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Modern Works For Saxophone, Electric Guitar Set For Tonight

The Bullock Performance Institute series continues tonight with a concert of new works for saxophone and electric guitar, performed by saxophonist Drew Whiting and guitarist John Mayrose. Whiting, Mayrose, and composer Ed Martin join Cara Lieurance for a preview.

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Saxophonist DREW WHITING leads a multifaceted career as an educator, performer, and scholar. His diverse musical interests include the standard concert saxophone repertoire, jazz, transcriptions of borrowed works, commissioning new works, and improvisation. Drew has established himself as a champion of new and experimental music, regularly performing works from the 20th and 21st centuries in solo, chamber, and electroacoustic settings. He recently performed at the Toronto International Electroacoustic Symposium, Ball State University Festival of New Music, Third Practice Festival, and the Navy Band Saxophone Symposium, and presented the first ever Performer-Curated Concert at the 2017 SEAMUS Conference. In addition to performing, Whiting is a dedicated and vibrant educator. He has presented master classes at Grand Valley State University, Illinois State University, Lawrence Conservatory, Ohio State University, and Oklahoma State University, and has previously taught on the faculties of Illinois Wesleyan University and Spring Arbor University. Currently, Whiting is a member of the music faculty at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. Whiting received his Bachelors and Masters of Music degrees from the Michigan State University College of Music where he studied with Joseph Lulloff. He earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign where he studied with Debra Richtmeyer. He is a Yamaha Performing Artist and a Vandoren Regional Artist, exclusively performing on Yamaha saxophones and Vandoren woodwind products.

ED MARTIN is an award-winning composer whose music has been performed worldwide at events such as the ISCM World New Music Days, International Computer Music Conferences, World Saxophone Congresses, the Seoul International Computer Music Festival, Confluences – Art and Technology at the Edge of the Millennium in Spain, and the International Electroacoustic Music Festival Santiago de Chile. His works have been programed at numerous venues throughout United States by ensembles such as the Minnesota Symphony Orchestra, Ear Play, the Empyrean Ensemble, the Synchromy Ensemble, Musical Amoeba, the Bells of the Cascades, and duoARtia. His music is recorded on the Mark, Centaur, innova, Parma, Emeritus, and SEAMUS labels and has received first prize awards from the Percussive Arts Society, Musical Amoeba, the Electro-Acoustic Miniatures International Contest, the Craig and Janet Swan Composer Prize for orchestral music, and the Tampa Bay Composers’ Forum. He was co-host of the 2012 Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the U.S. National Conference and serves on the board of directors of the Wisconsin Alliance for Composers. Martin holds degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (D.M.A.), University of Texas at Austin (M.M.), and the University of Florida (B.M.). He is Professor of Music at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh where he teaches composition and music theory, and has also taught at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Illinois Wesleyan University. Visit edmartincomposer.com for more information.

JOHN MAYROSE’s compositions have been performed throughout the world and at festivals including the CBDNA conference, SEAMUS, Toronto International Electro-acoustic Symposium, Electronic Music Midwest, Boston Early Music Festival, the Oregon Bach Festival, and the Aspen Music Festival by, among others, Michael Mizrahi, Duo 46, Chatterbird, Fireworks Ensemble, Pulsoptional, and several university wind and percussion ensembles. Mayrose has received prizes from the Percussive Arts Society and the ASCAP Morton Gould Award. His music is recorded on New Amsterdam, Fugu Fish, and Classic Concert labels. An active performer on guitar and electric bass he is a founding member of Pulsoptional, a new music ensemble and composers collective based in Durham, North Carolina. Recordings by Pulsoptional are on Innova and Fugu Fish labels. Mayrose holds degrees from Duke University (Ph.D. Music Composition) and the University of South Carolina (B.M. Guitar Performance). John Mayrose is an Associate Professor of Music at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh.

Cara Lieurance is the local host of NPR's All Things Considered on 1021 WMUK and covers local arts & culture on Let's Hear It on 89.9 Classical WMUK weekday mornings at 10 - 11 am.
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