The New Music Ensemble at Grand Valley State University will perform here at Ohio Wesleyan University on March 18.
The group of undergraduate musicians from Michigan will visit Ohio Wesleyan for three free public events. At 4 p.m., the students will give a presentation on “Technology in New Music.” This will be followed at 7:30 p.m. by a pre-concert talk and, at 8 p.m., by a community concert. All three events will be held in Jemison Auditorium inside OWU’s Sanborn Hall, 23 Elizabeth St.
Founded in 2006 by its director Bill Ryan, the New Music Ensemble seeks to promote contemporary music through commissions, tours, recordings, collaborations, outreach events and workshops. It also works to prepare students for careers in music and for roles as educators, advocates and leaders in their field.
Tracks from the group’s second CD, “In C Remixed,” can be heard on MTV’s series “Teen Wolf,” as well as in the documentary film “As I AM: the Life and Times of DJ AM.” The ensemble’s first CD, “Steve Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians,” was named one of the top five classical recordings of the decade by WNYC’s John Schaefer and the No. 1 classical recording of the decade by the public radio station’s Soundcheck listener poll.
Engaged in the creation of new works, the ensemble has commissioned and premiered 33 compositions by composers including Marc Mellits, Sarah Kirkland Snider, Anna Clyne, Michael Lowenstern, Zoe Keating, David Lang, Jad Abumrad and David Biedenbender, as well as more than 150 student compositions. The group’s YouTube videos also have amassed more than 1.5 million views.
