Gregory Oakes
clarinet
Latest Recording
. . . new champion of the avant garde.
Oakes plays with a fine-grained, well-modulated and vivid sound.
Oakes is the rare player who has both excellent classical training and a mastery of the otherworldly procedures demanded by non-traditional repertoire.
. . . an outstanding performance . . .
This is one of the best recordings . . . It has to do with sensitivity and intelligence. Thank you so much.
Oakes conveys conviction that all the sounds he generates belong in a congruent whole
The word “epic” gets tossed around too often these days, but it fits here, especially with the refined central solo from clarinetist Gregory Oakes . . .
He has insane control.
. . . jazzy flourishes from newcomer Gregory Oakes.
Gregory Oakes obviously has a formidable technical armamentarium at his command, and the laudable curiosity to extend his repertory . . . and ours as well.
. . . particularly outstanding musician . . .
If clarinet = revolver . . . then Gregory Oakes = Billy the Kid
Utterly sensational!
. . . beautiful solos from principal clarinetist Gregory Oakes . . .
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New Focus Recordings FCR 196
The “aesthetic apparatus” with which Lachenmann has a “permanent dialogue” is the system of expectations of how we conceptualize and create music in our culture.
Read More>>
No music is untouchable for Greg Oakes

Photo: Milly Orellana

One professor in the department of music is determined to show students there’s more to orchestral music than works from “old, dead, European men.”

Gregory Oakes is an assistant professor of clarinet at Iowa State and the principal clarinet for the Des Moines Symphony. He focuses his attention on music written by living composers rather than what most people consider classical music. Read More>>

Dan Atwood, Iowa State Daily

CD Reviews

Helmut Lachenmann, composer

Today I found the time and calm for listening to your marvelous performance of my “Dal Niente.” You are a great musician. This is not an easy piece. I myself always had problems with it, but now having heard your interpretation, I love it again (there is no better compliment). Now the piece has almost 50 years—but you made it totally fresh. Anyway, this is one of the best recordings—I think because of your incredible technique to change the articulation, and this has to do with a wonderful sense for the different sound (and noise) qualities. And—after all—it has to do with sensitivity and intelligence. Thank you so much.

New Music Buff

Helmut Lachenmann (1935– ) is a composer who has been “on my radar” for some years now but, like a lot of names I get, I had yet to hear much of his music. Along comes Gregory Oakes from, of all places, Iowa. The Midwest in the United States doesn’t have much of a reputation for embracing the avant garde (though they actually do). So into the CD player goes this one and…wow, I really need to hear more Lachenmann and whoever this Oakes guy is I want to pay attention to what he is doing with that clarinet. Admittedly this disc languished a bit before I heard it but I am now glad I did.

This disc consists of only three tracks comprising three works by this major German composer from three different periods in his career. Dal Niente (Interiur III), Trio Fluido, and Allegro Sostenuto.

Dal Niente (1970) is for solo clarinet and, as the title prescribes, the music is to be played as “from nothing” the meaning of the title. In fact this seems to be practically a textbook of extended techniques for the clarinet. But far from being a dull accounting of dry techniques, this is a tour de force which will challenge the skills of even the most experienced players. It is quite musical and listenable but the virtuosity will knock your socks off. Oakes pulls it off with a deceptive ease that demonstrates his rather profound knowledge of his instrument. It is easy to see the seeming cross pollination between the avant garde and free jazz here.

Next up is Trio Fluido (1966–68) which is a respectably avant garde trio for clarinet, viola, and percussion with Matthew Coley, percussion, and Jonathan Sturm, viola. Like the previous work this one is also about extended techniques (for all three instruments this time). This is a fine example of mid-twentieth century modernism and deserves a place in the repertoire. All three musicians are challenged to play their instruments in unconventional ways and the effect is almost like some of the electronic music of the era. It is a complex and pointillistic texture that has a strong and serious content.

Finally Allegro Sostenuto (1986–88) is another trio, this time for clarinet, cello, and piano. So while this work would make a fine companion work to the Brahms clarinet trio the work is unambiguously avant garde in the finest Darmstadt traditions. It is, at about 30 minutes, the longest piece here and it reflects the further maturity of the composer as he creates another challenging but almost surprisingly satisfying work.

This album serves as a nice way to be introduced to Helmut Lachenmann and to get to know some major new champions of the avant garde. And one would do well to stay informed about the work being done by this fine new music clarinetist.

v
Avant Music News

Some of the most challenging music of recent years—challenging to play as well as to listen to—has been written by German composer Helmut Lachenmann (b. 1935). The conceptual core of much of his music has consisted in laying bare the conditions underlying and assumed by music production—essentially, the physical prerequisites of performance practice, as well as the determinations, both accepted and rejected, of genre. For Lachenmann, musical sound is a complex of factors reaching back within the tradition or genre in relation to which it is created, and reaching forward into the moment—the physical situation of specific possibilities and the choices they elicit—in which it is actually produced. Thus the title of his book of writings, which translates as “music as existential experience.” This standpoint puts extraordinary demands on the performer, who must be familiar with all the aspects and resources his or her instrument has to offer. With Aesthetic Apparatus, a set of three Lachenmann compositions, clarinetist Gregory Oakes takes up the challenge.

Oakes, who is principal clarinetist for the Des Moines Symphony Orchestra as well as an assistant professor of clarinet at Iowa State University in Ames, is particularly interested in contemporary art music. Much of his repertoire is the product of collaboration with currently active composers, and he seems especially drawn to new music that assumes a broad notion of what kinds of sounds are permissible in the concert hall. Thus Lachenmann’s music is a natural fit for him.

The affinity between Oakes and Lachenmann’s sound world is immediately apparent with the first piece, 1970’s Dal Niente (Interieur III) for solo clarinet. The composition calls for a number of extended techniques for the instrument, many of which involve the sounds of breath on the borderline of silence. In his liner note, Oakes points out that the title of the piece derives from a musical marking that translates as “from nothing;” his performance accordingly pivots on the flux of sounds proceeding from and returning to nothing. The Trio Fluido for clarinet, viola and percussion of 1966, in which Oakes is joined by violist Jonathan Sturm and Matthew Coley on marimba, also centers on sound but in a more assertive way. The piece begins with a fragmented Modernist counterpoint that, through a kind of compositional auto-deconstruction, gradually dissolves into abstract sound. What’s striking about the piece is its underlying consistency; the division of the three voices focuses attention on their individual timbral characteristics, whether played conventionally or with the extended techniques that come to dominate the final third or so of the performance. The interplay among the three performers manages to be both refined and (subtly) dramatic. The final performance, the nearly 32 minute long Allegro Sostenuto (1986/1988), is a trio for clarinet, cello (George Work) and piano (Mei-Hsuan Huang) that Lachenmann has described as mediating between resonance and movement. The piece begins as an archipelago of rapid bursts, truncated phrases and points of sound that accumulate and build length and mass over time. The resonance inheres in the individuation of each of the three instruments, which is helped by the three players’ precise articulation. Here as on all three pieces, Oakes plays with a fine-grained, well-modulated and vivid sound.

Daniel Barbiero

the Wholenote

Utter the name Helmut Lachenmann in a loud stage whisper, being sure to accentuate fully the consonants, exaggerating the different vowel colours, and you’ll have an idea what it is like to perform his music. He asks performers to make varying sounds which require a complete rethinking of one’s technical approach. Lachenmann, Maurizio Kagel and Heinz Holliger have led the way to innovative notations depicting the strange breath effects, kisses, clicks, squeaks and honks they demand from performers.

In Aesthetic Apparatus, clarinetist Gregory Oakes has compiled three substantial chamber works by Lachenmann. The first, Dal Niente, for solo clarinet, is an extension of silence into a variety of soundscapes. Oakes conveys conviction that all the sounds he generates belong in a congruent whole, and with more hearings I’m certain I’d agree. What is unusual in this recording is the extended periods of nearly empty time, where the effects produced might be more easily perceived if one could see them produced. It takes chutzpah to publish this performance on a sound-only recording.

Trio Fluido, for clarinet, viola and percussion, provides a richer soundscape, although the writing is still full of attenuated pauses. Early exchanges between the instruments seem full of repressed violence, which occasionally breaks out into outright hostility. Beyond this, there are delightful moments of simply elegant trialogue, as if three species of creature are employing their various intelligences to match one another’s language.

Allegro Sostenuto, for clarinet, cello and piano, completes this wonderful exploration. I use the term “tonal” modified by “somewhat more” to indicate that in contrast to the first two tracks, this work exploits more interplay between pitches than raw sounds, making it perhaps the most immediately listenable.

Max Christie

American Record Guide

Iowa State University professor and contemporary music specialist Gregory Oakes presents a recital of mostly unaccompanied clarinet works, most or which call on extended techniques and world music. The program consists of Southern Illinois University faculty member and clarinetist-composer Eric Mandat’s Folks Songs (1986); University of California at Berkeley professor Ken Ueno’s I screamed at the sea until nodes swelled up, then my voice became the resonant noise of the sea (2009) for amplified clarinet; Puerto-Rican born post-modernist Roberto Sierra’s Cinco Bocetos (1984); Chinese composer Chen Yi’s Monologue (1993); Amsterdam-based American flutist Ned McGowan’s Ios Duo (2000) for flute and clarinet, where McGowan serves as a guest performer; the 20th Century Indian violinist and Indo-Jazz fusion composer John Mayer’s Raga Music (1957); and Swiss cellist-composer Alfred Felder’s Apache Clown Dance (1998).

Some avant-garde performers delve into their genre to downplay a lack of fundamentals, but Oakes is the rare player who has both excellent classical training and a mastery of the otherworldly procedures demanded by non-traditional repertoire. He boasts a clear sounds, clean fingers, wide dynamic range, and a deep understanding of the simple yet expressive folk idioms behind the notes. He meets all the technical and artistic challenges of more traditional repertoire like the Sierra, where the composer leaves no room to hide, and easily transcends the obstacles laid out in the scores by Mandat, Ueno, McGowan, Yi, and Felder, employing extreme volume, pitch bending, flutter-tonguing, key-slapping, foot-stomping, circular breathing, and eye-popping multiphonics with seemingly little effort. His low register in the Mayer is more reedy than in the rest of the program, but that may be an attempt to give a more “earthy” sound to the piece. If so, it works.

Hanudel

Fanfare Magazine

This disc is likely to find a place only in clarinetist’s shelves, given its nearly exclusive instrumentation of solo clarinet. This would be a pity, since there is much to enjoy for anyone interested in the wanderings of contemporary music in the last couple of decades, and indeed for those whose sole criteria is quality music realized at a high level. Besides its intrinsic musical value, I could scarcely imagine a better primer on clarinet possibilities for the budding composer.

If Eric Mandat’s Folk Songs from 1986 hasn’t become a mainstay in contemporary music, there is no justice in the music world. Just the opening bars brought back fond memories, as I recalled hearing the composer play it a number of times many years ago, and his disc of solo clarinet music from two decades ago remains a favorite in the genre. Mandat was not the first to explore extended clarinet techniques and bring non-Western influences to his instrument, but few (if any) have synthesized these strains in such a controlled and compelling way. I was doubtful that anyone other than the composer could do justice to these very personal works, but Gregory Oakes has made them his own, and deserves credit for bringing them to a wider audience.

Like the Mandat work, Ken Ueno’s solo work is keen to explore many non-traditional sounds, including “difference tones”, humming, multiphonics, and key clicks. I have little patience for those that maintain that an instrument should not attempt anything other than what its inventors intended, and I would hope any open-minded listener would give Ueno’s fascinating piece a try. One mission of these sonic explorations is to give the illusion of multiple voices, thereby increasing the possibilities of unaccompanied “single line” instruments like the clarinet.

The five movements of Roberto Sierra’s Cinco Bocetos are less concerned with timbral explorations than simple embodiments of the musical flavors of Puerto Rico. Still, he senses the potential pitfalls of a solo wind instrument, and uses well-crafted changes of register to give the illusion of multiple voices (like Bach’s solo works for single line instruments such as the violin, cello, and flute). Chen Yi’s haunting Monologue packs a multiplicity of voluminous ideas into a small package. It might seem unlikely that she could distill her impressions of a true story by writer Lu Xun into a mere four minutes, but she does so with consummate skill and idiomatic use of the instrument.

Flutist and composer Ned McGowan joins Oakes for the former’s Ios Duo, which among other things explores bends of pitches within close intervals between the pair, as well as gentle cross-rhythms and melodies suffused with microtonal inflections. John Mayer’s Raga Music, with its brief movements and Eastern references could be viewed as a precursor to Mandat’s Folk Songs, minus the latter’s extended techniques. The barn-burning finale is Arthur Felder’s Apache Clown Dance, a picturesque, virtuosic, and thoroughly engrossing depiction of a dance ritual.

Splendid playing throughout, and the recorded sound is close, clear, and a bit on the dry side.

Michael Cameron

* * *

This is a good issue for avant-garde clarinet recitals. Elsewhere in these pages I review a disc called Necessity by Argentinean composer-performer Jorge Variego, and now here’s one by an American (I think) player with a long curriculum vitae, including a current faculty position at Iowa State University, where most of this CD was recorded.

As with Variego’s disc, New Dialects seems destined to appeal primarily to those who eat, sleep, and live the clarinet. While Necessity frequently combined the clarinet with other instruments or electronics, New Dialects is a solo gig, save for the 12-minute Ios Duo, in which Oakes is joined by the composer. Extended playing techniques are integral to the music on both discs, and on New Dialects you will hear textbook examples of multiphonics, microtonal playing, key noises, singing into the instrument, blowing into it in unusual ways, and the like. Sometimes these techniques seem to have been incorporated into the music merely for the sake of making things harder or more intriguing for musicians and audiences alike. At other times, such as in Eric P. Mandat’s Folk Songs, their impact more than justifies their presence.

Ken Ueno’s work should win an award for the length of its title, which also pretty much describes what it sounds like. (The “nodes” in question are those that sometimes grow on vocal cords as a result of vocal strain.) Do you remember Yoko Ono’s vocal feats on the Live Peace in Toronto, 1969 album? (All right, I am dating myself.) If you had the fortitude to enjoy that, you’ll probably respond as positively to Ueno’s work. About Ios Duo, McGowan writes, “The entire piece is microtonal, incorporating glissandos within various quarter-tone systems.” Again, as an exercise in de natura sonoris, it will have its admirers, but parts of it will be tough sledding for conservative listeners.

Monologue can be heard as a short story or essay without words. Subtitled “Impressions on The True Story of Ah Q,” it invites the listener (should he or she so wish) to reflect on “ignorance and civilization, lowliness and pride.” I believe boceto means “sketch” in Spanish, and Roberto Sierra’s set of five of them, only one more than two minutes long, evokes his Puerto Rican homeland. These terse but colorful vignettes in a tonal style make their point and step aside. The components of John Mayer’s Raga Music take a similar approach to Indian classical music, although they lack that genre’s leisurely progress: we are given nine of them in a little more than ten minutes. Alfred Felder’s Apache Clown Dance is inspired by a sacred Native American tradition in which entertainment, purification, and healing are combined. I don’t know if any of the material is authentic, but the mental picture Felder’s work creates is vivid enough.

The works chosen for this CD demonstrate the continued synergy between “world music” and classical music. Furthermore, they demonstrate that the world’s musical traditions are anything but fragile, and can endure and even respond positively to manipulation via cutting-edge classical techniques. Gregory Oakes obviously has a formidable technical armamentarium at his command, and the laudable curiosity to extend his repertory… and ours as well. As with Variego’s Necessity CD, New Dialects is not for everyone (although I think it is the friendlier disc of the two), but I’m grateful it exists.

Raymond Tuttle

Bio

Download long bio (567 words) | Download short bio (217 words)

Gregory Oakes is an exciting and energetic clarinetist and a passionate champion of the music of our time. From his Carnegie Hall debut with members of Ensemble Intercontemporain and Pierre Boulez to his performances as a member of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, Mr. Oakes has been praised by critics for his “outstanding performance” (New York Times) and “jazzy flourishes”(Denver Post). American Record Guide says “Oakes is the rare player who has both excellent classical training and a mastery of the otherworldly procedures demanded by non-traditional repertoire,” and Fanfare Magazine lauds the “formidable technical armamentarium at his command.”

A flexible and versatile musician, Mr. Oakes has performed with notable musicians in prestigious venues around the world. He has been a concerto soloist with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra and the Denver Brass, performed with Grammy® Award-winner Terence Blanchard at the Telluride Jazz Festival, and appeared at the Chicago Arts Club. His recordings have been released on Bridge, Centaur, CRI, Karnatic Lab Records, and Naxos and broadcast on National Public Radio. His recent CD, Aesthetic Apparatus: Clarinet Chamber Music of Helmut Lachenmann, is available on the New Focus Recordings label.

As a soloist, Mr. Oakes has performed at multiple International Clarinet Association ClarinetFests, the University of Oklahoma Clarinet Symposium, the International Computer Music Conference, the Crested Butte Chamber Music Festival, Boulder’s Modern Music Festival (M2F), and the Pendulum New Music Series. An international artist, Mr. Oakes has performed frequently in the Netherlands at Amsterdam’s venerable new music hall De IJsbreker, the Gaudeamus Music Week, Concerten Tot en Met, the Karnatic Lab concert series, De Badcuyp, STEIM, and Utrecht’s Theatre Kikker. He has been a featured soloist at the prestigious MaerzMusik festival in Berlin. He has also toured Brazil—performing in Brasília, Rio de Janeiro, and Campinas—and conducted masterclasses at notable Brazilian universities UnB, UNIRIO, and UNICAMP. He was in residence as a guest artist at the MUPA Festival of Contemporary Music in Bangsaen, Thailand. In the summer, Mr. Oakes is on the faculty of The Cortona Sessions festival for new music in Tuscany, Italy.

Mr. Oakes has been a member of several orchestras including the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, Mississippi Symphony Orchestra, Colorado Ballet, Central City Opera, and the Colorado Music Festival. He is currently the principal clarinet of the Des Moines Symphony Orchestra. He is also an active chamber musician. As a founding member of the new music and creative arts ensemble Non Sequitur, he has been in residence at Princeton, Harvard, Dartmouth, and the Aspen Music Festival. Oakes has also performed as a member of the woodwind quintet Category 5 and the award-winning clarinet quartet Ensemble Syzygy.

Mr. Oakes holds a bachelor’s degree from Michigan State University, a master’s degree from DePaul University, and a doctorate from the University of Colorado. His teachers include Bil Jackson, Elsa Ludewig-Verdehr, and John Bruce Yeh. He has been honored as an Aspen Music Festival Fellow, a Tanglewood Music Festival Fellow, and a Fulbright Scholar Finalist. Mr. Oakes has presented masterclasses at numerous institutions including the University of Michigan, University of California Berkeley, Peabody Conservatory, the Amsterdam Conservatory, and the Aspen Music Festival. He has previously taught at the University of Southern Mississippi (Hattiesburg, MS) and Bemidji State University (Bemidji, MN). Mr. Oakes is on the faculty of Iowa State University (Ames, IA).

Gregory Oakes is a Buffet Group USA and a Vandoren Performing Artist.

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Works by Cox, Farrin, and Russell
Dublin, Ireland
past
3.21.2024The Electric Belle at Stovehouse
Works by Akiho, Hearne, Mazzoli, and O'Halloran
Huntsville, AL
9.12.2023Princeton University
Dixon, Ge, Gorman, Lyuh, Morrison, Peacocke
Princeton, NJ
9.10.2023DiMenna Center
Works by Davis, O'Halloran, Ricketts, and Thompson
New York, NY
7.8.2023ICA Conference
Ken Thomson: How to Play
Denver, CO
7.6.2023ICA Conference
Works by McGowan and Cuong
Denver, CO
2.26.2023Epiphany Center for the Arts
Boyce, Martin, McGowan, Montgomery, and Thomas
Chicago, IL
12.1.2022Northwestern University
Lake Heritage Quartet
Evanston, IL
11.30.2022Constellation
Lake Heritage Quartet
Chicago, IL
11.27.2022Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ
Works by McGowan, Alves, Dumitrescu, and Rutty
Amsterdam, Netherlands
10.23.2022MU Microtonal Clarinet Festival
Online
7.2.2022ICA Conference
Premieres by Kirsten Broberg and Alan Theisen
Reno, NV
6.3.2022Cortona Sessions
Cox: Light-Dots on a Deep-Space-Image
Tallahassee, FL
5.29.2022Cortona Sessions
Works by Eastman and Davies
Tallahassee, FL
5.27.2022Cortona Sessions
Works by Luc and Epstein
Tallahassee, FL
5.25.2022Cortona Sessions
Viet Cuong: Wax and Wire
Tallahassee, FL
5.23.2022Cortona Sessions
Evan Williams: the waters wrecked the sky
Tallahassee, FL
5.13.2022CNMAT
Works by Ueno, Cox, Pierce, and Soriano-Broberg
Berkeley, CA
4.24.2022Ames City Auditorium
Artie Shaw Concerto
Ames, IA
8.19.2021Livestream
Apostrophe
8.13.2021Landmark Center
Jessie Cox: Light-Dots on a Deep-Space Image
Minneapolis, MN
6.30.2021International Clarinet Association Conference
Kirstin Broberg, Jessie Cox, and Suzanne Farrin
Fort Worth, TX
4.9.2020University of California, Berkeley
Berkeley, CA
2.13.2020Horace Mann School
Works by Akiho and Schober
New York, NY
2.12.2020Horace Mann School
Works by Cuong and Mandat
New York, NY
7.24.2019University of Tennessee Knoxville
Lachenmann: Dal niente (Interieur III)
Knoxville, TN
5.20.2019Sala Neumann
Atkinson: manyhanded body
Cortona, Italy
4.6.2019Applause Concert Series
Atkinson, Cuong, Harrison, Lachenmann, Poston
Dallas, TX
2.3.2019Constellation
Atkinson, Bacon, Cuong, Farrin, Lachenmann, Pierce
Chicago, IL
11.9.2018Hammert Building
Works by Cuong, Farrin, Lachenmann, Pierce
Eudora, KS
11.3.2018DePaul University
Chicago, IL
10.28.2018Des Moines Civic Center
Bernstein: Prelude Fugue and Riffs
Des Moines, IA
10.27.2018Des Moines Civic Center
Bernstein: Prelude Fugue and Riffs
Des Moines, IA
10.7.2018Cluskey Vaults
Ueno: Ghost Vault
Savannah, GA
10.6.2018Cluskey Vaults
Ueno: Ghost Vault
Savannah, GA
9.14.2018Sheslow Auditorium
Cage: Musicircus
Des Moines, IA
8.18.2018Sheslow Auditorium
Shoenfield
Des Moines, IA
7.27.2018Principal Group Financial Campus
Mozart, Weber
Des Moines, IA
5.29.2018Cortona Sessions for New Music
Pierce: Prima Materia, Cuong: Wax and Wire
Cortona, Italy
5.23.2018Cortona Sessions for New Music
Farrin: ma dentro dove
Cortona, Italy
5.20.2018Cortona Sessions for New Music
Mandat: Folk Songs
Cortona, Italy
4.21.2018Northwestern University New Music Conference
Lachenmann: Dal niente (Interieur III)
Evanston, IL
1.26.2018SPLICE Festival
Erik Spangler: Devonian Geometry
Kalamazoo, MI
1.19.2018Martha-Ellen Tye Hall
Ueno, Lachenmann, Farrin, Cuong, and Mandat
Ames, IA
10.6.2017Martha-Ellen Tye Hall
Kinan Azmeh: The Wedding
Ames, IA
10.1.2017Iowa West High School
Kinan Azmeh: The Wedding
Iowa City, IA
9.27.2017Martha-Ellen Tye Hall
David Taddie: Licorice Stick Groove
Ames, IA
7.29.2017ClarinetFest 2017
Folk Songs
Orlando, FL
7.28.2017ClarinetFest 2017
Mackey: Damn
Orlando, FL
7.14.2017Cortona Sessions for New Music
Todd Kitchen: Noiseful
Cortona, Italy
7.14.2017Cortona Sessions for New Music
Boulez: Dérive
Cortona, Italy
7.13.2017Cortona Sessions for New Music
Forrest Pierce: On the Fermentation of Honey
Cortona, Italy
7.11.2017Cortona Sessions for New Music
Viet Cuong: Apparition
Cortona, Italy
7.8.2017Cortona Sessions for New Music
Carter: Esprit Rude, Esprit Doux
Cortona, Italy
7.5.2017Sala Neumann
Berio Sequenza IXa
Cortona, Italy
5.12.2017New Music Gathering
Viet Cuong: Apparition (world premiere)
Bowling Green, OH
5.7.2017Greater Grand Forks Symphony Orchestra
Mozart Clarinet Concerto
Grand Forks, ND
3.25.2017Simpson College
Lachenmann: Dal Niente
Indianola, IA
10.14.2016University of Maryland, College Park
College Park, MD
10.10.2016Peabody Conservatory
Baltimore, MD
9.30.2016Martha-Ellen Tye Hall
Beethoven Trio Op. 11
Ames, IA
9.28.2016Sheslow Auditorium
Beethoven Trio Op. 11
Des Moines, IA
8.28.2016Martha-Ellen Tye Hall
Carter Gra
Ames, IA
8.19.2016Zenith Chamber Music Festival
Brahms Trio
Des Moines, IA
8.17.2016Zenith Chamber Music Festival
Glazunov
Des Moines, IA
5.24.2016Southern Illinois University Carbondale
Folk Songs
Carbondale, IL
5.1.2016Ames City Auditorium
Copland Clarinet Concerto
Ames, IA
4.2.2016Central College
Lachenmann: Dal Niente
Pella, IA
2.26.2016Martha-Ellen Tye Hall
Ueno: Rapt Afterness
Ames, IA
1.8.2016Peabody Conservatory
Lachenmann, Mandat, Ueno
Baltimore, MD
1.6.2016Baltimore Boom Bap Society, Windup Space
Improvisation
Baltimore, MD
9.29.2015Des Moines Social Club
Mantovani: Bug
Des Moines, IA
2.13.2015Martha Ellen Tye Hall
Works by Carter and Scelsi
Ames, IA
10.18.2014Martha Ellen Tye Recital Hall
Works by Bartók & Stravinsky
Ames, IA
3.21.2014The Firehouse Space
Smaldone, Schober, Füting, Scelsi and more
Brooklyn, NY
3.4.2014Chillicothe High School
Weber Concertino
Chillicothe, MO
2.23.2014Martha Ellen Tye Recital Hall
George Tsontakis: Eclipse
Ames, IA
2.1.2014Sheslow Auditorium, Drake University
Works by Gunnar Berg, Zoltan Paulinyi, James Romig
Des Moines, IA
10.2.2013Martha Ellen Tye Recital Hall
Improvisation
Ames, IA
9.16.2013Sheslow Auditorium, Drake University
Mozart Kegelstadt Trio & Wolff Exercises
Des Moines, IA
9.8.2013Martha Ellen Tye Recital Hall
Scelsi: Preghiera per un'ombra
Ames, IA
6.30.2013The Cortona Sessions
Works by Frank, Pierce, & Scelsi
Cortona, Tuscany
6.26.2013The Cortona Sessions
Ueno: I screamed at the sea until nodes swelled up, then my voice became the resonant noise of the sea
Civitella Ranieri, Tuscany
6.20.2013The Cortona Sessions
Ueno: I screamed at the sea until nodes swelled up, then my voice became the resonant noise of the sea
Cortona, Tuscany
4.24.2013Martha-Ellen Tye Recital Hall
John Mackey: Damn
Ames, IA
4.14.2013Des Moines Civic Center
Krommer Concerto for Two Clarinets
Des Moines, IA
4.13.2013Des Moines Civic Center
Krommer Concerto for Two Clarinets
Des Moines, IA
3.26.2013Popejoy Hall
Music of Ken Ueno
Albuquerque, NM
1.12.2013Oklahoma State University Single Reed Summit
Carter: Gra
Stillwater, OK
11.24.2012Burapha University Blackbox Theatre
Crackle Box Ritual
Burapha, Thailand
11.5.2012University of Michigan
Works by Carter, Chen, Hindemith, Kreiger, & Ueno
Ann Arbor, MI
9.14.2012Drake University
Works by Gavin Bryars, Arthur Kreiger
Des Moines, IA
8.3.2012International Clarinet Association Clarinetfest
Finnissy: Uzundara
Lincoln, NE
3.31.2012Iowa Clarinet Day
Mantovani: Bug
Pella, IA
3.16.2012STEIM Concept Stage
Ueno: Cracklebox Ritual
Amsterdam, Netherlands
3.10.2012Opensound Series
Ueno: Cracklebox Ritual
Boston, MA
2.16.2012Oklahoma State University New Music Festival
Ueno: I screamed at the sea until nodes swelled up, then my voice became the resonant noise of the sea
Stillwater, OK
8.3.2011International Clarinet Association ClarinetFest
Works by Mantovani and Scelsi
Los Angeles, CA
6.20.2011The Cortona Sessions
Works by Chen, Mandat, Ueno, & others
Cortona, Tuscany
3.27.2011MaerzMusik Festspiel
Ueno: I screamed at the sea until nodes swelled up, then my voice became the resonant noise of the sea
Berlin, Germany
3.6.2011Martha Ellen Tye Recital Hall
Works by Berkhout, Hollinden, Piazzola, & Prangcharoen
Ames, IA
10.16.2010Iowa Composers' Forum
Works by Bryden, Wray, Yip, & Zubow
Ames, IA
10.12.2010University of Nebraska, Lincoln
Works by Carter and Chen
Lincoln, NE
9.24.2010Martha Ellen Tye Recital Hall
Weber Concerto #2 with the ISU Symphony
Ames, IA
4.11.2010Martha Ellen Tye Recital Hall
Works by Bach, Brahms, & Debussy
Ames, IA
2.23.2010Ithaca College
Works by Mandat, Chen, Kreiger, Sierra, & Ueno
Ithaca, NY
12.4.2009Martha Ellen Tye Recital Hall
Works by Bogojevich, Minchew, Ruggiero, Theisen, & Ueno
Ames, IA
11.17.2009Lipa Festival of Contemporary Music
Scott Miller: Lovely Little Monster
Ames, IA
10.23.2009DePaul University
Works by Mandat, Chen, & Sierra
Chicago, IL
9.19.2009Iowa Clarinet Day
Schumann: Romance
Ames, IA
6.26.2009University of Oklahoma Clarinet Symposium
Works by Davidovsky, Kreiger, & Ruggiero
Norman, OK
5.15.2009Iowa Bandmasters' Convention
McAllister: Black Dog
Des Moines, IA
3.17.2009The Karnatic Lab, De Badcuyp
Chen, Felder, Mandat, McGowan, & Sierra
Amsterdam, Netherlands
2.28.2009Big 12 Clarinet Day
Eric Mandat: Folk Songs
Ames, IA
2.14.2009Ames Town and Gown Winter Musicale
Schumann: Three Romances
Ames, IA
1.23.2009PianoForte Salon Series WFMT
Works by Frank & Garrido-Lecca
Chicago, IL
12.10.2008University of California Berkeley
UC Berkeley Student Compositions
Berkeley, CA
12.8.2008University of California Berkeley
UC Berkeley Student Compositions
Berkeley, CA
12.5.2008Ames City Auditorium
McAllister: Black Dog
Ames, IA
11.6.2008Martha Ellen Tye Recital Hall
Works by Fiege, Frank, Garrido-Lecca, Guerra-Peixe, Sierra, Tacuchian, & Villa-Lobos
Ames, IA
10.23.2008Lipa Festival of Contemporary Music
Arthur Kreiger: Uncommon Bonds
Ames, IA
9.29.2008University of California Berkeley
Contemporary Techniques Masterclass
Berkeley, CA
9.15.2008Louisiana State University
Brahms: Quintet
Baton Rouge, LA
9.14.2008Parkway Heights
Brahms: Quintet
Hattiesburg, MS
9.6.2008Iowa Clarinet Day
Paganini: Moto Perpetuo
Pella, IA
7.5.2008International Clarinet Association ClarinetFest
Eric Mandat: Folk Songs & Chen Yi: Monologue
Kansas City, MO
4.4.2008Marsh Auditorium
Works by Brahms, Prokofiev, & Schubert
Hattiesburg, MS
3.9.2008University of Kansas Clarinet Day
Works by Carter, Chen, Mandat, & Mayer
Lawrence, KS
2.23.2008University of Montevallo
Works by Chen & Mandat
Montevallo, AL
2.16.2008New Pioneers Music Festival
Ortiz: Milonguitas
Laramie, WY
2.16.2008New Pioneers Music Festival
Works by Carter, Chen, Mandat, & Ueno
Laramie, WY
11.23.2007University of Campinas - UNICAMP
Works by Devienne, Mandat, Persichetti, & Telemann
Campinas, Brazil
11.22.2007University of Rio de Janerio - UNIRIO
Works by Devienne, Mandat, Persichetti, & Telemann
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
11.20.2007University of Brasília - UNB
Works by Devienne, Mandat, Persichetti, & Telemann
Brasília, Brazil
11.10.2007Elsa Ludewig-Verdehr Tribute Concert
Eric Mandat: Folk Songs
East Lansing, MI
10.31.2007Marsh Auditorium
Carter: Esprit Rude/Esprit Doux
Hattiesburg, MS
4.22.2007Gaudeamus Interpreters' Competition
Works by Altena, Berio, Carter, Janssen, Mandat, Stravinsky, & Ueno
Amsterdam, Netherlands
3.2.2007Marsh Auditorium
Altena, Berio, Carter, Mendelssohn, & Villa-Lobos
Hattiesburg, MS
2.16.2007Eastern Michigan University
Works by Altena, Berio, Carter, & Mandat
Ypsilanti, MI
2.13.2007Michigan State University
Works by Carter & Mandat
East Lansing, MI
12.8.2006Mississippi Bandmasters' Conference
Gould: Derivations & Paganini: Moto Perpetuo
Tupelo, MS
12.7.2006Bennett Auditorium
Morton Gould: Derivations
Hattiesburg, MS
11.17.2006Southeastern Louisiana University
Works by Bartók, Berio, Gould, Mandat, & Paganini
Hammond, LA
11.6.2006Tulane University
Shu Matsuda: Enlargement for Bass Clarinet & Computer
New Orleans, LA
8.11.2006International Clarinet Association ClarinetFest
Ueno: I screamed at the sea until nodes swelled up, then my voice became the resonant noise of the sea
Atlanta, GA
5.6.2006Intégrales New Music Festival
Works by Phillip Schroeder
Hattiesburg, MS
3.20.2006University of New Mexico
Works by Mandat, Paganini, & Smith
Albuquerque, NM
3.9.2006Marsh Auditorium
Bartók, Mandat, Nielsen, Paganini, & Smith
Hattiesburg, MS
2.24.2006University of North Carolina
Works by Mandat, Paganini, & Smith
Chapel Hill, NC
10.16.2005Concerto with the Bemidji Symphony Orchestra
Mozart Clarinet Concerto
Bemidji, MN
4.24.2005Western Carolina University
Works by Mandat, Martino, Osborne, Poulenc, Smith, Sutermeister, Stravinsky, & Tower
Cullowhee, NC
11.22.2003Princeton University
Works by Ueno
Princeton, NJ
10.18.2003Featured Soloist with the Denver Brass
Works by Gershwin
Denver, CO
10.3.2003University of Colorado
Works by Mandat and Berio
Boulder, CO
7.16.2003Central City Opera
Schubert: Shepherd on the Rock
Central City, CO
10.18.2002Dartmouth College
Cage, Koonce, McGowan, Polansky, Schwartz, Ueno, & Xenakis
Hanover, NH
4.28.2002Harvard University
Works by Bachman, Cheung, Cooman, Fuchs, Jodorkovsky, Heisey Rotner, Lewandoski, Ness, Ryan, Sedgewick, Stetson, & Trapani
Cambridge, MA
4.10.2002University of Colorado
Works by Berio, Dennisow, Mandat, & Poulenc
Boulder, CO
3.31.2002Concerten Tot en Met
Weisser, Clark, Vriezen, Doolittle, & Palacio-Quintin
Amsterdam, Netherlands
3.29.2002De Badcuyp
Bolkosky, deMey, McGowan, Davis, Schwartz, & Mingus
Amsterdam, Netherlands
3.25.2002Theatre Kikker
Bolkosky, deMey, McGowan, Davis, Schwartz, & Mingus
Utrecht, Netherlands
3.21.2002De IJsbreker
Bolkosky, deMey, McGowan, Davis, Schwartz, & Mingus
Amsterdam, Netherlands
10.24.2001Pendulum New Music Series
Eric Mandat: Folk Songs
Boulder, CO
5.2.2001University of Colorado
Stravinsky: The Soldier's Tale
Denver, CO
4.30.2001Fort Francisco Theatre
Stravinsky: The Soldier's Tale
La Veta, CO
4.20.2001Christ and St. Stephen's Church
Works by Evan Hause
New York, NY
4.19.2001Franklin Pierce College
Works by McMillen, McGowan, Hause, & Schwartz
Rindge, NH
4.18.2001Dartmouth College
Works by McMillen, McGowan, Hause, & Schwartz
Hanover, NH
3.7.2001Colorado Symphony Orchestra
Rossini: Introduction, Theme, & Variations
Denver, CO
8.4.2000Crested Butte Chamber Music Festival
Brahms: Quintet
Crested Butte, CO
6.17.2000De Badcuyp
Works by Carter, McGowan, Vleggar, Weisser, & Zappa
Amsterdam, Netherlands
11.19.1999Carnegie Hall: Weill Recital Hall
Schoenberg: Chamber Symphony & Suite op. 33
New York, NY
7.9.1999Colorado Music Festival
Works by Berg, Bernstein, & Debussy
Boulder, CO