Fall 2023 Newsletter

Fairies VI by Kathrin Linkersdorff, an inspiration for my ballet with BalletCollective and choreographer Omar Román de Jesús, Love Me While I'm Here.

Hi friends,

I'm excited to share with you some highlights from the past year and things that I'm looking forward to this year.

First off, I'm looking forward to the premiere of my first original ballet commissioned by BalletCollective: Love Me While I'm Here. With performances October 31-November 2, the music is based on the work of visual artist Kathrin Linkersdorff and features the evocative choreography by Omar Román de Jesús.

Also this fall, I'll be finishing up a duo for Duo Vis (violinist Shalini Vijayan and percussionist Lynn Vartan) and starting a chamber work for young string players commissioned by the Hudson River School of Music. Looking ahead to the Spring, I'm adding a few more songs to Sonnets, commissioned by No Exit New Music, in preparation for a forthcoming studio recording of the complete cycle.

The deep midwinter brings the second performance (and UK premiere) of Juvenalia for percussion and orchestra with BBC Young Musician 2022 winner Jordan Ashman and the CBSO Youth Orchestra on February 18, 2023. Also in February I'll be in-residence at the University of New Hampshire where I'll work with students and have a number of pieces performed by UNH faculty and students.

Lastly, don't forget to listen to Lost and Found, featuring performances by Michael Compitello, New Morse Code, and Tigue, which came out in the Spring. Also on the recording front, keep your eyes out for the original soundtrack album to "The Real Charlie Chaplin", featuring my Emmy-nominated score for the film. Release details coming soon!

thanks for tuning in,
Robert

New Music USA announces:

CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE VIBRAPHONE: PAMELA Z AND ROBERT HONSTEIN

The year 2021 brings the unique opportunity to celebrate the first centennial of the vibraphone, an instrument developed in Indianapolis, IN by the Leedy Manufacturing Company, that has become a globally-recognized fixture in a wide variety of genres spanning from classical, pop, jazz and everything in between. To mark this occasion, a team of performers, composers, educators and music administrators have founded Vibraphone Project Inc. (VPI), whose first major endeavor is to facilitate a 3-day festival in Indianapolis, the instrument’s birthplace, to promote, support, educate and nurture artists and audiences associated with the vibraphone. One of the many ways we will accomplish this is by commissioning new works of integrity and substance for the instrument by prominent American contemporary composers, Pamela Z and Robert Honstein.

The festival (TBA) will be held in Indianapolis, IN of May 2021. For more information visit the New Music USA grant page: https://www.newmusicusa.org/projects/contributions-to-the-vibraphone-pamela-z-and-robert-honstein/