A Work in Progress from michaelsbryson.com

The recital went off incredibly well. Thanks again to all the players who put in such hard work. Their performances were very professional. It was a joy to hear the music come to life! I’m very proud to present the audio files for your enjoyment:

Flashpoint for Brass Quintet 

Anecdote for Solo Bassoon

Dispositions for Violin, Clarinet, and Piano

Disturbed Rattlings   Freely Floating  Playful and Dance-like

  Quaternity for Woodwind Quintet

 Prayer Is the Soul’s Sincere Desire  

Sleepers on the Hill for Baritone and Pierrot Ensemble

 Richard Bone   Franklin Jones   Joseph Dixon

After the recital and over the Christmas break, I prepared for my comprehensive exams. With those behind me, I’m now working on my final composition for the DMA program! I’ve been working on an idea based on the book of Ecclesiastes. I’ll share more about this project later. Some more good news today, the piece Sleepers on the Hill won Honorable Mention in the Dallas Symphony Orchestra/Voices of Change Young Composers Project.  SDG           

Some good news: I finished with the woodwind quintet! The players have begun rehearsing it this week, and they will do an outstanding job. Many thanks for their hard work. For those who are curious, here’s the program order for the recital: 

Flashpoint (brass quintet) 

Anecdote (solo bassoon) 

Dispositions for Violin, Clarinet, and Piano 

Woodwind Quintet (still don’t have a name, but it’ll come) 

Prayer Is the Soul’s Sincere Desire (SATB and piano) 

Sleepers on the Hill (baritone and chamber ensemble) 

Well, less than a month before my recital. Things have been busy over the summer and the first part of the semester. I was able to finish a couple church anthems and the most of the song cycle before school started. Since then, I’ve been working at assembling and organizing the players for the recital. (There’s a reason why you take a two credit course called “Graduate Recital” – the “homework” for this class takes a lot of time!) Thankfully, the Lord has provided all the players (excellent ones, too) and things are shaping up nicely. I’ve very excited to hear all this music come to life! I need to finish writing the woodwind quintet for the recital. Nothing like a deadline to motivate. I’ll be very happy when that is finished. Thanks for tuning in. I’ll try to catch up with more details later. Now it’s back to composing . . .

Some exciting news: I now am a member of ASCAP. In case you were thinking that ASCAP stands for “Alerting Sensitive Composers About Problems,” allow me to explain that ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Arrangers, and Publishers) is a performing rights organization that helps administer the licensing and royalties of a member’s copyrighted works. For instance, if a radio station plays one of my songs, ASCAP will help collect the royalties for that broadcasted performance. However, most performances in a religious service are excluded from royalty payments. Since most of my music is written for use in a church service, right now the membership doesn’t dramatically impact what I’m doing. Basically, I get to put (ASCAP) next to my name on my music, but there are some good opportunities open to ASCAP members. It’s another tool to use in the Lord’s service.

A lot has happened. Allow me to share some of the highlights: 

Composer’s Recital, April 24 

Two of my pieces received performances: Trio for Clarinet, Violin, and Piano I. Moderato and the Flashpoint for brass quintet. Both went extremely well. The players were terrific. As a composer, I really appreciate the hard work that my fellow students put into preparing the pieces. In addition to having pieces performed, I also played for another composer’s piano/ bassoon duet. What fun! I should have a recording of the Trio and Flashpoint up for everyone to hear before long.
  

Composition Jury 

At the end of the semester, the composers appear before the composition faculty for them to weigh in on your performance. I am thankful that my jury went well. I was able to finish off two movements of the song-cycle Sleepers on the Hill for baritone and chamber ensemble. In addition, I presented Anecdote for solo bassoon (with recording!). The faculty always provides such insightful feedback, plus it was exciting just to sit and converse with a group of talented composers and teachers. 

Where We Go From Here 

Next semester I plan to do my chamber recital. My course work will be completed by the end of the Fall semester. Then the work on the final composition and the dissertation document begin! Meanwhile, over the summer I need to finish a couple pieces for the recital in the fall. I also have been working on a couple sacred projects that I didn’t have time for during the semester. I’ll share more about these later. 

Thanks for tuning in! More to come . . . 

Today I received word that the hymn version of “In Him We Are One” has been chosen for recognition and performance at Pepperdine University as part of the The Ascending Voice: an International Symposium of Sacred A Capella Music on June 4, 2007. At the conference concert, they will distribute a copy of the hymn and, after a choir performs it, the congregation will join in singing the hymn. It all sounds very exciting, and we’re thankful for how the Lord has blessed the song. 

If you want to check out the SATB version (which has an optional congregational part, too), click here. 

Easter Greetings! Let me share with everyone what’s been happening.

First, the bassoon solo, Anecdote, has been completed with successful read-through. One of my classmates played it for me, and it sounds better than I had hoped for. I’m now in the middle of a song cycle for baritone and chamber ensemble. The texts are taken from Edgar Lee Master’s Spoon River Anthology, which is a collection of poems in which members of a fictitious small town speak about their lives. It’s been a lot of fun creating the characters through music. Also, this is the first DMA project to involve the voice, for which I deeply love to write.

As far as performances go, the first movement of the Trio for clarinet, piano and violin along with the brass quintet, Flashpoint, will be performed on a recital, Tuesday, April 24 at UH.

As far as church music goes, I’ve posted on the website my new choral piece “In Him We Are One” for SATB chorus with optional trumpet and congregation. I’ve been teaching the chorus to our church here in Houston, eventually planning to sing the entire piece in the next month. My friend Dave Stertzbach is doing the same thing at his church. So far, it’s had positive feedback.  I hope those congregations who hear and sing it will be motivated to praise the Lord with more purpose and unity. Check out a preview of the piece here.

Well, I’ll bring more news as it comes. As always, it’s a work in progress . . .

Have a blessed Easter. He is risen!   

Sorry for the long silence. Time flies so quickly that I didn’t realize how long it’s been since the last entry! Let me catch everyone up on what’s been happening.