Dr. Christos J. Granias remarks early in the conversation, “I’m a glass half full kind of person.” Composer, educator, humorist, and longtime ACF member, Granias has been living with multiple sclerosis (MS) since the 1990’s, and he sees it as part of life’s journey. This month, as Granias focuses his creative talents on raising money […]
Continue ReadingComposers will travel to Minneapolis for Orchestra’s acclaimed professional training program, directed by Pulitzer Prize-winner Kevin Puts and co-presented with the American Composers Forum Institute runs from January 14 to 18, 2019, culminating in a Minnesota Orchestra concert conducted by Osmo Vänskä. Seven emerging composers have been selected as participants in the Minnesota Orchestra’s16th annual […]
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The American Composers Forum (ACF) is thrilled to announce that Kashimana Ahua has been selected as composer-in-residence for In Common, a year-long community songwriting project in Willmar, funded by the Otto Bremer Trust. Through the creation and performance of new songs, the project aims to bridge cultural differences and share the stories of the diverse […]
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The American Composers Forum (ACF) today announced the recipients of this year’s McKnight Fellowships for Composers, funded by the McKnight Foundation. These awards, which include $25,000 in unrestricted funds for each recipient, acknowledge excellence in the field of music composition. The four fellows were chosen from a pool of 50 applicants. In another McKnight funded […]
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The American Composers Forum, in partnership with MakeMusic®, is proud to acknowledge the influential teachers of the 2018 NextNotes® High School Composition Awards winners. NextNotes is a national program designed to nurture the next generation of creative voices in music composition regardless of musical style. The following winners were selected for their compositional skills and […]
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Three composers have been selected as participants for the second annual ACF CONNECT program offered by the American Composers Forum (ACF) in partnership with the GRAMMY-winning eight-voice ensemble Roomful of Teeth. Recognized for reimagining the expressive potential of the human voice and forging a new repertoire without borders, Roomful of Teeth is an excellent match […]
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The American Composers Forum (ACF) is thrilled to announce the winners of the fourth annual NextNotes® High School Composition Awards. NextNotes is a national program designed to nurture the next generation of creative voices in music composition regardless of musical style. Awards encourage and recognize the creative and talented composers with mentorship, scholarship funds, and […]
Continue ReadingThe American Composers Forum (ACF) Board of Directors has voted to present its 2018 Champion of New Music award to three outstanding recipients: pianist, writer, producer Sarah Cahill; flutist, composer, educator Nicole Mitchell; and Jim Staley, founder of the iconic new music venue Roulette in Brooklyn, NY, at public ceremonies this year. The Champion of […]
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Jelloslave (aka Purple Orange), hailed by Rebecca Lang of the Star Tribune as “…an infectious, mysterious melee of genres.” partners with the American Composers Forum to present three works by the winners of the 2018 ACF Showcase national competition on Saturday, June 2 at the Open Eye Figure Theatre in Minneapolis, MN. Composers Robin Holcomb (Seattle, […]
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John Nuechterlein has announced that he will retire as President/CEO of the American Composers Forum effective December 31, 2018. He shared the news recently with Forum board and staff, noting the decision to move on came slowly over the past few months. “The Forum is an extraordinary ecosystem of creative, imaginative people,” Nuechterlein says. “I feel privileged to have […]
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SAINT PAUL, MN – The American Composers Forum is pleased to announce the results of two programs supported with funds from the Jerome Foundation; The Jerome Fund for New Music (JFund) and the Minnesota Emerging Composer Award (MECA). Now in its 36th year, JFund supports the production of new works by emerging composers in […]
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The American Composers Forum (ACF) today announced the recipients of this year’s McKnight Fellowships for Composers, funded by The McKnight Foundation. These awards, which include $25,000 in unrestricted funds for each recipient, acknowledge excellence in the field of music composition. The four fellows were chosen from a pool of 55 applicants. In another McKnight funded […]
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The American Composers Forum (ACF), in partnership with MakeMusic®, is proud to acknowledge the influential teachers of the 2017 NextNotes® High School Composition Awards winners. NextNotes is a national program designed to nurture the next generation of creative voices in music composition regardless of musical style. The following winners were selected for their compositional skills […]
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The American Composers Forum is pleased to announce a new community residency program with Giving Voice Chorus (GVC), Giving Voice Initiative (GVI), and the MacPhail Center for Music in Minneapolis. Composer Victor Zupanc and poet Louisa Castner will collaborate to create a new choral work to be premiered by GVC singers in spring 2018. This […]
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Three composers have been selected as participants for the first annual ACF CONNECT program offered by the American Composers Forum (ACF) in partnership with the highly acclaimed Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble (PNME). Long recognized for its world-class performances and commitment to new work beyond the premiere, PNME is a perfect match for the ACF CONNECT […]
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While the school year kicks into overdrive with end-of-year activities, students in Teresa Rhyne’s select girls’ choral class will have a rare opportunity: they will perform the world-premiere performance of a new work by internationally known, local composer Rosephanye Powell. The piece, “When I Sing”, was written as the eighth piece for ChoralQuest®, a series […]
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The American Composers Forum (ACF) is pleased to announce the winners of the third annual NextNotes®High School Composition Awards. NextNotes is a new, national program designed to nurture the next generation of creative voices in music composition regardless of musical style. Awards encourage and recognize the creative and talented composers with mentorship, scholarship funds and […]
Continue Readingwritten by Michael Cyrs The results of a teacher and student coming together have no constant. There may be anything from an exchange of words to complete silence for a sixty-minute lesson. There may be an endless dialogue about what notes go where, how to play this section without screwing up the next, or simply […]
Continue ReadingThe American Composers Forum (ACF) Board of Directors has voted to present its 2017 Champion of New Music award to three outstanding recipients: percussionist, radio producer, and artistic director of Other Minds Charles Amirkhanian; advocacy organization The International Alliance for Women in Music; and conductor and professional chamber choir Donald Nally and The Crossing at […]
Continue ReadingSAINT PAUL, MN (December, 2016) – The American Composers Forum is pleased to announce our 3rd season of Landmark to Lowertown: weekday, lunchtime concerts of new music held in the beautiful public spaces of downtown Saint Paul. Continuing the tradition, this season’s composer/performers are past awardees of the Minnesota Emerging Composer Award (MECA), which recognizes […]
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ACF is thrilled to announce that composer Dr. Rosephanye Powell has been selected as the 2016-2017 ChoralQuest® composer. Powell will work with choir director Teresa Rhyne at Auburn Junior High in Auburn, AL. Auburn Junior High was selected by the composer to host the residency due to its strong music program, talented leadership, and excellence […]
Continue ReadingST. PAUL, MN – The American Composers Forum is pleased to announce the results of two programs supported with funds from the Jerome Foundation: The Jerome Fund for New Music (JFund) and the Minnesota Emerging Composer Award (MECA). Now in its 35th year, JFund supports the production of new works by emerging composers in a variety […]
Continue ReadingACF’s 2016 summer development intern, Henry Dykstal, conducted a series of interviews with our incoming cohort of board members. First up is Chris Osgood. After reading his interview, learn even more about him here. 1. How did music come into your life as something you wanted to pursue as your life’s calling? As a kid in […]
Continue ReadingSAINT PAUL, MN (August 24, 2016) – The American Composers Forum is pleased to announce the next cycle of Faith Partnerscomposers-in-residence. This nationally recognized program brings together composers and communities of multiple faith traditions for the creation of new sacred music and the reinvigoration of worship. Gary Ruschman has been selected by the consortium of […]
Continue Readingwritten by Tim Hansen A couple of years ago Californian-based composer Saad Haddad was accepted into the prestigious masters program at Juilliard. Like countless young composers before him, it would mean uprooting from home and hurling himself into the maelstrom of New York City. It’s exciting, but tough, and more than one young artist has […]
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By Tim Hansen On a bare hill overlooking the village of Burnley in Lancashire, England, stands the Singing Ringing Tree, an array of galvanised steel pipes stacked in a swirled sculpture to resemble a stylised broad-boughed tree. Standing alone on this otherwise empty hill it is visually striking enough, but it’s when the wind picks […]
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How did Spektral¹s involvement in Behind the Wallpaper come about, and is there anything to keep in mind or listen for when we hear it February 23? Behind the Wallpaper came about like the vast majority of our commissions do…we were keen to work with a specific composer. Alex Temple, who is based in Chicago, and has […]
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Written by Tim Hansen Until a few years ago, composer, saxophonist and JFund awardee Erin Rogers did not have an especial bent towards science fiction; a childhood smattered with the occasional Star Trek re-run after school was about as far as it went. Then, shortly after moving to New York City in 2005 “broke but […]
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Written by Tim Hansen When Christopher Cresswell was in the third grade, his teacher asked his class to write about what they wanted to be when they grew up. Ten year old Cresswell had two aspirations: to be a country singer and a baseball player. Sadly, we’ll never get to witness Cresswell’s induction into the […]
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by Jocelyn Hagen Growing up as an only child in the country, outside a small town in North Dakota, allowed me to spend a lot of time inside my head. Being creative was a part of my everyday life, just as it is now. Through the years I became very comfortable in my mostly singular […]
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