Blast from the past!

Any Natives out there remember a TV show in Phoenix, AZ, called 21st Century Native American with host Roy Track?

I think it was in the 80s when Roy asked me to create a theme song for his show. Searching through old DAT recordings, I found this old theme! 

Though I don't know, I'm guessing this may be when his co-host Syd Beane departed the show, and Roy was rebranding the show as a solo host. Roy passed away in 2005, and there's a Roy Track Memorial Mesa Powwow each year, in the east valley of the Phoenix metro area. 

Audio note: the music is quartz crystal flute (me), guitar (Joe Myers), drum, strings, bells (Proteus II module, controlled by a QX3 sequencer), and was recorded live into a stereo R-DAT recorder. 

This past spring, 5 composers completed written compositions for string quartet, in the WI-based CANOE program. Well, ring the anticipation bells, because these 5 works are headed for world premieres in Green Bay this fall! Please mark your calendars!

The Civic Symphony of Green Bay, under the baton of
Seong-Kyung Graham, will give the world premieres of each composition. And each composition is getting an added boost. Instead of premiering each work with a 4-person string quartet, each new premiere will be performed by the entire string section of the orchestra! That means the “1st violin” part will be played all the 1st violins, the 2nd violin by all the 2nd violins, on down the line, etc. This will produce a wonderfully big sound for the new compositions.

The newly composed works of the CANOE composers will have their world premieres on Friday, November 6, 2015 at the Historic Meyer Theater, 7 PM. The concert is listed on the Symphony’s website, but does not list the new compositions yet. So I’ll add the works below to the existing concert program. The compositions are listed in alphabetical order by composer, and not in actual concert order. It’s going to be exciting!!

Pianist Nicolas Horvath will perform his large homage to composer Philip Glass, “GlassWorlds,” featuring the work of many composers, including my composition Glassworlds—Sacajawea on September 6, 2015. Horvath’s performance is a musical “pastiche;” that is to say, it’s a medley of small piano works of several prominent composers all strung together as one continuous whole. I’m honored to be one of these composers!

For the wonderfully ambitious pastiche, I used as inspiration the 2nd movement of “Piano Concerto No. 2” by Philip Glass, as a jumping off place. Glass’s concerto is reflection on the Louis and Clark expedition, and movement two, “Sacajawea,” features a non-Native flute melody with what Natives would call “straight beats” accompanying it. 

As an American Indian composer though, I felt I could bring a more familiar indigenous melody together with a native “heartbeat” pattern to compliment Glass’s original. 

For this minute-long work, the repetitive heartbeat rhythm is counted as a quick five-count beat pattern with stressed beats on one and three: (1)-2-(3)-4-5, (1)-2-(3)-4-5, etc. The American Indian flute melody is shaped in the familiar descending pattern of many indigenous songs, and performed by the pianist whistling while he works. Yes, Nicolas will play the piano and actually whistle the flute melody as he does.

If you are in the area, please stop in and check out this very long pastiche performance, and good luck Nicolas!