Blog

Feb 10

NEW MUSE @ Madison Children’s Museum Steampunk “Adult Swim”

Tonight 6:00PM – 10:00PM, February 10, 2012 NEW MUSE is partnering with the Madison Children’s Museum for their “Adult Swim” night. In coordination with Teslacon, our program is a “steampunk”-inspired evening of participatory music events, featuring our ensemble and special returning guests DJ Illy Holiday and Davina DeVille.

Continuing our tradition of past events, keep reading for e-program notes.
Schedule of Events:

6:00PM – 7:30PM DJ Illy Holiday will be spinning music throughout the Museum

6:45PM – 7:30PM Elevator Improv (hosted by Tim Patterson) in the Museum Elevator –

7:45PM Davina DeVille LIVE in the Wildernest — don’t miss the diva in action!

8:00PM Costume Contest in the Wildernest

8:30PM – 9:30PM NEW MUSE LIVE in the Wildernest — featuring live improvised Valentine’s Day Mad Libs
Live Music Program:

Broken Drum, Matthew Burtner - Tim Patterson

Mad Libs Improv 1 – full NEW MUSE ensemble

Selected Crane Songs, Jerry Hui – Paola and Jerry

Mad Libs Improv 2 – Dawn and Rosemary

Cello Sonata, Hans Werner Henze - Andrea

Mad Libs Improv 3 and 4 – Andrea and Paola (3) Tim and Andrea (4)

Three Irish Songs, John Corigliano – Jerry and Dawn

Davina DeVille might make an encore appearance to sing a tune or two…don’t miss it!

Mad Libs 5 and 6 – Dawn and Jonathan (5) Jonathan, Tim and Rosemary (6)

We Choose to Go to the Moon, Robert Honstein – Jerry and Andrea

Mad Libs 7 and 8 – Paola and Dawn (7) Paola, Dawn, and Andrea (8)

Coming Together, Derek Bermel – Rosemary and Dawn

Mad Libs 9 – Andrea and Rosemary and 10 – full NEW MUSE ensemble
The New Music Everywhere (NEW MUSE) Ensemble:

Rosemary Brumbelow, clarinet
Jerry Hui, baritone and harmonica
Andrea Kleesattel, cello
Jonathan Kuuskoski, melodica
Dawn Lawler, flute
Tim Patterson, percussion
Paola Savvidou, piano

With thanks to Madison Children’s Museum and our special guests:

DJ Illy Holiday & Davina DeVille

Thanks for coming out tonight — and please let us know what you thought.  You can find us on Facebook and Twitter.

Nov 09

Save the Dates! NEW MUSE Announces 2012 Season

New Music Everywhere (NEW MUSE) is excited to announce our second season! This year we will be launching an ambitious series of three events from January through May 2012. We invite you to “Save the Date” for these exciting events. Click on the links for more info!

20-21 January 2012: The World Premiere of Wired for Love

This groundbreaking “online opera” is inspired by the amazing true story of an online scam, and the victim who took justice into his own hands. Music by Jerry Hui & Libretto by Lisa Kundat.

10 February 2012: Adult Swim @ Madison Children’s Museum

Back by popular demand, we’re bringing our vaudeville-inspired show back for a one-night-only installation as part of Madison Children’s Museum “Adult Swim.”

5 May 2012: Madison Muse Fest

Sponsored in part by the 2011 UW-Madison Arts Enterprise New Arts Venture Challenge, we will work closely with local vendors to transform four State Street businesses into creative arts spaces, combining music, dance, and visual arts for a series of interdisciplinary and interactive performances. Featuring new works solicited from composers around the country the day will culminate with a gala concert at MMoCA. Don’t miss this one-of-a kind event!
Oct 29

Announcing Muse Fest 2012 Call-for-scores and Competition

Calling all composers! New Music Everywhere will be holding its first annual Muse Fest, a festival of live contemporary performance arts that take place on the iconic State Street of Madison, Wisconsin, in the afternoon of May 5th, 2012.

All composers are invited to submit music for any combination of instruments/voices within our core ensemble. You may submit pieces that have been previously performed, though we’d prefer to premiere your music! Since the music will be performed in public spaces (e.g. coffee houses, restaurants, bookstores) and may be paired with other art forms (e.g. dance, visual arts, spoken poetry), your submission should take all these into account. If your music creatively includes such dynamic environment, even better! Please read the full guidelines in our complete call-for-score application: 2012 Muse Fest Call for Scores Application

From the submissions, one first prize of $250 and one second prize of $100 will be awarded by a panel consisting of the directors and performers of New Music Everywhere, as well as prominent Madison-based artists and dancers who will be performing in the festival. Both pieces will be premiered at our showcase concert in MMoCA. The rest of the submissions will be considered for performance on any of the performances during the festival.

Application process:

  1. Each composer may submit up to three pieces.
  2. Pieces that have previously been performed are accepted; please provide performance history.
  3. All applications must be submitted electronically to musefest@newmusiceverywhere.com
  4. In your email, include:
    1. A completed application form. 2012 Muse Fest Call for Scores Application
    2. An anonymous score in PDF. For pieces that cannot be represented as a score, a recording is required.
    3. A live recording of the work (if available) or MIDI realization (MIDI is acceptable though not preferred). A link to the recording can also work.
    4. A brief composer biography of 250 words or less.
  5. Submit the application fee to New Music Everywhere, c/o Jerry Hui, 26 Sherman Terrace Apt 5, Madison WI 53704. Fee for the first submitted piece is $25, and $5 for each subsequent piece. Be sure to include your full name and email address in the comment of your payment.
  6. Only completed applications will be accepted (should we draw up an application form to make this easier?)
  7. Submission deadline is December 15th, 2011.
  8. Winners and selected composers will be notified via email by January 2012.
  9. Winners of the first and second prizes must be able to attend the festival in Madison, Wisconsin on May 5, 2012.
We look forward to receiving and performing your music! Inquiries can be addressed to Jerry Hui, co-director of New Music Everywhere, at jerry @ newmusiceverywhere.com.
Sep 21

Jerry Hui to Join Gilson Bootstrapping Seminar Kickoff Panel

We’re excited to announce that our very own Jerry Hui has been invited to join The Gilson Bootstrapping Seminar Kickoff Panel, entitled “Exercising Your Creative Side for Fun and Profit – a Guide to Big Idea Challenges on Campus and Beyond.” Hosted by the UW-Madison Office of Corporate Relations, the panel will take place at 5pm on September 26th in the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, and is aimed at highlighting various student resources, including nine separate student challenges that encourage entrants to create value through entrepreneurial or innovative thinking. Examples include the Burrill Business Plan Competition, the Schoofs and Tong prizes, the Climate Leadership Challenge, and the New Arts Venture Challenge, among others.

Participants will learn about how and why you can compete in one or more of these challenges, meet others interested in exploring their creative side, and  learn about off-campus opportunities for cash prizes at contests (e.g., Clean Energy Challenge, the Governor’s Business Plan Competition, etc.).  This event is free, with a reception to follow!


Aug 31

The Terminal Orchestra Performs at the Project Lodge

As we’re finalizing our 2011-12 Season of events, just wanted to forward on a notice about an upcoming concert by a kindred spirit, The Terminal Orchestra. Check them out at the Project Lodge, this Friday, September 9th from 7:30pm-11:00pm.

The Orchestra was conceived in the often forgotten part of Michigan–The Upper Peninsula–with its lush forests, slower-paced lifestyle and non-competitive atmosphere, composer Jesse DeCaire began writing music in 2005.  What started as a studio outlet for making pastoral movie soundtrack music (for movies that haven’t been made yet) has since ballooned into a live performing ensemble.  Complete with strings and percussion, The Terminal Orchestra has as much in common with contemporary composers/performers such as Nick Cave and Warren Ellis and William Basinski as it does with Ennio Morricone and Igor Stravinsky. This will be their first time playing in Madison, though violinist Emily Durkin grew up in Madison and still has family there!
The  set list is composed of original music written by DeCaire, and, except for a few songs, all come from their first release  – “The Seasons”  – which is a Vivaldi-inspired musical interpretation of the seasons. Check out samples here, and don’t miss this cool event!
Jul 05

NEW MUSE performs at 2011 Art Fair on the Square

NEW MUSE is the only contemporary chamber ensemble selected to perform as part of the 2011 Art Fair on the Square — one of the Midwest’s largest outdoor art and music festivals! Our performance begins at 9:30am on Saturday, July 9th and will include two world premieres by UW-Madison Alumni — “Petrichor” by our very own Jerry Hui (flute, clarinet and percussion), and “More Cowbells, Less_____” by special guest composer Becky Lipsitz (flute, clarinet, bassoon and percussion). Also on the program: “Hopi” by Philippe Hersant (solo bassoon), “A Minute of News” by Eugene Novotney (solo snare drum), “Side by Side” by Michio Kitazume (drums), and “Zoom Tube” by Ian Clarke (solo flute). This event is FREE and open to the public so grab a coffee, take a break from your Farmers Market shopping spree, and please join us for some music at the Wisconsin Public Radio Stage (State Street at the Capitol Square)!

 

May 06

NEW MUSE Wins 2011 New Arts Venture Challenge

We are thrilled to announce that NEW MUSE was selected as winner of the 2011 New Arts Venture Challenge, sponsored by Arts Enterprise Madison. The $2,000 award will serve as seed capital for our next venture – an interdisciplinary contemporary arts festival that will span State Street in Spring 2012. Paola, Jerry, and the gang are humbled to be in the company of such talented finalists – we can’t wait to find ways to collaborate! Stay tuned for more info…

Apr 19

NEW MUSE to light up local nightclub Plan B with one-of-a-kind mash-up of music, dance and cabaret

Contemporary classical music meets club culture — our next show will be a modern-day vaudeville extravaganza at local gay nightclub Plan B next Saturday, April 30!

Hosted by local drag celebrity Davina DeVille, this interactive show includes live dance and chamber music performances, cabaret songs, as well as special guests The Weather Duo and DJ Illy Holiday.

A diverse mash-up of musical styles will be presented, including jazz, electronic improvisation, and contemporary classical works by William Bolcom, Travis Garrison, Scott Gendel, Matthew Orlovich and Andrew Cole. The evening will also feature the North American premiere of Guillermo Lago’s “Strong Ties” for piano and saxophone.

Guest performers include the Anhinga PianoSAX Duo, local dance ensemble Ephemeral Art, as well as Madtown Ballroom. The festivities will finish off with a dance mix session spun by DJ Illy Holiday.

This special evening is designed as a throwback to the cabaret days of old with a modern, participatory twist on the live music experience. We bring in a wide spectrum of live performance arts to create that special laissez-faire atmosphere of a vaudeville show; except, this time, the audience is invited to come down on the dance floor and become part of the performing troupe with us!

Doors will open at Plan B, 924 Williamson Street, Madison, WI, at 8:00 p.m. The cover charge is $5.

Apr 01

Writing as an Artistic Pursuit: Tips for Musicians

One of the highlights at the recent College Music Society conference in Omaha was the presentation by Sean Burton from Briar Cliff University. His workshop on realizing the potential for viewing the writing process as one of artistic inquiry, based on creative interests, contrasts the vantage point of writing as a task or chore. In general, it is true that the pressure to publish is one of the professional obligations to which we many aspiring College and University performing arts faculty freeze up (or shake) at a mere reference. Such a common response (try this out at a party for extra points) is rooted to a degree in the advancement procedures of tertiary education institutions, and it is bolstered by the rise of online blogs, forums, and the general need to create a virtual paper trail of our thoughts, professional accomplishments, and daily goings-on.

Burton’s presentation resonated with me because, while writing is one of my passions, I often struggle with it. And this is quantified by the constant push to write for deadlines, whether for a grant, article, presentation, or blog post. In those scenarios I often find writing to resemble the experience of having teeth pulled…or at least cleaned. Anyways, something akin to my regular dentist appointment. Any chance to delay, distract, or disconnect from such tasks are welcome. Yet I can’t help but feel the urge to complete an essay or blog, to fulfill the anticipation of satisfaction that comes with a job (hopefully well) done.

With this in mind, I suggest that we take Burton’s advice and revise our perception of writing. Rather than a task, it can be a rewarding, challenging, and exciting process driven by artistic goals. Of course, there is still the nitty-gritty to deal with, but we can reframe those experiences, too. This brings me back to some thoughts on the art of revision by journalist and writer John Douglas Marshall (critic at the DailyBeast.com).

Here are some tips for improving the writing process, inspired by his writings:

1) Revisions mean those incoherent ramblings you just wrote are only the beginning. Don’t forget that the first draft is just that – the first attempt at making words into art. Admittedly, this is easier for some than others…but at least you can sleep on it, read over your work, and refine it. If only such process-orientation was accepted in the world of piano-playing.

2) Revising is easier on the nerves than writing the first draft. You’ve already broken the ice, now it’s time to enjoy the nuance and unpredictability of looking at a page with new eyes.

3) Try viewing the act of writing as continual revision. Embrace the technology age…cutting and pasting has never been easier. This is one I really like, because my neurosis is somehow quelled by the idea that I can fix as I go. This rarely actually happens, though.

4) Multiple revisions mean multiple realities. After a half-dozen drafts, it looks like I have six different papers. Revision means renewing, and reshaping our thoughts into new ideas; I never thought about how good that can be. Who knows where those drafts may take you for future projects.

I must admit, as someone revising two papers for publication/presentation at the moment, this post is a little self-serving – but if we are going to spend hours over this computer, we might as well find ways of enjoying it, right? OK, I’m not gonna lie, it also helps me to think that writing offers the chance to sit at my favorite coffee shop guilt-free, frequently sipping an amazing cappucino. Reading what I just wrote, I must be a writer-in-training….
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Check out John Douglas Marshall’s writings here. Another great site for writing enthusiasts is IndieReader.com – filled with articles, a blog, and lots of other goodies.