Twelfth Night
This summer I get the opportunity to try my skills at a little bit of Shakespeare. I will be acting in Greenville Summer Shakespeare’s production of Twelfth Night. If you are in the Greenville area please make plans to attend one (or more) of our 10 performances during June and July. This production is directed by Jeff Stegall (as always) and will feature actors such as Philip Eoute, Paul Radford, Ben Toler, David Bean, Allisha Sperr, Jeff Stegall himself, and more (ooh… and me, too!). Information and a link to purchase tickets online can be found at www.summershakespeare.org. You can also become a fan on facebook.
“Why, this is very midsummer madness!”
New Recordings
I have updated my Works page with two new recordings from the recent student composition recital on May 4th.
- O Thou in Whose Presence (SATB choir, piano)
- Benediction (SATB choir, string quartet)
I am thrilled with the quality of the singers’ work in this recital especially considering they only rehearsed these songs once right before the recital. Good work, all! The recordings feature my teacher, Dan Forrest, at the piano and fellow composition major John Hudson conducting. The string quartet was comprised of Sam Arnold, violin; Lydia Anglea, violin; Ron Sondergaard, viola; and Chris Erickson, cello. Enjoy!
I Made it to the Cover of TIME
For the May 31, 2010 edition of TIME Magazine, TIME started a Facebook group called “I Want To Be in TIME” asking for volunteers to have their picture possibly placed on the cover of the magazine in conjunction with a story on Facebook (specifically on their privacy issues and ways that it is connecting people). Approximately 3,000 people signed on to the project and my profile picture was one of 1,295 chosen to be on the cover. I am 2 up, 2 right from the arrow pointing to the author, Dan Fletcher (near the bottom). Click on the picture to the right to see it larger.
Annual Student Composition Recital
From the studios of Dan Forrest and Joan Pinkston…
Come enjoy a recital of some of the best student compositions of the 2009-2010 school year! The recital will feature premieres by Peter Anglea, Mark Buller, Kimberly Hawkey, John Hudson, Caleb Lynch, and Sara Morris. Take a break from your exam prep and support new music by student composers!
When: Tuesday, May 4th 5:00pm
Where: War Memorial Chapel at Bob Jones University.
I will have two new choral pieces premiered in the recital: O Thou in Whose Presence and Benediction for SATB choir and string quartet.
Save the Date
I have just scheduled the date/time for my graduate composition recital next year. Here’s the info:
What? Peter Anglea’s Graduate Composition Recital
When? Monday, April 18th, 2011 at 5pm
Where? War Memorial Chapel on the campus of Bob Jones University
That’s next spring on the Monday of Easter week. The recital will feature all original music composed by myself – about 45 minutes worth.
Click here for an iCal appointment that you can download.
Thy Morn Shall Rise
Last semester I had my first opportunity to write incidental music for a live performance, and this month the play for which I wrote it will be premiered. Thy Morn Shall Rise by Diana Smith will be performed April 8-10 on the campus of Northland International University. Diana and I began collaborating on the music for this play this past fall and I was able to get the music handed off to Northland by January.
The music consists of four live performers in a small chamber group – piano, cello, violin, and clarinet. I used the same basic 5-note motif (C,E,D,B,C) as the basis for each theme/character. It is played in several different moods and styles – some major, some minor, some modal, one is a modal mixture, and one is even in 10/8 time (hopefully the performers don’t have a hard time with that one). 
Most of the snippets of music are for scene changes and such and are only 30 seconds long or shorter. I did write a few bits of music that were longer, notably a prelude and music to accompany the recitation of a poem. All in all, it came to about 10-15 minutes of music. I had fun writing it and seeing how much “mileage” I could get out of one 5-note theme.
Not having actually heard the music performed live (Finale playback is only so satisfying…), I look forward to hearing what they do with the music. Maybe they’ll send me a recording of some sort (hint, hint). If you happen to be in/go to the play, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the music.
P.S. Northland has set up a Facebook event for the performance with more information.
Samson et Dalila
Since the beginning of the fall semester last year, I have been busy learning the music for this year’s opera at Bob Jones, Samson et Dalila by Saint-Saens. I am in the Hebrew Chorus. Beginning this semester, we have been rehearsing on stage in Rodeheaver Auditorium multiple times a week in preparation for the opera. As I’m typing this entry, we are in the middle of a rehearsal and I’m in the middle of the hall listening to the understudies perform Act 2. The guest artists that will be singing the roles of Samson, Dalila, and the Philistine High Priest have just arrived in the last 24 hours and are also in attendance tonight watching our rehearsal.
This is a pretty huge opera – one of the biggest that we do here at Bob Jones. There are literally hundreds of people involved in the production. Opening night is Tuesday, March 9th, one week from tomorrow as I’m writing this. If you are in the Greenville area (or even if you aren’t) you should definitely consider coming to see this. Even if you don’t think you like opera, this production will not disappoint. The music is cool, the costumes are cool, and the set and staging are really cool.
More information on the opera can be found on the BJU website. You can also view the Facebook event that has been created for it.
Spring Semester 2010 Update
The spring semeseter 2010 began this past Thursday. Here’s a rundown of my classes and other various activities this semester. First my classes:
- Choral Literature – a survey of choral genres/music down through the centuries
- American Hymnody
- 19th Century Techniques – a study of musical form and analysis of 19th century music
- Private Composition
I am also still in the University Chorale (website | twitter). In addition to performing a concert in April, we are heavily involved in the school’s opera which will be performed in March – Samson et Dalila. All of these classes, plus involvement in choir and opera and work responsibilities will consume most of my time this semester.
But there is always something “cooking” on the compositional front. This month, I will wrap up the incidental music that I’ve been writing for Northland International University’s spring drama. Pretty soon, it will be time to decide on music for my graduate recital (spring, 2011). I will have about 40+ minutes of original music to write for it. I also hope to hear soon from a few publishers regarding my latest choral pieces which I submitted recently.
That’s about all for now. I’m excited about this semester and the many learning opportunities headed my way.
PeterAnglea.com Redesign
After almost three years, it was time to revamp my website. Now that the semester is over and I’m at home, I found the time necessary to complete the new site. During the semester, I worked on some design concepts on and off and eventually finished a basic XHTML/CSS layout. My next task was to convert my design to a WordPress template (WordPress is the Content Management System that powers this site). For the web aficionados out there, here’s a rundown of some more technical elements.
Jesus Lives and So Shall I
In celebration of Reformation Day 2009 and the 500th anniversary of the birth of John Calvin, I am releasing a new hymn setting that I composed this month. The text is an 18th c. poem by Christian F. Gellert entitled Jesus Lives and So Shall I. I decided to put this text with a new tune, and here it is.
Feel free to use it with your congregations and let me know what you think of it. I hope you enjoy it.
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