I received word yesterday that I am a finalist in the National Opera Association's biennial Chamber Opera Competition (2012-2014). My one-act opera Oblivion, along with two other composers' works, will be excerpted at NOA's Annual Convention in Portland next January. The winner will be produced in its entirety at the 2014 Convention.
Part of my doctoral dissertation, Oblivion was my treat to myself. It contains a lot of peculiarities that my creative and composerly self indulged in, but that may not appear particularly programming-friendly. The unfamiliar story, based on a two-page H.P. Lovecraft story with essentially no plot, interlaced with half a dozen poems by other authors, is not the stuff of your typical libretto. And the pit itself is quite small and unconventional: flute, guitar, cello, and three Himalayan singing bowls. Despite or perhaps because of these quirks, the work was selected. This is due in large part, I'm sure, to the excellent recording I got out of the premiere at the 2010 Capital Fringe Festival in Washington, DC.
Many thanks to director Sasha Brätt, stage manager Alison Goldberg, singer/actors Rachel Barham, Melissa Kornacki, Christine Laird (Gahagan), James Rogers, and Alexander Wolniak, instrumentalists Jessica Bateman, Jesse Crites, and Daniel Shomper, and everyone else who helped make the premiere possible!
More announcements coming soon about upcoming performances for the 2012-2013 season.
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