Current Project
2025
This year, we are excited to announce that renowned composer Kenneth Fuchs will be creating a work for alto saxophone and piano. Joining him is Afghan composer Arson Fahim, with a work for tenor saxophone and piano. You can find more information on each composer and the history of past works from this consortium below.
Join today and reserve your spot as a Consortium member. Consortium members get their name in the dedication page of each musical score and get a digital copy of each composition, delivered in February of 2024. Consortium members also get one year of exclusivity with these new musical compositions. The requirements for these works include the following:
-5-10 minutes in length (each work)
-no altissimo and minimal extended techniques
-Extremely playable piano parts
The buy-in rate for this year is $50 to receive both works!
To join
- Click HERE to provide information
- Choose a payment method
Please email me with any questions: [email protected]
Overview
In historical terms, the concert saxophone is a relative newcomer to classical and contemporary music. Though the instrument has been around for over 150 years, it struggled for composers’ attention though the early years of its life. As a result, the core of the saxophone repertoire did not start being produced until the 1930’s. The last 40 years has seen a rise in the quantity and quality of compositions introduced into the canon, though the vast majority of these works are aimed at advanced students and performers. This has resulted in a void of quality, original music for the emerging saxophonist who is still learning to navigate both musical and technical obstacles. For this level of student, teachers most often look to transcriptions (which often lay unnaturally on the instrument) and a small number of original works that fall within this standard. Unfortunately, the lack of variety does not sufficiently fit the needs of the modern saxophone student or teacher.
Also of considerable concern is that most of the original repertoire for saxophone that includes piano requires a collaborator with a very high skill level and ample rehearsal time. Regrettably, this is unavailable at many smaller universities, colleges, and high schools.
Smart Repertoire aims to start remedying this problem by commissioning high quality composers to write new, original works for all the voices of the saxophone that will adhere to the following guidelines:
- Works for saxophone and piano that are 5-10 minutes in length
- Use no altissimo
- Very little or no extended techniques
- Create extremely playable piano parts
- Composer(s) will be paired with a professional saxophonist to answer technical questions and ensure the music fits the requirements
Additionally, each work will be audio and video recorded by a professional saxophonists that will be available for reference after each commission has been funded and premiered.
Funding
Smart Repertoire is currently using a consortium type model to raise funds. The goal of the project is to keep buy-in costs low so saxophonists in all stages of their career can afford to participate. However, to make this model successful, we need a larger number of participants than a typical consortium. Please consider helping to spread the word to any individuals or groups that might be interested.
Rewards
All contributors will be listed as a consortium member, will receive a digital copy of the work, and will have the right to give a world premier within a designated amount of time (see specific projects for details).
Kenneth Fuchs is the first living American composer recorded by the virtuoso Sinfonia of London and its brilliant conductor, John Wilson.
In June 2024, Chandos Records will release Light Year, Orchestral Works, Volume 2, which will include a large suite for orchestra, a concerto for alto saxophone (with the superstar Timothy McAllister), a concerto for bass trombone (with the gifted James Buckle), and an idyll for winds, brass, strings, and percussion.
In July 2023, Chandos Records released Cloud Slant, Orchestral Works, Volume 1, which includes two works for full orchestra, an exuberant composition for strings, and a concerto for C and alto flute, performed by the extraordinary Adam Walker.
Fuchs recorded for Naxos five albums with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by JoAnn Falletta, the last of which won the 2018 GRAMMY® Award for “Best Classical Compendium.” In August 2020, Naxos released Point of Tranquility (Seven Works for Symphonic Winds), recorded by the United States Coast Guard Band. Naxos also published an album of chamber music including Falling Canons, Falling Trio and String Quartet No. 5 “American.” Albany Records published String Quartets 2, 3, 4 in definitive performances by the American String Quartet.
Fuchs has composed music for orchestra, band, voice, chorus, soloists, and various chamber ensembles. With Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Lanford Wilson, Fuchs created three chamber musicals. The National September 11 Memorial & Museum presented Fuchs’s operatic monodrama Falling Man (text by Don DeLillo, adapted by J. D. McClatchy) in commemoration of the 15th anniversary of 9/11. His music has achieved significant global recognition through performances, media exposure, and digital streaming and downloading.
Fuchs serves as Professor of Music Composition at the University of Connecticut. He is a graduate of the University of Miami and received master of music and doctor of musical arts degrees from The Juilliard School. His composition teachers include Milton Babbitt, David Diamond, and Vincent Persichetti. His music is published by Bill Holab Music, Hal Leonard LLC, Edward B. Marks Music Company, and Theodore Presser Company, and it has been recorded by Albany, Chandos, and Naxos.
Arson Fahim is a pianist, composer, and conductor from Afghanistan. A fierce believer in the power of music to make the world a better place by being a catalyst for activism and social change, Arson’s music is often inspired by the tragedies and injustices of war. To Arson, music is a form of protest and an act of rebellion, and strives for his art to be a symbol of freedom and perseverance, as well as a source of solace and hope even in the darkest of times.
In 2021, weeks before the Taliban took control of Kabul and once again banned music, Arson graduated from the Afghanistan National Institute of Music and moved to the US to pursue his studies at the Longy School of Music of Bard College where he was awarded a scholarship. Arson completed his program at Longy in the spring of 2024 and is now continuing his studies at the New England Conservatory.
Past Projects
Smart Repertoire has successfully completed four rounds of commissioning, resulting in ten new works.
2023
Smoke and Mirrors for tenor saxophone and piano by Gala Flagello
Vocalise for alto saxophone and piano by Avner Dorman
Red Giant for saxophone quartet (SATB or AATB) by Gala Flagello
Kedma for saxophone quartet (SATB or AATB) by Avner Dorman
2022
Blue Rainbow for alto saxophone and piano by Kay He
Finding Your Peace for soprano saxophone and piano by Jeff Scott
2021
Sonatina for alto saxophone and piano by Denis Bédard
Brazilian Landscapes #21 for tenor saxophone and piano by Liduino Pitombeira
2020
from other futures for alto saxophone and piano by John Anthony Lennon
Dangerous Coats for baritone saxophone and piano by Jessica Rudman
Do you have a suggestion for a composer you would like to see used in this project? Email [email protected] with suggestions.
