Gerry Hemingway Photo by Ken van Sickle

2000 Guggenheim Fellowships: Gerry Hemingway

Gerry Hemingway has been composing and performing solo and ensemble music since 1974. Mr. Hemingway's newest working band is a quartet with either Ray Anderson, trombonist Robin Eubanks or trumpeter Herb Robertson, tenor saxophonist Ellery Eskelin and either Mark Dresser, Drew Gress or Mike Formanek on bass. The band performed 40 concerts in the U.S. in 1998 and its first recording, Johnny's Corner Song, was released on the Auricle Record label in March of 1998.

This disc follows twelve years of performances and recordings of his European based quintet whose most recent CD is Waltzes, Two-Steps and Other Matters of the Heart (GM Recordings). Previous recordings include Special Detail (1991), Down to the Wire (1993), Demon Chaser (1994) and The Marmalade King (1995) all on the Swiss hatArt label, plus Slamadam (1995) and Perfect World (1996) on the Random Acoustics label. The group gave its final performances at the 1998 Nickelsdorf Konfrontation and at the Clusone Festival. Recent recordings of his music for solo percussion include Electro-Acoustic Solo Works (1984-1995) and Acoustic Solo Works (1983-1994), both issued by Random Acoustics. Previous vinyl editions, both still in print, include Solo Works (Auricle Records) and Tubworks (Sound Aspects).

Mr. Hemingway recently completed two commissions, one from Arcadian Arts with funding from the Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust for a string quartet entitled Contigualis. The other entitled The Visiting Tank was commissioned by the Parabola Arts Foundation and the New York State Council on the Arts and was for a string quartet plus live electronics. The program, which was presented at Merkin Hall in New York City on February 25th, 1999, was rounded out with two other chamber works that are revisions of earlier commissions. They include Aurora, originally commissioned by bass trombonist David Titcomb for sextet, and Circus originally commissioned by clarinetist Don Byron for quintet. The entire program was recorded for Tzadik.

One of his more recent commissions was from the Holland Festival and NPS radio of the Netherlands was for a performance in June of 1998. The commission was for a co-composition with the Amsterdam based composer Guus Jannsen. Entitled Cycles, the work used a unique computer controlled conducting system that allowed the ensemble to play in multiple tempos. In addition to receiving fellowships from both the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York Foundation on the Arts, he has also received four prior commissions from the Parabola Arts Foundation with funding from N.Y.S.C.A.: Aivilik Rays, a concert-length work for solo work for tape and percussion, Polar, a quadrophonic electronic work, Lattice Bright in Glory's Lambence which was premiered by Mr. Hemingway's mixed quintet at Merkin Hall in January 1995; and Ghosts of Reason, a chamber work for the Episteme ensemble which was premiered at New York City's Town Hall in March 1991. A recording of that project was made in 1995 and will eventually be released on CRI records. In 1993, he premiered Terrains, a concerto for percussionist and orchestra, with the Kansas City Symphony, a work commissioned by the orchestra with funding from Meet The Composer. The work was later revised and performed by the Kölner Rundfunk Orchestra in September 1997.

His work as a composer and percussionist includes recordings and performances with Derek Bailey, Leo Smith, Oliver Lake, Kenny Wheeler, Frank Gratkowski, George Lewis, John Cale and Hank Roberts. He was a member of the Anthony Braxton Quartet from 1983-1995 and more recently has been performing as a member of the Reggie Workman Ensemble. He is a core member of Anthony Davis' Episteme Ensemble and has performed and recorded as a featured soloist on Mr. Davis' violin concerto Maps as well as the operas Under the Double Moon and Tania. The latter was recorded in April of 1999.

Mr. Hemingway also participates in a many collaborative projects including BassDrumBone with Ray Anderson and Mark Helias (for 22 years!). Their most recent recording is Cooked to Perfection (Auricle Records, 1999). Other projects include a trio with German pianist Georg Graewe and cellist Ernst Reijseger whose CDs include Sonic Fiction (hatArt), View From Points West (Music & Arts), Zwei Nachte in Berlin (Sound Aspects), Flex 27 (Random Acoustics) and Saturn Cycle (Music & Arts). With pianist Marilyn Crispell, he has toured Europe and recorded for Knitting Factory Works. Cascades, a recording of a cooperative trio of Hemingway, Crispell and Barry Guy, was released in December 1995. Hemingway is also a member of the cooperative quartet, Tambastics, with flutist Robert Dick, pianist Denman Maroney and bassist Mark Dresser whose debut CD is on Music & Arts. In May 1999, Mr. Hemingway performed in duet with pianist Cecil Taylor on the invitation of De Singel in Antwerp, Belgium.

Mr. Hemingway is also co-leader of the Iliad Quartet with James Emery for whom he composed an extended suite entitled Double Blues Crossing, underwritten by the Meet The Composer/Readers Digest Commissioning Program. Mr. Hemingway also performs regularly as a duo with live electronics and saxophone virtuoso, Earl Howard. "Tom & Gerry" is another duo with Thomas Lehn who performs live analog electronics. He also has been performing recently with vocalist Andrea Goodman known for her work with Meredith Monk. They have released a recording Divine Doorways (Ruby Throated Records). His work for multimedia includes Waterways, for multiple slide projectors, tape and percussion, as well as an ongoing collaboration with video artist/animator Beth Warshafsky.