The Curtis Project

Music for Saxophones from the Curtis Institute by Jennifer Higdon, David Ludwig, Kat Souponetsky, Daniel Temkin, Gabriella Smith, Thomas Oltarzewski, and Tim Woos

Listen to/download Short Stories, Splashing the Canvas by Jennifer Higdon
Read/download the iTunes booket
Read/download the one sheet

In 2012, the PRISM Quartet conducted a residency with the composition department of the acclaimed Curtis Institute of Music, the first by saxophonists in the conservatory’s nearly 100-year history. The residency culminated in world premiere performances of “Josquin Microludes” by David Ludwig, a member of Curtis’ composition faculty and Dean of Artistic Programs, and new works by five gifted students, all of whom have since graduated and are emerging as significant voices in contemporary music. The program also featured “Short Stories” by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Jennifer Higdon, a Curtis graduate who joined the faculty in 1994.

This recording documents all seven works, and is a testament to the Curtis Institute’s standing as an international center for the study of composition. All of the composers represented on this album have distinct voices that in some way embrace elements of invention and lyricism—an aesthetic that dates back to Curtis’ founding in 1924, and to the music of one of its earliest and most distinguished alumni, Samuel Barber.

The Curtis Project is the first release of PRISM’s label, XAS Records, founded to advance the Quartet’s mission to share extraordinary saxophone music with listeners around the world.

The Curtis Project was made possible with generous support from the Aaron Copland Fund for Music, the Ditson Fund of Columbia University, and the Musical Fund Society of Philadelphia.

See the official One Sheet here: The Curtis Project One Sheet

Record Label / Catalogue Number:
XAS Records/101

Release Date:
April 29, 2016

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Track Listing

  1. Short Stories, I. Summer's Eve by Jennifer Higdon
  2. Short Stories, II. Chase by Jennifer Higdon
  3. Short Stories, III. Coyote Nights by Jennifer Higdon
  4. Short Stories, IV. Splashing the Canvas by Jennifer Higdon
  5. Short Stories, V. Lullaby by Jennifer Higdon
  6. Short Stories, VI. Stomp & Dance by Jennifer Higdon
  7. Josquin Microludes, I. Milles regretz de vous abandonner... by David Ludwig
  8. Josquin Microludes, II. et d’eslonger vostre fache amoureuse... by David Ludwig
  9. Josquin Microludes, III. jay si grand dueil et paine doloureuse... by David Ludwig
  10. Josquin Microludes, IV. quon me verra brief mes jours definer... by David Ludwig
  11. Josquin Microludes, V. ...brief mes jours definer... by David Ludwig
  12. The Dniester Flow by Kat Souponetsky
  13. Blossoming by Daniel Temkin
  14. Spring/Neap by Gabriella Smith
  15. Toccata by Thomas Oltarzewski
  16. Four Miniatures, I. by Tim Woos
  17. Four Miniatures, II. by Tim Woos
  18. Four Miniatures, III. by Tim Woos
  19. Four Miniatures, IV. by Tim Woos