Alejandro Guardia, Jr. has been performing, educating, and composing for almost 2 decades now. His musical background started at the age of 11 when he was introduced to the Euphonium. He then expanded his musical limits to the Trombone and Tuba, and is currently an active studio musician in South Florida. Alejandro has studied privately with Calvin Jenkins and Jay Hunsberger along with performing in masterclasses for Brandon Jones, Gail Roberston, Jason Ham, Marc Dickman, and others. He has performed with several bands and orchestras in South Florida and was most recently appointed Principal Euphonium of the Miami Wind Symphony. Alejandro started composing music at the age of 15. Since then, his original works have been performed several times throughout the United States and is now gaining some interest in other countries. As an educator, He has been lucky enough to have both been taught by and taught along with some of the most talented educators in South Florida. This collection of experiences not only allowed him to grow as an educator, but also allowed him to understand the importance of fundamentals and how to motivate and inspire young musicians. This shows in his original music for marching band. Though most of the music will sound difficult and will wow the audience the primary focus of his work is good fundamental playing. This pedagogical approach to both teaching and writing allows for great musicianship in any ensemble whether they be indoors or outdoors. Alejandro is currently the Assistant Director of Bands at Miami Killian Senior High School and a member of the International Tuba and Euphonium Association, National Association for Music Education, American Society of Composers, Arrangers, and Publishers, American Federation of Musicians Local 655, and the Florida Bandmasters Association.

Scott Allen Miller is a composer, educator, and bassist in New York, NY. His visceral music is concerned with memory, thought, and the passage of time, expressed through unconventional performance techniques, evocative microtonal harmonies, and a constantly-evolving approach to timbre and melody. Whether writing instrumental or vocal music for forces large or small, a primary concern is to establish a sound world unique to each composition. Miller has recently been commissioned by the Baltimore Classical Guitar Society, Western Connecticut Youth Orchestra, Occasional Symphony, Nebula Ensemble, and Omnibus Ensemble. 

Miller currently studies with Jason Eckardt as a Ph.D. student at The CUNY Graduate Center. He graduated from the Peabody Conservatory in 2015 where he studied with Kevin Puts, earning Master of Music degrees in composition and music theory pedagogy. Previously, Miller studied composition and double bass at SUNY Fredonia where he received a Bachelor of Music degree through his work with bassist Harry Jacobson and composers Robert Deemer, Karl Boelter, and Sean Doyle. As a Composition Fellow at the Aspen Music Festival and School in 2016, Miller had the privilege of studying with Christopher Theofanidis and Stephen Hartke, as well as participating in masterclasses and brief lessons with Kaija Saariaho, Ted Hearne, Sean Shepherd, Donald Crocket, and Timo Andres. Other summer programs include the Atlantic Music Festival (2018) and the Charlotte New Music Festival (2013). Additional teachers with whom Miller has taken lessons and participated in masterclasses include Nils Vigeland, Amy Beth Kirsten, David Ludwig, Christopher Dobrian, Pierre Jalbert, Richard Danielpour, Zhou Long, George Tsontakis, Christopher Rouse, Michael Hersch, Daron Hagon, Paul Colman, Marc Mellits, and Lansing McLoskey. Recent awards include the 2015 Macht Orchestral Composition Competition for Pillars, erased and the 2013 Ethos Laureate Prize for his chamber opera Randall’s Leaf. Miller was a Finalist in the 2016 BMI Student Composers Awards and received an Honorable Mention from the 2016 Minnesota Composer’s Institute. 

Miller has taught music theory, form and analysis, ear training, and composition at the Peabody Preparatory, Carroll Community College, and as a private tutor. He is currently an Adjunct Lecturer at CUNY College of Staten Island where he teaches musicianship, harmony, and counterpoint.

Ryan Nathaniel (b. 1988) is a composer whose works encompass a wide variety of genres, including works for large and chamber instrumental ensembles, voice, choir, and electro- acoustic music. He has been a participant in many composition master classes with world-renowned composers such as William Neil, George Tsontakis, and Paul Moravec. In 2010, his work "Fragment Statements" was given its world premiere by the Boston Brass as part of their "25 fanfares" project celebrating the ensemble's 25th anniversary.

A native of Dansville, NY, Ryan holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Composition from the State University of New York (SUNY) at Fredonia. He has studied with Donald Bohlen, Rob Deemer, and Karl Boelter. In addition to composition, Ryan has studied voice as a baritone with Dr. Quinn Patrick Ankrum and Dr. Gwen Coleman Detwiler, and conducting with Helen Ihasz, John Maguda, and Paula Holcomb. While attending SUNY Fredonia, he was elected to the board of executives of Ethos New Music Society in 2007 and served various positions through 2011, including President of the organization in its 2008-2009 season.

As a compliment to his career in composition, Ryan also recently began pursuing work as a music engraver and arranger, along with self-publishing his own works under the name “The Music Brewer.” He is a member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP).

Praised for his “bold, original, and attention grabbing” sound world that blurs the lines between ambient, noise, electronic, and classical music, Chris Cresswell is an internationally recognized composer, sound artist, and guitarist. His award winning music has been performed in local cafes, art museums, universities, and world class concert halls around the world. He built a sound installation for the UK’s largest indoor rainforest biome at The Eden Project in Cornwall and once premiered a piece in an abandoned local cinema high atop the remote island cliffs of Madeira, Portugal. He is currently the artistic director and guitarist of 315 Ensemble and released his debut album on Ravello Records with 315’s eponymous release in March 2018. He is currently working on completing a follow up solo record as part of his With Electronics project, featuring the electric guitar and electronics. The 2018-2019 season will include  new compositions for trumpet, soprano, and electronics for the Byrne:Kozar:Duo, which is scheduled to premiere at the DiMenna Center in New York City in April 2019 and a new work for glissando flute and electronics for South Dakota based flutist Tammy Evans Yonce.

“In equal measures intelligent, playful, ambitious and moving” (New York Times)—Resonant Bodies presents festivals of contemporary vocal music around the world. The Festival showcases "today’s most talented singers... seamlessly blend[ing] classical, avant-garde and indie-folk” (Feast of Music). Vocalists are invited to curate and perform in their own set, with no restrictions on repertoire, format, or style. This freedom gives each show a "happy zealousness, where the singers’ enthusiasm for their repertoire [is] contagious” (Sequenza 21).

Founded in 2013 and having "already made a valuable contribution to the city’s music scene” (New York Times), the Resonant Bodies Festival is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to hear virtuosic contemporary music vocalists perform cutting-edge repertoire. Thus far the festival has presented in NYC, Chicago, Melbourne, Sydney, and at Banff Centre (Canada) with future festivals in Los Angeles and beyond.

Our Mission

Resonant Bodies Festival supports the growth and evolution of contemporary vocal music and vocal artists. Our goals are to: 

Produce festivals of the highest caliber that are thrilling to artists and audience
Catalyze the creation of new vocal music 
Expand the audience for contemporary vocal music
Challenge and transform the role of the vocal recitalist
Bring together a global network of contemporary vocalists
Create and archive media resources to better connect contemporary vocal music audiences, performers, and composers.

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