audibly, and visibly, apparent, as the generated music and text will be projected for the musicians as well as the audience to enjoy.  The projection is aesthetic and functional; there are no other scores available. All eyes are on the same target. Everyone looks together.

A conductor will be necessary, but (s)he is employed in a unique and unusual way.  (S)he will not control tempo - but will instead control dynamics, instrumentation, modulation, and the overall flow of the music.  This will be accomplished with the help of a wireless protocol, developed by Ewen, that allows communication between computer and a Nintendo "wii-mote" controller in the conductors hand.  Improvisatory changes are relayed to a computer which will be immediately displayed on the projection.  The remote allows for 11 unique buttons, as well as tracking pitch and roll data (the conductor will be able to make realistic hand gestures on stage).  There is also a force feedback system of vibration and 4 LED's that will allow the computer to relay subtle information to the conductor. The computer will choose from a bank of rhythms, pitches, and quotations and present them to the orchestra to play.

Please find enclosed copies of the necessary drivers and handlers for the wireless system.  The entire rig (drivers, handlers, UI, wireless interface, projection) has been successfully tested for 9 hours, at a distance of 45 feet, without failure.  The technical requirements of this performance are: a computer with bluetooth, wii-mote, and projector.

This project begs involvement. From collaborating musicians, to the wireless conductor, to the audience - everyone who experiences this music will feel exhilaration through uncertainty, civic pride through subject matter, and unity through collaboration.  Thank you for considering my proposal.  I hope you find it worthy of performance.

New Gi•nt's Eye Videos

Better late than never. Here are a few movements from one of the Gi•nt's Eye performances that happened last April. Click on the videos for a brief description on who the performers are, who the audience is, what is improvised, and where the computer is coming into play. Enjoy!

Movement 1 (The "Launch" Movement)
Live audience member on piano, with reactive piano-playing computer algorithm.

Movement 2 (The "Fantasy Game" Movement)
Improvised dance, improvised music reacting to a movement-sensitive digital body suit. Real time audio and video processing.

Movement 4 (The "Valentine" Movement)

Movement 5 (The "So Long" Movement)
Soprano vocalist, live piano, computer controlled piano, and offstage flute, trumpet, ebow, saxophone. Poetry by Serena Chopra (created in Mvmt 4). Improvisational music.

My stuff is at Tower Records!

Please visit Tower Records to purchase Greg Banaszak's newest album "Romances for Saxophone and Orchestra", which contains my arrangement of Eugene Bozza's Aria for Saxophone. Also, please visit this fun traffic map application which tracks the locations of the last 100 people to visit this site. As I look right now, the last 100 people all came from Colorado. If you're not from CO, good for you!

New Release

My orchestration of Eugene Bozza's "Aria" for saxophone is now available for purchase at the Centaur Records website. The album is "Romances for Saxophone and Orchestra", by Greg Banaszak and the Beethoven Academy Orchestra.

Cover Art

I just got a copy of the cover for Greg Banaszak's new album Romances for Saxophone and Orchestra (above). Look for the album, which includes my arrangement of the Bozza Aria, from Centaur Records in Summer 2007.

Double the Saxes = Double the Fun?

Before you ask--yes, I am playing two saxophones at once (and it's not overdubbed).

There are three recordings floating around of my new piece Laplace Transformers, a duet for saxophone and percussion. The links above are for the full recording (14 Mb, mp3) and a short portion of the score. If this file-size is too big, there is a shorter clip on the compositions page. This particular recording features Ben Rose on percussion and myself on saxophone.

One thing I really like about this piece is that every time it's performed, it sounds different. Music (at least my music) shouldn't be played the same way twice; I want to allow the performers a hand in crafting their own unique interpretation. The piece itself is a time capsule that draws its diverse styles from the rich history of the saxophone. More than that, it is an opportunity for two people to get together and have a great time making music.

One final note: I feel obligated to warn curious saxophonists that it is quite risky to play two horns at once. After seeing the premiere of this piece, a saxophone student from Baldwin Wallace managed to put a large dent in his Selmer Paris Soprano...

Local Concerts of Note

Please note the upcoming master-class / concert featuring saxophone guru Alan Durst. The name of the event is "Saxophones on Saturday", on Nov. 11th, at 12:00pm, in Harkness Chapel (here at Case). I will be playing solo and quartet / quintet pieces, and my newest piece Laplace Transformers will be premiered. The first recording session for Laplace Transformers is Nov. 8th, so I will try to upload a clip soon after that. Also, I heard a rumor that someone else is performing one of my soprano solos...

Also, Maggie Kiehl will be performing my saxophone solo, Alone Again as part of her prize-winning Terr Ronis recital on Sunday, Oct. 29th, at 3:00pm, in Harkness Chapel. I'll be there in the front row, so come out and support her beautiful playing.

Bozza Aria on a Plane

I just heard the unedited, unmastered recording of Greg Banaszak playing my Bozza Aria arrangement with the Beethoven Academy Orchestra in Krakow, Poland. It sounds fantastic! I can't wait to get a copy of the CD when it comes out. I also heard that Banaszak and Centaur records signed a deal with LOT Polish Airlines to use the Aria as part of their in-flight music presentation. I suppose stranger things have happened, but this is certainly up there.

01001101

There is now a brief clip from the first movement of my new multimedia composition "01001101". Feel free to download or browse other clips. The recording was made on April 4th, 2006, by the Cleveland Institute of Music Orchestra.

Hamelin, After The Rats: World Premiere

On Sunday, March 5th, the Case Western Reserve University Symphonic Winds (under the direction of Gary Ciepluch) will be premiering my "Hamelin, After the Rats". The concert is at 6:00, in Kulas hall at the Cleveland Institute of Music.

More Bozza Aria News

I have just learned that Gregory Banaszak (Grammy nominated saxophonist) will be recording my Bozza Aria arrangement (under LeDuc publications) this summer with a new orchestra under the direction of Krzystof Penderecki. The title of the album is "Romances for Saxophone and Orchestra", and it will be released by Centaur Records, at a date TBA. They speculate that this will be the first track on the album.