New Music For Clarinet
Michael Dean, clarinet
Katzin Concert Hall
Guest Artist Series
Sunday, October 16, 2011 | 5:00 PM

Program
Summer Sunrise on the Mississippi (2009)
(clarinet & cd)

Robert Fruehwald
(b. 1957)

Distant Voices (clarinet & cd) (2011)
(Premiere of revised version)

Robert Fruehwald

Andy and Me (clarinet & cd) (2006)

Robert Fruehwald

*****Intermission*****

Filtrò poi una luce (clarinet & cd) (2011)
(Premiere)

Andrea Ferrante
(b. 1968)

Half Moon at Checkerboard Mesa (1997)
(clarinet & cd)

Phillip Kent Bimstein
(b. 1947)

Special thanks to Chris Goeke, Beverly Delph, Robert Fruehwald,
Brian Downey, Marina Strum, Steve Caplan, Bill Klinger,
William Powell, Rachel Rudich, Tony Spano, John Masserini, Jerry Kirkbride,
Robert Spring, Joshua Gardner, Jana Starling, Todd Rewoldt, Marian Liebowitz,
Anne-Leslie, Miles, Veronica, and Andy.
Michael Dean CD’s are available for purchase and digital download
at iTunes.com, Amazon.com, Napster.com, vcisinc.com, and CDBaby.com.
Go to clarinetmike.com for more information.

School of Music

Half Moon at Checkerboard Mesa by Phillip Kent Bimstein (b. 1947)
―Bimstein's compositions make me feel like I've taken a slow drive through a western landscape…‖ - John Adams
The alternative classical music of environmentalist mayor and former MTV rocker Phillip Kent Bimstein has been performed at Carnegie Hall,
Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, Aspen Music Festival, American Dance Festival, and the Bang on a Can Festival. Bimstein has received grants
and awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, Meet The Composer, Continental Harmony, and Austria's Prix Ars Electronica. His CD,
Garland Hirschi's Cows, released by Starkland, garnered rave reviews around the world. Bimstein has been featured on National Public Radio's ―All
Things Considered,‖ and in Parade and Outside magazines. Bimstein also performs and writes for the chamber folk quartet, blue haiku. On a summer
night several years ago, not far from my home in Southern Utah, an unsuspecting group of frogs sang by a slickrock waterhole up a narrow side
canyon in Zion National Park. Little did they know their voices would soon be heard on concert stages all across the world and on the Internet. And
they certainly never expected to share the bill with chirping crickets, howling coyotes, and a classical musician. But I was hiding nearby and had
stealthily placed a microphone and a digital recorder at the edge of the waterhole. I also recorded the sounds of coyotes, crickets, rocks, thunder, and
the rushing waters of the Virgin River. After transferring these natural sounds into my computer, I shaped and arranged them on my synthesizer
keyboard. Finally, I orchestrated the sounds into a piece of music for tape, and wrote an accompanying score for a live musician to interact with the
natural sounds. - Phillip Kent Bimstein
Bimstein composed Half Moon at Checkerboard Mesa as a part of his three-year Meet The Composer residency, which celebrates the
landscapes of Southern Utah. It was originally written for Sierra Winds’ oboist Stephen Caplan, who premiered the work in Las Vegas, Nevada in
1997.
Bimstein arranged Half Moon at Checkerboard Mesa for clarinet for Michael Dean in 1998. Dean premiered the clarinet version at the NACWPI
National Symposium at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana in January of 1999. He recorded Half Moon at Checkerboard Mesa on his Red Mesa
Trio CD – available at vcisinc.com. The work has also been arranged for other solo instruments such as horn, trombone, bassoon, flute, and violin.
The sheet music and CD accompaniment for Half Moon at
Checkerboard Mesa are available from the composer at http://www.bimstein.com/.
Summer Sunrise on the Mississippi by Robert Fruehwald (b. 1957)
There is an eloquence of silence…
There is a haunting sense of loneliness…
The tranquility is profound, infinitely satisfying.
That is all beautiful, soft and rich and beautiful,
A pink flush, a powder of gold, a purple haze.
from Life on the Mississippi by Mark Twain
I teach music composition and theory at Southeast Missouri State University. Every day, when walking home, I would see a glint of blue through the
trees on the horizon. For many months, I thought I was seeing the sky. Then, one day, I saw a stern-wheel steamboat squarely in the middle of that
patch of blue - what I had been seeing was the Mississippi River. Every day after that, I would watch the river and observe its moods. It's been my
daily companion ever since.
Recently, our music department at Southeast Missouri moved from the main university campus to a new one on the banks of the Mississippi. Now I
observe the river up close. I see different things every day. I decided to write a piece about the river, a piece that expresses its mood on a warm day,
early in the morning, just as my own day would begin. I looked to Mark Twain for some lyrics and found a suitable passage in his Life on the
Mississippi (published the year before The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn). I thought Twain's words would make a great basis for a song, and I
think that someday they will; however, instead of a vocal work they inspired me to write this instrumental solo. When I recorded the river sounds on
the CD accompaniment, I put the microphone right down on the Mississippi River (at Cape Girardeau, Missouri). I also recorded some other nearby
sounds: birds, cicadas, a passing train, etc. - Robert Fruehwald.
Summer Sunrise on the Mississippi was commissioned by Michael Dean. He premiered it on his recent tour of Florida (Florida State University,
University of Florida, University of South Florida, and University of Central Florida) in October of 2009. It is on the new CD, Woodwind Music of
Robert Fruehwald, Vol. 1 – available at cdbaby.com, iTunes.com and Amazon.com for purchase and download. The sheet music and CD
accompaniment for Summer Sunrise is available for free download at www6.semo.edu/fruehwald/downloads.html.
Distant Voices by Robert Fruehwald
Composer and teacher, Robert Fruehwald, grew up in Louisville, Kentucky where he played flute in the Louisville Youth Orchestra. He attended the
University of Louisville receiving a Bachelor of Music in Composition (with honors). While in Louisville, he studied composition with Nelson
Keyes, Claude Baker, and Dan Welcher, and flute with Francis Fuge. He earned his Master of Fine Arts degree at the California Institute of the Arts
studying with Mel Powell, Morton Subotnick, and Leonard Rosenman. He returned to the Midwest to work on a Ph.D. at Washington University in
St. Louis. There, he studied under Robert Wykes and finished his doctorate in 1985. Before accepting a teaching position in the late 1980s, Dr.
Fruehwald developed a series of programs to print musical examples for scholarly journals and books. In 1989 he took a teaching position at
Southeast Missouri State University. Dr. Fruehwald has taught numerous subjects at Southeast including applied composition, music theory, applied
flute, electronic-computer music, and the history of modernism. He served as chair of the department of music from 1995-2000. His professional web
page is www6.semo.edu/fruehwald/home.html. Distant Voices was originally composed for flute, oboe, clarinet, and CD. This new version for
clarinet and CD was commissioned by Michael Dean. This tour features the premiere of this new clarinet version. Years ago I became fascinated by
the idea that sounds from long ago could be preserved. I read an article about Richard Woodbridge III, who was supposed to have extracted sound
from 6,500-year-old Mesopotamian pottery. The recording was supposed to be scratchy and indistinct, but it was supposed to contain the sound of a
potter’s wheel in addition to vocal sounds. I have never been able to track the recording down, I’m not even sure whether the recording is real or a
hoax. Still, the idea of the thing is evocative and it gave me the idea for a piece—Distant Voices. Most of the piece is based on recordings made

School of Music

more than a hundred years ago. These include the sound of a choir of thousands singing Handel in London’s Crystal Palace on June 29, 1888, a bit of
Brahms, a concert band circa 1900, an advertisement for an Edison phonograph, and the voice of Edison himself. The end of Distant Voices was
inspired by the Mesopotamian recording. It contains noise, with faint vocal sounds. The very end of the piece includes the most distant sound of all,
the sound of the Huygens space probe flying through the atmosphere of Saturn’s moon, Titan. - Robert Fruehwald.
Distant Voices will be on an upcoming new CD, Woodwind Music of Robert Fruehwald, Vol. 2. The CD will be released in 2012 and will be
available at cdbaby.com, iTunes.com, and Amazon.com. The sheet music and CD accompaniment for Distant Voices are available from the
composer at rfruehwald@semo.edu.
Andy and Me by Robert Fruehwald
Andy and Me was commissioned by Michael Dean. He premiered the work at Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau, Missouri
in December of 2006. Andy and Me is a whimsical look at the relationship between Mike and the newest addition to his family, Andy. The sounds
on the CD accompaniment represent (and feature) Andy in a kind of conversation with the clarinet music played by Mike. - Robert Fruehwald
Andy and Me is on Michael Dean’s CD, Desertscape: New Music for Clarinet – available at cdbaby.com, iTunes.com, and Amazon.com. The
sheet music and CD accompaniment for Andy and Me are available from the composer at rfruehwald@semo.edu.
Filtrò poi una luce by Andrea Ferrante (b. 1968)
Andrea Ferrante’s music is performed regularly throughout Europe, Asia, and the Americas, recorded on the Videoradio - RAI Trade and
published by Edizioni Carrara (BG) and Edizioni Simeoli (NA). He currently teaches at the Conservatorio di Musica di Stato ―Arcangelo Corelli‖ in
Messina, and serves as the Coordinator of the Education program at the Conservatorio di Musica "Antonio Scontrino" in Trapani. In 2000, Andrea
Ferrante won a competition sponsored by the Italian Ministry of Education, Universities, and Research (MIUR). From 1996 to 1999 he served as the
Editorial Director of the Neopoiesis Editrice, winning the important ―Diego Fabbri‖ prize sponsored by RAI-Radiotelevisione Italiana. Filtrò poi
una luce was originally composed for viola and piano. Ferrante arranged Filtrò for Michael Dean, who premiered the clarinet and piano verison in
February of 2011. This tour features the premiere of a new version for clarinet and CD, also arranged by the composer for Dean. Filtrò poi una luce
roughly translates as ―filtering of the light. Commenting on the meaning of the title, Ferrante said, ―As when [in] the morning a ray of sun enters
from the window of your room… softly.
Filtrò poi una luce will appear on Michael Dean’s new solo clarinet CD, Mysteries, available in 2012. The CD will be available at cdbaby.com,
iTunes.com and Amazon.com. The sheet music and CD accompaniment for Filtrò is available from the composer at andrea.ferrante@virgilio.it.
Biography
American clarinetist and pedagogue Michael Dean has performed as a recitalist and master clinician internationally and across the United States to
much acclaim. On a recent tour of music schools in England he was praised as "dynamic," "inspirational," "super," and "a brilliant performer." The
tour was highlighted by a stop at the world-renowned Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. Recital appearances at Carnegie Hall, the
prestigious international ClarinetFest, and the NACWPI National Symposium headline Michael Dean's extensive and versatile performing career. On
tours of New York, Florida, California and Texas, his recitals and master classes have been enthusiastically received at prominent music schools such
as Eastman, Ithaca, Crane, Florida State, Florida, UCF, USF, CalArts, Cal State Northridge, Cal State Long Beach, Rice, SMU, TCU, Texas State,
and the University of North Texas. His recent solo CD, Desertscape: New Music for Clarinet, consists of works he has commissioned and premiered.
In a review of the CD, the NACWPI Journal says, "Dean performs the works here admirably, and makes them all sound easy, the mark of a true
professional. His use of dynamic contrasts is especially striking." In another review, MusicWeb International praises Dean's clarinet tone and his
"expressive phrasing." The CD is available for purchase and digital download at iTunes.com, Amazon.com, vcisinc.com, and CDBaby.com. Michael
Dean is also featured on a recently-released new CD, Woodwind Music of Robert Fruehwald, Vol. 1. A second CD of Fruehwald's music for
woodwinds (Vol. 2) featuring Michael Dean will be available in 2012. A new solo CD, Mysteries, is in preparation and will also be available in 2012.
Dean also appears as chamber musician and soloist on another CD, Red Mesa Trio. He has performed with the Southwest Symphony Orchestra,
Nevada Symphony Orchestra, Abilene Philharmonic Orchestra, Garland Symphony Orchestra, Mesquite Symphony Orchestra, Southeast Chamber
Players, and the Red Mesa Trio. He currently performs with the Paducah Symphony Orchestra. In addition to commissioning, premiering, and editing
numerous new clarinet works, he has published a book, Clarinet On Campus. His publications also include articles in journals such as Southwestern
Musician, WINDPLAYER, NACWPI Journal, and The Bandmasters' Review. He also actively writes for his own clarinet blog,
clarinetmike.wordpress.com. Michael Dean has given more than 200 clinics, master classes, and performances at high schools, jr. high schools,
colleges, universities, and conferences across the United States and abroad. He is the founder and host of the annual Southeast Missouri Single Reed
Day festival in Cape Girardeau. Dr. Dean is Associate Professor of Clarinet and Saxophone at Southeast Missouri State University. He currently
serves as an officer (Immediate Past-President) on the National Board of the National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors
(NACWPI). He is also Co-Director of the NACWPI 2012 National

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