project page · James Mulcro Drew · Composer (1929-2010)

James Mulcro Drew · Composer [1929-2010]

Sad news, I heard today that my friend the composer James M. Drew died on December 23rd after a short illness.

James M. Drew was born in 1929 and studied with Wallingford Riegger and Edgard Varèse. He taught at Northwestern University, Yale University, UCLA, Cal State, and other institutions. He has performed with and co-founded several musical groups, including the Crossfire Mission Orchestra in the late 1960s in New Haven (radical performances, often behind barbed wire), the Mysterious Traveling Cabaret, the American Music Theater in California, the Blast Opera Theater. In his quasi-retirement he has undertaken concerts and arts education work with the Grey Wolf Project.

In 2007 I did a montage for James, it is a 37:44 minute montage of recordings of James M. Drew's rich musical ceration in a "Flow of Musically Experienced Time."

LISTEN

The Music of James M. Drew · Montage by Ralph Lichtensteiger [37:44]

Info : This James M. Drew podcast track is a montage presenting excerpts of James M. Drew's rich musical ceration. The assortment and montage of the material was implemented by Ralph Lichtensteiger with authorization by the composer James M. Drew. Although the composer James M. Drew is not responsible for the assembly of the material used in this podcast. © 2007 by Ralph Lichtensteiger & James M. Drew. All rights reserved. Unauthorized digital duplication is a violation of applicable laws.

Time diagram:
00:00—07:20
Ex Profundis...The Orangethorpe Aria
07:20—07:50
bridge ("For James Drew" by RL)
07:55—13:35
Jacopo's Sub-Harmonic Hymns
13:35—14:40
bridge ("For James Drew" by RL)
14:40—17:50
Symphony No. 3
17:50—19:10
bridge ("For James Drew" by RL)
19:12—19:40
overlap Ex Profundis...The Orangethorpe Aria and Jacopo's Sub-Harmonic Hymns
19:40—21:15
Cantolobosolo
21:15—22:00
bridge ("For James Drew" by RL)
21:45—27:00
Almost Stationary
overlap (26:35—26:55) with New Haven Green
27:00—33:25
New Haven Green
overlap (33:00—33:45) with Symphony No. 2
33:00—33:45
Symphony No. 2
overlap (33:52—37:00) with Ex Profundis...The Orangethorpe Aria
36:55—37:45
end sounds ("For James Drew" by RL)

List of recordings used for this montage:
- Almost Stationary (1971) for piano, violin and violoncello (Alpha Trio, Chouhel Min, violin, Louis Rowen, violoncello, Chester Swiatkowski, piano)
- New Haven Green (1969) for two pianos, brass and percussion (Yale Collegium Orchestra, Gustav Meier, conductor)
- Ex Profundis... The Orangethorpe Aria (1977) for Soprano, Clarinet, and Piano Trio (The Mirecourt Trio. Kenneth Goldsmith, violin, Terry King, violoncello, John Jensen, piano. Cinnabar records, CNB103)
- Symphony No. 2 (Yale Collegium Orchestra & Chorus. Keith Wilson, conductor)
- Symphony No. 3 (Rhode Island Symphony, Andrew Massey, conductor)
- Jacopo's Sub-Harmonic Hymns, concerto for contabass and chamber ensemble (San Diego New Music Ensemble, Bertram Turetzky soloist)
- Cantolobosolo for contrabass (Bertram Turetzky). From "Tenors, Echoes, and Wolves". 9Winds CD NWCD0200.
- "For James Drew (version one + two)" by Ralph Lichtensteiger (unpublished)

LISTEN

Listen also to my piece "écriture chiffrée I" dedicated to James M. Drew in 2005

LISTEN

More on the composer James M. Drew:
newworldrecords.org : James Mulcro Drew: Animating Degree Zero (The Barton Workshop)
greywolf-artistry.com : Greywolf Performing Arts Institute
greywolf-artistry.com : Biography
kalvos.org : RealAudio G2 stereo version of Cantolobosolo
Sigma Alpha Iota : James M. Drew
lichtensteiger.de : James M. Drew

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