We make music. It sounds terrific. But the work is not done once the music is made – in fact, that is only the beginning. Once music is created, it must be spread to listening ears, through albums as well as live performances. Composer Daniel Perttu is doing just that with his overture, To Spring, a member of the compilation album TOMORROW’S AIR from Navona Records. With debut performances in Virginia and Pennsylvania in September and October 2018, Dan is bringing his moving composition to life.
Dan Perttu’s music has been performed in Europe, Asia, South America, and in more than 30 states across the country. Dan’s music has been released by Navona Records, and his music appears on five different albums. On each, his compositions have stood strong among their counterparts, such as The Storr of Trotternish, a musical reaction inspired by the dramatic scenery of the Isle of Skye in Scotland which is featured on the 2016 album PINNACLE. Most recently, Dan contributed his overture To Spring on the compilation album TOMORROW’S AIR. This powerful piece recorded by the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra has been recognized by critics for the “modal strains [in his music] that recall the works of . . . Ralph Vaughan Williams and Ernest Bloch,” and has been praised as being “majestic” and “lyrical.”
Beyond being an impressive work that echoes greats like Vaughn Williams, Dan’s overture is a deeply personal expression. Inspired by his two young daughters, To Spring speaks to Dan’s own personal experience of rebirth and transformation with the new identity of father. Moving, personal, yet easily relatable, To Spring is a standout composition, both in recording and live onstage.
Performance Information:
- September 28, 2018 at 7:30 pm: Old Dominion University (Norfolk VA) with the Old Dominion University Orchestra led by conductor Paul S. Kim.Conductor, composer, and violinist Paul S. Kim is an assistant professor at Old Dominion University, where he directs the ODU Symphony Orchestra, teaches applied conducting and violin, and oversees the strings area. He is also music director of the Orchestra of the Eastern Shore and the symphony orchestra conductor of the Fine Arts Camps Europe/Czech Music Camp for Youth. A scholar of the music of Carl Roskott, Kim is the conductor and producer for the recording album Carl Roskott: Works for Violin, released under the Centaur Records label. He is the composer of nearly thirty original works. Kim completed a D.M.A. in conducting performance at Shenandoah Conservatory. Previously, he earned an M.M. in orchestral conducting at the University of Maryland as well as an M.A. in music and a B.S. in chemistry at the University of Virginia. Primary conducting mentors were Jan Wagner, James Ross, and Carl Roskott. Kim also served as a sergeant in the United States Marine Corps Reserve.
- October 2, 2018 at 7:30pm: Kutztown University (Kutztown PA) with the Kutztown University Orchestra led by conductor Peter Isaacson.Peter Isaacson, Orchestra Director, earned a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Kentucky in 2006 and holds a Master of Music degree from The Juilliard School and a Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music. His primary teachers have been Catherine Tait, Sally Thomas, Renato Bonicini, Stephen Clapp and Daniel Mason. During the course of his applied study, Isaacson performed in masterclasses with Peter Salaff and Jaime Laredo. His chamber studies have been with members of the Cleveland and Audubon String Quartets, Toby Appel, John Graham, André Emilianoff, Lewis Kaplan and Zvi Zeitlin.
