ECU to host contemporary music artists Transient Canvas at AJ Fletcher recital hall

The East Carolina University School of Music (SoM) NewMusic Initiative will be hosting Transient Canvas, a contemporary bass clarinet and marimba duo, on March 16 at the AJ Fletcher Music Center from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m.

Travis Alford, director of the North Carolina NewMusic Initiative, said the performance will be open to both students and the public for free. Alford said there will be an opportunity after the performance to speak with guest performers Amy Advocat and Matt Sharrock for an open and mindful discussion.

The NC NewMusic Initiative is a year-long series where music artists are invited to ECU to perform and conduct workshops with students, Alford said. He said the program hosts music artists who primarily specialize in contemporary music. On March 17, Alford said students will have the opportunity to participate in workshops and present work to the guest artists.

“It really is a unique thing that we have and we're really fortunate to have the funding and the support to bring these groups,” Alford said. “It's unique. It's composers thinking about music and sounds in very different and interesting ways, so we hope people enjoy and have fun.”

Advocat will be playing the bass clarinet and Sharrock will be playing the marimba in Thursday night’s performance and Alford said the pair make for a unique and interesting ensemble. He said most people don’t think of the bass clarinet and marimba being a standard ensemble like the string quartet.

Alford said he is hoping to see some new and old faces at the performance and encourages the whole Greenville community to take advantage of the opportunity.

“I would love for them (community members) to come and maybe leave with a different or an altered view of what music is and how music can really be a product of our modern society,” Alford said.

One student, Grant Hughes, second-year graduate in the Music Theory program at ECU, is participating in the workshop with Transient Canvas and has written a piece for the music group.

Hughes said he has not previously worked with Transient Canvas but decided to compose a piece for the group after hearing about the duo in his composition class.

“Writing for different kinds of instruments wasn’t really a challenge, it was really good for me to extend my instrumental palette so I can find new ways to create music and create new sounds,” Hughes said.

During the workshop with Transient Canvas, Hughes said he will present his musical composition to the group for open discussion and feedback from Advocat and Sharrock.

Hughes said he has participated in several workshops with guest performers hosted by the NewMusic Initiative. He said he has written multiple compositions for different artists and instruments such as the piano and bassoon, as well as vocal arrangements, throughout his time at ECU.

“I can’t thank ECU enough for giving me the opportunity to extend my creativity and instrumental palette,” Hughes said. ”I'm just hoping they’re all going to like the piece and that it’ll be a good experience for the public and for the performers.”

Brett Howard, junior music education major, will also be showcasing his work to the guest performers. He said he has written a piece for Transient Canvas to perform during the workshop titled, “Tales of Light and Shadows.” Howard said he first heard about Transient Canvas in the fall of 2022 during a period of writer's block.

The marimba and bass clarinet are a contrasting, unconventional duo, Howard said. He said he has never written an instrumental piece like this before, but has worked with different instruments and artists. Though the bass clarinet and marimba sound so different, Howard said they come together to create a harmonious sound.

”You can use their differences to create parallels or make them so contrasting,” Howard said. “There are just a lot of different mediums and possibilities that can be done with a duo like Transient Canvas.”

Through the NewMusic Initiative, Howard said he has been able to compose several music pieces for guest artists and tries to write a piece for each guest artist that visits. Howard said there are also premiere performances during the semester where students can play music written by their peers.

Transient Canvas will perform Howard’s composition and discuss the interpretation during the workshop. Howard said one of the best parts about music composition is to see the self-growth and how much his work has progressed over time.

“I like to write music that can be experienced and appreciated by all,” Howard said.

“I want people to see that I love it. It means everything to me.”