Alan Theisen (b. 4 October 1981; Port Huron, Michigan) is a Ph.D. graduate assistant in the Department of Music Theory at the Florida State University.
Composing since the age of sixteen, he has produced a steadily growing body of work distinguished by its musical energy and concentration of expression.
Representative works by Theisen include a Sonata for Alto Saxophone and Piano, Variations on a Theme of Gretchaninov, Eclogue for flute, and the Concerto for Alto Saxophone and String Orchestra (premiered by soloist Lawrence Gwozdz and the Szczecin Philharmonic in 2004). Recent compositions and commissions include Ritorno for flute and cello and a Triple Concerto. Noted composer Dimitri Terzakis commends Theisen's oeuvre as being "the product of a unique talent."
As a saxophonist, Theisen has toured the United States and Canada with the Sax-Chamber Orchestra, performing at two World Saxophone Congresses (Montreal - 2000, Minneapolis - 2003). He studied the instrument with internationally-recognized performer Lawrence Gwozdz and participated in masterclasses with famed saxophone pioneer Jean-Marie Londeix. No stranger to the podium, Theisen has been a guest conductor with several ensembles.
In an effort to showcase both his own original compositions and pieces by other contemporary composers, he founded the Intégrales New Music Festival in 2005. Now an annual event, Intégrales NMF features world-premiere performances by nationally recognized musicians. Intégrales has expanded to include musical collaborations with artists, authors, and dancers.
Theisen wrote his undergraduate thesis on György Ligeti's Piano Etudes, and has authored several papers on topics including Elliott Carter, film editing, composition as analysis, and Michael Brecker.
Other interests include mathematics, film criticism, and philosophy; in addition, Theisen has performed the role of Oberon in a production of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, for which he also wrote the incidental music.
Theisen lives with his wife (and puts up with their two cats) in Tallahassee, Florida.
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Thursday, June 23, 2005
Integrales 2006 - An Invitation
Whew! I'm finally back from vacation. I don't think I've ever longed for my own bed so much...
On to more pressing matters...
If you've read my over-long biography, you may have noticed that I started a new music festival down here in Hattiesburg, MS called Integrales. Integrales 2005 was a modest success - we managed to draw a decent crowd to a night concert filled with Berio, Reich, Carter, (cough,cough) Theisen, and our very own Everette Minchew. For Integrales 2006, I'd like to fill a whole weekend with concerts and recitals. The anticipated dates for the festival are May 5, 6, and 7, 2006 (Friday through Sunday).
I would be honored to program works by Sequenza21 composers that weekend. If you have a chamber composition you think would be appropriate, feel free to contact me and we'll see what we can do. I cannot promise that every request will be honored, as finding performers in this area can be a pain in the you-know-where. My only stipulation is that the compositions should sound like they are the product of the contemporary musical experience, i.e. no "this is my best effort to sound exactly like Bach" pieces. (But, then again, wouldn't that kind of self-conscious reflection be a part of the modern musical Zeitgeist? Oh, no; I can see the responses already!)
Electronic music is welcome! Do your worst....I mean, best.
Recommended instrumentation: flute, saxophones, bassoon, horn, horn quartet, wind quintet, wind sextet (ww5+sax), violin. DO NOT LIMIT YOURSELF, THOUGH! I conducted a pretty good performance of Reich's Vermont Counterpoint on Integrales 2005 - and that meant wrangling 11 flutists and tracking down three alto flutes (not easy!). I will be conducting most of the ensemble pieces on Int'06.
Speaking of ensemble pieces, I hope to premiere my latest creation on Integrales 2006 -
"...strange seas of Thought, alone" : Concerto for Three Instruments and Wind Ensemble
I've been working on this thing in my evil laboratory for quite some time. For those of you intrigued by my earlier comment on blending Carter and Radiohead, well.....here you go! I'd love to have an audience - come on down to Integrales 2006.
Also on the program will be my fiendishly difficult Sonata for Alto Saxophone and Piano. About two years ago, I got pissed that neither Bartok nor Ligeti (two of my favorite composers) ever got around to writing a full-blooded piece for my instrument (or any kind of piece for that matter). So I channeled Bela and Gyorgy into this 16-minute microtonal Romantic monster (complete with a passing reference to Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta). My Sonata actually turned out far better than I had hoped for. I was a little scared by how successful it was - despite the quarter-tones and etcetera, the relatively conservative audience really dug it.
Has this happened to anyone else? A piece that exceeds even the creator's expectations?
posted by Alan Theisen
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