Although my usual beat is Glasgow when it comes to New Composition (and I know there are exciting times ahead for composers in Scotland, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group are one of the few reasons that I might want to live further south. However, their latest appointment, of Edinburgh-based Shiori Usui as its Apprentice Composer-in-Residence for 2013, suggests that BCMG are trying to get my attention by supporting artists in Caledonia.
During her time in residence, Usui will compose two new works - one on a small scale (promising the original line up of oboe, trombone, percussion, piano and cello) and one on for a chamber sized ensemble.
The press release mentions that The Times described Usui as a composer with “individual ears.” I am trying to resist a joke about how the press ought to stop concentrating on the way composers look and talk about the music.
Over to the press release for more information....
More about Shiori Usui
Originally from Japan, Shiori Usui moved to UK at the age of seventeen and studied composition at the University of Edinburgh with Nigel Osborne and Peter Nelson. Her works have been performed in Japan, Europe and USA by diverse range of soloists, ensembles and orchestras, including performances by Rolf Hind and the Duke Quartet at the Wigmore Hall, London; by A Far Cry at Jordan Hall, Boston, USA and by Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Naoto Totsuka at Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall in Japan.
In May 2012, her orchestra piece Warai was awarded the 3rd prize at Toru Takemitsu Composition Award (judge: Toshio Hosokawa) in Tokyo, Japan with highest acclaim.
Ms. Usui is also a recipient of the prestigious Civitella Ranieri Music Fellowship in conjunction with UNESCO-Aschberg Bursaries for Artists Programme, and has worked as a composer in residence for BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Cove Park from October 2010 until February 2011.
Ms. Usui has produced works in both radical instrumental music and with motion capturing sensors; many of her compositions are inspired by the theme ‘using the body as a musical instrument’. She enjoys playing in the improvisation groups in Edinburgh and Lisbon as a “noise” vocalist and pianist. Ms. Ushui is a co-founder and a secretary of Edinburgh Contemporary Music Ensemble.
More about Birmingham Contemporary Music Group
Birmingham Contemporary Music Group celebrates its 25th anniversary season in 2012/13. Emerging from within the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in 1987, the Group quickly established a reputation for brilliant performances, ambitious commissions, innovative collaborations, and a vibrant learning programme. With a central commitment to composers and the presentation of new work, BCMG’s open and inclusive approach takes people of all ages through the rich and fascinating world of contemporary music.
BCMG has premiered over 150 new works, many commissioned through its pioneering Sound Investment scheme. In addition to a busy schedule of concerts in the UK and abroad, BCMG runs an extensive learning and participation programme, working with young people in and out of school and with adults in a range of community settings, as well as presenting ground-breaking Family and Schools’ Concerts.
The Group has two Artists-in-Association, Oliver Knussen and John Woolrich, and Sir Simon Rattle is Founding Patron. BCMG has received a host of national and international awards, has an extensive catalogue of CD recordings and broadcasts regularly on BBC radio.
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