It’s Human vs. Machine at Oct. 19 Concert at UT

On Oct. 19, The University of Tampa will welcome guest artist Calvin Falwell, second clarinetist for the Sarasota Opera Orchestra in Sarasota, FL, to debut a new work for bass clarinet and electronics composed by Bradford Blackburn, UT chair/associate professor of music.

The concert, “Calvin Falwell, New Music For Clarinet,” will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the Reeves Theater, located on the 2nd floor of the Vaughn Center on campus, and is free and open to the public.

Titled Say It!, Blackburn’s new piece explores the tension between a human musical soloist and the dogmatic reality of a fixed electronic accompaniment, in this case a sampled circuit-bent 1980s Texas Instruments Speak & Spell. Over the course of the piece, the electronic narrator barks commands and interruptive critical commentary to the soloist, moving him through various states of consciousness.

Falwell will also perform three other works: Vier Stucke Fur Klarinette und Klavier (op. 5) by Alban Berg, Lovely Little Monster by Scott Miller and Fantasie for Bass Clarinet and Piano by Suzanne Polak. Benjamin Payne, a member of the music faculty at Florida College, will accompany on piano.

Falwell enjoys a varied career as an orchestral musician, soloist and educator. In addition to his appointment with the Sarasota Opera, during the summer months he performs with the Ash Lawn Opera Festival in Charlottesville, VA. Solo appearances have included recitals in South America, China, Europe and the U.S. Falwell has served on the faculties of Holy Family University, Wilmington University, Harwick College Music Festival, Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp and AMEROPA Chamber Music Festival.

Bradford Blackburn directs the music technology and composition program for the UT Department of Music and founded and directs the Interactive Arts Ensemble, a course for students to collaboratively create and perform with new or repurposed technologies for real-time, multi-media performance.

He has composed more than 100 works in a variety of media, and his compositions have been selected for performance at prestigious peer-reviewed events such as the national conferences for the Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States (SEAMUS), the College Music Society (CMS) and the Electronic Music Midwest festival, among others.

For more information, contact Blackburn at (813) 257-3399 or bblackburn@ut.edu.