Today I had a fabulous time working with some young and talented composers at Southwest High School in Minneapolis.  I got to listen to two works.  One was for trombone, cello, and percussion.  I thought the trombone line was quite well done, using a nice, open range, and with some tweaking in the cello and percussion, the piece will develop into some fine music.

The second work I listened to was for two violins.  The music had a relatively strong mastery over developing a consistent harmonic soundscape.  Where it lacked in expressive markings, the performers made up for it.  (Still, I stressed the importance of providing just as much attention to dynamics and articulation and so forth as we do to pitch.)

Then I spent a fleeting moment in a quick impromptu studio lesson with another student who showed me a piece for marimba, glock, and timpani.  I could tell that his ear was already attuned to how to use different timbres of instruments to create some lush colors.  Maybe we have a future Ravel on our hands.  Who’s to know?  (Actually I dislike it when people suggest, “Are they the next so-and-so?”  So, I’ll just say instead that we may have a future colorist on our hands.)

All things considered, I look forward to returning to work with the students again.  And, if you are one of the Southwest students I met and you happen to be reading this, don’t hesitate to send me a note my way if you’re interested in further study.

Also, my thanks to Keith Liuzzi for having me.  I had a great time!

I finally got a start on the Duo for Percussion that I’m writing for pianist Jennifer Hedstrom and percussionist Sean Kleve.  It’s always fun to post a preview, so here’s the very first bit.

You can now search for me on the Minnesota Music Teachers Association website.  I’m happy to become a member of not only MMTA but the Music Teachers National Association as well.  This will be a long, fruitful relationship!

Also, next week I’ll be visiting the University of St. Thomas as a guest lecturer, teaching some undergraduate music theory in Shersten Johnson’s absence.  I’m really very excited to meet and work with the students at the school.

I’m in the very early stages of developing my own composition studio and music theory tutoring service for high school and college students in the Minneapolis and St. Paul metro area. At the moment, I’m preparing letters and flyers to send off to area high schools and colleges, in addition to other ways to advertise.  (So, if you saw my flyer at your school telling you to come to thomaslangmusic.com, you’ve come to the right place!)

I’m very optimistic that this will lead to exciting opportunities for both me and the students I meet and work with. Of course, if you happened to google “twin cities minneapolis st paul music theory tutor” or “twin cities minneapolis st paul music composition teacher” (yes, I deliberately wrote those out in an attempt to draw google users to my website; it actually works, by the way) and you came across my website, please go ahead an email me for more info. I would love to hear from you.

lang.thomas.c [at] gmail [dot] com

Just finished (finally) the score and parts for the Keating Sonata.  They’re ready to ship to Switzerland.  I can’t wait for the premiere!

So, first of all, some unfortunate decided to hack my website, so if you visited anytime in the last week, you may have noticed that it was either down or it directed you to something else entirely. Anyway, hopefully everything will run smoothly now. I am going to be switching web hosts due to the number of times that whatever issues caused these troubles has happened. I’ve always put switching off (mainly because I didn’t want to deal with the hassle), but I think now’s a good time.

Anyway, I’m working on the first movement of the Keating Sonata, and once that’s done I’ll have finished the whole Sonata. Then, I’ll start working on the Kleve/Hedstrom duo. I’m really very excited for both projects!

Here’s a photo of the cadenza I’m working on for Brett Keating’s Sonata.  I’m so near the end of the final movement I can taste it.  I still need to write the first movement, though: “Crystals.”  I can’t wait!

I’m pleased to announce that pianist Jennifer Hedstrom and percussionist Sean Kleve have commissioned me to write a piano and vibes/marimba duo for an October 1st deadline.  They hope to perform the work at a recital in Madison this December or the following January.  As always, I’ll keep updating as time progresses.

Also, I’m still working on Brett Keating’s Sonata.  I’m hoping to finish the entire work by the end of this month,  and I’m really looking forward to the performance of the music in Switzerland this fall!