Coda & Prelude

I have arrived at a familiar annual benchmark: the beginning of a new calendar year. With the turning of a page in the calendar and a few days of rest between semesters, I can’t help but sift through the remnants of 2014 before plunging fully into this new year.

The back half of 2014 was certainly dominated, at least within the confines of this blog, by the lockout of the Atlanta Symphony musicians by the Woodruff Arts Center (WAC) board. A few weeks after my last blog post in October, a resolution to this painful start to the symphony’s 70th season was reached. As far as I can tell, the bleeding has been stopped and healing has begun. The musicians agreed to a new four-year contract and on November 13, 2014, the orchestra was back in business with Maestro Robert Spano leading the the symphony and the ASO Chorus in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9. I was on hand the next week (November 22) to hear performances of Debussy’s Première rhapsody (featuring principal clarinetist Laura Ardan), Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 and the Symphony No. 3 by Atlanta based composer Richard Prior. The symphony was still using many subs as many of the regular ASO members had not yet returned from out of town gigs they had accepted during the lockout. Nevertheless, the atmosphere in Symphony Hall was electric, The orchestra gave a heartfelt and wondrously musical performance and sounded as though much of the rust accumulated by weeks of walking a picket line instead of playing concerts had been shaken off. What struck me about the program selection was that it seemed to be a microcosm of everything that this orchestra does best. It was a concert that first featured a truly wonderful soloist from the very ranks of the ensemble itself. I have had the very good fortune of working with Laura Ardan on several projects in the past and know from personal experience that she is an exceptional artist. It was great to be reminded that this ensemble is comprised of many such exceptional artists throughout. The concert also spotlighted a relatively new composition. The programming of contemporary orchestral music has long been a hallmark of Robert Spano’s tenure at the helm of the orchestra. As a composer, I have always  admired this significant facet of the orchestra’s artistic vision. Finally, the concert reminded us all once again that the ASO can deftly move from the contemporary to convincing and riveting presentations of some of the greatest works of Western Civilization as exemplified by Beethoven’s fifth symphony. 

As good as it was to be back in Symphony Hall and hearing great music being performed by an elite orchestra, I still could not shake some troubling thoughts. First, the newly inked four-year deal will not guarantee that musician salaries will return to pre-2011 levels or even reach those levels by the end of the contract period. Second, in addition to other concessions, health insurance costs for the players have also gone up. Finally, there are still many questions surrounding the finances of the WAC and how it allocates funding to the symphony. Despite these shortcomings, the musicians did win one significant victory. The WAC board had pushed hard to dictate the size of the orchestra. This was an egregious demand and ultimately, the line in the sand that the players would not cross. The new contract stipulates that the compliment of the orchestra will grow back to near its pre-2011 level of 95 players. While this is still smaller than other major symphony orchestras, the restoration of performers nevertheless allows the group to remain at the status of a top tier professional orchestra. 

So if I examine the glass as half full, the orchestra emerged from an acrimonious stand-off with administrators and won a hard fought victory over the size of the ensemble; a critical component to maintaining artistic integrity. Without this victory, the ASO would have been reduced to a regional training orchestra and lose its luster as one of the finest orchestras in the country. If, on the other hand, I look at the glass as half empty, I see a struggle that resulted in lower pay and higher insurance costs for the musicians and a battle that merely returns the group (almost) to where it was back in 2011 in four years time. Then there is the WAC board. It still calls the shots for the orchestra and its chairman, Douglas Hertz famously described the symphony supporters and musicians as “crazy people” (http://artsculture.blog.ajc.com/2014/10/04/woodruff-arts-center-board-leader-takes-stands-on-atlanta-symphony-crisis/). I can’t help but be nervous about what lurks ahead in four years when this contract ends.

Still, things could have turned out much, much worse. The ASO musicians as well as the musical soul of the city of Atlanta have been spared. I choose, therefore, to look at the glass as very much half full.

My first film credit!

This goes for 2014 in my personal corner of Atlanta as well. Aside from blogging about the ASO lockout, I spent my year writing music for wonderful musicians, receiving performances at national and international festivals and conferences and even having the great fortune of seeing a commercial film featuring my first significant film score widely released. Yet, I can’t help but ask myself some honest questions. Should I have written more music? Received more performances? Generally, been more active? 

The honest answer is yes. I should have done more. That’s why, as I shift my attention from the year now gone and look forward, I am excited by my upcoming commissions, opportunities and scheduled performances of my work. With the lockout of the ASO resolved, I somehow feel as though the creative environment in Atlanta is more secure, at least for the time being. With the musicians back at work, it’s time for me to do the same. The Holidays are over, 2014 is in the books and the manuscript paper is empty!

The Next Level

Last month, I celebrated a fairly significant birthday: my fiftieth. It’s hard to imagine myself reaching such an age! In my mind, I still feel like I’m just a kid starting out in my career. Yet, the calendar and the body of work I’ve completed thus far, point to a far different reality. (All the grey hair contributes as well.) As we are all wont to do at the beginning of a new year, I find myself indulging in a bit of reminiscing concerning the year just ended as well as feeling charged with anticipation as this new year dawns. However, given my thoughts concerning my birthday, this reminiscing and anticipation double as a time to also indulge in a bit of assessment of where I stand in my career. What does 50 look like for a composer?

Trombonist Jon Whitaker and yours truly at a
recording session of my work, Tonoi VIII. Summer, 2012

My motivations for writing music are, I suspect, similar to many other composers. I feel a deep desire to create art and share it. I would be a liar if I did not quickly add that there is a part of me that longs for recognition for my work. This recognition typically means a trophy case brimming with all the awards that everyone desires bearing names such as Grawemeyer, Pulitzer and Guggenheim among others. Recognition also means a reputation such that major ensembles and performers are seeking me out specifically for commissions that – of course – pay well. If you add reams of positive reviews, the picture is complete.

So, at 50, how far away am I from all of that? As it turns out, I find myself at once tantalizingly close and hopelessly far away from these benchmarks of “success.”

When I first left graduate school at age 30, I had hoped that by age 50, the major commissions and prizes would have already begun to accumulate. After all, I was heading out into the world with a real head of steam. I had graduated from some of the top schools in the country and already had received a commission by the Cleveland Orchestra for a small work (thanks entirely to my great mentor, Donald Erb). My career was to be an endless series of opportunities yielding success after success with only the occasional flop to break the monotony.

Yours truly pictured with fellow adjudicators, performers
and composer finalists for the Atlanta Chamber Players
Rapido Composition Competition. Fall, 2012

Things did not turn out that way. At 50, the big trophies (Grawemeyer, Guggenheim, etc.) still elude me as do commissions from the “Top 10” orchestras. I write music as often for free as I do for money and my national reputation, such that it may be, teeters constantly on the brink of non-existence. Successes are the exception to the rule and are what break a monotony of rejection letters. I often think back on a review that was printed online back in 2010 after the performance of a solo viola piece of mine. After complimentary remarks about my music and its performance, the reviewer concluded by musing, “After every Demos performance I scratch my head and wonder: Can he push himself to the next level?” At age 50, it’s question that haunts me and one that I cannot presently answer.

L-R: Composers Robert Scott Thompson, Charles Knox,
Mark Gresham, cellist Craig Hultgren, yours truly &
composer Roger Vogel after a concert. August, 2012

If I am not at the “next level” yet, it certainly isn’t for lack of effort. I try to take advantage of every opportunity that comes my way and enter almost every contest that is still available to me. As these can be relatively few in number, I often create my own opportunities. Nevertheless, more and more, I have a gnawing concern that the train has long since left the station. In a society obsessed with youth, the 50 year old might as well be 150. Glance at any listing of contests and opportunities and most are for younger (under 30) “emerging” composers. How long does it take to emerge anyway? When going down this path of thought, I easily despair that I am hopelessly far removed from the benchmarks of success set in my ambitious youth.

L-R: Yours truly, Director/Writer Gregg Russell, Vickie
Russell, Producer Scott Mills at a pre-screening of the
film, "A Free Bird."

Yet this line of thinking is the height of self-indulgence. If you take a look at the photos I have included in this blog entry (all taken within the past year), it becomes easy to observe a career far removed from the pitiful portrait I sometimes so earnestly paint. It is true that I am nowhere near the level of success I expected for myself in my youth. This is an honest assessment. It is no less honest, however, to admit that the news is not all bad. The photos presented within this article show a composer with wonderful musicians committed to playing his music. They show a composer sought after as adjudicator and a composer seated with an independent film director/writer and film producer at the prescreening of his first movie score. These pictures do not even include the work I recently composed for the Charleston Symphony Orchestra, my residency as a Fellow at the MacDowell Artist Colony and my collaboration with the Atlanta Ballet (the latter two of which have been well-documented in this blog). Sure, it is not a Steven Spielberg movie or commission by the New York Phil but for Heaven’s sake – what do I want? Am I to be constantly regretful because the amazing opportunities I have had to date do not rise to some impossible self-expectation? The fact is, I am always very close to pushing myself to the “next level.” My years of experience and opportunities to date have positioned me perfectly to take advantage of such an opportunity to rise if that is God’s will.

If it isn’t – so be it. I still enjoy a career as a tenured full professor at a very good School of Music. I have my music performed regularly and continually have the opportunity to create art and share it. Even my “trophy case” is not as bare as I sometimes think it is. The lack of so-called “major” awards in no way diminishes the lovely recognitions that have been bestowed upon me and adorn my case. Maybe that “next level” will be the realization that the journey is more important than the trophy case, anyway. Less longing for what I don’t have and much more appreciation and gratitude for all I do possess is the next level I really want to attain.

So what does 50 look like for a composer? All in all, pretty damn good for this one.

New Year’s Resolutions for Composers

In a recent posting on the wonderful blog of Orthodox Christian theology, Mystagogy, author John Sanidopoulos presents, without comment, a short quotation attributed to the 12^th Century Church Father, St. Peter of Damascus. On the topic of resolution, St. Peter writes, "If you want to do something good, do it; and if you cannot do it, then resolve to do it, and you will have achieved the resolution even if you do not fulfill the action itself. Thus a habit, whether good or bad, can gradually and spontaneously be overcome. If this were not the case, no criminals would ever be saved, whereas in fact not only have they been saved, but many have become conspicuous for their excellence. Think what a great gulf separates the criminal from the saint; yet resolution finally overcame habit." It’s that final line, "…resolution finally overcame habit" that I find so compelling. Perhaps, we all know this deep inside and this is the reason we dutifully make our resolutions over and over again, year after year. As I am apparently not immune to this desire, here are the top five New Year’s resolutions I have made for my own professional career:

1. Write Everyday

This is a mantra my students hear continually from my lips. It’s a notion that I heard from both of my principal teachers, Roger Hannay and Donald Erb. I remember Roger once asking what I was writing. Having just completed a piece (a Herculean task for an undergraduate and one that I thought merited high accolades), I off-handedly replied that I was “in-between” pieces at the moment. “Then you are not a composer right now” was his quick response. For some reason, this comment stuck with me. It was further bolstered by Donald Erb who continually asked me what I was working on, even long after I had graduated. Both of these great composers expected that I would be constantly writing, constantly embarking on new projects and constantly growing as a creative artist. For the most part, I practice what they preached in this area. I don’t literally, physically, sit in my studio each day without interruption – 365 days in succession – writing music. But I do come pretty close. And on those days that I am not actively writing – I am usually noodling in my head; rolling ideas around until they begin to take on an urgency that compels me to commit them to manuscript. My resolution in 2012 is to maintain this one good habit instilled in me by my teachers.

2. Feed the Aural Imagination

A good diet for composers!

One of the best ways to maintain an ambitious writing schedule is to have a deep reservoir of ideas. To create music that goes beyond mere craft, a composer must have a well-developed aural imagination. I’m a firm believer that for a composer – someone responsible for creating something literally out of nothing – this aural imagination is fed and maintained by active engagement in thought-provoking and inspiring activities. Of course, the first activity is that of music itself. It’s important to listen to recordings and, preferably, attend live performances of as much music as possible. However, feeding the aural imagination goes well beyond just music. I believe a composer needs to be exposed to great visual art, to dance, to theatre and great literature. Composers should grapple with great ideas – secular and sacred. Engaging in and thinking about art, philosophy, politics, literature, religion among other disciplines feeds the creative spirit. This is an area where I have lagged in recent years. I’ve read too few books, attended too few art galleries and far too few concerts. My resolution in 2012 is to correct this undesirable trait.

3. Take Advantage of Opportunities

The idea that a composer would not take advantage of an opportunity seems ridiculous. Yet, how often I have let deadlines for score calls and similar opportunities pass me by. How many times I have not immediately followed up with a performer or ensemble that I met in some professional or social setting. I could fall back upon the well-worn excuse of not having the time. For me, this is no excuse. Rather, it is a cop-out. In 2012, I need to do a much better job of following leads, applying for grants, fellowships and commissions and submitting to as many eligible (and affordable) score calls and competitions as I can. I need to continually remind myself of something I stress to my students: composing music is my work. I have many other important obligations, but it is critical for the composer to distinguish between professional obligations and true work. I should not compose after my "work” is completed. I need to fulfill my obligations to the best of my ability so I can get back to my work; to writing music and taking advantage of all opportunities to write more music. 

4. Use Social Media

In 2011, I finally launched a new professional website. I also began to participate more fully in several social media outlets including the ubiquitous Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and the new kid on the block, Google+. I was diligent about maintaining this blog and also set up pages on ReverbNation and SoundCloud where my music can be streamed. Furthermore, I got my 2007 chamber music recording, Aegean Counterpoint, up on iTunes and Amazon.mp3. And still, I am way behind in the new frontier of social media and Internet marketing. I’m a firm believer that composers must promote themselves. We don’t often have professional representation and print publishing opportunities are vanishing faster than smoke in a wind tunnel. In 2011, I realized that sites like Facebook were not just about posting pictures of pets and alerting the world to scores in online games. Social media is a serious force that can be used to do what publishers and agents used to do for composers: get composers noticed, commissioned and performed. Good examples of rethinking about social media and online marketing can be found in two recently posted articles. The first, written by Gerrit Hall on the technology site, Mashable, is entitled “Facebook Timeline Is Basically Your Digital Resume.” The second article, written by Michael Wolf on the technology site, GigaOM, is entitled “Why 2012 Will Be the Year of the Artist-Entrepreneur.” Both are fascinating articles and speak to my point that composers need to begin to harness the great potential the Internet offers. However, to do so takes diligence and some sacrifice of time. I believe it is time well spent and resolve in 2012 to make even better use of this tremendous resource.

5. Give Back

Yours truly with the Fall 2011 GSU Student Composers.

In addition to writing everyday, feeding my aural imagination, taking advantage of all opportunities and effectively using social media, it is important for me to remember to give back to my profession as much as I can. First and foremost, this means being a good composition teacher. This is no small task – especially given the fact that I stand in the overwhelming shadow of truly great composers and teachers. I am indebted in ways that cannot be expressed in mere words to these teachers. The only way I know to properly pay them back for all they have given me is to try, as best I can, to do the same for my students. My 2012 resolution is to be more patient and understanding and to be more engaged in my pupils’ work and careers. I resolve to remember that it’s a tough business we’re in and everyone needs as much help as they can get. Moreover, I resolve to be a better colleague to my fellow “professional” composers and performers. After all, if we don’t look out for each other, who will?

So there is my list. Hopefully one or two of these resolutions will take root and will overcome some undesirable habits. What’s on your list for 2012? Leave me a comment and let’s talk!