Springtime for New Music

by Ted Gordon on March 13, 2012, 2:25 p.m.

A lot has happened at PSNY since we last brought you news of the first ever digital publication of Morton Subotnick's chamber music: we've added almost 20 new works by several of our composers, including Adrian Knight, Timothy Andres, Alex Mincek, Tobias Picker, Pierre Jalbert, and Fred Lerdahl. Here are some highlights from this recent round of additions:

Adrian Knight's "Daedaldualism," for electric guitar, synthesizer, and live electronics:

Like Subotnick, Knight writes much of his chamber music to include electronics, both fixed and live. We're especially exited to be able to publish his music through PSNY since it seems a perfect fit for music with electronics-- all patches and programs are downloadable, and we're more than happy to answer any questions about the technical requirements. 

Alex Mincek's "Karate", for two saxophones:

"Karate" is just one of several pieces Mincek has written for saxophone, an instrument with which he is intimately familiar. "Karate," in particular, bursts with virtuosic, competitive tension, as two saxophones are seemingly pitted against each other in battle. Strongly reminiscent of John Zorn's early "game pieces" in structure, as well as the wildly frenetic aesthetic of "For Alto"-era Anthony Braxton.

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A Note about Works and Covers

by Ted Gordon on Nov. 1, 2011, 3 p.m.

You might have noticed that the works on PSNY have several types of covers: some red, some yellow, and some with individual publishers' designs. Here's a quick breakdown:

Red covers, such as those for works by Gregory Spears, Timothy Andres, or Kate Soper, are for PSNY Composer Editions.

Yellow covers are for works by composers published exclusively by Schott Music, such as Tobias Picker, Alvin Singleton, and Robert Beaser. 

Other covers, such as those for works by Matthias Pintscher and Beat Furrer, are designed by those works' original publishers, for example Baerenreiter Verlag. 

But ultimately, these categories are secondary to the music itself. For many works on PSNY, you can hear audio samples or view videos of performances directly on those works' pages. For example, here's a video you can find on the page for Mario Diaz de Leon's "Trembling Time II":

 (via the wonderful Talea Ensemble, of course!)

For audio excerpts, many works have Soundcloud widgets, like this one for Tobias Picker's "String Quartet No. 2":  

Tobias Picker - String Quartet No. 2, mvt. I (Excerpt) by PSNY