Neil McKay

On June 29, 2003, Neil McKay was interviewed and his music featured on a one-hour broadcast on Hawaii's KHPR. The works presented were Larghetto from Symphony No. 1 by the Eastman-Rochester Orchestra; String Quartet No. 1 by the Fine Arts Quartet; World(s) for solo koto by Keiko Nosaka; Concerto for Orchestra, movements 1 and 2, by the University of Hawaii Symphony Orchestra; and Je me souviens! for speaker and orchestra by the University of Hawaii Symphony Orchestra, Henry Miyamura, conductor, Jean Toyama, speaker. McKay is writing original music and arrangements to be played by the University of Hawaii jazz ensemble at a dance program scheduled for March 2004. One of his newest works is Four by Four, four miniatures for saxophone quartet.

Premieres

Je me souviens! for speaker and orchestra, was introduced May 5, 2003, by the University of Hawaii Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Henry Miyamura, with speaker Jean Toyama, on a program titled "Mostly French," Honolulu (HI) Blaisdell Concert Hall. On November 16, the Hawaii Youth Symphony, also conducted by Miyamura, presented Na Mele, Hilton Hawaiian Village, Honolulu (HI).

Performances

Symphony No. 2 (A Shakespeare Triptych) for chamber orchestra (winner of the Loudoun Symphony's 2002 Competition for American Composers) was performed by the Towson University Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Mark Allen McCoy, Towson University Center for the Arts, May 2, 2003. The same symphony was also performed in November by the University of Pittsburgh Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Roger Zahab.

Recordings

Je me souviens! for speaker and orchestra, University of Hawaii Symphony Orchestra: Henry Miyamura, conductor, Jean Toyama, speaker. Music for Wind Ensemble, Choirs and Orchestra; featuring ensembles of the University of Hawaii Music Department.

Further Information

• 2001-2002 American Composers Update
• 2000-2001 American Composers Update
• 1999-2000 American Composers Update
• 1996-1997 American Composers Update
• SAI's Composers Bureau Online.
• SAI's Music for Young People section