History
News
10/2/2019
Another long hiatus updating the website. The day job has kept me traveling and working so I have had less time to compose. But that didn't stop some existing pieces from traveling abroad without me. The Prometheus Duo is taking Icarus on the road to Serbia for multiple performances in October. I'm also working on some arrangements and new works, hopefully for spring 2020 premieres. Stay tuned!
1/19/2019
Woody Witt and Pamela York will be premiering a new work this spring called Attention Deficit...Squirrel. It's a work that is highly improvisitory and in the jazz style, and will be performed across the state of Texas throughout 2019.
10/12/2018
Navona records has released my work Icarus as part of CCI's compilation, "Spectra vol. 2". You can read about it Here and buy it from all the usual suspects. A big thanks to Joey Abad and Marko Stuparevic for recording the work!
4/27/2017
More performances and more music coming up! In May, my new brass trio will be premiered at the New Britain Museum of Modern Art. It's called High Times for Low Brass and is a strange mix of genres and levels. I'm also hard at work on Dan's Trumpet Sonata and a new work for Trombone and Violin, a vocal jazz piece for my friends Jenn and Shon, and some incidenal music for a poet and chamber ensemble. I'm also starting the long term planning of a musical and a song cycle for kids, but those are way in the planning stages.
2/23/2017
Time flies when you decide to buy a house, so while I've been busy doing that I haven't updated the site in awhile.
Coming up on March 9th, Matt Russo and the UCONN Symphony will premiere the newly orchestrated version of my first trombone concerto, "Cowiche" at 8pm. You can find more information HERE.
Next up some chamber and jazz music. I've been commissioned to write a new work for Trumpet and Piano for Dan D'Addio, and then I'm looking to write some fun music for fun performers. Want something, let me know?
7/11/2016
New Recording! Listen to John Hart and the Hartt Wind Ensemble premiere Yet what is any ocean but a multitude of drops?! They did a fantastic job with the work and the recording came out quite well. Enjoy!
3/19/2016
Sorry again for the delay in posting. Coming up in April, Glen Adsit and the Hartt Wind Ensemble will premiere Yet what is any ocean but a multitude of drops? in Hartford, CT. I'm also at working on a commission for the Army MI Corps Band that will be premiered out west in the fall. Some other works are slowly gestating, so I hope 2016 will be a lot fuller than 2015. Stay tuned for more announcements!
9/7/2015
...but in this dark night I am stationary and time is a river is complete and in the hands of Elisabeth and HICO. Concert will be 10/10 at 7:30pm in Hartford and I'd love to have as many there as possible. Here's the poster:
7/21/2015
but in this dark night continues to develop and the entire work is here. Now just comes the whole editing process. And in a separate note, Yet what is any ocean but a multitude of drops?will be premiered by Glen Adsit and the Hartt Wind Ensemble in April 2016. It will be on a concert that also features the works of my two mentors, Chen Yi and Zhou Long. Should be a fun reunion! But for now, back to work.
6/29/2015
I'm currently working on a large-scale work for the soprano Ellisabeth Halliday and the Hartford Independent Chamber Orchestra entitled, ...but in this dark night I am stationary and time is a river: The Diary of Agnes Williams. Yes, it's quite the mouthful, and it's giant, at least 30 minutes long. It will be premiered this coming October and I'll keep you updated as we get closer. I'm nearly done with the first draft and have just recently settled on the title (although with it being so long you'd think I couldn't settle on anything...). More to come as the process continues!
5/29/2015
Wow, it's been almost a year since my last post here. Sorry again for the long breaks. Lots has happened in the past year, including a wonderful performance recently by David Tayloe and Marko Stuparevic of A Page Out of Zen, and a performance last December of What we talk about when we talk in 140 characters by The Hartford Independent Chamber Orchestra.
This coming week I'll be in Buffalo for June in Buffalo and will hear the official premier of Souvenirs/Miniatures for piano trio. And this coming fall HICO will premiere a new, large work for chamber orchestra and soprano. Stay tuned for more info about that.
8/22/2014
Sorry it's been so long since an update...but having a baby is often exhausting. Tonight my music will be played for the second time in Bolivia (the first being last Friday) and in September a new work will be premiered in Illinois. It's a quiet time right now but I have a lot of simmering projects that will hopefully take off. So keep your eyes on this page!
4/9/2014
Ryan Jesperson.com has been completely redesigned! With the rise of phones and tablets I felt that this site needed to keep up. And why not go all out if I'm going to do some redesigning? Check it out, let me know if you find any bugs, typos, or other mistakes...and I'll keep working on it to make it even better.
3/24/2014
A slight site redesign and some good news! Kathleen Winters (who is commissioning me for a new work) received a grant from the Urbana Public Arts Commission to help fund our project! The new work for flute, viola, and harp will be premiered next fall in Illinois.
The Asylum Quartet was recently featured on WNPR's "Where We Live". I am currently working on a commission for them as well that will be premiered this summer. As a special treat, I arranged the "Where We Live" theme song for them. The producers have now asked them to record it in the studio so they can use it occasionally on the air.
3/14/2014
My daughter just turned 8 months old and is currently sleeping on my chest, so updating a website takes a little longer than it used to... There are many new concerts to announce and works on the way. Keep an eye on the site and I'll be putting up new recordings and videos soon.
6/20/2013
A couple new works have been added to the site, and a new video of fragments and memories performed by Jordan Jacobson and HICO. Now it's time to head toward hibernation. I'll be away until after my daughter is born, but hopefully will have new stuff to post in the late summer. See you on the other side.
5/1/2013
New recordings are up! Icarus, fragments and memories (Jordan Jacobson and HICO), and selections from Getz Going (Sheri Brown and the West End String Quartet) can be found in the classical recordings section HERE. More recordings are coming, and lots of performances this summer. Stay tuned.
4/5/2013
Good News! My work, Hebdomas Squatinae, won the Verismo Trio Competition. It will be performed in Wyoming and elsewhere starting this summer. This version is for flute, alto sax, and piano.
Also, Icarus, my work for alto sax and piano, will be premiered in West Hartford this weekend. It will be part of a CCCC concert (Central CT. Composers Circle). It will also be performed in late May on a CCI concert (CT. Composers Inc.).
2/14/2013
This coming week the Ouroboros Sax Quartet will be performing my work Not Death, but Love at the Misha-maya-gat performance series in Manchester, CT. Check out the poster HERE! And the Feb. 10th performance of Getz Going has been cancelled because of the snowstorm. Once it's rescheduled, I'll post it here.
1/4/2013
Happy New Year! A quick announcement for those that don't already know: my wife is pregnant and we'll be having our first baby in July! So probably a little less composing this year, but definitely a wonderful new era. Keep posted as there will some new performance announcements soon and some other important news. 2013 will be a great year.
11/5/2012
April is going to be a busy month in 2013! The Hartford Independent Chamber Orchestra (HICO)with soloist Jordan Jacobson will be performing my trombone concerto, fragments and memories, on the last weekend of April. The week before, the UMKC Opera Dept. will perform scenes from my opera, Songs from Behind the Curtain. Also, a big project in the works for late June. more to come!
10/13/2012
Lots of upcoming concerts, new works, and more. There should be new recordings up soon and some more performance announcements.
This weekend Sheri Brown and others will be performing Getz Going in West Hartford. CLICK HERE for the concert poster with all the details!
5/23/2012
fragments and memories will be performed by Jordan Jacobson and Anastasia Seifetdinova on a CCI concert this Sunday. 5pm at Berkman Auditorium at the Hartt School. I will also be presenting that piece and others on a recital in the same auditorium on June 7th. To view the poster for that event, CLICK HERE!
In August I will be one of the featured composers on a Hartford Phase Shift concert. I will be premiering a new work for saxophone and string quartet called Getz Going: A Suite for Eddie Sauter. It's going to be great and you won't want to miss it.
5/5/2012
Anouncements! After a quick winter (with little snow), we're now in spring and it's time to put on a concert! I will be presenting a collection of my works at the University of Hartford on June 7th. More details to come.
In other news, my dissertation, Songs from Behind the Curtain, was awarded the 2012 UMKC Outstanding Dissertation Award. It was quite an honor.
Also, Sonnets from the Portuguese, will be broadcast tomorrow night on kineticsradio.com. They are doing an all choral broadcast.
1/16/2012
This is now the homepage for Dr. Ryan Jesperson. I successfully defended my dissertation and graduated in the fall of 2011. Currently I am applying for teaching positions, and also starting a bunch of new projects (it's incredible how much more time you have when you are not writing an opera!). Check back with the page soon for more performances and new works!
10/24/2011
8/10/2011
For those that are looking for our wedding website, Google isn't able to find it, so here's a link: http://www.ryanjesperson.com/wedding
On a non-related note, the first draft of the opera is done! You can check out the page and listen to midi and look at the really messy score. Now it's time to edit and revise!
7/26/2011
The site keeps improving and more music keeps going up. We're in the final month before the wedding, so not much happening on the musical side, but I am very close to finishing the first draft of the opera. Hopefully either before the wedding or shortly after. Keep your eyes on the site as it continues to improve and more content is added.
6/18/2011
The summer is off to a great start. The Duffy Institute in VA was incredible, such inspiring musicians and composers, and the performance was exactly what I wanted. Today I'm in Baltimore for the second concert of The Rhymes with Opera summer tour. NYC last night was packed and the performances exquisite. There are new recordings up from Duffy and I'll hopefully have RwO up soon as well.
5/12/2011
Many concerts coming up this summer! Rhymes With Opera (featuring the West End String Quartet) will be performing Orphée Redux in NYC, Baltimore, Hartford, and Boston (visit the Rhymes with Opera or West End String Quartet websites for more information). And faculty from the Sebago-Long Lake Music Festival will perform ...and those seven dwarfs at three Maine locations. This of course leads up to August 20th, when I will be getting married!
2/26/2011
Just got back from Kansas City, where Dr. Robert Olson and the UMKC Orchestra did a marvelous job premiering I.Jest. You can hear the recording by clicking the "Classical" playlist to the upper right!
2/16/2011
...and those seven dwarfs will be performed a couple of times this summer in Western Maine by faculty from the Sebago-Long Lake Music Festival. More details will be forthcoming. I also am finishing up some new works that will be premiered this semester so stay tuned for those as well.
1/27/2011
More music and a better site! A recording of Romanza for Saxophone and Violin is now up, and I'm hard at work on a bunch of projects that will see fruition this semester. I'm a member of a poetry/improv group called The Bluebottles (find us on facebook) and we'll be performing this weekend in Sturbridge, MA. I'm also starting to set up some performances of works this spring and summer, so keep checking to your right for more performances. I'm also learning a lot more about website design in my new job, so I'm going back through the site and fixing lots of sloppy code. So if you notice anything goofy, let me know so I can fix it!
12/18/2010
It's been a busy week. Sheri Brown and Sarah Washburn performed Romanza for Saxophone and Violin on Tuesday (a marvelous performance) and the West End String Quartet read through Not Death, but Love on Thursday. I have the recording up for Not Death, but Love, and will get Romanza up once we get together and record it. Have a happy holiday!
11/28/2010
This is a purely personal announcement, but a pretty big one! On Sunday, Nov. 28th I proposed to my girlfriend Sarah Washburn. We are now engaged. The wedding will be in 2011 or 2012, and you can be sure I'll write some music for the occasion!
11/11/2010
New recordings! I have received recordings from the Kansas City Chorale and the UMKC Grad Quartet. The KC Chorale performed "Indeed This Very Love" from Sonnets from the Portuguese. And the UMKC Grad Quartet with Dean Peter Witte performed ...and those seven dwarfs at a UMKC Kids Club Event in October. Enjoy!
10/20/2010
8/10/2010
Hope you are enjoying the new website. I know that sometimes the flash menu doesn't work, so just click back to the homepage and it will work from there. I'll try and fix it asap.
Other good news: The Juventas New Music Group has chosen Hebdomas Squatinae [shark week] for a future concert date. I'll let you Boston people know the date and location as soon as I do.
6/30/2010
I just found out that my orchestra work I. Jest won the 2010 UMKC Orchestra Competition. The work will be performed in the spring of 2011 by Robert Olson and the UMKC Orchestra.
6/27/2010
My work, Hebdomas Squatinae, was performed at the Belvedere Music Festival. A rough recording is available under the classical playlist. Luna Nova did a marvelous job and the festival was superb from start to finish. I must also thank Breen and Jean for their incredible hospitality and all the wonderful food.
5/28/2010
I have now officially moved back to Hartford, CT. I'm working on some new music, including my dissertation, and working at the Ethel Walker Summer Arts Camp this summer. I'll be teaching theatre (don't laugh)...
I have posted some new recordings, Boombox Serenade can be found in the Classical playlist, while A Funk for the Bunk and Those Feelings can be found in the Jazz playlist. Enjoy!
3/31/2010
My work, Hebdomas Squatinae, won the 2010 Beethoven Club/Belvedere Festival Composition Contest. I'll be in Tennessee in June to hear the premiere. I am also lining up a lot of other great performances over the next year so keep checking to the left for big premieres and performances.
3/28/2010
I have a new recording of Farbenmusik for solo piano. It's a live take from a studio session we did a few weeks ago. Amanda Arrington nailed it on the first take. We also did a cleaner section-by-section version which will be mixed and up soon.
Also, I'll be relocating back to the Hartford area in mid-May. I'm looking for some work as I take next year to write my dissertation. Any leads are appreciated, or if you just want to hang out that's cool as well...
2/27/2010
I am through the majority of my comprehensives, and so far things seem to be going well. I was also recently honored by winning the 2009 KC Chorale Composition Competition. My piece, "Indeed this very Love" from Sonnets from the Portuguese will be premiered March 6th.
1/20/2010
This semester is gearing up to be busy. I am preparing for my COMPS as well as trying to start writing music for my dissertation and finish my final semester of classes at UMKC. Stay tuned as the site will hopefully go through a major update near the end of April.
On the recording front, I've added a rough mix of Little Tokoyo, a work for brass quintet and piano that is part of a multimedia event involving video. The mix is rough because it might further be spliced and edited as the video is finished. Still, check it out and enjoy.
11/3/2009
The recordings for CO(mp)LLABORATIONS are up. CLICK HERE. If you want to hear my piece from the concert This song is called EZEKIEL and it's about aliens and shit... you can click on the "Classical" playlist in the upper right corner.
Also, I recently got a recording of my selections from my song cycle Birdsongs, and you can listen to them as well in the "Classical" playlist. Sharon Campbell and Marilyn Musick did a wonderful job at the Nebraska at Kearney New Music Festival.
10/20/2009
I have finished the first draft of the story for my opera. The working title is Songs from Behind the Curtain and if you want to read it I'd love to hear your comments. You can download a pdf of the story by clicking the title above. Let me know what you think. Enjoy.
9/7/2009
I am featured on the latest "No Extra Notes" podcast. You can subscribe to the podcast through the iTunes store. Mine is the "Composer Takeover" episode. Also, progress is continuing on the ArtSounds for October. The piece is near completion and the puppets an sets that Maria and Spencer are making look fantastic. I'll post pictures and more audio soon, so keep a look out...
5/28/2009
"Sand" from scenes from a solitary beach was one of the winners of the Pilgrim's Walk Competition and will be performed as part of the Kalv Festival in Sweden in August. It was the only work by an American to be chosen.
4/7/2009
Farbenmusik won the Chappell White Memorial Award as best student composition at the College Music Society's Great Plains Conference. The recording is now available in the "Classical" player. I also just learned that Concerto for Flute was a finalist for a Morton Gould Award, but did not win this year. In funny news, I Await Your Urgent Response was banned from YouTube because it is apparently "inappropriate". Guess I'm more edgy than I thought...
12/22/2008
My work, fragments and memories, just won the 2008/2009 British Trombone Society Composition Contest. The piece will be performed on a future BTS event and will be published by Warwick Music.11/19/2008
10/24/2008
I am pleased to report that I am the winner of the 2008 UMKC Orchestra Composition Competition. My Concerto for Flute will be premiered by Sophia Tegart (for whom it was written) and the UMKC Orchestra on a spring concert.
There's also two new recordings from my Songs of Shelley project. You'll find them under the classical recordings (even though they are jazz tunes...)
8/23/2008
A rough cut of Concertino for Violin and Viola has been placed on the site. For those involved that would like a recording please email me and I'll send you a link. This is my cut, and I'm sending it back to Monkeyclaus Studios for further editing and mixing. Let me know what you think.
