March 22 thru 24, 2006
Principal Guest: Johnterryl Plumeri
Hollywood Composer/Conductor/Bassist

Johnterryl Plumeri will be the Principal Guest Composer at this year’s Dana New Music Festival XXII, March 22-24. After completing a Masters at Manhattan School of Music under Robert Bernan, Principal Bass of the New York Philharmonic, Plumeri played string bass in the National Symphony for five years. He directed a jazz band in Baltimore for two years, before moving to Hollywood to compose music for films. Since 1990 he has composed 55 film scores. Plumeri is adept as a jazz bassist, has his own Trio, and just released a Trio CD playing bowed jazz bass. He also serves as Principal Guest Conductor of the Moscow Philharmonic.

Plumeri will give lectures on music for films, and master classes with composers, string bassists, and jazz groups. Wednesday evening he will guest-conduct the Festival Chamber Orchestra in his Two Poems for Dance and also in a world premiere of a new work entitled Romance for Clarinet and Strings written for and performed by Dana Faculty clarinetist Robert Fitzer. Plumeri’s Night Forest for Chamber Ensemble — directed by Dana Faculty John Wilcox — will be played at the Friday 11:00 a.m. convocation.

The Festival will also host another Los Angeles composer, Kathy Henkel. Henkel has been a welcome guest at several Dana New Music Festivals. Her harp piece, Book of Hours, will be performed by local harpist Kirk Kupensky on the Wednesday evening program. Kupensky commissioned this piece and premiered it at an International Harp Society conference. Her Moorland Sketches inspired by the English moors for English Horn and String Quartet will also be on the program and will be performed by Dana Faculty English Hornist, Tedrow Perkins and members of the Festival Chamber Orchestra.

Dana Faculty Member Robert Rollin directs the Festival Chamber Orchestra, and will premiere his El Pajaro Errante (The Wandering Bird) in a new version for violin and string orchestra. Gwyneth Rollin, also on the Dana Faculty, will play the solo violin part. The piece is in memory of the late Dr. Raoul Ronson, former President of Seesaw Music Corporation, a landmark publishing house for new music which continues under new management.