News
Summer 2009
Tim Fain to record The Light Guitar for Naxos. Violinist Tim Fain is recording the solo violin piece written for him, The Light Guitar, on a CD of American Music for the Naxos label. The recording, which is scheduled for late August, will be produced by legendary Sony producer Steve Epstein.
Three Romances Premiere. The Three Romances for Violin and Piano, begun in 2005 and completed in early 2008, will finally be performed as a set for the first time, by the wonderful musicians for whom the piece was written, pianist Simone Ferraresi and violinist Kristin Lee. See Attend for full details.
Spring 2009
Chamber Symphony Complete. Patrick Zimmerli finished his Chamber Symphony on December 31, 2008. The four-movement, thirty-minute piece received its premiere on March 19th from the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Scott Yoo, with a repeat performance on March 21. The performance was exhilarating, with virtuosic playing from all the St. Paul musicians and an intense finish under Maestro Yoo’s incredibly charged direction. There was a lot of enthusiasm about the piece, everyone is hoping for a repeat performance.
Yoshitoshi’s Ghost in NYC. Zimmerli appeared with the Columbia Jazz Composers’ Collective in a concert on February 27, 2009 at Miller Theater. Zimmerli was the featured saxophone soloist on his big band piece Yoshitoshi’s Ghost, which was written in 2003 in fulfillment of that year’s Gil Evans Commission.
Spectres. Spectres, Zimmerli’s new large-scale, multimovement work for solo viola received its premiere in Quito, Ecuador this winter. It was written for Viola virtuoso and new music champion Brett Deubner, who will give the piece its New York premiere on May 8, 2009 at Christ & St. Stephens Church on the Upper West Side.
Residency. Zimmerli has been named 2011 Composer in Residence of Music in the Loft, an innovative chamber music series in Chicago. Included is a commission for a piece for two pianos, as well as performances of the Piano Trio #1, American Spiritual for String Quartet, and other works.
Management. Zimmerli has signed on with Standing Ovation Arts. The North-Carolina-based agency features some of today’s most exciting up-and-coming performers. They will represent Zimmerli’s ensemble Emergence and its smaller variations, as well as representing Zimmerli as composer.
Publishing. Second Floor Music, a subsidiary of Boosey and Hawkes, will publish Zimmerli’s Three Romances for Violin and Piano, as well as several solo piano pieces and mixed ensemble works.
Current Projects. In between finalizing recording plans for Modern Music, working on his new ensemble, and fulfilling his Colorado College orchestral commission (see Fall 2008 below), Zimmerli is sneaking in a few smaller pieces: for MAYA, the forward-thinking chamber ensemble led by Sato Moughalian, as well as a political piece on the Mexican drug trade for Susanna Phillips, who recently debuted at the Met Opera as Musetta in Franco Zeffirelli’s production of La Boheme.
Fall 2008
Work on Modern Music Continues. The project, which features jazz piano titans Kevin Hays and Brad Mehldau, consists of pieces of the contemporary classical music canon—by Reich, Pärt, Glass, Gorecki, Strauss, Ornette Coleman, and others—in new jazz arrangements with improvisation. Also featured will be several original compositions by Hays, Mehldau, and Zimmerli.
Commissions. Zimmerli is writing a large-scale orchestral work in honor of the 25th anniversary of the Colorado College Chamber Music Festival. The work will have a cross-disciplinary element, taking as its theme some of the great architectural achievements in the last three decades. Also on the books for 2010 is a piece for Arizona Friends of Chamber Music.
New Ensemble. A new band project is in the works, lots of new music being written. Details coming soon…
Summer Recording. Producer and publisher Don Sickler is putting together a recording and DVD of Zimmerli compositions, including the piano pieces, the three romances, and several works for ensemble. The all-star cast includes Australian pianist Ambre Hammond, violin virtuoso and longtime Zimmerli collaborator Yoon Kwon, Satoshi Takeishi bringing the magic on percussion, and introducing the young piano whiz Euntaek Kim. At only 20, Euntaek is already in the masters’ program at Juilliard. He has conducting ambitions as well, and is an incredibly well-rounded and seasoned musician. Recording will take place out at legendary engineer Rudy Van Gelder’s studio.
Zimmerli to be Performed in Sweden. Three concerts have been arranged in Sweden and Ystad for late July 2009, featuring Magnus Bage and Alexander Berne. See Attend section for more information.
Emergence Recording Complete. Scott Colley played bass with a great string section of Tim Fain, Beth Guterman, Michi Waincko, and Julia Bruskin. Stay tuned for release information.
Emergence Video. Emergence had a great concert and a packed house on Feb 29th for our live video recording at Arium. Wonderful performances were turned in by all, with Tim Fain and Alexander Berne playing especially beautifully.
Three Romances Complete. The pieces, for Simone Ferraresi and Kristin Lee, were completed in late March. Stay tuned for premiere information.
Fanfare Reviews the Trios. The Piano Trios received several enthusiastic reviews in Fanfare magazine, the most recent by Walter Simmons. Read the reviews.
Emergence Recording at Stadium Red. Following the concert we laid down some string tracks with veteran engineer Tom Lazarus at Ornette Coleman’s old studio, a comfortable space in Harlem. Tom got an amazing sound as always.
Dates for Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra Premiere Announced. The three-movement work will be performed on March 19 and 21 of 2009.
News Archive
Previous news items can be read on the archived Website v.1.