Student Holly McMahon performs seven original compositions for the piano inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Snow Queen”. (Maddie Lasker/CU Independent)
A host of student musicians at the University of Colorado Boulder performed original compositions at the CU Presents SoundWorks concert on Sept. 17.
SoundWorks is a monthly concert series that showcases performances of new and original work composed by College of Music students, and musicians beyond the CU Boulder community. SoundWorks includes a variety of artists in several different genres including piano, classical orchestra and electronic music.
The concert, held in Grusin Music Hall, featured original pieces by Holly McMahon, Aric Vyhmeister, Indigo Farmer, Alan Mackwell, and Addison Hill. Performers included Andrew Garland, Kisa Uradomo, Leah Pernick, Devin Cowan, Heewon Lee, Jesse Factor, and Asher Dobrin.
Student Holly McMahon performed seven original solo pieces on the piano inspired by the fairy tale, “The Snow Queen” by Hans Christian Andersen. Each piece reflected different characters from the story, with unique personalities and sounds from each character. Her original compositions included Lapland Woman, Gerda’s Theme, Little Robber Girl, Buttercups, Morning Glories, Hyacinths, and The Snow Queen.
“I was reading a fairy tale called ‘The Snow Queen’, and I really tried to embody the characters that were going to be in the ballet,” McMahon said. “Before that, there was a lot of planning, a lot of deciding what goes in the ballet and what doesn’t.”
Student Alan Mackwell, currently pursuing his doctorate of musical arts, composed an original piece called “Perdernal”, performed by Asher Dobrin on double bass. The piece was inspired by a trip to Abiquiu, New Mexico, home to Georgia O’Keefe’s famed studio.
“I grew up about half an hour out of Santa Fe, New Mexico, so I always get excited about other New Mexican artists,” Mackwell said. “I think the one that sort of dominated my childhood and even now is Georgia O’Keeffe. You can’t go anywhere in Santa Fe without encountering some element of her work.”
Mackwell said he wanted to incorporate O’Keeffe’s style into his piece, painting a vibrant image of Cerro Padernal that inspired much of her work.
Asher Dobrin performs Alan Mackwell’s original composition, “Pedernal”, inspired by the mountains of Abiquiu, New Mexico. By Maddie Lasker
“Over the course of all these different paintings, she paints this one particular mountain in all these different ways that are beautiful and menacing,” Mackwell said.
The piece featured an echoing microphone element, with dim red lighting to emphasize its power and beauty. Mackwell and Dobrin worked together to present an impressive and inspirational performance.
While showcasing musical talent is the main focus, the community involved in the production is one of a kind.
“SoundWorks is particularly special because there’s such a wide breadth of voices and different kinds of people that come in and out of the composition program,” Mackwell said. “To be a part of a program here is really to be a part of a collective of really interesting diverse voices and it’s really an honor to be here.”
Contact CU Independent Staff Writer Maddie Lasker at madeline.lasker@colorado.edu
