Tuesday Tunes

Tuesday Tunes

blanton_musicians

 

The 2015 Frame Dance Music Composition Competition submissions are closed. We are actively reviewing and thrilled about the submissions this year!   Here’s a look at some of our previous winners, and remember that it could be you for 2015!  Next week, we will tell you what the past winners are up to now…

Previous Winners

 

2014

First Placemusic3

Robert Honstein an index of possibility, for percussion trio

Second Place

Matthew Peterson

Rain Dances, for quadrophonic mixed media

Third Place

Jonathan Russell

Five Two Tango, for two violins

Film Score Winnermusicc

D. Edward Davis

cliff nesting, for alto saxophone with the sounds of Black-legged Kittiwakes near Seward, Alaska

2013 Winner

Robert McClure

2012 Winner

Charles Halka

2011 Winner

Micah Clark

 

 

 

 

MFA Monday: Surprises of Grad School

MFA Mondays

MFA rightBiggest Surprises of Grad School

 by Amanda Diorio

 

I would make friends

I thought when I went back to school to get my MFA that I would be entering an uptight academic environment.  I was so preoccupied with the idea of school and relocating my life that I forgot I would be entering a community of like-minded peers. In undergrad, even among dance majors, I was considered the “dance nerd,”   In grad school I was surrounded by not only dancers but specifically  “dance nerds,” people who wanted to explore, dissect and reveal as much about the art as I did.  This community turned out to be a vital support group throughout the process of completing my degree.  Having others to bitch to, socialize, laugh, and share my fledgling art with became essential for my survival during this stressful time.  These bonds were not only a lifeline during the process but created many long lasting friendships and an excellent network that stands strong long after graduation.

 

The teacher/student relationship has evolved

When you enter a graduate program you have already passed a test in the eyes of the faculty.  You have already completed one major academic step and have decided to continue onto another. There are fewer grad students for them to keep track of and you yourself are probably a much better student.  For me this reduced a lot of the intimidationI felt with my undergraduate professors.  Continue reading

Links We Like

Links We Like Performances/Screenings

For links we like we thought we’d throw back to some Frame Dance Tiny Dances from our show called The Black Space.  We made a series of these tiny silent films that were made to be viewed on a smart phone.  Stay tuned for the second one next Friday.

 

The Black Space: Tiny Dance 1 from Frame Dance Productions on Vimeo.

Tuesday Tunes

Composers Tuesday Tunes

musiccLast week for submissions to the Frame Dance Music Composition Competition!

We’re calling all composers to submit to our annual music competition to find a collaborator for one of our live dances, and/or one of our dance films. We’ll be using the winner’s music in one of our pieces for the Spring season.

We do not accept works previously licensed to third-party publishing companies.  This requirement, of course, does not limit works that are self-published where the composer has not entered into a licensing relationship with a third party.music3

The entry fee is $15.00. Composers may submit one, two, or three pieces for the single entry fee.

Submission Guidelines
Works may be written for solo, duet, trio, quartet, or quintet.
Acoustic works that utilize electronic playback are also acceptable.
Electronic music is accepted and encouraged.

Deadline is January 9, 2015

Winner will be announced January 30, 2015 

SUBMIT HERE.

Links We Like

Links We Like

Happy New Year!  Beginnings are my favorite.  There’s so much hope and there hasn’t been time for discouragement yet.  There hasn’t been time yet for failure or hurt.  There hasn’t been time to hurt metrodance1others.  It’s clean and everyone is trying to be his or her best self.  I wonder, why can’t each new day have the promise of the new year? I think it requires stepping beyond the past.

2014 has been a fabulous year for us at Frame Dance, and so much because of the support of our audience, friends, donors, and family.  It’s not easy creating something out of nothing, and now in our fifth year, we feel like we really have something to be proud of.  The dancers and collaborators have worked so hard, and I am truly in awe of how much of themselves they have put into the work we’ve done.  Sometimes it can be lonely figuring out how, exactly, to lead a new arts organization– how to

Photo by David DeHoyos
Photo by David DeHoyos

pursue a vision, but be smart and strategic in the practicalities, thinking of the artists and how to challenge them and showcase their strengths, thinking of our community and the art that would enrich it.  There are a lot of moving pieces I consider in how to make Frame Dance a thriving, growing, relevant arts organization serving its community.

The dance we’ve made has the fingerprint of so many artists.  Frame Dance is a manifestation of dancers, composers, photographers, writers, children, parents, musicians, chefs…(shall I go on?)  It is the manifestation of the board and of myself and the many, many people who have fought for it.  It is the manifestation of those who have given us opportunities, spoken and written supportive words, commissioned new works, and those who have given us a critical eye, and a corrective voice.

While it is cleaner to let go of the past while embarking on this new year, I choose to remember the past, with gratitude and a breath of distance.  Onward and upward, soldiers.  There’s more art to be made.  You are a part of it whether you create it, support it, experience it, or share it.  We need all of you.

photo by Leticia London
photo by Leticia London

With an expectant heart of gratitude,

Lydia