On October 27 I conducted the UNCSA contemporary music ensemble, called nu, in a concert in Watson Hall. I’m the music director of the group which has been enormously challenging and rewarding. The program was as follows:

• Wolfgang Rihm: Will Sound (2006)
• Giacinto Scelsi: Prânam II (1973)
• John Cage: Dance Music for Elfrid Ide (1940)
• Benjamin Broening: like dreams, statistics are a form of wish fulfillment (2005)
• Caleb Burhans: oh ye of little faith…(do you know where your children are?) (2008)

Video from the performance:

See previous schedules: 2009/10, 2010/11, 2011/12

The following is Saxton Rose’s performance and event schedule for the 2012/2013 season. It is subject to change so if you have questions about attending an event, please contact me. Map to University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

August 25:

Performance of Martinu’s Revue de Cuisine with the Carolina Chamber Symphony. Tickets/Info

September 7:

Recital to benefit the restoration and installation of a rare 1898 Hook & Hastings pipe organ at St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church in Winston-Salem, NC. Program includes J. S. Bach’s Partita in a minor for solo bassoon, and the Triébert/Jancourt Fantasia Concertante on the theme of Rossini op. 15 for bassoon, oboe, and piano.
Article on the organ project.

September 9-16:

Premiering Michael Gordon’s Rushes, an hour-long piece for seven amplified bassoons. This premiere performance is the culmination of a week-long recording residency at EMPAC for release on NYC’s Cantaloupe Records. More info

8pm, EMPAC: Experimental Music and Performing Arts Center, 110 8th Street, Troy, New York

September 21, 22, 23:

Performances with the Winston-Salem Symphony and violinist Jennifer Koh. Sibelius Violin Concerto, Copland Sym. No. 3 and Beethoven Leonore Overture. Tickets/Info

October 13, 14, 16:

Performance with the W-S Symphony of Tchaikovsky’s Sym No. 5, Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with pianist Antonio Pompa-Baldi and Zhou Tian’s A Thousand Years of Good Prayers. Tickets/Info

October 27:

UNCSA’s contemporary music ensemble nu makes its return under the direction of Saxton Rose with a diverse program of music of today by composers such as Randall Woolf, Wolfgang Rihm, Giacinto Scelsi, Benjamin Broening, and Caleb Burhans. 7:30pm at Watson Recital Hall, UNCSA.

November 8-16: Fall 2012 European Tour of Michael Gordon’s Rushes, an hour-long piece for seven amplified bassoons.

• November 8th at the November Music Festival in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands
• November 10th at the GLOW Festival in Eindhoven, the Netherlands
• November 11th at the Concertgebouw Brugge in Brugge, Belgium
• November 15th at the Ostadetheater in Amsterdam, the Netherlands
• November 16th at the Korzo Theater in Den Haag, the Netherlands

December 3-7:

Performances and master classes in Chengdu, China at the Sichuan Conservatory

December 18, 19:

Performances of Handel’s Messiah with the W-S Symphony

January 12, 13, 15, 2013:

Performances as soloist with the W-S Symphony of Mozart’s Bassoon Concerto, K.191.Tickets/Info

January 19, 2013:

Performance of Mozart’s Quintet for Piano and Winds with UNCSA faculty. 7:30pm Watson Recital Hall, UNCSA.

January 25, 26, 27, 2013: Performances with Ventus, the resident wind quintet at UNCSA

Enter the sophisticated world of French music for winds with a concert of light-hearted, humor-filled, full throttle virtuoso antics for flute, clarinet, oboe, horn, and bassoon. Music of Ibert, Debussy, Poulenc, Milhaud, and Dukas with Tadeu Coelho, flute; David Jolley, French horn; Robin Driscoll, oboe; Oskar Espina-Ruiz, clarinet; Saxton Rose, bassoon.

• January 25, 7:30pm Tryon Palace Performing Arts Series, at Cullman Hall, Tryon Palace; New Bern, NC Tickets/Info
• January 26, 8pm The American Music Festival Concert Series in Beaufort, NC. Tickets/Info
• January 27, 7:30pm Beckwith Recital Hall, Wilmington, NC. Tickets/Info

January 29:

Performance as director of UNCSA’s contemporary music ensemble nu. Student composers concert.

February 1-3: Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet Residency at UNCSA

The Berlin Phil Quintet will give master classes, topical clinics during the residency as well as a recital in Watson Hall on the UNCSA campus February 2 at 7:30pm.

Friday, Feb 1

• 3pm-4:45pm: Chamber music master class by Berlin Phil Quintet for UNCSA student groups
• 5pm-7pm: Individual studio master classes by Berlin Phil Quintet members for UNCSA students

Saturday, Feb 2

UNCSA faculty and Berlin Phil Quintet members invite clarinet, bassoon, oboe, flute, and saxophone students of all ages to the UNCSA campus for a full day of classes, workshops, and performances.

• 10am-10:30am: Short opening Concert w/ Berlin Phil Quintet and UNCSA wind faculty of Gounod’s Petite Symphonie
• 11am-12:30pm: Clinic with Berlin Phil Quintet and Middle School/High School students
• 12:30pm: Lunch all together, students, UNCSA faculty, Berlin Phil Quintet
• 1:30pm: Workshops with UNCSA faculty
• 7:30pm: Berlin Phil Quintet evening concert

Sunday, Feb 3

• Master classes with Berlin Quintet members

February 8-10:

Featured Guest Artist at the University of Nebraska Double Reed Day with host, Jeffrey McCray. Friday, February 8 Recital, Saturday February 9 master classes.

February 13:

Master classes at UNLV in Las Vegas, NV with Zéphyros Winds

February 14:

Performance with Zéphyros Winds in Las Vegas, NV as part of the UNLV Chamber Music Series at the The Doc Rando Recital, Lee & Thomas Beam Music Center. Tickets/Info
Program:
Ravel: Tombeau de Couperin
Klughart: Quintet
Pierne: Suite Pittoresque
Szervansky: Quintet

February 16:

Performance with Zéphyros Winds at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY
Program:
Ravel: Tombeau de Couperin
Klughart: Quintet
Pierne: Suite Pittoresque
Szervansky: Quintet

February 23:

Join woodwind faculty virtuosos Tadeu Coelho, Robin Driscoll, Oskar Espina-Ruiz, Saxton Rose, and Taimur Sullivan for an evening of music from the Baroque, one of the richest and most diverse periods in music history. Watson Recital Hall, 7:30pm

March 3:

Performance with Wet Ink Ensemble of music of Dan Ruccia. Durham, NC.

March 22:

Performance as concerto soloist of Dana Wilson’s Avatar (2005) Concerto for Bassoon and Chamber Winds, with the UNCSA wind ensemble. 7:30pm, Crawford Hall

April 4:

Performance with Sir James Galway and the W-S Symhpony, 7:30pm, R.J. Reynolds Memorial Auditorium. Tickets/Info

April 8:

Concert with Zéphyros Winds at Saint Francis College in Brooklyn, NY

April 21:

Performance with Dark in the Song of music for bassoon ensemble. 7:30 pm, Motorco Music Hall. Tickets/Info

April 24:

Recital in Puebla, Mexico as part of the Capilla del Arte Series. Master classes at Universidad de las Américas

May 12, 14:

Performance with the Winston-Salem Symphony of Hovhaness’ Symphony No. 2, Mason Bates’ Liquid Interface and the Mussorgsky/Ravel Pictures at an Exhibition. Tickets/Info

June 25:

Performance as concerto soloist at the IDRS conference in Redlands, CA. Philippe Hersant’s Eight Pieces for Bassoon and Ensemble.

Again this summer I’m excited to welcome bassoon students of all ages to the campus of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in Winston-Salem, NC for our Summer Bassoon Workshop. From June 24th to 29th, students can immerse themselves in the study of all things bassoon with UNCSA bassoon professor Saxton Rose. This intense one-week program includes private lessons, reed making classes, orchestral excerpt and college audition preparation, performance skills clinics, and master classes on a variety of bassoon related topics. Recital performances and chamber music collaboration with other summer workshop students complete this fun and intensive personal program of study. If you have any questions, please contact me.

Sample Day Schedule

8am: Breakfast
9am: Reed Making Workshop
10am: Master Class
12pm: Lunch
2pm: Daily Clinic on topics such as audition preparation, articulation, strategies to improve technique.
4pm: Double Reed and Bassoon Ensemble Rehearsal
6pm: Dinner
8pm: Evening Social Activities

Fees and Deadlines

Tuition for all students is $430. Room and board (optional) for all students is $450. Student life fees for high school students are $134, and for college students fees are $106. Some scholarship is available.

The registration deadline is June 1st.

To Register

Download the application

Contact Michael Rothkopf, Summer Music Director
Telephone: 336.770.3254
Email: rothkm@uncsa.edu
uncsa.edu/summersession/music.htm

On November 8th I performed a solo faculty recital at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. The program follows:

• Cinco peças para canto e fagote (1976) by Francisco Mignone with Elizabeth Pacheco Rose, soprano
• Duo Sonata (1977) by Sofia Gubaidulina with Rachael Elliott, bassoon
• Escape Wisconsin (2006) for solo bassoon by Caleb Burhans
• Sparkling in the Dark (2011) for bassoon, soprano saxophone, and electronics by Lawrence Dillon with Taimur Sullivan, soprano saxophone
• Billie (2003) for bassoon and ghettoblaster by Jacob Ter Veldhuis. Arranged for bassoon by Saxton Rose

In addition to the other grants, scholarships, and federal loans available to students, a Graduate Assistantship, Tuition Reductions, and Fellowships are being offered in the bassoon studio for the 2013-2014 academic year.
Download the pdf flyer

Bassoon Studio Graduate Assistantship

The School of Music at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts offers the Master of Music and Professional Artist Certificate for Bassoon. The bassoon assistantship is available beginning in the 2013-2014 academic year and can cover the cost of full-tuition. The graduate assistant works closely with Saxton Rose and duties may included instruction, ensemble assignments and other duties assigned by the School of Music.

Graduate Tuition Reductions and Fellowships

Fellowships, Graduate Tuition Reductions and other scholarships of varying amounts are awarded on a competitive basis, based on the recommendations of the School of Music faculty.

Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet Residency at UNCSA

In Februray 2013, UNCSA will host the Berlin Philharmonic Wind Quintet for a teaching and performance residency on campus. Activities will include studio and chamber music master classes, topical discussions and a performance in Watson Recital Hall.

The University of North Carolina School of the Arts was founded as the nation’s first public conservatory for the arts, dedicated entirely to the intensive training and career development of aspiring artists in the performing, visual and moving image arts. It is a unique and extremely effective environment for students looking for a performance-focused school to refine their playing and for career preparation. Degrees are available at the undergraduate, master’s, post-master’s, and high school level.

On November 8th, I will be joined by soprano Elizabeth Pacheco Rose, bassoonist Rachael Elliott, and saxophonist Taimur Sullivan for a diverse evening of new solo and chamber music for bassoon, from Caleb Burhans’ manic solo work Escape Wisconsin, to Sofia Gubaidulina’s beautiful and frightening Duo Sonata for Two Bassoons, to the flirtatious Songs for Voice and Bassoon by Francisco Mignone. The performance will also feature Jacob Ter Veldhuis’ Billie for Bassoon and Ghettoblaster, and the premiere of a new work for bassoon, soprano saxophone and electronics by composition faculty member Lawrence Dillon.

7:30 p.m. at Watson Hall at UNCSA in Winston-Salem, NC
$15 adults / $13 students and seniors

Call the UNCSA Box Office at 336-721-1945 to reserve seats, or http://www.uncsa.edu/performances/boxoffice.htm

Heliand Consort will present “The Lightness of Being” – 20th century French music for winds and piano on Monday, October 17, 2011 at 7:30 pm in Watson Recital Hall, at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

Heliand Consort’s opening program of the 2011-12 season features a variety of 20th century French music for woodwinds and piano, from Debussy and Ravel to members of “Les Six,” Paris’s most influential composers between the wars. Highlights include solo piano music by Ravel, “trio d’anches” (reed trios) by Ibert and Milhaud, and the beloved Trio for oboe, bassoon & piano by Francis Poulenc. Vermont’s dynamic chamber ensemble performs its debut North Carolina performance. Presented by UNCSA School of Music.

Free concert, open to the public, wheelchair accessible

The program will be repeated on Tuesday, October 18th at 8 pm at Duke University’s Nelson Music Room, sponsored by the Duke Department of Music.

For further information, please visit
http://heliandconsort.org/performances.html or call (802) 735-3611.

See previous schedules: 2008/09, 2009/10, 2010/11

The following is Saxton Rose’s performance and event schedule for the 2011/2012 season. It is subject to change so if you have questions about attending an event, please contact me. Map to University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

May 31 – June 4:

Performances at the International Double Reed Society conference in Tempe, AZ. Recital with Dark in the Song of new works commissioned by the group from Christopher Dietz, Amy Beth Kirsten, Moon Young Ha, and Zhou Juan and a recital with soprano Elizabeth Pacheco Rose of music of Brahms and Mignone.

June 11:

Recital in Oswego, NY with pianist Rob Auler. Repertoire TBD

June 19-24:

Hosting the Double Reed Workshop at UNCSA. More information: http://www.uncsa.edu/summersession/music.htm

July 26-31:

Teaching and performing as faculty at the Quartz Mountain Music Festival in Southwest Oklahoma. More information

September 10:

Performance of Schubert’s Octet with UNCSA faculty at Watson Recital Hall. 7:30pm

September 11:

Performance of Schubert’s Octet with UNCSA faculty in Wilmington, NC at Beckwith Recital Hall as part of Chamber Music Wilmington. 7:30pm More information.

September 17, 18, 20:

Performances with Winston-Salem Symphony of Brahms’ Symphony no. 4, Grieg’s Piano Concerto and Fanfare to La Peri by Dukas

October 15, 16, 18:

Performances with Winston-Salem Symphony of Dvořák’s Symphony no. 7 and Ralph Vaughn William’s The Wasps.

October 17:

UNCSA hosts Heliand Consort presenting “The Lightness of Being” 20th century French music for winds and piano on Monday, October 17 at 7:30 pm in Watson Recital Hall, at UNCSA. Cynthia Huard, pianist; Elisabeth LeBlanc, clarinetist; Rachael Elliott, bassoonist. More information

October 28, 30 and November 1:

Performances with Piedmont Opera of Mozart’s Don Giovanni

November 3:

Premiere performance of new work for bassoon, soprano saxophone and electronics by Lawrence Dillon entitled ‘Sparkling in the Dark’ as part of the Forecast Music Series at The Garage in Winston-Salem, NC

November 8:

Solo faculty recital at UNCSA in Watson Recital Hall. Music of Jacob TV, Caleb Burhans, Henri Dutilleux, Sofia Gubaidulina, Francisco Mignone and a new work for bassoon, soprano saxophone and electronics by Lawrence Dillon

November 20, 22:

Performances with Winston-Salem Symphony of Bach’s St. John Passion

December 3, 4:

Performances with Winston-Salem Symphony Chamber Orchestra at Old Salem including Respighi’s Trittico botticelliano and Beethoven Symphony No. 1

December 13, 14, 15, 16:

Performances with Winston-Salem Symphony of Handel’s Messiah at Centenary United Methodist Church, Winston-Salem

January 10:

Performance of Stravinsky’s The Soldier’s Tale. Watson Recital Hall, UNCSA

January 14, 15, 17:

Performances with Winston-Salem Symphony of Shostakovich’s Symphony no. 1 and music of Villa-Lobos, Bloch and Rossini

February 5-6:

Solo Recital and Masterclass at University of Colorado – Boulder. Recital February 5th, 2pm Grusin Music Hall. More information.

February 17-18:

Solo Recital and Masterclass as guest artist of the University of Texas-Arlington Double Reed Weekend. Contact Scott Pool, cspool@uta.edu for more information.

February 25:

Chamber music recital with the UNCSA woodwind faculty presenting a concert of classic French repertoire by Debussy and friends in celebration of his 150th birth year. 7:30pm, Watson Recital Hall

March 11-12:

Residency at Bowling Green State University with Dark in the Song, Contemporary Bassoon Ensemble. Recital March 12th includes works by Christopher Dietz, Amy Beth Kirsten, Jacob TV, Sofia Gubaidulina. 8 p.m., Bryan Recital Hall

March 20:

New Sounds, Innovation and Virtuosity. Guest composer Robert Yekovich, former Dean of Music, joins faculty composer Michael Rothkopf in a concert of premieres, featuring the new sound worlds available through the combination of innovative technology and virtuosic new music performers. Saxton Rose will give the world premiere of Michael Rothkopf’s new work At a Crossroads for Bassoon and Computer. Tickets.

March 25, 27:

Performances with Winston-Salem Symphony of Beethoven’s 5th symphony and music of Strauss and Kevin Puts. Stevens Center, Winston-Salem

April 6:

Performance with Dark in the Song of Amy Beth Kirsten’s World Under Glass No. 1 in Chicago at Chicago College of Performing Arts – Roosevelt University. Ganz Recital Hall, 7:30pm.

May 4:

Recital in Puebla, Mexico. Music of Brahms, Berio, Mignone, Dutilleux

May 6-9:

Dark in the Song, Contemporary Bassoon Ensemble guest artist residency in Morelia, Mexico as part of the Centro Mexicano para la Música y las Artes Sonoras. Recital and composer workshops. More information

May 12, 13, 15:

Performances with the Winston-Salem Symphony of Orff’s Carmina Burana and music of Respighi and Brahms.

On April 30th I performed Sequenza XII for Bassoon by Berio as part of an all Berio Sequenza concert by faculty of UNCSA. Also on the program were Tadeu Coelho, flute; Sheila Browne, viola; Taimur Sullivan, soprano saxophone; and Brooks Whitehouse, cello. Watch the performance below.

Here’s a review: Luciano Berio’s Sequenza Fascinates Audience, By Peter Perret

Come see UNCSA faculty perform an all-Berio Sequenza concert tomorrow night, April 30.

Luciano Berio’s Sequenza series is one of the most significant musical achievements of the late 20th century, an output of virtuoso compositions that stretch the boundaries of both the instruments and the performer. The UNCSA faculty collaborates to present an evening of six Sequenzas by Tadeu Coelho, flute; Sheila Browne, viola; Taimur Sullivan, soprano saxophone; Judith Saxton, trumpet; Saxton Rose, bassoon; and Brooks Whitehouse, cello.
7:30 p.m. at Watson Chamber Music Hall
$12 adults / $10 seniors and students plus $1 facility usage fee.