$27,400 Awarded Thru Copying Assistance Program

Asking Copying Assistance Program (CAP) recipient composers what their awards mean to them is like asking a kid if he likes Christmas: you basically know the answer before you get it, but it’s still fun to hear.

The grants, awarded under the auspices of the American Music Center, help support the production of performance materials for up-and-coming composers or for established artists trying out something new—expenses that would otherwise have rested on the performing organization or come right out of the composer’s pocket (or commission).

“I simply can’t imagine the time and energy it would have taken to prepare the parts myself,” admits California-based composer Kurt Erickson, one of 24 composers who were awarded grants totaling $27,400 through the current CAP round. His award assisted with part preparation for the premiere performance of a 45-minute ballet Angels: Fallen & Otherwise, written for eight dancers and three separate performing groups (chamber ensemble, SATB chamber chorus, and boys chorus). “Without CAP assistance, the copying costs, which were formidable, would have come out of my own pocket,” he says.

This round of awards went to American composers ranging in age from 29 to 64 and residing in 11 states. A complete list of awardees and performers follows below.

“We are so pleased to continue the Copying Assistance Program as a valuable source of support for American composers,” says Richard Kessler, Executive Director of the AMC. “For over forty years, this program has provided assistance to composers at a critical juncture in the creative process.”

Carolyn Bremer is appreciative of the practical help. “The award will allow me to purchase high-quality 13×20 paper and print twelve sets of score and parts on a 1200 DPI laser printer. Without the grant, the scores and parts would have been duplicated at my local copy shop on inexpensive letter-size paper, and page turns would have been a nightmare.” For that, the performers will likely be as grateful as the composer.

Massachusetts composer Elena Ruehr finds herself in a situation that further demonstrates how the CAP awards are designed to help composers grow. “I’m in the happy position of having too many commissions at the moment, although not at a point where I can turn down any work that comes my way. I’ve just written an opera and have an orchestra piece deadline quickly coming both with a performance in 2003. Without the assistance, grant I would have had to copy the opera parts myself.”

Sorrel Hays, who will get a helping hand to prepare parts for her opera Queen Bee-ing, is just plain grateful that this kind of assistance is available. “I was lucky enough to know the intrepid Margaret Jory before she died. I am certain she is fluttering her wings and looking at us all and singing: ‘Keep up the good work all you composers. Here’s a little help from the angels at AMC.’ ”

A Complete List of current round CAP Grantees

David Azarow—Nyack, NY
Cric? Crac! (musical theatre)
SUNY Purchase College; Purchase, NY

Carolyn R. Bremer—Huntington Beach, CA
Symphony for Wind Band
Indiana Wind Symphony; CBDNA National Conference; Minneapolis, MN

Paul S. Chihara—New York, NY
Amatsu Kaze: Winds of Heaven (chamber music)
New Juillliard Ensemble; Whynote Festival; Dijon, France

Dan Coleman—Tucson, AZ
L’alma respira (orchestra)
American Composers Orchestra; Carnegie Hall; New York, NY

Constance Cooper—New York, NY
Acrobat (violin & cello concerto with chamber ensemble)
Vienna Janus Ensemble; Klangenfurt, Austria

Kurt Erickson—American Canyon, CA
Angels: Fallen & Otherwise (ballet; chorus & chamber ensemble)
Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, Baroque Choral Guild, and Ragazzi Boys Chorus; San Francisco, CA

Yoav Gal—Brooklyn, NY
The Dwarf (opera)
Vertical Player Repertory; Brooklyn, NY

Sorrel Doris Hays—New York, NY
Queen Bee-ing (opera)
Medicine Show Theater; New York, NY

Steve Horowitz—New York, NY
Mix/Remix (orchestra)
Symphonie Orkest Con Brio; Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Lu Pei—Louisville, KY
Dance of the Dragon (orchestra)
Minnesota Orchestra; Minneapolis, MN

John Mackey—New York, NY
Redline Tango (orchestra)
Brooklyn Philharmonic; BAM Opera House; Brooklyn, NY

Keeril Makan—Paris, France
Threads (electroacoustic sextet)
Paul Dresher Ensemble; ODC Theater; San Francisco, CA

Carl MaultsBy—Orlando, FL
When Mountains Move (orchestra)
Atlanta University Centerwide Orchestra; Atlanta, GA

Jonathan Newman—New York, NY
Uncle Sid (wind ensemble)
University of Nevada Las Vegas Wind Orchestra; Las Vegas, NV

Milica Paranosic—New York, NY
The Spoiled Show (opera)
Kammeroper Schloss Rheinsberg; Rheinsberg, Germany

Alba L. Potes—Elkins Park, PA
Cantares para Orquesta (orchestra)
Women’s Philharmonic; San Francisco, CA

Michael Remson—Houston, TX
Sibanda! (chamber opera)
Houston Grand Opera; Houston, TX

Belinda R. Reynolds—San Francisco, CA
Convergence (guitar concerto)
Sergio Puccini & National Symphony of Argentina; Buenos Aires, Argentina

Elena R. Ruehr—Brookline, MA
Toussaint Before the Spirits (ch
amber opera)
Boston Modern Orchestra Project; Boston, MA

Clark Suprynowicz—Oakland, CA
Caliban Dreams (opera)
Piedmont Choir and others; San Francisco, CA

Enid Sutherland—Ann Arbor, MI
Daphne and Apollo Remade (musical drama)
Phoenix Ensemble; University of Michigan; Ann Arbor, MI

Donald Reid Womack—Honolulu, HI
Violin Concerto (violin & orchestra)
Honolulu Symphony Orchestra; Honolulu, HI

Emily Wong—Yorktown Heights, NY
Tribute (piano quartet)
Concert Artists of Chappaqua; Westchester, NY

Mark Zanter—Huntington, WV
Diminutions (wind ensemble)
Marshall University Wind Symphony; Huntington, WV