Benjamin Britten - Suites for Cello

Rostropovich, Oistrakh, Britten, Shostakovich

I first heard Benjamin Britten’s Suites for Cello in 2008, when I spent a bit of time on the Brown Farm at Music from Salem in upstate New York. I had just completed my undergraduate performance study and was about to begin graduate work with my new teacher, Rhonda Rider. Until that point, most of my performance experience had been in traditional repertory and early music performance practice. As a result, my repertoire list included almost all of the standard sonatas, solo works, and concerti that are expected of cellists.

My time in Boston with Rhonda was eye opening in many ways, not the least was my exposure to music written after 1950. I became interested in commissioning new works and exploring pieces for cello that weren’t played so often. Even during my undergraduate degree program, I wasn’t drawn to the war horses of the cello rep, but rather, to things that nobody was playing. At that time, those works included Bach’s Sonatas for Viola da Gamba and Keyboard (rather than his solo Suites), Grieg’s Sonata for Cello and Piano (rather than Rachmaninoff or other high-Romantic sonatas), and Hindemith’s Solo Sonata (again, rather than playing Bach’s solo Suites).

It turned out that I was actually playing standard repertoire, and I didn’t even know it! (youthful ignorance truly is bliss!) Rhonda, my classmates, and the music scene in Boston opened my eyes to real new music and non-standard repertoire. Over the past four years, I’ve spent the majority of my time eschewing standard literature in favor of older, neglected works (such as Ned Rorem’s After Reading Shakespeare, written in the early 1980s and older than I am), new commissions (check out YOUTUBE and SOUNDCLOUD for some of these pieces, including those performed with soprano MEREDITH MECUM), and a mix of standard repertoire.

This brings me back to Benjamin Britten and his Suites for Cello. Britten (1913-1976) is hardly what one might consider a composer of “new music”. In fact, 2013 marks the 100^th anniversary of his birth. Having died almost forty years ago, one would be hard pressed to argue that even his latest works are “new”. When I was first exposed to the Suites in 2008, I was struck by how incredibly traditional they are, despite being written toward the end of Britten’s life, well after 1950. 

The story goes that the great cellist Mstislav Rostropovich was visiting Britten in the UK and the two were off to meet the Queen. Britten was instructing Rostropovich how to act when the Queen greeted him when Rostropovich suddenly suggested that he (Rostropovich) would curtsey in front of the Queen. Britten was horrified at this suggestion, and urged him, “Slava, no! You mustn’t do that!” Rostropovich replied, “Fine. I will do it your way, but in exchange you must write me pieces to complement Bach’s Solo Suites.” After much arguing, Britten agreed to write six suites for solo cello to pair with Bach’s masterworks. They hashed out the details and a rough contract was drawn up on the back of a restaurant menu. One of the great tragedies of cello history is that Britten did not survive to complete the fourth, fifth, and sixth suites in the set.

In 2013 I will be celebrating Britten’s centenary with multiple performances of his three Suites for Cello. I have performed each of these works individually over the past four years (though not from memory as I will be doing in these 2013 performances). These pieces are some of the few works from the twentieth century to hold a secure place in the standard cello canon. I read somewhere that these three suites are expected study for young “hotshot” cellists. Of course I have favorites, and love one of the Suites more than the others, which becomes quite obvious if one takes note of my Queering the Pitch recital series. 

Third Suite for Cello

The Third Suite for Cello, op. 87 was premiered in 1974 by Rostropovich, but was the only Suite which Rostropovich did not record and release commercially. The piece is written in nine movements, played continuously without break. It is my opinion (and I’m quite biased) that the Third Suite is the most passionate of the three, due to it’s thematic construction and it’s date of composition, toward the end of Britten’s life. 

The Suite is a sort of “reverse theme and variations”, with each of the nine movements based off of three Russian folksongs by Piotr Tchaikovsky (a la Beethoven’s Razumovsky quartets) and a final Russian theme - the Kontakion - from the Russian Orthodox Church (these four themes are presented as a set of four at the end of the piece, after their variations). The Kontakion is the Orthodox Hymn for the Dead, a striking choice considering how close to death Britten was when the Third Suite was composed. Without a doubt, I love to perform the Third Suite more than almost any other work I have ever played. It is truly a magnificent piece, arguably unmatched in the solo cello repertoire.

First Suite for Cello

The First Suite for Cello is second on my (unscientific and ever-changing) ranking of the Three Suites for Cello. Though I have performed the Third Suite most often, it was the First Suite that first interested me in Britten’s music. Like the Third Suite, the first is performed uninterrupted in six movements with four ‘canto’ settings acting as dividers and bookends in the work (a total of nine movements). The piece is organized as follows:

Canto 1

Mvmt. 1

Mvmt. 2

Canto 2

Mvmt. 3

Mvmt. 4

Canto 3

Mvmt. 5

Mvmt. 6/Canto 4

Cantos - meaning “song” or “singing” in Italian - are a traditional form of division in an epic poem (such as Lord Byron’s Don Juan, or Dante’s The Divine Comedy). These canto divisions are wailing, ardent songs which display Britten’s stark tonal and virtuosic vocal writing, made up of intervals (thirds, fourths, sixths, to name a few) which are incredibly pleasing to the ear - when played in tune! A close friend of mine once told me that he couldn’t stand to listen to the new music that I often played. During recitals he was forced to sit on his hands and found them balled in to fists during my performances; the music just made him so anxious and uncomfortable. The First Suite for Cello, however, melted his cold, anti-new-music heart and became the piece he wanted to hear most (while I practiced he often called from a different room, “Hey, play that one that I like,” without any other detail). 

Second Suite for Cello

The Second Suite for Cello is, perhaps unreasonably, my least favorite of the three Suites. Unlike the other two, it is organized in five movements which (thankfully) utilize breaks between movements. Premiered in 1968, the Second Suite for Cello was composed amidst a large output of vocal works (solo, choral, operatic) and was the only piece - save the Suite for Harp - of instrumental music during this time period. As such, I think that the Second Suite is the most operatic of the three Suites, despite the songs composed in to the other two works. The opening movement is titled Declamato and sounds - to me - like an operatic tenor warming up, perhaps inspired by Britten’s partner, the great tenor Peter Pears. The Second Suite includes some of the greatest examples of imitative writing for solo cello in all of the repertoire, the second movement Fuga and the massive fifth movement Ciaccona which ends the piece.

When I asked friends what opinions they had of Britten and his music, I received some interesting answers. When asked what he likes the most and the least about Benjamin Britten, one friend said, “His music. It’s difficulty,” in response to each respective question. While I agree, I pressed for further answers, and this friend found it difficult to respond. I understand the sentiment, as I myself find it hard to put in to words why Britten is so difficult to comprehend on it’s surface level.

A musicologist friend told me, “I think of him as a harmonically-linguistically across-the-pond parallel to Copland. They were progressive, but without losing the listenable quality that makes it accessible to the layman.”

And that is what I find so intriguing about Britten. His music has a deceptive surface level simplicity that has not been replicated by progressive composers since his time. But when one delves deeper in to the music, one finds that the seemingly simplistic romance and the beauty of his music is supported by a musical complexity that one would expect in the highly organized (and also beautiful) music of Boulez or Xenakis.

In short, I love Benjamin Britten's music and so do audiences. It is always a thrill to present these masterworks in concert and I am ridiculously excited to give my first performance of the complete cycle in 2013. Until that concert (which I am striving to stream live online), I encourage you to take a LISTEN to a live recording of the Third Suite for Cello from a performance I gave in February 2012 during my residency at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA School of Music.

UPDATE (10/07/2012): It's so wonderful to continue to work on these masterpieces. I recently finished memorizing the Third Suite and have started in on the First Suite. The Second Suite is the Suite that I am least familiar with and that which poses the most technical difficulties (in my opinion) so it will be an ongoing work-in-progress. 

The goal is to have each Suite memorized by the end of 2012, but it remains to be seen whether or not that will happen, what with other recitals, concerto work, and chamber music concerts which dot the calendar. 

This is the most fun I've had in the practice room in a long time, as this is also the first time that I've had an extended period of time (more than a month or two, that is) to work on a recital. And not since my first Queering the Pitch recital have I been so fully invested in the music and the meaning of the project.

The first performances that I'll be giving of the Suites for Cello will be in late February of 2013. After that, others are sporadically scheduled. Hopefully 2013 will be more than a celebration of my FINAL graduation, but also the celebration of MANY, MANY, MANY performances of Britten's three Suites for Cello. 

Fall 2012

MIRRORS!

The end of the summer has finally come and the school year at University of Georgia has begun. I've been studying scores, practicing parts, and getting ready for the things I have coming up! The fall will be relatively quiet for me this year. Besides concentrating on passing my preliminary and comprehensive exams and beginning the research for my doctoral project. 

Though the fall will feature very little from me on the "recital circuit" I'll be playing a number of concerts in Georgia. The music is awesome and ranges from Bach to brand new music from EMILY COOLEY and STEVEN KNELL.

MORE MIRRORS!

There are two big events of the fall and early-winter: first, a few performances of the complete Suites for Cello by Benjamin Britten (dates forthcoming); second, a performance of Schubert's Quintet in C Major with violinists Josh Holritz, Rachael Fischer, violist Megan Chisom-Peyton, and cellist David Peyton. (yup, they're married!) Both concerts should be super fun! (and in the case of Britten, involve a LOT of memorization work!)

Cullen and me.

In other news, this is the first time that I'll be in Athens for UGA football games! It'll be nice to be back in a college football atmosphere, even if I'm not going to be an integral part of it!

So this is a short post, not much to report. We'll see how things are in a few weeks and I'll report back.

Scattered throughout this post are some photos of the new mirrors in my practice room AND a photo of my brother, Cullen, and me at my cousin Allan's recent wedding! Look at those snazzy fellows!

Summertime!

I cannot believe that it's already the end of June! My time since the end of classes (early May) has been quite a bit of "hurry up and wait." I decided in March to take some summer classes during the June/July breaks and I'm scheduled for an introductory class in the political science department and another basic course in religion (Christianity, Islam, and Judaism). These are the first non-music courses that I've taken in nearly 7 years! I'm excited, but I know that - in both classes - I'll be the oldest student in the room.

Concert @ SAW
(photo by Rhonda Rider)

In addition to coursework, I'm doing a bunch of practicing and exercising! Practice is the norm around here. That's work, but I haven't been a dedicated gym-goer since my first year in Boston. I'm down about ten pounds since the summer began and maybe (MAYBE) I'll be super-fit by the time MEREDITH's wedding rolls around in September.

QtP concert @ SAW

At the end of May, I was in Salem, NY for my fourth summer on the Brown Farm at MUSIC FROM SALEM. The chamber music summer concert series was my first real exposure to new music. Since that fateful week in May 2008, I've spent more time exploring music from the 20th and 21st-centuries than I have with standard repertoire. Some don't like/respect that path, but nobody can argue that I (am lucky to) play a ton of interesting (good and bad) music! Meredith joined us on the farm for one night to perform our Queering the Pitch concert at SALEM ART WORKS. We played in SAW's awesome barn to an incredible audience! My dear friend/colleague/teacher JUDITH GORDON remarked that the barn reminded her a bit of Santa Fe Opera. I loved the image! (judge for yourself at right) As the concert went on, the opening behind us got dark and the mood changed. (just like the music - from Knell to DIORIO)

I learned LAURA KAMINSKY's "The Great Unconformity" while in Salem. I was lucky to learn the piece with my great teacher and mentor Rhonda Rider. Laura's piece was written for Rhonda when she was artist-in-residence at Grand Canyon National Park. The piece is named after and explores one of the Grand Canyon's great geological mysteries, THE GREAT UNCONFORMITY. It's a very powerful work that really speaks to audiences. It will be one of the four pieces that will be on my next Queering the Pitch solo recital.

Music piling up - WWRRD?!

Which brings me to the remainder of the summer! Practicing will be getting real here in July. Music is piling up on my practice desk, but I have some priorities. The first is my re-learning of Schubert's Quintet in C Major. I've played the piece enough times to make learning it again quite easy. The next priority is the solo recital that I'm working on. This will be the third (and final) chapter of the Queering the Pitch recital series. This final iteration will be the most exciting yet! It features a mix of works that I've commissioned (by EMILY COOLEY and STEVEN KNELL), a work that has been recently composed (the piece by Laura Kaminsky), and a substantial piece for solo cello written nearly twenty years ago. That piece, Robert Maggio's 'Winter Toccata (I can't believe you want to die)' is a powerful piece that explores Mr. Maggio's AIDS volunteer work. In short, this recital features two pieces by queer women and two by openly gay men, dealing with philosophical beliefs, a natural wonder of the world, the Mormon faith, and AIDS. It's a very diverse program!

My cello, just chillin'!

The 2012-13 performance season will not be as busy as the 2011-12 season. My focus, primarily, is completing all course work for my doctor of musical arts degree and work on my dissertation project (which will include a complete recording of those pieces that I commissioned for my QtP series). In the fall, I'll be performing a degree recital of chamber music by Schubert (the amazing/fantastic/wonderful Quintet in C Major) and Haydn. Additionally, I'll be workshopping the last QtP recital at a number of venues. Last, but certainly not least, I'll be working to complete all of my doctoral exams so that I might graduate in the spring of 2013.

The workshopping of QtP3 is the precursor to a March recital tour of the west coast. Cities in California, Oregon, and Washington state will hear the awesome music of Cooley, Kaminsky, Knell, and Maggio. Meredith and I will be in the studio to record the works that we commissioned by DiOrio, Kelly, Knell, and Trinkley, and I'll be recording the solo pieces by Cooley and Knell (Steve Knell being the most prolific of the commissioned composers, it seems). 

There are some exciting possibilities on the horizon, as well. Residencies and performances includes concerts with orchestras and choirs (Tchaikovsky and Tavener). We'll see if these pan out! Cross your fingers for graduation in spring of 2013!

The rest of the summer looks great, and I'm excited for the performance season.

Until next time, here's a picture of my puppy, Edgrr, for your enjoyment!

JD

Music from Salem: Cellos and QtP

Today is a very exciting day! I'm writing from the Amtrak Ethan Allen Express on my way to Salem, NY! This begins my first week at MUSIC FROM SALEM this year! I adore this time not only because of the wonderful people that I get to perform with, but also because of the relaxing and musically stimulating environment of the Brown Farm in Salem.

It will - as always - be wonderful to see Rhonda Rider, my dear mentor, Judy Gordon, one of the most thought-provoking  and inspirational musicians I know, and the awesome David Russell, one of my cellistic heroes, for his wild and crazy career! We'll be missing JENNIFER BEWERSE this year, but she has some exciting things happening (check her website for all of the informations)!

This won't be a long blog. Just a quick post. I'm excited to have MEREDITH MECUM join us on the farm this Thursday to present a performance of our Queering the Pitch: music for soprano and cello program. In addition to QtPII, I'll also be performing Laura Kaminsky's work, The Great Unconformity, for unaccompanied cello. Laura wrote this piece for Rhonda in 2010, and I can't wait to dive in head first with Rhonda looking over my shoulder!

Anyway, more words and photos in a week when I'm back in Georgia!

Until then...

Getting the gig: marketing, marketing, marketing

I am of the belief that young classical musicians do not need management to launch their careers. After all, the world is so hyper-connected these days with so much information available at the push of a button. From the comfort of my couch, the skytrain in ATL, or an airport shuttle in Portland, I can find out much of the information that I need to publicize myself to the appropriate organizations, in hopes that they will hire me in the future. We are also lucky enough to have the ability to promote our wares via the internet or in print.

I posted a bit of a BRAGGY BLOG the other day listing my accomplishments from this past performance season. I am immensely proud of each and every concert that I've played this year, but it's been quite difficult at times in the 'extra-musical' aspects of my career management. I will explain. Before I do: after writing this blog and re-reading it, I feel like much of it comes off as downplaying the artistic aspects of a career in music. Please do not misunderstand: I would play every concert for free if that were financially feasible. Unfortunately it is not, and the business side of music is a necessary evil. I am not hard-headed in contract negotiations and often work on a "sliding-scale" for pay. It's just hard to live in the United States (with student loans, rent, and, ya know, food) without an income! But anyway, on to the actual blog!

In my last blog my dear friend JENNIFER BEWERSE asked how I was able to afford all of the concerts that I played last year (I assume she means travel, hotels, cars, and other expenses related to performing). So I thought I'd talk about gigs that I booked myself: this will be a stream of consciousness blog about booking gigs, the negotiating process, remuneration (though I won't be talking specific dollar amounts), travel arrangements, etc. 

My personality has transformed over the past few years from a somewhat uncertain and confused music student to a confident and business-minded professional. This is not the easiest thing for musicians to do. We all have weaknesses and we've been trained to focus on these areas so as to fix these problems. Unfortunately, when we focus on these areas of weakness, we tend to obsess. Eventually the obsession can become a major detriment! It's hard to come off as a confident musician who should be hired when we are killing ourselves in our practice rooms! Looking past that which we stress about in practice rooms is the only way to come off as a self-assured performer. Sometimes confidence comes off in a negative light, as being a cocky jerk. I operate under the "you can't please everybody" principle, but I try to learn from each situation. (sometimes it's a rough road, and try as you might, there seem to always be people who dislike you!)

Website screenshot

Confidence itself can't - and won't - result in performance gigs though. A performer has to promote him/herself. I feel very comfortable in my abilities in this area. About one year ago, I established my WEBSITE, my little home on the web. The site features comprehensive information about me, including my full-length BIO, concert DATES, AUDIO clips, and social networking pages, such as FACEBOOK and TWITTER. You can even find a link to this blog! 

The website is my home base. Everything I do, all conversations that I have, all materials I hand out, will somehow mention my website. Audience members who attend my performances will find a program, program notes, and publicity postcards, each with a link to my website listed at least one time. I hand out business cards like they're candy. Again: website is listed.

Concert audiences are a wonderful thing. We need them to come for a few reasons, not the least of which are ticket sales and someone to perform for! I strongly believe in audience engagement - before, during, and after a concert:

Before: people buy tickets to an event because they are interested in something about it. In the case of a concert, an audience member may know the performer, be interested in the music being performed, love the instrument that the performer will play, or any number of things. Getting a ticket holder really excited about the concert is difficult before the fact. It's why I write this blog. I like to talk about what is going on in my head while I'm practicing. I enjoy discussing musical and non-musical aspects of my life. Sometimes, I post things that about my work that I wouldn't write in a program note. Any of these things helps an audience member to personally connect with a performer. Jennifer, mentioned above, once told me that audience members came up to her after concerts and talked about her blog, which they had read before coming to the concert. I've experienced this as well. Sometimes it's a bit surreal to hear someone you've never met talk about how awesome your PRACTICE ROOM is.

During: I'll be the first to admit that I'm not a fan of talking to the audience during concerts. I write program notes so that I don't have to stumble through a prepared speech. When I get nervous, I talk quickly, I forget things, and I generally confuse everyone. If I don't have a speech memorized, I mess it up. If I do have the speech memorized, it sounds like I'm giving a recitation. Therefore, I try not to do it. That said, I enjoy opening up a bit, tearing down the fourth wall and letting the audience in to my own little performance space. This is also the reason why I really love performing in more intimate and unusual spaces (bookstores, bars, etc.). When an audience member purchased a ticket because they love the cello, I expect that they were hoping to hear solo Bach. When I play works by DOMINICK DIORIO, STEVEN KNELL, Ned Rorem, and even Benjamin Briten, I feel the need to connect and explain why this (often crazy and new) music is just as awesome as that of Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms.

After: TALK TO YOUR AUDIENCES! Pack up your instrument, change your shoes, get a drink of water, do whatever you must do immediately after walking off stage, as quickly as possible and run - RUN - to the lobby or common area and talk to each and every one of those who purchased tickets to see you. Hug your mother, shake your uncle's hand, and chat with every person who will talk to you! Explain why you love what you do, why the music you just played is the best-est stuff ever! And hand out business cards. To everyone. Be memorable, be personable, and you will be hired back. Yo-Yo Ma played a concert at the University of Georgia this past season. On the second half he put on and played in a UGA logo t-shirt and the audience loved it. They also loved that he's Yo-Yo Ma, but that's beside the point. In the case of us mere mortals, they might not necessarily remember how you play, but they will absolutely remember how much fun it was to talk to you after the performance!

Press kit cover

When you engage an audience, they come to see you again. When a person in the audience is a promoter, they hire you. When you get hired, you make money and play more concerts. And the cycle repeats itself. The hard part is getting hired in the first place.

Over the past two concert seasons, 2010-11 and 2011-12, I have performed 68 concerts and recitals all over the place. Of these, 47 were in 2011-12. I played - best guess, I'm not checking records - about 20 concerts in which I received no pay. To be frank, it sucks when that happens. In these cases, I had to foot the bill for travel and lodging, food and transportation in the city I was in, and other menial expenses. That said, these 20 pro-bono, publicity concerts garnered 48 more in which I was paid. And those 48 have led to other ventures that will hopefully be just as wonderful. Sometimes, as young artists, it pays to play for free. (and when you have these expenses, everything you do is a business-related tax write off...a different blog all together)

So how to get hired? Marketing, marketing, marketing. Everything I've mentioned thus far - the website, business cards, chatting with audiences/promoters - certainly help. But what else?! Create a press kit. Tell the people you want to be hired by exactly why they should hire you. Explain your purpose, what sets you apart, and what you can do for them. My own press kit is a simple thing (the cover page is shown above, but you can find and download it HERE under "Informational Materials") that explains who I am (on the "bio" page, that is nothing if not confident…), what I do (explained on the "sample programs" and "activities" pages) and what I've done in the past (via the same "sample programs" and "bio" pages, as well as my "selected repertoire" list). Put all of this information in to a folder (don't staple it!) with a CD sample of your playing and a business card. Ship it!

But who to send it to? For me, this is the difficult part. Who wants to hire Justin Dougherty? (no more third-person narrative, I promise) It's difficult to say. Over the past two years, I've played more unaccompanied recitals than I have quartet recitals and significantly more chamber music than concerto performances (some information: I've played no concerto concerts, as I have little interest in the genre). Therefore, my concerto repertoire is rather small, my solo repertoire - including cello/piano repertoire - quite large and my chamber music - specifically quartet - rep is somewhere in the middle.

Dear musicians: play for free!

I have found that the organizations that are interested in me are non-profits, small concert series, new music consortiums, and universities. I have decided to focus on these areas for the 2012-13 and 2013-14 concert seasons. Getting paid to play after being hired can sometimes be more difficult. The photo over to the right explains it all quite well (from both sides). Sometimes people just don't think they should pay for music and musicians. It's a "hobby" after all. If you rely on performances to pay the bills, it's hard to let a gig go, but if the venue is not willing to pay for your services, you have to weigh the value of a free concert versus one that will give you a paycheck. 

A poster of mine

There are many ways to make money on a concert that you may not expect: charge for tickets at the door (a cover charge, if you will), ask for a cut of ticket sales, merchandise/food revenue, or take donations as you perform. None of these are nearly as secure as having a fee set in your contract. This is an area that I am still figuring out on my own, and I'm not much help in that regard.

Portion of a press release

If you choose to leave it to fate - collecting dollars at the door or via donations - for performance fees, then publicity is key. It's so easy to publicize for concerts! Posters at the venue and around town (left), press releases (right) to area news organizations such as daily or weekly newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations are an absolute necessity (check with the specific organization, most have deadlines for publishing that are well in advance of an event). 

The website ZVENTS is an online calendar for events in specific areas, organized much like Craigslist. Often, when publishing to a specific Zvents page - say, San Francisco - the website will automatically publish your listing on other appropriate websites - in the case of San Francisco, calendars for Marin County, San Jose, Oakland, etc. will also show your event. These calendars are frequented by a wide variety of people who may find your concert worth coming to! Newspapers tend to have their own online calendars as well. Publish your concert there as well!

Finally, I have to say that music, besides being an inspirational artistic venture, is a business as well. Sometimes it's not always how good you are, but how relevant and hire-able you are as a musician. To step on to my soapbox: not everyone wants to listen to the above mentioned composers Bach, Beethoven, and Brahms. Sometimes new music is the most relevant and interesting to today's listener and concert-goer. Finding a niche market within music is important and can separate one performer from the clones around him/her. A performer doesn't need to be Lang Lang, Yo-Yo, or Itzhak to make a living in the world of performers. The performer just needs to be an intelligent marketer. /soapbox

That's "all" for now. Hope this was enjoyable, helpful, and not-too-boring!

And visit my WEBSITE! (#marketing)

Until next time,

JD

Year in Review? Why not...

It feels super cheesy to write a "year-in-review" blog post, but I can't help it! This year has been wonderful for so many reasons!

In March of 2011, in the midst of doctoral degree work and other performances, I decided to finally commence with my performance project that I titled, 'Queering the Pitch'. When I first developed the idea for the series, I thought that it would be a great way to insert myself in to the world of performing musicians. Though it has certainly done just that, it's also forced me to think about prejudices and hatred that so many people - gay, straight; black, white; men, women; liberal, conservative - face everyday. There were some venues that were willing to host me, performing the music that I had chosen, but were not willing to advertise the concert with the title.

Despite a few minor setbacks, I performed the first iteration of 'Queering the Pitch: music for solo cello' twenty-three times in less than twelve months, the first 15 performances happened over a span of three months last summer. The project is now in it's third part (another solo recital with two commissions, featuring a 1993 work by Robert Maggio titled, "Winter Toccata"). MEREDITH MECUM and I are still performing the second part, 'Queering the Pitch: music for soprano and cello', around the country. With three performances down - in State College, PA, Houston, TX, and Athens, GA - we've booked a few more over the next month. When Meredith is back from her European audition/performing adventure in the fall, we will embark on even more concerts with some residencies at different colleges/universities thrown in.

This year was also an incredible year for new-music in my life. I commissioned twelve works from ten composers and have thus far premiered ten of those. 

Instead of writing pages about all of the super-fun things I've been doing since September 2011, I thought I'd make a list (just for funzies, and maybe to brag a little bit, too!):

In the 2011-2012 concert season I…

-Traveled 33,745 cello-related airline miles.

-Flew on different 6 airlines.

-Drove 22 rental cars.

-Slept in 7 different hotel chains/hostels.

-Gave 47 performances…

…44 outside of Athens (my current home).

-Of those, 25 were solo recitals…

…18 quartet concerts…

…4 mixed-instrumentation chamber music concerts (2 more just days away).

-Commissioned 12 new works…

…by 10 different composers

-Gave 10 world premieres.

-Presented 2 collegiate residencies.

-Performed 7 different concert programs made up of 19 different works ranging from Haydn to DIORIO (and everything in between).

-Made my professional debuts in Atlanta, Boston, Houston, Los Angeles, Portland, OR, San Francisco, Seattle, Tampa, and fifteen other cities/towns.

It's been a tremendously busy season, and I'm happy with all that I've accomplished this year. I feel good about my career path, I am pleased with all of the progress I've made (only one more year 'till the DMA!), and I've been lucky enough to make a living playing my cello and collaborating with some really awesome musicians!

When I decided to become a performer so many years ago, I always hoped to be able to set my own course, and thus far I have been able to do that. I hope to continue what I've started and that I can continue to play the music that I like with awesome people. I am so lucky to have the job that I do; I'm able to wake up every morning and create awesome music!

Next year has some exciting developments and concerts. I'll be sure to share them with you as they are confirmed! (HINT: Rococo...ha!)

Till next time…

JD

QtP I/II in Houston, TX!

What a weekend! At this moment I'm sitting in Houston Bush Intercontinental Airport awaiting my flight back to Atlanta. On Friday Meredith and I performed our duo recital in Houston as guests of LONE STAR COLLEGE-MONTGOMERY (where one of our composers, DOMINICK DIORIO is Associate Professor of music) and last evening I played my solo recital at Avant Garden, a funky Houston bar with a penchant for artistic weirdness.

Lone Star College Music Hall

The weekend has cemented my desire to perform like this at a high level. I just love traveling, seeing a new place, and playing for lots of awesome people! I left Athens on Friday morning around 4:00 AM to catch my 7:30 AM flight from ATL to IAH. MEREDITH had flown in to Houston the night before, so she and Dominick fetched me from the airport and we scampered off to Lone Star College. Once there we played a teaser performance for a class and had some time to ourselves in the recital hall (which, at only fifteen months old, is a stunning place to perform).

So much food!

After our work was completed for the morning/afternoon, Dominick treated us to a late lunch of amazing Tex-Mex food in a palatial, Texas-sized, restaurant. With a performance only hours away, I look back and think that I never should have finished the massive dish (spinach enchiladas). The bottomless chips and salsa didn't help either! But, alas, I not only licked my plate clean, but finished long before my companions. *Gold Star for Justin*

Nap time!!

Following lunch, we returned to the music hall to prepare for our performance. I took a brief nap while Meredith prettied herself and we helped each other find our way in to our respective concert clothes (note to future contractors: Meredith and I must have separate dressing rooms - we simply cannot be in such close proximity to each other ::wink:: Nothing gets done in a decent amount of time without a ridiculous amount of laughter!!).

The Queering the Pitch: music for soprano and cello performance was just wonderful. The fantastic audience held on to every beautiful note that our astounding composers provided. There was an audible gasp from the room when Meredith hit her first high C-sharp in STEVE KNELL's Anthemoessa and a little laughter in the fourth movement of the DiOrio piece thanks to Meredith's wonderful dramatic acting! Of course, Dominick's work received a rousing ovation from the home town crowd.

After the performance, Meredith and I were privileged to meet with some of the audience members and students at Lone Star College. It is so great to meet students who are early  in their music education and who are so motivated and in love with what they're doing! They adore their professors (shout out to D!) and teachers. I promised that I wouldn't mention the bugs flying around the lobby of the recital hall, but I must say: I've never seen such large mosquitos!!! (except in Charleston, SC)

MORE delicious food!

Saturday, after shoving Meredith out the door for her super early flight back to NYC, I was able to see much of the city and fun things of Houston. We had a wonderful lunch at a restaurant on Westheimer, BRASIL, before the tour began. After another much-needed nap, Dominick and I had a great dinner at Monica Pope's restaurant T'AFIA. I had some fantastic food, including a delicious dish of brussel sprouts in a caramel miso. Just incredible! The vegetarian in me didn't know what 'SPECK' was when ordering, and ended up with a plate full of pasta and meat. I ate it anyway!  Ooops.

Saturday evening, as I mentioned, was another performance of a different program at AVANT GARDEN. This time it was my ongoing Queering the Pitch: music for solo cello recital program. It was incredibly exciting to play in a new type of venue. Classical musicians don't often get outside the bubble of the concert hall, so this was a new experience for me. I maintain that some compositions belong in a concert hall, and Britten's Third Suite for Cello is one of them. The other works that I played, Rorem's After Reading Shakespeare, Muczynski's Gallery, Julie-O, and a little Bach, seemed to fit fine, but the emotion of the Britten and the nuance that is necessary throughout didn't come through for me. Alas, it was an enjoyable performance with a number of very interested and awesome audience members.

So many boarding passes!

All-in-all, this was a really thrilling weekend. I've been gone from Georgia for about 48 hours and I'm only mildly ready to be back. It was really great to - again - fly to a city the day of a performance, perform two different recitals of two different programs on two different days in two different venues. It's such a thrill to be able to bounce around the country and make a living playing the cello. It's enough of the "freelancer" lifestyle to keep things interesting but not so much that I worry about eating. 

Of course, it's always great to meet new people at concerts. Hopefully we'll get to keep in touch with some of those we met this weekend! Meredith and I were so happy to be staying with Dominick for two nights and to see Houston. I was certainly pleasantly surprised with the city and the state of Texas! In another happy coincidence the flight crew for my flight to Atlanta was full of attendants who I've had on numerous flights before! It's always nice to see some friendly faces! Their kindness (and the fact that they recognized me!) is why I fly DELTA almost exclusively! All this flying is catching up with me, though. I'm getting a bit sick, I think! (EDIT: As I post this, I'm sick as a dog!)

The next round of recitals for my 2011-12 season will be the last weekend of April in Georgia (Athens and Atlanta). After that, I have an entire summer to learn some brand new works! The next Queering the Pitch: music for solo cello recital will be in September and will include a world premiere by EMILY COOLEY, and works by MARCOS BALTER, Dominick DiOrio, and Robert Maggio (perhaps one other short piece, if I can find something I like). Also - more details soon - I'll be re-learning Tchaikovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme for performance with a few orchestras next year as well as Tavener's 'Svyati' and perhaps a concerto for cello and wind instruments! Details forthcoming!

Until then…

JD