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VERSION:2.0
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PRODID:-//Virginia Tech//VT Calendar//EN
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTAMP:20240322T223000Z
UID:1709829627196@events.msu.edu
CATEGORIES:Performing Arts (Dance, Music, Theatre,  ...)
DTSTART:20240322T223000Z
DTEND:20240322T233000Z
SUMMARY:Electronic Music Workshop: Explorations in Improvisation
DESCRIPTION:
 Ensemble Bio\n
 \n
 Electronic Music Workshop (EMW) 
 is an eclectic ensemble that features a rotating 
 instrumentation and combination of acoustic 
 and electronic instruments. EMW is an improvisation-based 
 ensemble, often co-composing 
 pieces as a group based on their collective 
 interests. EMW also interprets poetry or visual 
 art through music and performs non-traditional 
 scores written by contemporary composers. 
 EMW seeks to foster communication, creativity, 
 and confidence through exploring experimental 
 means of music-making.\n
 \n
 Performer Bios\n
 \n
 Carter 
 Crosby is a composer, theorist, and 
 multimedia artist currently based in East 
 Lansing, Michigan. Crosby is excited about interdisciplinary 
 work within and beyond the arts, 
 working with writers, visual artists, and 
 programmers. It is also a core tenet of their 
 composing as an individual, frequently producing 
 their own video for installations, creating 
 graphic scores, or utilizing programs like 
 Max/MSP to create dynamic electronic effects 
 for live performance. Crosby has had works 
 selected for performance at national festivals 
 such as Electronic Music Midwest, SoundSCAPE 
 composition-performance exchange, Walden Creative 
 Musicians Retreat, and REDNOTE composition 
 workshop. Crosby is currently pursuing 
 a master's degree in music composition from MSU 
 where they serve as an academic achievement 
 graduate assistant in music technology and 
 a STEAMpower fellow. This semester, they are 
 leading the Electronic Music Workshop, an eclectic 
 improvisation ensemble exploring a variety 
 of styles and methods of music-making.\n
 \n
 Eric 
 Hall graduated from MSU in 1986 with a 
 degree in music performance. After a decades-long 
 odyssey, he returned to study music composition 
 as a life-long education student. His 
 primary instrument is bassoon, but for the EMW, 
 he prefers the sonic flexibility of a semi-modular 
 synthesizer.  \n
 \n
 Jeremy Makkonen is 
 a Michigan-based composer and flutist. Makkonen's 
 music explores elements of the mystical, 
 the macabre, and the surreal to create an 
 evocative and engaging musical language. Makkonen 
 has recently collaborated with and has had 
 his music performed and read by the musicians 
 of the Jasper String Quartet, the NorthStar 
 Duo, HUB New Music, the Khemia Ensemble, Musique 
 21, and the percussionist Simone Beneventi. 
 He has also attended and participated in 
 the 2021 highSCORE Festival, the 2022 Composers 
 Retreat with Dr. Chen Yi, and the 2022 Connecticut 
 Summerfest. Makkonen was a winner 
 of the 2019 and 2022 Honors Composition Competition 
 at MSU in the category of chamber music, 
 a finalist in The Valley Winds International 
 Composition Competition in 2021, and the ASCAP 
 Foundation Morton Gould Young Composer Awards 
 Competition in 2022. Makkonen has bachelor 
 of music degrees in composition and flute 
 performance from MSU, and is currently pursuing 
 master of music degrees in composition, flute 
 performance, and music theory. \n
 \n
 Jonah 
 Weber is currently a senior in the music composition 
 program at MSU. In addition to composing, 
 he loves playing French horn in ensembles 
 and hopes to continue to do perform in some 
 capacity in the future. In EMW, depending on 
 his mood, Jonah plays horn, trumpet, stylophone 
 and piano. Playing in EMW is slightly outside 
 of his typical comfort zone, but he is 
 greatly enjoying it so far and believes improvising 
 is a great skill for him to learn.\n
 \n
 Spencer Gravel is a composer and percussionist 
 originally from Ypsilanti, Michigan. As a composer, 
 he is enamored by music's unique ability 
 to work in a totally abstract space and 
 create a sense of narrative and drama. As a result, 
 his music often revolves around the exploration 
 of form and the pursuit of new ways 
 of relating materials to each other.\n
 \n
 In EMW, 
 Gravel performs on a variety of percussion 
 instruments including found objects, turning 
 brake pads and kitchen utensils into tools 
 for musical expression.\n
 \n
 Christopher Kaminski 
 writes music that focuses on weaving heavy 
 metal, rock, jazz, minimalist, and improvised 
 music together on the concert stage. His music 
 has been performed at the Penn State New 
 Music Festival and Symposium, fresh inc festival, 
 Imani Winds Chamber Music Festival, Connecticut 
 Summerfest, the Iowa Great Lakes Music 
 Festival, and various universities. For EMW, 
 Kaminski plays electric clarinet and electric 
 guitar with various guitar pedals. In 2021, 
 he ran a successful Kickstarter campaign to 
 finish and record a heavy metal opera about 
 a cult that worships quesadillas, called The 
 Church of Quesadeity. Kaminski also wrote an 
 original soundtrack for Rank: Warmaster, a recently-released 
 sci-fi video game for PC. Kaminski 
 received two master's degrees in composition 
 and music theory at MSU. In addition, he 
 is also an active clarinetist, improviser, 
 theorist, and educator.\n
 \n\n
 Price: free\n
 Sponsor: public\n
 Contact name: Bob Patterer\n
 Contact email: events@frib.msu.edu\n
 for more info visit the web at:\n 
 https://frib.msu.edu/gateway/events/concert-22march2024.html\n
LOCATION:Facility for Rare Isotope Beams
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