Fractal Descent Workshop

May The Light Slowly Fade - (reading)

Sonia Mantell, cello 1
Andrew Laven, cello 2

Day 2 of the Composer Fellows' Piece-A-Day Project at Tanglewood Music Center.

The Pirates of Stockbridge

Trio for Amplified Prepared Shopping-Cart.
(Lindsey Eastham, Ujjal Bhattacharyya, and Ben Cordell)

How 2 Shopping Cart

Senescence by Dallas Joseph Howard https://www.dallasjhowardmusic.com

Commissioned by EASTHAMA duo

Performed by EASTHAMA duo:

Lindsey Eastham (https://www.lindseyeastham.com) 
and Hiromu Nagahama (https://www.hironagahama.com)

https://www.EASTHAMA.com

Senescence

Wendelstein 7-X is an experimental stellarator in Greifswald, Germany. This nuclear fusion reactor is made up of five field-period Halias. Which uses superconducting magnetic coils to suspend plasma in order to allow it to spin freely without touching the reactor's walls, which must maintain it's outer coils at -300 Celsius stay superconductive. With plasma reaching six million degrees Celsius during a cycle of over 2,000 pulses. This 750 ton machine is comprised of over a million different machines in order for it to function. This piece is artistic soundscape of what this machine is and what future it will bring humanity. "What happens when abundant raw energy is unleashed."

Wendelstein 7 – X

Performers:
Nicole Murray, flute
Chester Howard, clarinet
Shelby Dems, violin
Craig Mehler, cello
Lindsey Eastham, percussion
Emmanuel Berrido, piano
Keehun Nam, conductor

 An American Dream is a soundscape about America's technological communications. In today's world, we are surrounded by news and social media spreading information, and disinformation with facts, and opinions to sew discourse in our society. In this chaos, I heard an interweaving web of different groups all shouting and rarely listening.  I hope my country will survive this assault on its democracy and not lose its ideals in the process.

An American Dream

Performed by Lindsey Eastham

Notes: 
“Tinctures” is a reference to term used by William Yeats an Irish poet. Yeats along with his wife’s help Georgiana Hyde-Lees created A Vision, this substantial volume of written texts was the result of his experimentation with ‘automatic writing’, where the and the pen were used as unconscious instruments that the realm of spirits would use to convey information. Through this exercise Yeats made an intricate symbolic system, which also had geometrical, astrological, psychological, metaphysical and historical components, which to him was a model of the entire universe. Yeats determined certain patterns, which he called, gyres, existed: covered cones that represent the combinations of opposites within a personal and historical nature. This allowed Yeats to craft his character’s humanity/ personality through this system. 

These cones are represented by Concordia, unity; the other by Discordia, desire. Within this symbolism, the cone of Discordia (which he also refers to as the ‘antithetical tincture’) is our imaginative side, which is incessant; it separates one individual from the next (which can also be understood on subjective terms, those of beauty). In turn, the cone of Concordia (also known as the ‘primal tincture’) is our detached, intellectual side, that which leads us where we belong or to what can be understood on terms of objectivity or truth to ourselves). Musically, I was at first inspired by spiral movement of the gyre. Yeats’ conceptual reduction of character traits as a tincture was a fascinating idea to use compositionally. Pairing this relationship of Concordia and Discordia with the image of two spinning gyres gave me the explosive foundation to embody what I feel is transformative.

Tinctures

The Leshy or Leshi are spirits that protects the forest. A Leshy is humanoid in shape, is able to assume any likeness and can change in size and height. From Slavic mythology, Leshy is the spirit rules over the forest and hunting. 
They is sometimes portrayed with horns and surrounded by packs of wolves and bears. In some accounts, Leshy is described as having a husband, wife and children. They are known by some to have a propensity to lead travelers astray and abduct children (which he shares with Chore, the "Black One"), which would lead some to believe they are an evil entity. However, it’s also known to have a more neutral disposition towards humans, dependent on the attitudes and behaviours of an individual person, or local population, towards the forest. Leshy would rescues those who were cursed by their relatives, in particular, by parents and bring them to the forest. Some would therefore describe him as more of a temperamental being, like a fairy.

Leshy *midi*

Dallas Joseph Howard is a composer, conductor, and collaborative artist. He was the 2018 Leonard Bernstein Fellow for Composition at Tanglewood Music Center. His music can be characterized by intricate contrapuntal textures, merging different styles seamlessly. Dallas is passionate about advocating for New Music and promoting the arts in his community: He was the creator of music festivals such as P21 Music Festival in Oklahoma City, Twister Fest Music and Art Festival in Chickasha, and helped organize the Ithaca College School of Music World Music Festival. Currently Dallas is artistic director for un/pitched: New Music Network and conductor for Ithaca New Music Collective while composing for both organizations. 

Recent highlights include performances by select international artists such as virtuoso violinist Peter Sheppard Skærved, clarinetist Lori Freedman, the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), GReCO Renaissance and Contemporary Music Group, workshop performance from the Switch-Ensemble, and a commissioned work by EASTHAMA: International Percussion Duo. One of Dallas’ most recent projects include the creation of an amplified musical shopping cart for the un/pitched: Percussion Trio which premiered “How 2 Shopping Cart” at a local bar in Ithaca, NY, an engagement within the community with presenting music in unconventional performance spaces and venues. 

Dallas was awarded the Louis Smadbeck Composition Award, the Maddy Summer Artist award, as well as the Project21: Music for the Twenty-First Century Composition Prize. His past composition fellowships include Brevard Music Center Summer Institute (2017) and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (2011).

Dallas Joseph Howard

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