December 9, 2011
It's been a long time since an update, I apologize - teaching has occupied a lot of my time recently.
Some exciting news - Innova Recordings is planning on releasing a CD of my new works in early 2012. The album is entitled Monuments Emerge. It features new music I have composed from 2007-2011.
In order to get this CD produced I have created a Kickstarter page. Being a relatively unknown composer this CD is a wonderful opportunity to reach new listeners. I would greatly appreciate any donation and in return will give personal rewards to each pledge. For example if you donate $15 you will get a copy of Monuments Emerge in return. It's almost like pre-ordering a CD. You can visit the Kickstarter page here.
thanks for all your support!
I hope you can all be a part of this project
May 2, 2011
LOTS of cool news!
I have a new CD out - "let the machines do it for us."
This CD is a collection of compositions written from 2007-2011 recorded from April 19-20th of 2011. These pieces are influenced by the late piano etudes of Gyorgy Ligeti and the player piano pieces of Conlon Nancarrow. As globalization continues to affect the direction of art (and music in particular) the use of machinery to produce music is becoming more pervasive in contemporary composition. This collection represents a conscious decision to write music that was tailor made for the modern-era player piano – the disklavier. Some of these pieces also use algorithmic procedures facilitated with the use of computer software.
For a sample go to the "Works"->"Solo"->"Explosions in the Sky." You can purchase the CD HERE.
Here is a recent article from the Gavilan Press about my teaching:
I won the ACP Idol 2011 Competition for my piece Expand the Hive!!! Very honored to have won especially with such steep competition. Expect an upcoming radio show with Anthony Lanman on All the Cool Parts.
June 3, 2011 my new work Omnes Perituri for large ensemble will be performed by the dB Orchestra at CSU East Bay in Hayward.
More news to come! Hopefully about my culminating project as a doctoral candidate.
March 17, 2011
Things are coming togther in 2011. I have completed my dissertation composition Black Swan Events, a concerto for electric guitar and orchestra. It will be premiered in the 2011-2012 season by new music ensemble - Blueprint directed by Nicole Paiement.
I have three upcoming world premieres:
April 5, 2011 4pm my new work Omnes Perituri [adapted] for string quartet will be performed by the Borromeo String Quartet in the Music Center (Room 131) at University of California Santa Cruz.
April 20, 2011 7pm my new algorithmic piece called Five will be performed at the APRIL IN SANTA CRUZ Festival of Contemporary Music at the University of California Santa Cruz.
April 29, 2011 7pm my new work Omnes Perituri [adapted] for string quintet will be performed by the UCSC Resident String Ensemble also at the APRIL IN SANTA CRUZ Festival of Contemporary Music at the University of California Santa Cruz.
June 3, 2011 my new work Omnes Perituri for large ensemble will be performed by the dB Orchestra at CSU East Bay in Hayward.
More news to come! Hopefully about my culminating project as a doctoral candidate.
January 12, 2011
Hello 2011! I am excited for this year, lots of cool things coming up:
- The CSU East Bay Orchestra directed by Wesley Broadnax will have a night of music where I will be featured as the "guest composer". This will take place Thursday Feb. 24th 7:30pm in the Recital Hall (MB 1055) at CSU East Bay (Hayward). Tickets are HERE and there is an article about it at csueastbay.edu.
- Watsonville Taiko will be premiering my new work "Ikusa" at annual "Bach to Blues 2011" music festival at Gavilan College on March 5th at 7:30pm.
- I am 12 minutes into my dissertation composition "Black Swan Events". I am very excited about this piece and will keep you informed on its premiere in the 2011-2012 Season.
- In other excellent news, I was recently hired as a part-time Lecturer at Cal State East Bay. Very happy to be back home =)
August 26, 2010
What a summer.
I am now a married man and living back in the East Bay Area. This next year
I will be focusing on my dissertation (huge composition exemplifying all
my work thus far as a graduate student). My goal is to have it completed
by Spring 2011.
A big part of my dissertation involves computer assisted analysis and composition, for this I will be working with Spectral composer/theorist Francois Rose and mathematician Victor Dods.
The piece will be premiered by the world renown new music ensemble BluePrint directed by Nicole Paiement!
Other than that, I was featured in the new issue of Hapa. Also, I am staying busy with the part time faculty jobs I scored over summer. I feel very blessed to have landed these positions. I absolutely LOVE teaching and hope to find more opportunities as they arise.
Until next time
June 2, 2010
I cannot believe it....I just received news that I am the recipient of the President's Dissertation-Year Fellowship Award. It usually gets awarded to the engineers or scientists and has never gone to an Arts or Music student. Man, I feel very honored. All my thanks to my professors, family, and my fiancee Denise for the support!
 |
(Santa Cruz Sentinel - May 28, 2010) |
The big UCSC Wind Ensemble/Watsonville Taiko concert was fantastic! The hall was packed, SOLD OUT and they still had to turn away 100 people. Watsonville Taiko killed it! Robert Klevan and the Winds blew everyone away. Let's hope Wind Ensemble's hiatus doesn't last long. Thanks to all my friends and fellow grad students that came, it meant a lot to me...Please check out the "Works" page to listen or watch the performance =)
So next up, I will be working on a string quartet commission as well as sketching out ideas for my dissertation composition. Big news on who I will be collaborating with for that piece will be revealed soon!
The real big news is my upcoming wedding, I will be wed to my girlfriend of 7 years on June 19th and we will be going on a honeymoon for 2 weeks. Can't wait!
March 29, 2010
I passed the JEDI TRIALS (i.e. my Qualifying Exams)!!! (Feeling very relieved) It was very intense...10 days of written work amounting to 107 pages typed. It ended with a nearly 3 hour oral examination with my committee. I was very nervous leading up to the orals (as well as the written) but once I was in the room and began speaking I felt very comfortable. I think I was just very eager to unload the obscene amount of information I had digested. From September to March I consistently read an average of 100 pages a day, overall probably 40 thesis/dissertations, 50 books, 100+ academic journal articles, and conducted fieldwork. This was definitely the most difficult academic hurdle I have ever completed...Thanks again to my loving and understanding partner in crime, Denise. She was there for me when I needed encouragement and an escape from my work. My committee was wonderful (David Evan Jones, Paul Nauert, Tanya Merchant, Ken Ueno, and unofficially – Ben Carson). Special thanks to Taeko D'Andrea and Sensei Ikuyo Conant from Watsonville Taiko.
My music will also be perfomed internationally - from Georgia to Massachusetts to California to Korea. For the complete listings of concerts with my music visit my "Performances" page.
In other big news - there are 2 big world premieres coming up. The first, Collapsing Obsidian Sun (2009: for haegeum, violin, and cello), will be performed by the world renown Contemporary Music Ensemble Korea and Del Sol String Quartet on Thursday April 22, 7:30pm at UC Santa Cruz. It is the "Premiere Concert I" of the Pacific Rim Festival. New works by Chinary Ung, Ken Ueno, David Rakowski, Geonyong Lee, Sungki Kim, Koji Nakano, Ching-Yi Wang, Jiyoung Ko, Noah Meites, and Nick Vasallo.
The other premiere, Antares Rising (2010: for wind ensemble and taiko), will be performed by the UCSC Wind Ensemble with Watsonville Taiko. I am very excited for this work, please come to UC Santa Cruz on Saturday May 15 at 7:30pm. (more info)
The Atlanta Schola Cantorum will be performing the award winning work Lumen et Tenebras (2007) on April 17th in Macon, GA and May 1st in Atlanta. More details can be found here.
Lastly, please check out my experimental rock project - Fractals. It represents a culmination of all my musical interests presented through a more "popular" music medium.
February 10 , 2010
It's officially crunch time! I am taking my Qualifying Exams to advance to doctoral candidacy in 4 weeks. Suffice to say, I am anxious, excited, and my brain already hurts a bit. But this will be good, I feel ready to take the trials in front of the Jedi Council, they have all been very helpful preparing me and I will always be grateful for their tutelage. I have to thank Ben Carson for meeting with me off campus and even though he is not on my committee he is giving me great guidance. The exams will take place from March 12 - 22 followed by the 3 hour oral exam on March 29th, thereafter I will know whether or not I pass.Compositionally things are going well. I am finishing my "TBA" big piece for the UC Santa Cruz Wind Ensemble with Watsonville Taiko, I should be completed with that piece right before my QE's. That piece will be premiered on May 15, 2010 at UC Santa Cruz. Another big world premiere will take place on April 22, 2010. The world renown Contemporary Music Ensemble Korea with the Del Sol String Quartet will premiere "Collapsing Obsidian Sun" alongside works by David Rakowski, Kurt Rohde, Ken Ueno, Chinary Ung, Chou Wen-Chung, and others. I was also lucky enough to be one of the selected pieces that they will perform at Brandeis University in Boston, the Korean National University of Arts in Seoul, and Young-Nam University in Gyeongbuk, Korea. For more info please go here.
November 30 , 2009
This year has been going by so quickly, I cannot believe it's almost 2010 already. Well, there are a lot of exciting things coming up and it looks like 2010 may be the most eventful year of my life. I have 4 commissions that I'll be hammering out one by one. The first is a solo piano piece, then a huge ensemble piece for the UCSC Wind Ensemble (70+ musicians) and Watsonville Taiko, vocal piece for baritone and piano, and finally a new choral piece. After all of this, I hope to begin my dissertation composition - the culmination of all my work to date.
I am moving back to the East Bay with my fiancee, we are very excited and the house we found is perfect. Coming up in the Spring is my Qualifying Examination, followed by my oral exams, then lots of premieres of new works, and then the big day (wedding!), oh and also the honeymoon...very excited, anxious, but most of all happy that things are coming together.
~Nick
August 21, 2009
Wow...5 months since my last update. A lot has happened but I'll sum it up quickly. Master's level concert went over extremely well! You can watch some performances here. Almost filled the entire hall thanks to a lot of my good friends, family, and former teachers (CSU East Bay represent!). I now have a M.A. in Music Composition from UC Santa Cruz. I got engaged with my girlfriend of over 5 years and we moved in together to a nice location right near the beach =). I have had a lot of premieres and other honors since my last update.
Coming up: currently composing a piece for the CMEK, a new choral piece, preparing for my QE's, and planning a wedding/honeymoon. Things are going and looking great - much better than 2008 =)
~Nick
March 12, 2009
It certainly has been a long time since my last update...lots of news! First and foremost: my Master's Level Recital is coming up! It will take place Sunday April 26th at 3pm in the Main Recital Hall of UC Santa Cruz. It will be FREE to attend, about 80% of the music will be World Premiere performances by The SF Conservatory Contemporary Music Ensemble, UCSC Trombone Ensemble, Ariose Chamber Singers, The Vertigo Series, Antagony, Yamaha disklavier, and various UCSC students. For more information go to the Facebook Event page here.
On Tuesday April 14th 7pm I will be doing a radio interview on 88.1FM KVSC. I will be talking about my music, art, and promoting my upcoming Master's recital. You can listen to it live here.
My music will also be featured in the April in Santa Cruz Festival alongside Olivier Messiaen, John Harberson, and Andrew Imbrie - on April 19th. Go to my UPCOMING PERFORMANCES page for more details. Wow...what an honor.
Since December I have been keeping busy, I finished a lot of new music for my Master's Recital and just completed a grueling 5 week intensive workshop with several of Korea's top traditional musicians. They were all so talented and helpful...if all goes well I will have new music performed Internationally. Thank you to Hi-Kyung Kim, one of my composition teachers here at UCSC, for her hard work and dilligence with this project.
Teaching this past school year has been great; I was moved from beginning theory to the more advanced students and it has been very enriching seeing all of these talented young minds starting to blossom. I truly love teaching Music Theory, next quarter I will be doing Counterpoint - my favorite subject!
Other than that...life is great. Last year (2008) was truly the hardest year of my entire life...a nightmare. I had a lot of internal and external battles that almost destroyed me...but I bounced back and music was my release. Personally, 2008 was the most tragic but professionally, it was my most successful year. Now I must clean up and show what I have learned. Life is funny isn't it? As the year ended I saw a light at the end of the dark tunnel, and since then 2009 has been awesome...just sunshine.
~NV
December 4, 2008
New music is up for listening! "Expand the Hive" op.60 (2008 UCSC Orchestral Composition Competition Winner) performed and world premiered by the UCSC Orchestra under Nicole Paiement on November 21, 2008. The 3 performances were a huge success with 1600+ people in attendance over 3 days with Carmina Burana headlining.
I just completed 2 new choral pieces which will be premiered in Spring 2009. I am midst of completing "Explosions in the Sky" (for SFCM), "Sea of Anger" (for Trombone choir), and a TBA percussion/winds piece.
I have a set date for my Master's of Arts level recital - Sunday April 26th 3pm at the UCSC Recital Hall.
~NV
November 5, 2008
Some exciting news - I am having the world premiere of my first orchestral composition this month. I am very grateful to have won the 2008 UCSC Orchestral Composition Competition and have the oppurtunity to hear my work. Under the baton of Nicole Paiement, the UCSC Orchestra will perform "Expand the Hive" 3 days in a row: Friday and Saturday November 21-22 at 7pm and Sunday November 23 at 2pm (click on the days to PURCHASE TICKETS). My piece will be opening the whole show so please arrive on time. Also being performed will be Carl Orff's "Carmina Burana" and Chris Pratorius' "Through a Crack in the Concrete"'. Tickets are selling very fast so if you want to get a good seat please buy a ticket now.
In other news, I have finished a new choral piece called "Judicabo te". It's my homage to Byzantine Chant, 16th century counterpoint (Mannerists and de Prez), and 20th century diatonic dissonance. I am hoping to have this work performed in 2009. Currently, I am writing a new chamber piece for the San Francisco Conservatory New Music Ensemble. This piece, tentatively called "Explosions in the Sky", will be performed at The San Francisco Conservatory and at UC Santa Cruz in April.
~NV
September 2, 2008
It's been a long time since I have updated this site. Some big things since my last news posting. I finished composing my 1st piece since my hiatus in March. It was the final project for the UCSC Graduate Composition Seminar and took me 3 weeks to compose. The piece involved fractal composition, Fibonacci tracings, Taiko, Gamelan, and Beethovenian elements. While composing this piece I was going through some life changing events in my life, so the piece emenates from darkness, then into an intense and primal section, ending with the feeling that YOU can overcome ANYTHING. The nuclear theme is everywhere, you just have to listen carefully...the piece was premiered June 9, 2008 at UCSC and following the concert I was honored with the 2008 David Cope Award for Music Composition Excellence at a faculty/grad student post-concert reception.
The piece is finally up for listening on the MUSIC page, it was recorded on a small handheld voice recorder so I apologize for the poor sound quality. I have a new music player and 10 tracks up for listening! Also coming are T-shirts...I know, why in the heck does Nick Vasallo have shirts? Well, my friend owns a T-shirt company and he's been wanting to make NV shirts for a year now. My girlfriend Nichole really thought it was a great idea so now he's making some. I already have a bunch of people on MySpace wanting one so hopefully this lark won't be such a terrible idea.
I am starting my 2nd year of grad school in a couple of weeks and I am excited to get back into the grind. I am sure a plethora of new music will be arriving shortly. I have big news coming up but I must save it once I hear the final word. Until then...
~NV
May 19, 2008
So much has happened since my last update. I was dealing with some pretty heavy issues in my personal life and went on a 2 month hiatus. But during this time a lot of good things and recognition were happening to my work.
"Evanescent Revolutions" was included in the 60x60 mix, which will be performed throughout the US. My piece was one of the only acoustic pieces, everything else is electronic (even though my piece sticks out like a sore thumb, it's good to stand out from the flock).
My chamber orchestra piece "Coalescence" premiered and closed the new music festival in Santa Cruz, it was a great performance - even a few people teared up during my piece (I hope that's a good thing).
"Transient Reflections" was chosen in the Seattle Pianist's Collective competition and will be premiered on June 1, 2008 at the Seattle Arts Center. I am pretty excited about it and will be flying out there later this month.
I will be busy over the next few months writing my first piano concerto for the Paris International. I don't want to reveal too much but it is a further step into my new musical language.
~NV
March 13, 2008
Sorry I haven't updated in a while, I have been very busy with work and academics. I recently finished a set of some pretty crazy piano pieces that will premiere sometime next Fall. Also, the premiere of my chamber orchestra piece "Coalescence" will be on April 23rd 7pm at UCSC Recital Hall, go here for details.
I've been getting requests to post more of my new work and while I am very excited to share it, I can only show so much. After dealing with labels I have become wary of how much work I can stream online. I promise soon, I will have more new work on my player :)
I have 3 commissions I need to fulfill in the next 4 months so I need to get crackin'. Thanks everyone for all your kind (and even unkind) messages. "All this negative energy just makes me stronger."
Check out the Anti-Mag article and interview with me here.
~NV
January 2008
Just finished my first 2 pieces of 2008: a chamber piece entitled "Coalescence" op.59 and my first orchestral composition "Expand the Hive" op.60. I have two premieres coming up: the first will be in April at The Festival of Contemporary Music in Santa Cruz and the other will be at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in May. Check out my "Upcoming Performances" link for more info.
The Pioneer newspaper recently did an article about me which you can read here. Please go out and get my CD if you haven't done so already, support contemporary classical music (a dying animal shaking its fist at MTV). Ars Nova Classics and I have worked out a deal for me to sell copies directly from my site for a lower price (only $8.00!).
~NV
December 2007
Big things abound! First, my debut CD "The Burning" has just been released by Ars Nova Classics. This past Summer several Classical Music labels expressed interest in releasing my work. After much negotiation and speaking to other artists on these labels, I settled on one of the more "independent" ones. Much thanks to Paul for taking a chance with my music, Rich for his beautiful artwork, my fiancee Denise for her very artistic photographs, and most of all - the musicians on the album. You can purchase the CD HERE or ask your local record store if they can order it. By 2008 it should be distributed to major outlets around the world.
As far as composing goes, I am writing at full speed once again. Taking the entire Summer off from composing has really paid off; at first, I was extremely depressed while not composing but now it is coming out in surges. I must thank Jeff Miller for that piece of advice - distancing myself from musical creation for a while was sort of like cocooning my musical mind as it internally evolved. I am very excited about the new work I am creating, it is different and much more dimensional than my previous compositions.
New unreleased piano piece on streaming AUDIO! Here are some brief program notes on it:
Transient Reflections op.55
I. Intertwine...unwind
"With this piece I was interested in chaos theory and polymetre. It's all based upon a single idea - 1 voice is the leader and in canonic fashion (simultaneous inversion) the second follows assymetrically. 2 layers turn into 6 distinct layers but with this multi-dimensional interaction you start hearing a 7th layer (with the cross accentuations). These finely threaded lines intertwine and as they purge I introduce a small change which creates a butterfly effect upon all the other inter-dependent members and eventually the piece - like a tightly rolled ball of twine...unwinds itself. Hence, the title for the piece."
This is the first movement of a 3 movement work to be premiered at the SF Conservatory by I-Wen Wang.
Always check my AUDIO page for updates on new pieces and my BLOG for program notes on any new work. Thanks everyone, please pick up a copy of my new CD and let me know what you think.
- NV
November 2007
New look for a new era! Its been over 4 years since I updated the design for this site (Bray helped me construct the original one). Since then I have finished my BA in Music at CSU East Bay and learned some basic coding (not a flash guru yet). My friend Rich provided the artwork on the top frame, he just finished designing the artwork for my debut CD which will arriving stores in late November but you can soon get it online here (for much cheaper). More details on that coming next month!
October 2007
Sorry for the lack of updates but I was just taking a break from writing. I have been busy researching, theorizing, and planning. I just started. Grad School and I must say it is very exciting, challenging, and exactly what I need right now. I am taking 4 intriguing courses (Research, Composition, Asian Resonances & Current Issues) and am a Graduate Student Instructor (Theory I - 70 students). I have 2 pieces in the works: my 1st orchestral piece and a chamber piece. I will be trying new ideas previously unused by myself. I have started "pre-composing" and theorizing my new piece in entirety: a new method I am adpoting.
Also have exciting news coming up of a possible International nature....I'll keep you posted. BTW - Interview I did with a webzine is here.
July 2007
My Senior Recital is finally up for streaming video! Thanks to Carlos and Brandon of Panopticon Films. I am now fully moved into my studio in Santa Cruz and I love it! Can't wait until school starts. What have I been doing for the past month??? Relaxing...not composing...reading comic books...discovering the things that fascinated me as a child. But music is brewing...commissions for video games, piano, and Church is on the table but I am letting it stew for a bit before I stir it up.
June 2007
Lots of news - I am graduating Cal State East Bay this Saturday June 16th. My Senior Recital was great!!! Read more about it in my Blog here. I have been writing a lot this year due to many requests from different ensembles - and luckily I have recorded nearly all my new pieces. Here are the new pieces and a little description on each one:
1. "Never Odd or Even" op.47 (2007) - My first piece for 2007. The piece, like the title, is a palindrome. Only not a literal one - it's an emotional palindrome that requires extreme sensitivity for the listener on many levels. Listen for the motivic transformations and the fugue. Dedicated to my fiancee - Denise Mahoney. (Performed by Lawrence Granger, Alex Kadarauch, Irene Gregorio, and Jeff Patterson)
2. "The Vertigo Series III. Confrontations" op.49 (2007) - There are many levels fighting for supremacy in this piece: a musical Confrontation. The original theme from the 1st movement ("Monolith" op.35), a new rhythmic motive that develops and encompasses all that cross its path, and a Spanish motive that becomes intertwined with the other 2 thematic ideas. They end up culminating into huge waves of gravitational harmony pulling you down into an abyss of musical infinity. (Performed by the CSUEB Percussion Ensemble directed by Arthur Storch)
3. "Without a Dream" op.50 (2007) - My friend, Rodrigo Cortes, has been asking me for months to compose a song for him to sing. This came to me as I was driving home, all I could think of writing was the saddest thing I could imagine: everything you ever thought you wanted is gone...now life is meaningless. (Performed by Rodrigo Cortes and Dominic Serrano)
4. "Emergence of the Kraken" op.52 (2007) - Another friend of mine, Israel Santiago, has been asking me to write a trombone choir piece. Rafael Hernandez (my Composition teacher at the time), wanted me to write using no references (piano, Sibelius, etc.) - only my internal ear. So this became an exercise in texture. It is also a tone-poem on Alfred Tennyson's "The Kraken". Dedicated to Israel Santiago and Andrew Walker. (Performed by the CSUEB Trombone Ensemble)
5. "De civitatibus" op.53 (2007) - For my last piece as a student at CSUEB I wanted to write a piece for a retiring professor, Dr. David Stein. He loves choral music and has been encouraging me to write more choral music. Thanks to him I wrote "Lumen et Tenebras" op.45 which earned an award. The text is from JOB 24:12 and it is composed in the style of late Gesualdo. Carlo Gesualdo is a composer that caught my ear when I noticed the similarities in our sound. (Performed by Amy Boyer, Mary Low, Liz Calame, Sean Cooper, Alex Kadarauch, and Nick Vasallo)
Videos from my Senior Recital will be here in July!!!
May 2007
COME TO MY SENIOR RECITAL on Saturday June 2nd 7pm at CSUEB.
It's been a good beginning of the year so far: on tour with the CSU East Bay Singers Buddy took us around the Bay Area (Berkeley, San Francisco School of theArts, Miramonte High School, Alcalanes, and more) and luckily my piece made it on some of the programs. The choral directors from SFSOTA and Miramonte want to perform a future choral work of mine, hopefully that will follow through someday!
Buddy has been kind enough to interview me for an article on the Music Department webpage. Check it out HERE.
Other than that I have been finishing many pieces - just completed my 4th-6th pieces for 2007 - The Vertigo Series III. Confrontations op.49, "Without A Dream" op.50, and "In Tribulatione" op.51 (recorded with Amy Boyer and Liz Calame). It will premiere at the Percussion Ensemble recital on Thursday May 24th 12pm in MB1039 at CSUEB. My Senior Recital will be on Saturday June 2nd at 7pm in MB1055 at CSUEB. Please come and I promise a show you will never forget!
So I got injured and had time to write a piece, my back was in so much pain my body triggered it's natural painkiller which felt strangely euphoric. I read a prayer from the Bible and felt music from a certain passage speaking to me. In the span of 24 hours I wrote "In Tribulatione" and recorded it with my friends Amy Boyer and Liz Calame. It's text is from 2 Samuel 22:7
In tribulatione mea invocabo Dominum, et ad Deum meum clamabo. Et exaudiet de templo suo vocem meam, et clamor meus veniet ad aures ejus.
(In my distress I called to the LORD; I called out to my God. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came to his ears)
thanks for listening
April 2007
It's been a while since I have updated - sorry! A lot has happened: the premiere of "Lumen et Tenebras" went extremely well (thanks to Buddy and the choir), I got into the DMA program at UCSC (I can't wait!!!), and I have written 3 pieces since. I am also gearing up for my Senior Recital on Saturday June 2nd 7pm at CSU East Bay MB1055. There will be mass hysteria, bliss, danger, and most importantly excellent musicians performing my 3 years of work at CSU East Bay.
So I finally have "Lumen et Tenebras" op.45 up for listening. I have 2 versions: one with the CSUEB University Singers directed by Buddy James and the other with a few of my friends.
This version is recorded by my friends from school - unofficial NV Chamber Vocal Group - Amy Boyer (soprano), Liz Calame (alto), Sean Cooper (tenor), David Zelenka (tenor), Rodrigo Cortes (baritone), Alex Kadarauch (bass), me (low bass).
thanks to everyone involved! again and forever
Nick
P.S. - I'll post the LIVE version next week let me know which one you like better
January 2007
Good news!!! I just found out I won the 2007 CSUEB Student Composers Composition Competition. The piece called "Lumen et Tenebras" (Latin to English translates to "Light and Darkness") will be performed on:
Sunday, March 18 at 7 p.m.
The
Harps Eternal: Choral Americana
The Old Mission San Jose, Fremont (43300 Mission Blvd., Fremont)
($7/$5/Free to CSUEB students)
The CSUEB University Singers led by Dr. Buddy James will perform it. The piece is very meaningful to me, the text's musical depiction captures emotions that I feel strongly and frequently akin to. It's written for 8 part SATB and it sounds different than any other piece I've written so far.
Please come to the performance if you can!
thank you all,
Nick Vasallo
December 2006
Lots of new pieces have been completed and recorded: "Inconsolable op.42", "The Dysfunctional Family op.32", and "5 Stages of Grief op.38" are all for solo piano. Thanks to I-Wen Wang (San Francisco Conservatory of Music) and Dominic Serrano (Cal State East Bay) for performing them. You can listen to them on the AUDIO page.
Also special thanks to the Trombone choir at CSU East Bay (Andrew Walker, Israel Santiago, Andrea Fennern, and Chris Palmer), Kenny Lavoie, and Andrei Ivanov. They performed "The Red Plant: Prelude and Fugue op.46" there will be a video and recording of that performance soon as well.
Coming up is a performance and recording of a new choral piece "Lumen et Tenebras op.45"
October 2006
2 new pieces have been recorded - "Sigillum Sextum" op.33 (2005) a big choral ensemble piece with latin text from Revelations and "Vivi In Infernum" op.40 (2005) an acapella 8 part chorale with latin text from The Book of Numbers. Thank you to all the performers from Cal State East Bay: Amy Boyer, Liz Calame, Sean Cooper, Alex Kadarauch, and David Lockhart.
Stay tuned for a video from the movie "Duplicity" as well as recordings for some solo piano pieces.
July 2006
Working on the score for the film "Duplicity". It's a suspenseful mystery flick in B&W. I posted a clip from the documentary I did in the late Spring for Contra Costa County Development - check it out in the VIDEO section.
Currently I am also composing a solo piano piece to be performed by Eve Wang from the San Francisco Conservatory. I also plan on re-recording "Lamentation" as well as recording "12 Stages of Grief", "Insomnia", "The Dysfuncional Family", "Sigillum Sextum" and "Vivi en Infernum." Check back soon for those.
June 2006
2 new pieces uploaded! "Lamentation" op.41 and "Howling Winds: Voices of the Dead" op.43 were premiered on Friday June 2, 2006 at CSU East Bay. Thank you to all the performers:
The Bow Peeps, Alex Kadarauch, Jeremiah Massey, Dominic Serrano, Lisa Karn, Dave Lackhart, David Zelenka, Amy Boyer, Liz Calame, Sean Cooper, Matt Payne, Ryan Rey, Julian Hogan, John Stockton, Ken Lavoie, Andrew Walker, Israel Santiago, Steve Silva, Dan Ferriera, Jessica Vicksell, Eric Garcia
I am currently working on a solo piano piece, this summer I will be recording "Sigillum Sextum" op.33 and "Vivi in Infernum" both are choral works.
May 2006
New piece - "The Vertigo Series" II. Necromantic Dances was performed Tuesday May 16, 2006 by The Vertigo Series. There is now a recording up on my AUDIO page. "Part I. Monolith" has been remixed and that is also up on my Large Ensemble audio page.
2 more works will be premiered on Friday June 2, 2006 8pm at Cal State East Bay. I will post recordings once those are done. In the works is a solo piano piece.
April 2006
2 works are in progress - "The Vertigo Series Part II" op.39 and an untitled piece op.43 for bowed piano, double bass, vibraphone, bass drum, and soprano. These 2 works and another will be performed in May at Cal State East Bay, I'll post dates as soon as I get them.
I just finished the score for "Phoenix" and will have clips for that movie as well as 2 other projects I recently finished. Check back for those.
March 2006
Hey everyone, sorry for not updating in a while but I've been very busy. I was out of the country and finishing some commissioned works. I am currently working on a new psychological thriller called "Phoenix". It's gonna be an eerie score, perfect for my tastes. I also have 2 other movies coming up in the next 3 months so I'll keep you posted.
I have finished a new piece for Classical Guitar, Cello, Soprano, Alto, and Percussion called "Lamentation" op.41. It's a very melancholy and dark piece that moves around quite a bit...it will be performed sometime in the Spring at CSU East Bay. I am still completing "The Vertigo Series Part II" and "The Vertigo Series Part I" was performed live March 7th 12pm at CSU East Bay MB 1055, check out the LIVE VIDEO.
I'll have clips for download soon from the video I scored for Contra Costa County's Development Dept.
December 2005
New recording! The Vertigo Series, a new ensemble at Cal State East Bay, has recorded my piece "The Vertigo Series Part I." It is the first of a trilogy I will be writing over the next several months specifically for the new ensemble.
Much thanks to everyone that recorded for me: Alex, Tommy, Ryan, Curtis, Israel, Andrew, Noah, Amy and those who helped: Matt and John. Extra kudos to Alex and Tommy, who rocked a performance of my piece "The Atheist" op.34 on Thursday at Cal State East Bay.
Upcoming: I will post a video clip of the music I did for Contra Costa County Development as well as the live performance of "The Atheist" op.34. I am editing "The Rising Empire" op.29 as well as beginning The Vertigo Series Part II.
NEW DOWNLOADS - op.35"The Vertigo Series Part I", Iron Kid
November 2005
As promised I have a new recording of op.34 "The Atheist" performed by Alex Kadarauch on Cello and Tommy Folen Jr. on Bass.
I have finished my choral ensemble piece op.33 "Sigillum Sextum" and my new ensemble piece op.37 "The Vertigo Series Part I." I will have a recording of "The Vertigo Series Part I" sometime next month. In the meantime I am composing music for Contra Costa County's Development Dept.
NEW DOWNLOADS - op.34 "The Atheist"
October 2005
I have finished 3 pieces this month: my big symphonic band piece "The Rising Empire" op.29, a cello/bass duet "The Atheist" op.34, and a small ensemble piece titled "Swarming From the Ground" op.36. I will try and have recordings of those pieces within the next couple months.
I am near completion with my choral ensemble piece "Sigillum Sextum" op.33 and have started a new strange ensemble piece titled "The Vertigo Series Part 1" op.35.
September 2005
I finally started my work for op33 "Sigillum Sextum" and when I get around to it I will complete the articulations for op.29. I have been taking some heat for music I provided to certain projects containing references to abortions and the like. I appreciate all the emails and calls I have been receiving and I hope you can understand that I cannot discriminate who I work with based upon their beliefs...I would not turn down a project that consisted of a different culture or religion than mine (where social beliefs would be completely different).
I have a new video to show, it's a clip of the pilot episode for "Iron
Kid" a children's 3-D animated series. Enjoy!
NEW DOWNLOADS - "Iron Kid"
July 2005
The Planned Parenthood video is finished, click here for the mp4 file. Also completed are my 2 preludes for piano, based upon the language of Debussy.
In the works this month, I am going to finish articulating my symphonic band piece op.29 and starting my choir piece op.33.
NEW DOWNLOADS - "A Superhero For Choice", "2 preludes for piano"
April 2005
I just finished the score for the psychological thriller "Sinful Wives" (formerly titled "Mine") There is a clip available in the VIDEO section. I also completed the studio recording with my band Antagony, and I have a song called "The Awakening" up for download as well. Later this month I will begin scoring a project for Planned Parenthood. I am still completing my symphonic band piece with all that is going on....slowly but surely.
NEW DOWNLOADS - "Sinful Wives ", "The Awakening"
March 2005
Currently working on the movie "Mine." The score is very dark and penetrating. There are 2 audio clips I posted from the movie on the AUDIO page. Other than that I am still working on the symphonic piece - op.029...it's a very large work and is taking a long time (so many lines) but once I'm done with that I am finally going to write a choral piece. Stay tuned!
NEW DOWNLOADS - "The Burning ", "The Burning II"
December 2004
Merry Christmas! Lot's of updates to share - solo piano piece in g# minor op.026 "December" is available for download, new video "Cultivate and Collapse" available for download, and I have been asked to compose music for the feature length film "Mine." I will have a clip for that movie as soon as possible.
NEW DOWNLOADS - "Cultivate and Collapse", op.026 "December"
November 2004
I've been really busy with school as of late and have been focusing a lot on my instrumental pieces. I have finally almost finished composing my woodwind quartet - op.17 in c minor. It will be performed and recorded by the end of the year. The movie "Azira" has now been retitled "Die Garage Band Die!" and I also finished composing the music in that movie. Antagony has been learning new material which we plan to record sometime next year.
NEW DOWNLOADS - "Cultivate and Collapse"
September 2004
While I was in Taiwan I composed a piece for my grandmother on the piano. I had it performed by Eve Wang and have a recorded version of it on harp for you to download. It is called op.028 "Behind the Light." Also my music will be on the big screen for the first time! Storytime Pictures will be showing a FREE sneak preview of the "Iron Kid" animated TV series. I would be honored if you could make it, feel free to bring friends and family. For more details go here. My first feature length film, Azira, will be done by the end of the month.
NEW DOWNLOADS - op028 "Behind the Light"
August 2004
This month I'll be finished scoring "Azira" as well as op.028 solo piano piece in D minor. In the meantime I have composed a new "electronic" piece - check it out below.
NEW DOWNLOADS - tek005 "Only a Dream"
June 2004
Good news, I will be scoring a feature length horror film called "Azira." Thanks to Scott for giving me a chance to show what I can do with my music. I have a sample scene scored and it's available for download in the VIDEO section. Also in the works is op.028 solo piano piece in D minor. I also finished scoring "Iron Kid: Episode 2", there will be a free screening sometime in July in Palo Alto of both Episode 1 & 2. I will let you know the details when I have them.
NEW DOWNLOADS - "Azira"
May 3, 2004
The next month is going to be busy, I have been getting many requests for writing original music: both classical, metal, and experimental. Latley, my output has been pretty steady and heavy. I finished composing op.027 "Falling Into You" (solo piano piece in D major). Check it out below along with a new metal song "Beneath the Black."
NEW DOWNLOADS - op.027"Falling Into You" "Beneath the Black"
April 1, 2004
I finished scoring the first episode of "Iron Kid" earlier this week. Unfortunately, I cannot show any video clips of "Iron Kid" at the moment but I do have a condensed version of the score I did. I posted that along with a new Scolding Romeo song, check them out at the link below. Other than that I am working on op.017 (woodwind quartet in C minor), op.026 (solo piano in G# minor), and op.027 (solo piano in D major). I am updating once a month from now on so check back often.
NEW DOWNLOADS - op.025 "Destiny Approaching" "The Saddest Day"
March 7, 2004
I have been keeping myself extremely busy lately. Finished 2 big projects and a new solo piano piece in the past couple weeks. The first one was a 4 minute teaser for Storytime Pictures called "Iron Kid": superb 3-D animated action cartoon. It turned out really great and now I will be composing original music for the first episode. The 2nd project was a short silent film called "The Temptress" for Turner Classic Movies. Once I get approval to use both video clips I will post them on my video section. Check back often for updates on those. I posted the new piano piece op.023 "Running" and the score for "The Temptress" called op.024 "The Storm." Download them below!
NEW DOWNLOADS - "op.023 Running," "op.024 "The Storm""
February 1, 2004
I just finished scoring and sound designing the animated short "Roadkill" for the legendary Jules Marino (Director of Animation for Hanna Barbara, Filmation during "He-Man", "Smurfs", "Scooby Doo"etc.). Download it out now, it's only 16mb! *To download - "Right click on link-->Save Target As..."
NEW DOWNLOADS - "Roadkill"
January 20, 2004
Good news, I'll be scoring a new animated short called "Roadkill" for the legendary Jules Marino (Director of Animation for Hanna Barbara during "He-Man", "Smurfs", "Scooby Doo"etc.). I'll keep you posted, in the meantime here's a little short and sweet rock song.
NEW DOWNLOADS - "Kissing Tears"
January 2, 2004
It's been an overwhelming and insane past couple of weeks. I have a new piece for you guys, just a simple and placid sounding piece. School is starting again soon and I will primarily be working on music for Storytime Pictures.
NEW DOWNLOADS - tek004
December 1st, 2003
Hello all, still awaiting projects that will be coming my way in the new year. During the late Winter-Spring I'll be working on music for the world of Storytime Pictures. Then during the Spring I'll be working on some shorts, and in the summer is my much anticipated Thriller "Sadistic." In the meantime here is some more new music for you.
NEW DOWNLOADS - tek003
November 9th, 2003
I've been sick for the past week which gave me time to finish my string quartet, and 2 other pieces! Check them out below. New upcoming project will be a psycho thriller horror entitled "Sadistic"- won't be until after Summer 2004. I will keep you posted. Check back often as I am posting a new piece of music more and more.
NEW DOWNLOADS - tek001, tek002, op.022 "String Quartet in C Major"
October 25th, 2003
There has been some revisions on older pieces, you can check them out on the Audio page. In the meantime here is some new material below.
NEW DOWNLOADS - op.021
October 20, 2003
Been really busy lately with writing and school. Like to thank Jacob and Melton, a couple new aquaintances, for the recent projects. Looking forward in working with you guys again. And to David - hope you get well soon!
NEW DOWNLOADS - op.019, op.015 (new version), op.014 (w/ dialogue)
October 7, 2003
I met a really cool guy recently named Jay. He is the CEO/Executive Producer of a new animated series called "Iron Kid." The quality of the art and animation is top notch. I will be keeping myself busy working on musical ideas for this exciting new project. Also in the works is "Monsters", a young childrens' animated cartoon by Kristen Ankiewicz. I'm also looking forward in working on that.
NEW DOWNLOADS - "Iron Kid"
September 22, 2003
My new studio setup is complete. Thanks to David Earl for helping me set it up. I have a couple projects lined up: a short mockumentary called "The Chuck" and a sci-fi fantasy called "Here After." I will have clips up as soon as I get those.
NEW DOWNLOADS - op.013, op.018, and "There's Something Wrong"
July 16, 2003
My website is finally up! Please check out the Audio page for mp3's of my music. There are a lot so be sure to click on "MORE" below each section. There are also some short movies I scored for some student filmmakers at Diablo Valley College. Special thanks to my friend Bray Almini for putting this site together. Check back often for updates and new music!