Season 1, Episode 8: Neva's Vinyl

The season 1, episode 8 episode of A Curious Ear features music from the late Neva Pilgrim's vinyl collection. Neva Pilgrim was the founder of Society for New Music and is considered by many, myself included, to be the matriarch of contemporary classical music in Central New York.

I was gifted a large portion of her vinyl collection and I digitized some of it for our February 2025 episode. This episode features rarely heard music by Nancy Laird Chance, Samuel Pellman, Ann Siblee, Daniel S Godfrey, and Richard Wernick.

The full episode is available here.

Show Notes:

Intermezzo - Samuel Pellman
Martha Denney, Diane Massie
from An American Sampler (Redwood Records)

Trio - Daniel S Godfrey
David Ross, William Preucil, Thomas Hundemer
from Chamber Music (Orion Master Recordings, Inc)

Spirals - Ann Silsbee
Nancy Cirillo, Valerie Vliker Kuchment, Katherine Murock, Joel Moerschel, Randall Hodgkinson, Richard Pittman
from Contrasts in New Music (Northeastern Records)

A Poisoned Tree - Richard Wernick
Neva Pilgrim, John Oberbrunner, Barbara Rabin, James Krehbiel, George Macero, Brian Israel
from Society for New Music (UNI-PRO Recordings, Inc)

Daysongs- Nancy Laird Chance
Katherine Hoover, Glen Velez, James Preiss
from Katherine Hoover (Opus One)

*note all recordings were digitized from vinyl

Episode 6: The Whispering Wind

On this month’s episode of A Curious Ear, we explore the sounds of winter’s stillness, “the whispering air” as Walt Whitman puts it. We’ll hear field recordings from frozen tennis courts and Northern Icelandic towns, as well as purely instrumental works that explore the depths of winter. Music by Kory Reeder, Carol Robinson, Lia Kohl, and Kate Carr.

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Episode 5: An experience I had walking home

On this month's episode of A Curious Ear, we explore the ability of synthesized sound to imitate, emulate, and interrupt the world of contemporary classical music. From a work written for “Cyborg Pianist” Zubin Kanga, inspired by a 16th century treatise on microtonal tuning to a pair of works for flute and electronics inspired by nature and a work created specifically for the midi sounds in notation software, we will explore it all A Curious Ear.

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Episode 1: (Artificial) Environments

In the debut episode of A Curious Ear, we explore the use of field recordings as a means of contextualizing our listening experience or in some cases, abstracting that experience. We wander through the physical world, in some cases quite literally, as we listen to works that incorporate field recordings.

The archived episode is available here.

Show notes:

no. 13 (Sushi Rice, AM Frequency Gap, Pines) - Sontag Shogun
from Patterns for a Resonant Space (2017)
https://sontagshogun.bandcamp.com/album/patterns-for-resonant-space

On the imagined relations of night sounds - Performer: Andy Kozar, Composer: Paula Matthussen
from A Few Kites (2020) New Focus Recording
https://andykozar.bandcamp.com/album/a-few-kites

Artificial Environments - Performer: Plus-Minus Ensemble, Composer: Joanna Bailie
from Artificial Environments (2019) NMC Recordings
https://joannabailie.bandcamp.com/album/artificial-environments

From the Fish House - Stephen Vitiello, Taylor Deupree
from Captiva (2014) 12K
https://12kmusic.bandcamp.com/album/captiva

Theme music comes from Proof of Concept for a Floating Child, Mvt. I - Performer: Byrne:Kozar:Duo, Composer: Jeffrey Gavett
from It Floats Away from You (2023) New Focus Recordings
https://newfocusrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/it-floats-away-from-you
(Provided courtesy of the composer)