PAS News

In Memoriam: Phil Kraus

hhenry — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 14:53:00 GMT

Phil Kraus
1918–2012

Percussionist Phil Kraus died January 13, 2012 in Houston, Texas. He was 93.

Read the In Memoriam

Global Drummers Alliance for Hunger Relief to Host ‘Hunger Beat-Down’ on January 14th, 2012

maltizer — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 08:56:41 GMT

Drummers will simultaneously play the same solo to raise awareness of world hunger

St. Paul, Minn—The statistics are staggering. More than 925 million people around the world—many of them children—are malnourished, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. Are we doing enough to help feed the starving children of the world? The Global Drummers Alliance for Hunger Relief doesn’t think so. That’s why on January 14th, 2012, at 2 PM Central Time (3 PM Eastern, 12 PM Pacific), drummers in communities across the world will host a “hunger beat-down.” They will simultaneously play a commonly known drum solo called “Three Camps,” which replicates the kind of drumming used by army camps during the Civil War to communicate with each other, to raise awareness about world hunger and encourage citizens to help feed the starving children. Professional players, educators and students will gather at schools, music stores and other public locations to play along.

The idea for the hunger beat-down came from Marv Dahlgren, an internationally known Twin Cities percussionist who was principal percussionist of the Minnesota Orchestra for 48 years and is a celebrated percussion educator and author. “I’m concerned that the world is not paying enough attention to the incredible famine that exists in Africa and other countries across the world,” Dahlgren said. “I believe those of us who live in the richest nation on earth owe it to the starving children of the world to help them survive the ravages of famine. I want to keep beating the drum to make sure we don’t forget about the millions of children who are losing their lives every day to starvation,” Dahlgren said.

Event participants can interact via the internet with the Alliance’s website: www.drumforfood.com, so that they might play along with the host performance of the solo which will be streaming live in real-time from McNally Smith College of Music in St. Paul, MN. Dahlgren has worked closely with Twin Cities percussionist David Stanoch to organize the hunger beat-down. Stanoch is a prolific drummer who has played with some of the best-known musicians around the world and is a noted educator and award-winning author. “The goal is to raise awareness,” Stanoch said. “We are not collecting money. There are excellent, vested organizations such as UNICEF and more with the means to accept donations already in place and we encourage people to donate to them. We are using the drums just as they were used ages ago in Africa: to send a message. People are starving. Right now. We believe if more people understand that, more people will help to turn the tide,” Stanoch said.

Recommended charities working to reduce world hunger:

UNICEF – Somalia: http://www.unicefusa.org/

Feeding America: http://feedingamerica.org/

For more information: www.drumforfood.com.

In Memoriam: Minoru Miki

hhenry — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 09:36:00 GMT

Japanese composer Minoru Miki died on December 8, 2011,after a ten-year battle with prostate cancer.

Miki composed over 200 works in many different genres andinstrument combinations and worked diligently to bring Japanese culture topeople all across the world through his music. While his love of life,dedication to music and pursuit of musical connection will be missed, his compositionallegacy will continue to thrive.

Read the full Memoriam.

In Memoriam: Ralph MacDonald

hhenry — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 08:19:00 GMT

Percussionist, songwriter and producer Ralph MacDonald diedon December 18, 2011. He was born in Harlem, New York in 1944, the son ofTrinidad-immigrant and Calypso performer "Macbeth The Great." At 17,Ralph landed a job with Harry Belafonte that lasted 10 years and introduced himto songwriter Bill Salter, with whom he began writing songs. In 1966, MacDonaldwrote all the songs for Belafonte’s Calypso Carnival album.

Read the full memoriam.

Time Change for Thursday Schwantner Concert

maltizer — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 14:47:43 GMT

The Thursday night Schwantner World Premiere Concert has been moved to an 8:30pm start time instead of the original 8:00pm start time. Sorry for the inconvenience.

PAS Offices Closed During PASIC

maltizer — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 14:45:18 GMT

PAS Offices will be closed from November 7 through November 14 as we prepare for PASIC 2011. If you need assistance, please contact us through percarts@pas.org. The offices will reopen on November 15 at 8am EST. Thank you and we look forward to seeing everyone at PASIC 2011 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

- PAS Staff

In Memoriam: Paulo Mattioli

maltizer — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 09:20:00 GMT

Dec. 31, 1969 – Oct. 22, 2011.
Multi-percussionist, educator and instrument designer Paulo Mattioli died on Oct. 22, 2011.

Read the full memoriam.

In Memoriam: Freddie Gruber

hhenry — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 20:28:55 GMT

Jazz drummer and teacher Freddie Gruber died Oct. 11 in Los Angeles after a lengthy illness. He was 84.

Read the full memoriam.

PAS Spring 2012 Intern Announcement

maltizer — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 09:53:42 GMT

PAS is seeking applicants for our six-month internship program beginning January 2012. All percussion students who wish to gain industry experience as a way to promote career goals are encourage to apply. Please click here for more information.

PAS Board of Directors Voting

maltizer — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 13:55:24 GMT

Voting for the upcoming available spots on the PAS Board of Directors has begun. If you are a PAS member, you will receive an email from PAS with a link to place your vote. Please take the time to vote and confirm your vote. If you are a member and have not received the voting email, please email us at percarts@pas.org so we can remedy the situation. Thank you

PAS Announces Scholarship Winners

maltizer — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 08:59:52 GMT

Percussive Arts Society is proud to announce the recipients of the 2011-2012 PAS and PASIC scholarships. Each year, hundreds of worthy candidates send in their applications and material and committees patiently narrow the list down to the selected few. Listed below are the recipients of each scholarship.

PAS & PASIC Scholarship Recipients
Thomas Siwe Scholarship
    Mariana Ramirez Alvarado, Mason Gross School of the Arts
Avedis Zildjian Company Scholarship
    Phi Bui, Arizona State University
George P. Contreras Scholarship
    Dave Crider, Western Michigan University
Remo Inc. Scholarship
    Edgar Gonzalez, Escuela Superior De Musica y Danza de Monterrey
Yamaha Corporation of America Scholarship
    Nathan Haines, Bringham Young University
Jack H. McKenzie Scholarship
    Kristen Heinzel, Northern Arizona University
M & J Lishon/Frank's Drum Shop Scholarship
    Samantha Hoover, Coastal Carolina University
Val and Venus Eddy Scholarship
    Heather Johnson, Appalachian State University
William F. Ludwig, Jr. Scholarship
    Benjamin Pitt, Berklee College of Music
Steve Ettleson Scholarship
    Jeremy Klewicki, Commack High School (Commack, NY)
James Sewery Scholarship
    Destiny Rose Murphy, Billy Ryan High School (Cross Roads, TX)
Ludwig Industries Scholarship
    Riley Palmer, Lincoln High School (Sioux Falls, SD)
Thomas Siwe Scholarship
    James Petrello, Camden Central High School (Talberg, NY)
Cloyd Duff Scholarship
    Carley Yanuck, Ladue Horton Watkins High School (St. Louis, MO)
Meredith Music Scholarship
    Terry Truden, Wisconsin Lutheran College
Sabian PASIC Scholarship
    Noam Bierstone, McGill University
PAS/Remo Fred Hoey Memorial Scholarship
    Nicholas Rothouse, University of North Texas
PAS/Yamaha Terry Gibbs Vibraphone Scholarship
    Jason DeCristofaro, University of North Carolina School of the Arts
PAS/Hudson Music Drumset Scholarship
    Dave Elliott, Trinity College of Music-London
PAS/Armand Zildjian Percussion Scholarship
    Garrett Mendelow, University of Michigan

PAS Announces the 2011 Composition Contest Winners

maltizer — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 08:00:00 GMT

Percussive Arts Society is pleased to announce the winners of the 2011 PAS Composition Contest. Now in its 38th year, the Percussive Arts Society Percussion Composition Contest is designed to encourage and reward those who create music for percussion instruments and to increase the number of quality compositions written for percussion. Many of the contest winners become staples in modern percussion literature. Cash awards totaling $4,500 are distributed each year.

Instrumentation and category restrictions are determined by the PAS Composition Committee each year and the deadline for entries is April 15th. The 2011 Categories were Unaccompanied Solo Vibraphone and Marimba Quartet. This year's winners in each category are:

Marimba Quartet
1st Place: Bloom by Ivan Trevino
2nd Place: Radioactive Octopus by Steven Simpson
3rd Place: Duruflé Variations by Lane Harder

Unaccompanied Solo Vibraphone
1st Place: Skipping Stones by Ed Martin
2nd Place: scenes for summertime by Dana Difilippantonio
3rd Place: Time - Clouds by Jorge Vidales

The 2012 Categories are Unaccompanied Solo Marimba and Drum Set Soloist with Medium Percussion Ensemble (5-8 players) [Drum Set part must be completely notated]. Entires must be postmarked by April 15th, 2012.

PAS Announces International Solo Competition-Concerto Finalists

maltizer — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 08:00:00 GMT

The purpose of the Percussive Arts Society International Solo Competition is to encourage the highest level of artistic expression in percussion performance and literature for solo percussion. The competition is ope to college-level students who are current PAS members, 18-25 years of age at the time of entry. This year, PAS chose a very special category to honor its 50th Anniversary, the Concerto. Four finalists were chosen to compete at PASIC 2011 in Indianapolis, Indiana. The contest will include cash awards for the finalists and a showcase recital performance at PASIC 2011. Congratulations to the 2011 Competition finalists:

Tomasz Arnold from Poland
Guillaume Le Picard from France
Wu Hsin-Hsuan from Taiwan
Tomasz Kowalczyk from Poland

The finalists will perform in the final round at 8am on Thursday, November 10 at PASIC in Indianapolis. The winner will be chosen and featured on a Showcase Concert at 11am on Friday, November 11.

The 2012 category for the PAS International Solo Competition will be unaccompanies Solo Marimba.

In Memoriam: David Searcy

jfeustel — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 05:00:00 GMT

David Searcy, timpanist of the La Scala Opera orchestra for more than three decades, died on August 2, 2011, after a long illness.

Read the full memoriam.

Rhythm! Discovery Center Welcomes New Artwork

maltizer — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 09:00:25 GMT

Rhythm! Discovery Center, a creative vision of Percussive Arts Society, is pleased to bring to its collection Pancadão-The Culture of Baile Funk, a new art installation by local artist Artur Silva. The installation, located in the entrance of the Discovery Center, displays Silva’s visual interpretation of Baile Funk – a musical culture popular in the Favelas of Rio de Janeiro. The project was made possible in part by a grant from the Indiana Arts Commission, with additional funding provided by Efroymson Family Fund, a fund from the Central Indiana Community Foundation.

Silva described Baile Funk music as “signifying the natural desire of entire communities to be heard. These often forgotten neighborhoods were built commonly across the street from the middle class neighborhoods in Rio. Pancadão (or a loud noise) is how the baile events are popularly referred to in Rio. This music had to be heard. On Saturday nights 12am-7am, if you get accustomed to the intense Volt Mix beat, no one can miss the not-so-PG-13 provocative lyrics. Baile funk is a form of art that came from people who had no choice but to create, often with the bare minimum resources. It’s music of social resistance.” On a recent visit to Brazil, Artur spent time with the most acclaimed Baile Funk MC, Mr. Catra. The images collected in Catra’s music studio are reassembled to create the installation.

Executive Director Michael Kenyon stated “Rhythm! Discovery Center is very excited to host Artur Silva’s new work, Pancadão-The Culture of Baile Funk. Artur’s connection with music, percussion and the Brazilian culture all are evident and brings new energy to our lobby. This is our first collaboration with a visual artist and aligns with the center’s vision to integrate with the local arts community and share our space and audience.”

Brazilian-born visual artist Artur Silva currently resides and works in Indianapolis. Artur’s work has been featured in publications, galleries and institutions across the United States, Europe and Brazil. Some of the museums that have featured his work inclue the Van Abbe Museum in The Netherlands, The Smart Museum at the University of Chicago, The Indianapolis Museum of Art, Fort Wayne Museum of Art and the Indiana State Museum. Artur is the 2011 recipient of the Efroymson Contemporary Art Fellowship and a Pollock-Krasner Foundation grant.