Historian Jaqui Shine pays a beautiful homage to both her mother and artist Mark Rothko in her meditation about Rothko’s site-specific painting installation named Rothko Chapel. She distills in surprising ways a description about art connecting with the sacred. Rothko’s visual work is so powerful that it spilled inspiration upon a musical work, composer Morton Feldman’s piece for chorus and instruments carrying the same name. I had the privilege of conducting it with Notre Dame Vocale and Ensemble ND at […]

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This lecture was given by Arvo Pärt during commencement at St Vladimir’s Seminary in 2014. He shared thoughts from his musical diaries. It begins with a most powerful question: Have you thanked God for this failure already? Food for thought, because we always must ask the question, what is Art for? http://www.ccwatershed.org/blog/2017/jul/6/most-sensitive-musical-instrument/  

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2016 was a rich and extraordinary year, full of lessons and insights. I will soon share news about projects with Kosmologia, Notre Dame Vocale and Aguavá New Music Studio. For now, let us revel in friendship and celebration of the promise of 2017!

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The South Bend Tribune just published an insightful note about our upcoming performance of “Journeying La Divina Commedia,” an inter-artistic work created by Anton Juan, Robin Kirkpatrick and myself.  It includes a new oratorio on the Paradiso by Robert Kyr, original soundscapes by Christopher Preissing, original art by Gwen Terry, original video art  by Allison Evans, Hugh Sato and Liviu Pasare,  and wonderful choreography by Ayako Kato and Kristina Isabelle, among many other wonderful artists. The image is a rendering of […]

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The excellent compilation of music news delivered by the Jacobs School of Music’s Project Jumpstart curated by Alain Barker came today with an intriguing piece by music journalist Craig Havighurst. It is  titled “Classical Music Needs a New Name.” Havighurst’s interesting post reminded  me that I should finally write into an article the lecture I gave upon receiving the Tracy M. Sonneborn Award at Indiana University in 2010. With some guilt, I will share some of its ideas here. The […]

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  We have received news of the publication of the first recording of Michael Dellaira’s opera The Death Of Webern, which I had the honor of premiering in New York City in October of 2014 with The Pocket Opera Players. The Death of Webern was directed by Thomas Desi and produced by John Eaton, who also presented his opera Re-Routed.  As a  project for the Pocket Opera Players, it included not only fully developed vocal roles, but dramatic participation by the […]

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May the season and the new year bring us peace.

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To my friends in Chicago, a warm invitation to join me in our upcoming celebration of the music of Shulamit Ran! Wednesday, September 16, 7pm, Buchanan Chapel of the Fourth Presbyterian Church, 126 E Chestnut, corner of Chestnut and Michigan. I will look forward to seeing you there!

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