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A4TY 2017

Bloomingdale School of Music Presents A4TY Student New Music Project With a New Work by Doug Balliett

February 4, 2017 at 5:00 pm and 7:30 pm @ Thalia Theater, Symphony Space

New York, NY — The Bloomingdale School of Music (BSM) is pleased to present its annual student composing project, Album for the Young (A4TY), on February 4th at the Thalia Theater at Symphony Space with two performances one at 5:00 pm and the other at 7:30 pm as part of the citywide 2017 Composers Now Festival.  Admission for each performance is $12.00 and may be purchased at the Symphony Space Box office, located at 2537 Broadway at 95th Street, or call (212) 864-5400. Tickets go on sale week of January 9, 2017. Symphony Space

The A4TY Student New Music Project at BSM encourages students (ages 7-17) to compose new music and commissions professional composers to write new works for its students. The evening will feature 34 student compositions, divided over two concerts, ranging from solo works for piano, violin or cello, to works for small chamber ensembles of strings or mixed wind, strings, brass and percussion groups. We are pleased to present the premiere of Doug Balliett’s “Vassar College, 1918”, set to text from a poem by Edna St. Vincent Millay, performed by the BSM MAP Piano Quintet along with teachers Katie Copland, voice, and Eric Phinney, percussion.

Beginning with a school-wide Call for Scores and composition workshops led by teaching artists from the NY Philharmonic’s Very Young Composers program, in partnership with BSM teaching artists, A4TY is now in its thirteenth season.  Since its inception the program has premiered over 146 scores, commissioned 20 professional composers and presented 199 students performing new music. Founded by former BSM teaching artist Katy Luo, and currently curated by  Margalit Cantor,  A4TY brings living composers and BSM students into direct contact, opening a window into the other’s working methods and creative process.  For more information about A4TY Student New Music Project please visit: BSM – A4TY

About the NY Philharmonic’s Very Young Composers Program

Very Young Composers (VYC) was developed in 1995 by noted composer (and former Associate Principal Bass) Jon Deak to answer the question, “what is children’s music?” Working with Mr. Deak and Philharmonic Teaching Artists, public school children, with limited musical background, compose their very own music for Philharmonic musicians to play – often for the full Orchestra. Students make every compositional decision and write every note, with Teaching Artists serving as mentors and scribes. VYC demonstrates children’s innate creativity, and provides a glimpse of the future of classical music. New York Philharmonic’s Very Young Composers

Bloomingdale 2016-17 Commission: DOUG BALLIETT

Doug Balliett is a composer, instrumentalist and poet based in New York City. With a constant stream of commissions, a weekly show on New York Public Radio, and nearly 200 performances per year, Mr. Balliett has been identified as an emerging voice for his generation. For more information: The Colonials – Doug Balliett

Bloomingdale School of Music is a 2016 – 17 host site for Exploring the Metropolis’ Con Edison Composer’s Residency Program created to provide free, long-term studio space to composers who are in need of a dedicated workspace outside of their home. Doug Balliett is BSM’s composer in residence this year.

About Composers Now

The Composers Now Festival celebrates living composers, the diversity of their voices and the significance of their musical contributions to our society. During the month of February, the Festival brings together dozens of performances presented by venues, ensembles, orchestras, opera companies, dance companies and many other innovative events throughout New York City. Experience the sounds and get to know the creators behind the music. From jazz to indie, from classical to electronic and beyond, join us on a sonic journey through the landscape of the arts of our time. Composers will be in attendance at all events and will be interacting with audiences. Composers Now is a project partner of The Fund for the City of New York. We gratefully acknowledge the support of ASCAP Foundation, BMI Foundation, the Cheswatyr Foundation Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation.

About Bloomingdale School of Music

Now in its 52nd year, BSM has served more than 80,000 children and adults through group classes, private instruction, and performance opportunities in classical, jazz, and rock music. Each week, over 650 students of all ages participate in a wide range of music making, including early childhood classes, a comprehensive pre-college program, free community concerts, and internet-based music programs. With accessibility central to its mission, more than 20% of Bloomingdale’s student body receives financial aid and scholarship assistance annually. For more information on Bloomingdale School of Music’s programs and concerts, visit bsmny.org, call the office at 212-663-6021, or email info@bsmny.org.

The Bloomingdale School of Music is a proud member of the National Guild for Community Arts Education and is made possible with support from: Foundations: Morris and Alma Schapiro Fund, New York Community Trust, Pinkerton Foundation, Hyde and Watson Foundation, Jarvis and Constance Doctorow Family Foundation, Brenner Family Foundation, Lotos Foundation, Columbia Community Service, Lucius N. Littauer Foundation, Exploring the Metropolis Con Edison Composers’ Residency Program, Libby Holman Foundation, D’Addario Foundation, Bernstein Family Foundation, Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation; Public: Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer, New York State Council on the Arts, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York City Council Member Helen Rosenthal, New York State Assembly Member Daniel J. O’Donnell; Corporations: Colgate-Palmolive, and generous individual donors.

 

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