Contact

Questions about the conference can be directed to questions@2ndminimalism.org. Website questions/corrections may be directed to webmaster@2ndminimalism.org.

Conference Directors:

Kyle Gann – kgann@earthlink.net

Kyle Gann, born 1955 in Dallas, Texas, is a composer and was new-music critic for the Village Voice from 1986 to 2005. Since 1997 he has taught music theory, history, and composition at Bard College. He is the author of The Music of Conlon Nancarrow (Cambridge University Press, 1995), American Music in the 20th Century (Schirmer Books, 1997), Music Downtown: Writings from the Village Voice (University of California Press, 2006), and John Cage’s 4′33″ (Yale University Press, 2009).

Gann studied composition with Ben Johnston, Morton Feldman, and Peter Gena, and his music is often microtonal, using up to 37 pitches per octave. His rhythmic language, based on differing successive and simultaneous tempos, was developed from his study of Hopi, Zuni, and Pueblo Indian musics. His music has been performed on the New Music America, Bang on a Can, and Spoleto festivals. His major works include Sunken City, a piano concerto commissioned by the Orkest de Volharding in Amsterdam; Transcendental Sonnets, a 35-minute work for choir and orchestra commissioned by the Indianapolis Symphonic Choir; The Planets, commissioned by the Relache ensemble via Music in Motion and continued under a National Endowment for the Arts Individual Artists’ Fellowship; and The Hudson River Trilogy, a trio of microtonal chamber operas written with librettist Jeffrey Sichel, the first of which, Cinderella’s Bad Magic, was premiered in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

In addition to Bard, Gann has taught at Columbia University, Brooklyn College, the School of the Art Instutute of Chicago, and Bucknell University. His writings include more than 2500 articles for more than 45 publications, including scholarly articles on La Monte Young (in Perspectives of New Music), Henry Cowell, Mikel Rouse, and other American composers. He writes the “American Composer” column for Chamber Music magazine, and he was awarded the Peabody Award (2003), the Stagebill Award (1999) and the Deems-Taylor Award (2003) for his writings. His music is available on the New Albion, New World, Cold Blue, Lovely Music, New Tone, and Monroe Street labels. In 2003, the American Music Center awarded Gann its Letter of Distinction, along with Steve Reich, Wayne Shorter, and George Crumb.

David McIntire – compositeurkc@sbcglobal.net

David D. McIntire was born in upstate New York and has had some training on the clarinet. Weekly exposure to Protestant hymnody and performing in a small town band were experiences that provided his entry into music. Later encounters with the music of Charles Ives offered new perspective to these modest origins.  Hearing the music of Sibelius in the fifth grade also made a deep impact. He has maintained his livelihood through playing, teaching, composing, and writing about music. Has had an inexplicable interest in electronic and modern music since his early teen years, to the exasperation of several of his teachers. Also played clarinet and saxophone in a number of eccentric and overly idealistic musical groups, most notably the Colorblind James Experience, the Whitman/McIntire Duo, and the Hotheads. He holds music degrees from Nazareth College of Rochester, Ithaca College and recently received a DMA in composition at the University of Missouri-Kansas City where he was awarded a Preparing Future Faculty Fellowship. He is also completing a master’s degree in musicology at UMKC; his thesis is on the postminimalist style known as Totalism. His research interests include soundscape composition, minimalism and postminimalism, the “American Mavericks” tradition, and the music of Harrison Birtwistle.  He also serves on the boards of Electronic Music Midwest and newEar.

Conference Planning Committee:

Andrew Granade – granadea@umkc.edu

Andrew Granade joined the UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance faculty as an assistant professor of musicology after completing his doctoral work in Musicology at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign in 2005. In addition to the Ph.D., he also holds a Master of Music from UIUC as well as Bachelor degrees in Piano Performance and History from Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. Prior to coming to UMKC, Dr. Granade taught for three years at Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois. He currently teaches the undergraduate survey of music history as well as graduate courses in research and bibliography in music, nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first century music, Asian music, and various aspects of American music, particularly those of the experimental tradition. His research focuses on the reception and perception of music in a variety of forms and genres and he is currently at work on a book exploring the impact of the hobo persona on Harry Partch’s life, work, and reception, as well as the issues of exoticism that arise from it. This interest in exoticism carries over into his other areas of interest, especially the shape-note singing tradition of the rural South and the interplay between Chinese and American musics in the 20th century. He has presented his research throughout the United States, China, and England, published articles and reviews in American Music, The Hymn, and Notes: The Quarterly Journal of the Music Library Association, and had his work on Harry Partch supported by the American Musicological Society through its AMS-50 fellowship.

Andy Lee – Andy.Lee@avila.edu

R. Andrew Lee, Artist-in-Residence at Avila University and doctoral candidate in piano performance at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory, is an avid performer of contemporary music. In addition to his DMA, Andy is also completing a masters in music theory as part of his pursuit to become a more well-rounded musician and teacher. He has already completed a masters in piano performance at UMKC under the direction of Prof. John McIntyre, and a bachelors degree in piano performance at Truman State University under the direction of Dr. David McKamie. Recent performances have included pieces such as William Duckworth’s Time Curve Preludes and Tom Johnson’s An Hour for Piano, which have been lauded both by those intimately familiar with the works and newcomers to the genre. His lecture-recitals have also been well received at area universities, helping to encourage younger students to explore recent trends in composition. His current research concerns the effect that minimalist and post-minimalist works have on the perception of time.

Jedd Schneider – elusive4thtenor@hotmail.com

Tenor Jedd C. Schneider is currently pursuing graduate studies at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music, where he is a student of Vinson Cole. He maintains a private voice studio and is a fixture on the local opera scene. After making his professional début with the Lyric Opera of Kansas City in the world première of Kirke Mechem’s John Brown, Mr. Schneider sang the rôle of Normanno in the Mobile (AL) Opera production of Lucia di Lammermoor in October, 2008. Relishing any opportunity to promote contemporary chamber opera, he was glad to recently perform Jorge Sosa’s Tonatzin and Ryan Oldham’s The Emperor’s Madness for enthusiastic audiences. Mr. Schneider will present a recital of new works for tenor and electronics, including two commissions, with the Kansas City Electronic Music Alliance this fall. A burgeoning musicologist, some of Mr. Schneider’s research interests include: identifying trends in the compositions of organists/innovators, notably Buxtehude, Messiaen, Poul Ruders, and Hugh Banton; the Totalist operas of Michael Gordon; and the role of progressive rock artists, notably Captain Beefheart and members of the Rock In Opposition collective, as progenitors of the Totalist idiom. A stalwart advocate of new music, Mr. Schneider serves on the board of the newEar contemporary chamber ensemble.

Scott Unrein – scott@scottunrein.org

Scott Unrein’s music has been commissioned and performed by ensembles and soloists throughout the U.S. and presented at the New Music and Art Festival at BGSU, Atlantic Center for the Arts, Lawrence University, Plowman Chamber Music Competition, Pacific Rim Gamelan Festival, Music Today Festival, and the Oregon Bach Festival. He works as a teacher and also hosts a podcast and music blog called NonPop.