Cassandra Miller

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Cassandra Miller (born Metchosin, British Columbia, Canada, 1976)[1] is a Canadian experimental composer currently based in London, England. Her work is known for frequently utilising the process of transcription of a variety of pre-existing pieces of music.[2]

She has been widely commissioned by international orchestras, ensembles and soloists, and has won the Jules Léger Prize for New Chamber Music twice, in 2016 and in 2011.[3] In 2019, writers of The Guardian ranked her Duet for cello and orchestra (2015) the 19th greatest work of art music since 2000, with Kate Molleson writing, "Miller is a master of planting a seed and setting in motion an entrancing process, then following through with the most sumptuous conviction."[4]

Since 2018, she has been Professor of Composition at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, UK.[5]

Education[edit]

Miller studied with Christopher Butterfield at the University of Victoria (2005) and at the Royal Conservatory of the Hague (2008) with Richard Ayres and Yannis Kyriakides before studying privately with Michael Finnissy in 2012.[6]

Miller returned to academic research in 2014, as a PhD candidate at the University of Huddersfield, supervised by Dr Bryn Harrison and supported by the Jonathan Harvey Scholarship.[7]

Career[edit]

Miller's music has been commissioned and performed by orchestras including BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra,[8] the Oslo Philharmonic,[9] the Toronto Symphony Orchestra[10] and the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra.[11] Ensembles who have performed her work include EXAUDI Vocal Ensemble, the London Sinfonietta,[12] I Musici de Montréal, Ensemble Plus-Minus, Ensemble contemporain de Montréal, and Continuum Contemporary Music.

She has ongoing artistic relationships with the soprano Juliet Fraser[13] and the Canadian string quartet Quatour Bozzini, for whom she wrote the pieces About Bach (2015),[14] Leaving (2011), Warblework (2011) and Just So (2008/2018). These four works were released as an album by the label Another Timbre in 2018,[15][16] alongside a second album of her orchestra and ensemble music.[17]

From 2010 to 2013, Miller also was artistic director of the concert series "Innovations en concert" in Montreal.[2][18] Miller moved to London to take up the post of Associate Head of Composition (Undergraduate) at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in September 2018.[19]

In March 2023, her viola concerto, I cannot love without trembling, was premiered. This piece was commissioned by violist Lawrence Power, BBC Radio 3, Canada's National Arts Centre Orchestra, and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.[20][21]

Use of transcription[edit]

Miller often bases her work on pre-existing music, for example: a computer transcription of Kurt Cobain singing the folk song "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?", in For Mira (2012), written for violinist Mira Benjamin,[15][22] a recording of Maria Callas singing "Vissi d’arte" from Puccini's opera Tosca in Bel Canto (2010),[12] and a recording by Mozambican mbira player Zhukake Masingi in Philip the Wanderer (2012).[23][24]

Her work takes these transcriptions as starting points, investigating her response to the music through processes of repetition and looping.[23] Often the source material is unrecognisable in Miller's finished works.[15]

Her works employ musical notation, but also sometimes recordings of the source music, which performers learn by memory, such as a recording of the blues singer Maria Muldaur, which Miller uses in her piece Guide (2013).[25]

Selected works[edit]

  • I cannot love without trembling (2022) for viola and orchestra
  • La Donna (2021) for orchestra, commissioned by L'Auditori from Barcelona [1][2]
  • Round (2017) for orchestra, for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra[26]
  • Tracery (2017–2018) for voice and tape, in collaboration with Juliet Fraser
    • Tracery : Hardanger (2017)
    • Tracery : Lazy, Rocking (2017)
    • Tracery : The Slits (2017)
    • Tracery : attending to a task (2018)
  • Traveller Song (2017) for ensemble, for Plus Minus[27]
  • About Bach (2015) for string quartet
  • Duet for cello and orchestra (2015) for Charles Curtis and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra at Tectonics Festival
  • Guide (2013) for vocal ensemble, for EXAUDI
  • Philip the Wanderer (2012) for piano
  • For Mira (2012) for solo violin
  • Leaving (2011) for string quartet
  • Warblework (2011) for string quartet
  • Bel Canto (2010) for mezzo-soprano and ensemble
  • A Large House (2009) for orchestra, for the Janácěk Philharmonic at the Ostrava New Music Days
  • Just So (2008/2018) for string quartet
  • O Zomer! (2007) for the Asko Ensemble
  • Orfeo (2006) for ensemble
  • Dry Bones (1998), for eight timpani, bass drum, viola and cello[23]
  • Through night and day and in and out of weeks and almost over a year (1998) for two recorders, prepared cello and three prepared double basses[23]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Cassandra Miller » Biography". Smcq.qc.ca. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  2. ^ a b "Cassandra Miller: Biography | Canadian Music Centre | Centre de Musique Canadienne". Musiccentre.ca. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  3. ^ "Jules Léger Prize : List of winners" (PDF). Canadacouncil.ca. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
  4. ^ Clements, Andrew; Maddocks, Fiona; Lewis, John; Molleson, Kate; Service, Tom; Jeal, Erica; Ashley, Tim (2019-09-12). "The best classical music works of the 21st century". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2020-06-12.
  5. ^ "Guildhall School of Music & Drama| Dr Cassandra Miller". www.gsmd.ac.uk. Retrieved 2020-01-02.
  6. ^ "UVic School of Music: Alumni". finearts.uvic.ca. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  7. ^ "Doctoral student and renowned composer takes up major appointment – University of Huddersfield". Hud.ac.uk. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  8. ^ "BBC SSO in Concert". BBC Music Events. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  9. ^ "Only Connect 2016: Cassandra Miller". nyMusikk. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  10. ^ "Review: BBC SSO, City Halls, Glasgow, four stars". HeraldScotland. 17 November 2017. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  11. ^ "THE NEXT WORLD?". Winnipeg New Music Festival. Archived from the original on June 25, 2018. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  12. ^ a b Hall, George (2016-04-04). "Mix: London Sinfonietta/Volkov review – eclectic, raucous contemporary selection". the Guardian. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  13. ^ "Juliet Fraser | TRACERY". Julietfraser.co.uk. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  14. ^ Walls, Seth Colter (17 August 2018). "At This New-Music Festival, You Can Count on Variety". The New York Times. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  15. ^ a b c Clements, Andrew (2018-08-23). "Cassandra Miller: Just So; O Zomer! CD review – profoundly haunting". the Guardian. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  16. ^ "Cassandra Miller— Just So (Another Timbre)". dusted. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  17. ^ "Boring Like A Drill. A Blog. » Cassandra Miller: 'O Zomer!' and 'Just So'". Cookylamoo.com. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  18. ^ Arts, Rocketday. "Innovations en concert :: what we provide". Innovations en concert. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  19. ^ "Guildhall School of Music & Drama | Cassandra Miller". Gsmd.ac.uk. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  20. ^ "I cannot love without trembling | Faber Music". www.fabermusic.com. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
  21. ^ Viola Commissioning Circle
  22. ^ "Documentation // Cassandra Miller: for mira | nu:nord". nunord.net. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  23. ^ a b c d Weeks, James (July 2014). "Along the Grain: The Music of Cassandra Miller". Tempo. 68 (269): 50–64. doi:10.1017/S0040298214000060. ISSN 0040-2982. S2CID 144636018.
  24. ^ "Philip the Wanderer | Faber Music". www.fabermusic.com. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
  25. ^ Tim, Rutherford-Johnson (February 2017). Music after the fall : modern composition and culture since 1989. Oakland, California. p. 93. ISBN 978-0-520-28314-5. OCLC 958262850.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  26. ^ Orchestra, Toronto Symphony (2016-08-30). "Nicole Lizée and Cassandra Miller". TSO Canada Mosaic. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  27. ^ "Christine Sun Kim / Plus-Minus performs Miller / Fraser performs Miller – Kammer Klang". Kammer Klang. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
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