Nancy Uscher is currently Provost of the California Institute of the Arts. The following correspondence involved questions from her daughter, Alessandra Barrett, now a student at CalArts, regarding the term “minimalist music” and my association with the composer Steve Reich. December 1, 2008 Dear Bob: I think I mentioned that Alessandra (my daughter) had decided… Read more »
The First NEXUS Label CD
Q: What was involved in creating the NEXUS label and doing your first CD? A: The idea for creating our own ‘NEXUS’ CD label emerged when Ray Dillard and I were on a long drive in a rental truck transporting NEXUS instruments between concerts in Queensland, Australia in 1988. In that year personal computers were… Read more »
“POPS” Goes the Family Programming
The holidays are upon us! In every corner of the globe there are celebrations – I’ll give you a list of a “baker’s dozen” at the end of this post. It has set me to thinking about the FAMILY and POPS repertoire in the NEXUS programme collection. “An African Celebration” is a joyous programme with… Read more »
Recent Events, 2008
December 7, 2008 The past three weeks have been almost non-stop travel, beginning with a concert at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MassMOCA) in Williamstown, MA and ending at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks, AK. In between, was a solid week of workshops, clinics and concerts in southern Michigan, including stops at University… Read more »
Woodstock’s Percussion Connections
Bob Becker’s blog mentions George Hamilton Greene‘s grave in Woodstock’s Artists’ Cemetery. (For a nice winter view of this peaceful place, click John Cage, Peter Schickele and many others have premiered new works. Drumtalker. Woodstock has several other famous percussion inhabitants too: Brazilian-born Cyro Baptista who began his work in North America with a scholarship… Read more »
JOHN CAGE: Honky Tonk, Laughter and Fungi
I admit I’m a “newbie” when it comes to John Cage. I know of the man, of course, but had never really heard his work. I knew about the 4 minutes and 33 seconds of silence; – I certainly hadn’t heard that! And I’d seen any number of send-ups of “prepared pianos” (a Cage innovation)…. Read more »
Eternal Dance of Life – World Premiere
Get the latest Flash Player to see this player. [Javascript required to view Flash movie, please turn it on and refresh this page] World Premiere performance – SMU University November 4, 2008 – Caruth Auditorium Meadows Wind Ensemble – Jack Delaney conducting
You’re In The Army Now
NEXUS member Robin Engelman has just returned from Sweden and Finland where he was the guest of each country’s army! A bit unusual, you might think, but it’s due to Robin’s long-held fascination with military drumming, the historic rope tensioned field drums, and fife and drum music. He’s become an expert in the field (pun… Read more »
What Makes NEXUS Run
If you have booked NEXUS, then you know Ray Dillard, the NEXUS Business Manager. He’s the man we turn to when we need to know if a gig can work logistically. He can tell us how many cases each instrument set-up takes, what we need in terms of light and sound, how many hours we… Read more »
PEARL and ADAMS Can Help You Out!
Adams Musical Instruments and Pearl Drums are two of our Sponsors. They help us out in a whole lot of ways and they can help you out too. Did you know that Pearl/Adams will help you financially if you wish to present a NEXUS educational event such as a clinic, workshop, or master-class?
Garry’s Bio
GARRY KVISTAD is the founder and owner of Woodstock Percussion, Inc., makers and distributors of Woodstock Chimes® and the Woodstock Music Collection®, an award-winning line of musical instruments for children. Both are sold worldwide. As a professional musician, Garry has performed and recorded with the ensemble Steve Reich and Musicians since 1979 and won a… Read more »
Russell Hartenberger
Russell Hartenberger is Professor Emeritus and former Dean of the Faculty of Music, University of Toronto. He has been a member of both the percussion group Nexus and Steve Reich & Musicians since 1971. He began his percussion studies in Oklahoma City with Alan Abel. In 1966 he received his B. Mus degree from Curtis… Read more »
Bill Cahn (July, 2010)
Bill Cahn has been a member of the NEXUS percussion quintet since 1971, and was the principal percussionist in the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra from 1968 to 1995. Born in Philadelphia in 1946, Bill has performed with conductors, composers, ensembles, and artists representing diverse musical styles – Chet Atkins, John Cage, Aaron Copland, Chuck Mangione, Mitch… Read more »
WEIRD INSTRUMENTS and the SCIENCE OF SOUND
Today I want to tell you about Garry Kvistad’s collection of strange instruments and his Science of Sound workshop. Garry is the “newbie” with NEXUS. He joined NEXUS in 2002 when founding member John Wyre retired, so he’s been a Nexonian for a mere 6 years compared to NEXUS’ thirty-seven!
2007 Highlights
2007 Highlights January – returned to Japan for a week of concerts at the Amakusa ISLAND MAGIC 2007 festival with marimbist, Mika Yoshida, clarinetist Richard Stoltzman, bassist Eddie Gomez, and pianist Peter John Stoltzman. The ensemble performed in New York at Carnegie Hall the following week. February – workshops presented at the University of Kansas… Read more »
