We have detected that you are using an adblocking plugin in your browser.

The revenue we earn by the advertisements is used to manage this website. Please whitelist our website in your adblocking plugin.

NEVER HEARD OF IT | An Interview with The Thin Edge New Music Collective

By Tyler Versluis on June 11, 2015

9f3f1
The Thin Edge New Music Collective

The Thin Edge New Music Collective is a young-ish contemporary music ensemble regularly engaged in promoting young and emerging artists in Toronto. Thin Edge’s final concert on June 12th, Premieres IV, features newly commissioned music by four young composers, Annie Hui-Hsien Hsieh, Colin Labadie, Sophie Dupuis and Jenny Beck. We asked co-artistic directors Cheryl Duvall and Ilana Waniuk a few questions about the exciting and often challenging processes involved with featuring new music.

****

What are you listening to or searching for when commissioning new music? What stood out in the music of the composers featured on this upcoming concert?

Our annual premieres concert is a chance for Thin Edge to showcase emerging composers from both Canada and around the globe. Personal connections are very important to us as one of the reasons we find contemporary music so fulfilling is the opportunity it provides to work directly with living composers to realize their musical vision.

When commissioning new works we’re often also trying to create a well-rounded yet eclectic programme, so while we are always looking for creative and distinctive compositional voices to feature, we are also hoping to create a musical adventure for our audience. Each composer approached for this iteration of our “Premieres” series has a completely unique compositional style and has reached a point in their personal artistic practice where their ideas have crystalized into a distinct soundworld while still being open to experimentation and the expansion of their musical parameters.

When commissioning composers, do you select composers that fit a certain “mould” or mandate? For example, are you looking for composers who are pushing certain boundaries or stereotypes with their music?

We are definitely looking for composers that are innovative and boundary pushing. However, they don’t necessarily have to belong to a certain ‘school of thought’ or compositional aesthetic.  We love so many different avenues of contemporary music, be it post-minimal, minimalist, spectral, new complexity etc., and as performers we want to explore what is happening at the forefront of these distinct styles.

When selecting a composer to collaborate with, we aim to visualize the curation of an entire programme rather than trying to fit our choices within a specific mould or mandate. We often intuitively decide, after listening to a composers works for a time, where we think they would compliment an existing programme or what combination of compositional voices would make for a compelling listening experience for our audience while also providing a musically satisfying and intriguing working/performance experience for our intrepid Thin Edge colleagues.

Thin Edge has commissioned and premiered dozens of works. What are some of the challenges and joys with premiering new music? 

One of the greatest joys of being both performers and curators is having the opportunity to be the first group to bring a piece to life! It is a wonderful feeling to ‘unveil’ a work to an audience and subsequently be privy to their unique personal responses (both positive and negative!).

We also love the process of uncovering and realizing new concepts that the composer is trying to achieve, while searching for and connecting with the essence of a new work. This process is endlessly fascinating but can also be accompanied by challenges. For example, occasionally a composer will write for a new instrument that they have never incorporated into their work before which can be both exciting, in terms of working together to find new ways to approach the instrument, but can also present creative and even practical challenges.

Sometimes we joke that we studied our instruments for decades, working on classical technique and tone production, only to completely reject this and learn how to play in an entirely different manner to realize a piece (extended techniques, etc), or learn to decipher a totally unique method of notation (Annie Hui-Hsin Hsieh’s piece for our upcoming concert comes to mind!).

Many organizations and ensembles commission new music for their concerts, others choose not to. If you had to offer advice to a music organization looking to commission a composer, what would you say?

Write lots and lots of grants and don’t give up!  TENMC just got our first OAC (Ontario Arts Council) commissioning grant this year for Emilie Lebel and also recently received a CCA (Canada Council for the Arts) commissioning grant for Emily Hall (a composer on our Premieres V concert next Feb 12, 2016) after trying for 4 years!

It is also really beneficial to listen to the entire oeuvre of a composer to make sure you feel their composition will be a great fit for your programme or performers.  There are so many different personal aesthetics when it comes to contemporary music that it’s important to know what’s out there and be aware of who writes music that feels close to your heart.

We have also created our own fundraising initiative called the Thin Edge Commissioning Fund in order to help raise money to commission composers who for various reasons (such as nationality) aren’t eligible for us to apply for government funding. This past years’ recipient was Australian composer Annie Hui-Hsin Hsieh, who is currently based in San Diego, and our upcoming 2015/2016 recipient will be New York-based composer Brooks Frederickson.

****

Thin Edge Music Collective’s vibrant 2015-16 season includes a residency at Arraymusic, a concert of light and music at the Music Gallery, their annual “Premieres V” concert, and a final concert dedicated to a collection of compelling though infrequently performed works by the late Russian-Canadian composer, Nikolai Korndorf, along with planned recording projects and tours.

For details on Thin Edge New Music Collective “Premieres IV” on June 12th, 8:00 p.m. see here.

#LUDWIGVAN

Want more updates on Toronto-centric classical music news and review before anyone else finds out? Get our exclusive newsletter here and follow us on Facebook for all the latest.

Share this article
lv_toronto_banner_high_590x300
comments powered by Disqus

FREE ARTS NEWS STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX, EVERY MONDAY BY 6 AM

company logo

Part of

Terms of Service & Privacy Policy
© 2024 | Executive Producer Moses Znaimer