One of the perks of living in Bozeman, MT, is that I get a great view of the sun rising and illuminating the Bridger mountain range on my way into town every morning. It’s simply breathtaking to watch the sun crest the range, and watch a sliver of light appear over the ridgeline, splitting the view to the east as the mountains seem to rise to the sky. 

Since moving to Bozeman, I’ve also been very involved in the local Bluegrass scene. As a result, the sound of the live synthesizer part is heavily influenced by the sound of string instruments. It’s an eight -voice synth in eight parts, with each part generating fifteen harmonics (for a total of 960 oscillators!) with frequency and amplitude deviation of each harmonic to keep things interesting. The various parts are then tuned similar to an Appalachian (mountain) dulcimer, allowing for I-IV-VII and I-V-VII tunings, with string volume and presence controlled by TouchOSC, while the synth is played with a Haute Pro hitbox controller, set up with “harmonica tuning” (diatonic C scale, with a button to transpose everything to C#). 

Combined with sounds recorded in the mountains (a stream on the Hyalite Lake trail and stones from Black Mountain), this is a short sonic depiction of dawn in the mountains. 

Mountain Rise

Matthew Schoendorff is a composer of many styles of music. Although perhaps best known among the professional community for his works for wind band, Schoendorff writes for all types of ensembles. His pieces have been performed on several continents and are on many state festival required music lists. Schoendorff’s music has received recognition by the first National Band Association’s Young Composer Mentor Project, The National Association for Music Education (MENC), and several competitions and festivals in Michigan.

An active performer and conductor, he has performed with the Ann Arbor Concert Band, the Hillsdale Wind Symphony, the Saginaw Eddy Concert Band, ensembles at both Michigan State University and Western Michigan University, and is also a former guest conductor for the Ann Arbor Concert Band. He has taught instrumental music in the Coldwater Community Schools (MI), as well as theory and composition courses at the Mott Community College Jim Lee Fine Arts Camp in Flint, MI. He serves as a member of the music theory and composition faculty at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI and the composition and songwriting instructor at the Flint Institute of Music School of Performing Arts in Flint, MI. Previous appointments include Theory and Composition Chair at the National Music Institute for Young Artists (in affiliation with the Cranbrook Educational Community in Bloomfield Hills, MI).

First published as an undergraduate student at Western Michigan University, Schoendorff continues an extensive writing and publishing career. His music is published by Grand Mesa Music Publishers, TRN Music Publisher, MSB Publishing Co., Advance Music, and The Tuba Press. He is a member of ASCAP. In addition to his published compositions, he is also co-author of a warm-up method for wind band. Schoendorff appears in the 2008 GIA Publications release Composers on Composing for Band, Vol. IV, edited by Mark Camphouse. He previously was the composer- in-residence for the NUCLASSICA Ensemble in Detroit, MI and has arranged for the OPERA REMIX Initiative at the Townsend Opera Company in Modesto, CA.

Schoendorff completed his Doctor of Musical Arts and Master of Music degrees in composition at Michigan State University, where he studied with Jere Hutcheson and Ricardo Lorenz and served as a graduate assistant in music theory. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree in composition and education from Western Michigan University.

Ben Fuhrman, is a composer, musician, programmer, and coffee aficionado. As a result, he writes music with a focus on technology, including acousmatic, interactive, and improvisatory works. His degrees are from Michigan State University (D.M.A and M.M in composition), and Hope College (B.Mus in violin performance). His teachers include Ricardo Lorenz, Mark Sullivan, Steve Talaga, Rob Lunn, and Mihai Craioveanu. 

He has had works commissioned from a number of performers, including Keith Kirchoff, Drake Dantzler, Violet, Jeffrey Loeffert, Nathan Boggert, the H2 Quartet, the East Lansing High School Orchestra, REACH Studio Art, and the MSU National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory and Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, and has been performed throughout the world. He was also the recipient of a billboard dedicated to his music from the Arts Council of Greater Lansing – possibly the first composer in the US to receive one. His solo albums Concrete Oasis and Synthesizer and Computer Works are available online, among others on the Albany Records, Argali Records, Blue Griffin, Elmstreet, and SEAMUS labels.

He maintains an active role as a performer and as assistant professor of music technology at Montana State University, and has previously taught at Oakland University and Mott Community College. For more information, check out www.benfuhrman.com

Composer of Acousmatic Geophonies & Heterotopias 

#Volumiphony #Geophonodesy

Mountain Rise

bfuhrman