Assistant Professor of Music Mark Snyder performed his original composition Qwee for processed harp, accordion and video at the Classical Revolution’s Night of the Living Composer at Balliceaux in Richmond, Va., on May 15. Accompanying him was UMW alum harpist Becky Brown ’15, who performed her original composition, Hold Still, a multimedia self-portrait for pencil, copper, Arduino on paper, poetry and video in Max.

Classical Revolution is a Richmond-based collective of passionate musicians whose goal is to integrate classical music with Richmond’s vibrant music scene by taking this universal art form out of its glass case and into local bars, restaurants, cafes, and galleries. Classical Revolution was founded in 2006 at Revolution Cafe in the Mission District of San Francisco. In October of 2012, Classical Revolution RVA became one of more than 30 chapters worldwide.

The program:

Night of the Living Composer- May 15

Scott Frankel – Around the World;  Will You, Gabrielle Maes, soprano; Daniel Stipe, piano

Walter Augustus Braxton – Soliloquy from the Dance Suite Opus 4, No.7 for Flute and Piano, Walter Braxton, piano; Jeremy McEntire, flute

Jake Heggie – I Never Saw a Moor, Nichole Savage, soprano

Improvisation by Niccolo Seligmann, viola da gamba/medieval fiddle

Tonia Ko – Glass Echoes, Kristen Fowler, horn

Joseph Taylor – Harp Etude No. 1  & No. 2, Laura Seabourne, harp

Robert Andrew Scott – Meditations, Brandon Simmons, alto flute; Stephanie Barrett, cello; Laura Seabourne, harp; Caleb Paxton, viola

–Intermission–

Mark Snyder – Qwee, Becky Brown, harp;  Mark Snyder, harp, accordion, electronics

Becky Brown – Hold Still, Becky Brown, live art & electronics

Steve Van Dam – Oro Aleatorio, 3-8 musicians

Assistant Professor of Music Mark Snyder’s original composition, Our House on the Hill, was released by Fuzzy Panda Records on the compilation Thirsty and Miserable in memory of Jeff Prosser on April 3, 2016. The recording was done at the University of Mary Washington Department of Music’s recording studio featuring Becky Brown ’15 on harp and assistant engineer Paige Naylor ’14 soprano and assistant engineer and Mark Snyder on bass, guitar, piano, synth, organ, producer, composer and engineer.

Jeffrey Prosser, a D.C. graphic designer and integral part of the Washington, D.C., experimental music scene as both musician and promoter, passed away on April 3, 2015. He was an exceedingly sweet and generous man with many friends across D.C.’s various music and arts scenes and beyond. Shortly after his death, two memorial concerts were organized in Adams Morgan and Fredericksburg, Va. Now, some of his musician friends have put together a compilation in his honor, titled Thirsty and Miserable, a phrase Jeffrey was particularly fond of.

The compilation features 21 artists who knew and loved Jeffrey, featuring both locals and musicians from farther afield. The artwork includes designs by Jeffrey, including art for fliers he designed to promote shows around the D.C. area. Proceeds from sales of the compilation go to Bread for the City, a charity selected by the Prosser family.

Mark and Jeff were friends in high school and played music together in the basement of their mutual friend, Holmes Ives, and later in Richmond where Jeff worked at Peaches Record and Tapes and would make sure Mark always got the music he needed and at a discount. “I am so honored to be a part of this compilation,” said Snyder. “Jeff was always so generous and kind and a lot of fun to make art with. He will be missed greatly.”