Composer David Biedenbender’s music has been described as “simply beautiful” [twincities.com] and is noted for its “rhythmic intensity” [NewMusicBox] and “stirring harmonies” [Boston Classical Review]. “Modern, venturesome, and inexorable…The excitement, intensity, and freshness that characterizes Biedenbender’s music hung in the [air] long after the last note was played” [Examiner.com]. David has written music for the concert stage as well as for dance and multimedia collaborations, and his work is often influenced by his diverse musical experiences in rock and jazz bands as an electric bassist, in wind, jazz, and New Orleans-style brass bands as a euphonium, bass trombone, and tuba player, and by his study of Indian Carnatic Music. His present creative interests include working with everyone from classically trained musicians to improvisers, acoustic chamber music to large ensembles, and interactive electronic interfaces to live brain data. He has had the privilege of collaborating with and being commissioned by many talented performers and ensembles, including Alarm Will Sound, PRISM Saxophone Quartet, Stenhammar String Quartet, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, U.S. Navy Band, Philharmonie Baden-Baden (Germany), VocalEssence, and Eastman Wind Ensemble, among many others. 

He is currently Assistant Professor of Composition at Michigan State University. He holds degrees in composition from the University of Michigan and Central Michigan University, and has also studied at the Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study, the Aspen Music Festival, and in Mysore, India where he studied carnatic music. For more information, visit: www.davidbiedenbender.com.

Joel Puckett is a composer leaving both audiences and the press buzzing. His music has been described as, “soaringly lyrical” (Minneapolis Star Tribune), “Puccini-esque” (Wall Street Journal), and “containing a density within a clarity, polyphony within the simple and – most importantly – beautiful and seemingly spiritual.” (Audiophile Audition). Parterre Box recently proclaimed, “Puckett should be a household name” and the Philadelphia Inquirer’s David Patrick Stearns mused, “if the name Joel Puckett isn’t etched into your brain, it should be.” In 2011 NPR Music listed him as one of the top 100 composers under 40 in the world.

Hailed as “visionary” (Washington Post) and “an astonishingly original voice” (Philadelphia Inquirer), his music is performed by the leading artists of our day and is consistently recognized by organizations such as the American Composers Forum, BMI, Chorus America, National Public Radio, and the American Bandmasters Association.

Puckett’s music attracts diverse performers and listeners through its emotional energy and commitment. Melding tradition with innovation, his distinctive style grows from his power to create transcendent experiences using charismatic musical language.

The Fix, a grand opera commissioned by Minnesota Opera, premiered in the March 2019 to packed houses, enthusiastic audiences, and largely effusve praise. With a libretto by Academy Award and Tony Award winner, Eric Simonson, the work depicts the rise and fall of the 1919 Chicago White Sox. It is a tragedy ripe with power, romance and redemption, set against the backdrop of America’s favorite pastime. Puckett’s earlier commissions have been premiered and performed worldwide, to exuberant critical acclaim.

His flute concerto, The Shadow of Sirius, premiered in 2010 and has received more than 200 performances and been recorded multiple times, including 2015’s Naxos Surround Sound disc, “Shadow of Sirius,” which received a 2016 Grammy Nomination. Currently the Chair of Music Theory, Ear Training, and Piano Skills at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, Puckett presents workshops nationwide and frequently serves as an adjudicator at competitions for rising composers. His music is represented worldwide by Bill Holab Music.

David's music has been performed at venues around the world, including Carnegie's Weill Recital Hall. He is from St. Louis, Missouri and received a B.M. in composition and trumpet performance from the University of Missouri - Columbia and a M.M. and D.M.A. in composition from Michigan State University. He has studied composition with Ricardo Lorenz, W. Thomas McKenney, and Stefan Freund. 

David has been honored by the BMI Student Composer Awards, the Sinquefield Family Foundation, and Michigan State University Honors Competition. He has been commissioned by the Hastings College Symphonic Band, h2 Quartet, and others.

David is one of the founders of [SoundNotionTV](http://soundnotion.tv), a podcast network featuring audio and video shows about music and the arts. He serves on the board of directors of [Null-state](https://www.nullstate.org/), a non-profit organization promoting research and education in computer music. Previously, he served as president of the [Central Florida Composers Forum](http://cfcomposers.org/), Director of Digital Media for the [Timucua Arts Foundation](https://timucua.com/), and founder and co-Artistic Director of SCENE&heard, a new music concert series at the [(SCENE) Metrospace](http://scenemetrospace.com/) gallery in East Lansing, Michigan.

He teaches composition, theory, and technology at Wichita State University. He has previously taught at the University of Central Florida, Grand Valley State University, and Michigan State University.

email: davidjohnmacdonald@gmail.com

ensemble Suono Giallo:
Andrea Biagini, flute
Michele Bianchini, saxophone
Laura Mancini, percussion
Simone Nocchi, piano

The ensemble came to being in Città di Castello in 2015 at the 100th anniversary of the birth of the painter Alberto Burri. The group promotes contemporary music through new commissions, concerts, and insightful initiatives.

Since 2016, ensemble Suono Giallo is being featured as the ensemble-in-residence at the International ilSUONO Contemporary Music Week, a summer forum which takes place annually in Città di Castello, Italy.

ensemblesuonogiallo@gmail.com

Percussionist and composer, Thad Anderson is an Associate Professor at the University of Central Florida where he coordinates the Percussion Studies program, teaches courses in music technology, and directs the New Music Ensemble.

Interviews and music from the Timucua Arts Foundation in Orlando, Florida. Keep up with who will be playing in Timucua's living-room-concert-hall and listen to exclusive clips from past shows! Follow our schedule and find more information at Timucua.com.

Nick Costanza is a composer and conductor currently living in Orlando, FL. His music is primarily influenced by the sights and sounds of his childhood and life growing up, from catchy video game tunes to epic symphonic works; from grandiose film soundtracks to the stylish bounces and grooves of jazz. Nick’s original music has the fingerprints of all these styles, and he has written for a multitude of different ensembles, small and large, to incorporate his experiences into his modern instrumental music. Nick has studied music composition privately with Christopher Marshall and David MacDonald, as well as Richard Saucedo and David Maslanka during their residencies at the university.

Nick also has many years of performing experience at the University in multiple performing ensembles, as well as multiple years of conducting experience and formal training. He performed as Lead Alto in the Flying Horse Big Band, UCF’s top Jazz Ensemble, from 2011 to 2014. During this time the band played at such prestigious events as the Florida Music Educators Association Convention in Tampa, FL and the Jazz Educators Network Convention in Atlanta, GA. He also recorded 2 albums with the band, the first, “The Blues is Alright,” in 2012 and the second, “Into the Mystic,” in 2014. Nick has also performed with the UCF Marching Knights, the University’s marching band, for 5 years. He has performed with this group at the Beef O’Brady’s Bowl in December of 2012, the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl in January of 2014, and the Bitcoin Bowl in December of 2014.

Nick has been formally trained in the art of conducting since the fall semester of 2013. He has taken multiple classes on conducting techniques and instrumental conducting under Dr. Scott Tobias, former Director of Bands at UCF. He has also served as both Assistant and Head Drum Major of the UCF Marching Knights.

Tim is a saxophonist in Orlando, FL. His degrees are from Ithaca College (B.M.) and Michigan State University (M.M. and D.M.A.). 

Retired professor of composition from the School of Music at the University of Missouri.

A 501(c)3 that aims to increase opportunities for composers, performers, and audiences by fostering the creation, dissemination, and enjoyment of new American music, both nationally and internationally.

davemacdo is following