A Perfunctory Summer Update
Because y'all don't need another hot take on the state of affairs in the U.S. of A.
Apologies for the lengthy(ish) radio silence. I’ve had my head down, working on a new orchestral song cycle-type thing, premiering this fall in Portland before it heads to Cincinnati and eventually to Los Angeles. But perhaps more to the point, it’s hard to know what to say in a moment like this, other than to lament the tragic consequences of this nation’s relapse into minority rule.
I write this morning from extremely beautiful and mercifully not-on-fire Southern Oregon, having driven down yesterday from Portland.
This weekend, I’ll appear twice at the Britt Festival: tomorrow evening I’ll sing a suite of five songs drawn from Magnificent Bird, accompanied by the Britt Festival Orchestra. Tessa Lark plays Leonard Bernstein’s ravishing Serenade on the same program; I’m looking forward to sitting on the lawn for that! Then on Sunday, I’ll make my conducting debut (!?) in a program of mostly Latin-American works. I’ll lead Arturo Márquez’ Danzon No. 2, while the rest of the evening will be helmed by Britt’s intrepid leader, Teddy Abrams, who conceived the Composer/Conductor Fellowship at Britt in order to encourage those who write music to learn how to advocate for their work on the podium. I expect to make a fool of myself, if not in performance, then most definitely in rehearsal.
Later in the month, I will head to Lincoln, Nebraska, for a pair of concerts: a solo performance of Book of Travelers, to be followed a few days later by Magnificent Bird with string quartet. Over the next year, I’m going to be pairing these two pieces in a number of cities; stay tuned for more details.
In other news, I’ve been moonlighting as an arranger a fair bit in the last few months, most recently with a string chart for a new single from Sylvan Esso. I’ve put together, for your enjoyment and/or bemusement, a playlist of songs I’ve worked on as an arranger, producer, co-writer, and occasionally as a performer. This includes collaborations with Phoebe Bridgers, Sufjan Stevens, Blake Mills, Aoife O’Donovan, Punch Brothers, and more…
That’s all for now.
Sending you love and fortitude,
Gabriel
P.S. The Book of Travelers songbook is back in stock.
Is that Mt. Shasta in the distance?