New Music Ensemble supports National Parks System through performances

The student members of Grand Valley’s award-winning New Music Ensemble recently travelled 5,000 miles over the course of 17 days to perform at some of the most famous national parks in the U.S.

The ensemble commissioned five composers to write original compositions inspired by Voyageurs, Glacier, North Cascades, Olympic, and Mount Rainier national parks for the tour, which took place June 26-July 12. The compositions, which were funded through the National Endowment for the Arts, were then performed in the parks through interactive and educational performances.

“Through this tour, students were given a taste of the life of a professional musician — long hours traveling, performing in different venues each day, learning how to take care of themselves and learning how to continue to perform at a high level even when conditions aren't perfect,” said Bill Ryan, New Music Ensemble director. “I am hoping that our concerts enhanced the audience's overall park experience by illustrating to them how incredible landscapes can inspire composers.”

Composers for the commissioned works include Kristin Kuster, Rachel Grimes, Michael Laurello and Jennifer Jolley. Additionally, a new arrangement of music by filmmaker and composer Ethan Newberry was performed, along with a composition by John Jansen that called for natural objects from the parks to be used as instruments.

Ryan said this tour continued the ensemble’s focus of advocating for “the music of our time.” With these newly created pieces, the ensemble has commissioned 69 works since 2006.

“I think there is no more important figure in music than the composer, and we do everything we can to serve as their advocates and put them at the forefront of contemporary music culture,” said Ryan.

Included in each concert was also music from the ensemble’s two previous national park tours by composers Ashley Stanley, David Biedenbender, Adam Cuthbert, Zoe Keating and Niko Schroeder.

Schroeder’s time with the New Music Ensemble concluded with this tour after performing with the group for three years. The 2017 alumnus, who also participated in the ensemble’s 2016 national parks tour, said that performing in the parks connected the group to the legacy of the natural landscape of the U.S.

“The rugged natural beauty of the Americas is a long-standing theme in American prose, poetry, visual art and music,” said Schroeder, who is currently pursuing his master’s degree in music composition at the University of Missouri. “To carry on that legacy is meaningful to the artistic heritage of our country.”

Schroeder added that connecting with audiences following the performances also enhanced the ensemble’s overall experience.

“Being able to talk to our audiences about their experience at our concerts was just as impactful as being able to explore the parks between performances,” he said. “Many admitted to finding deeper meaning in the parks through our music.”

Dana Van Dyke, a junior majoring in piano performance, said she experienced surreal moments in every park the ensemble visited, but her favorite moment was after the group’s second performance at Olympic National Park.

"We were beginning to pack up when one of the visitors at the park beckoned us to come watch the whales spouting along the shoreline. We all ran to watch in awe; it was a beautiful moment,” recalled Van Dyke. “Several of us stayed out on the beach through the night to watch the sunset light up the ocean with color, listening to the steady waves role in, and counting the stars as they came out. The whales came back later in the night as well, as if to bid us farewell.”

Van Dyke also said that another highlight of the ensemble’s adventure was receiving praise from a celebrity.

“We met, talked with and took pictures with actor Efren Ramirez at our performance on the shore of Crescent Lake in Olympic National Park,” she said. “He is well known for his role as Pedro in the movie ‘Napoleon Dynamite.’ He watched our entire show that morning and loved it!”

The New Music Ensemble promotes contemporary classical chamber music, with a special focus on music of the past 20 years, through commissions, tours, recordings, educational events, workshops and videos. Since the ensemble formed in 2006, the group's three other critically acclaimed recordings have appeared on “best release lists” by The New York Times, Washington Post, LA Weekly and Time Out Chicago. Some of the ensemble’s recordings have also appeared in film, on television shows on MTV, Showtime, and at more than 75 film festivals around the world.

For more information about the New Music Ensemble, visit newmusicensemble.org.