The American Composers Orchestra (ACO) has named their 2014 Underwood Commission award to Andy Akiho. In addition to the accolade, the American-born composer will also be awarded a $15,000 prize for a future work to be premiered by the ACO.
Akiho's work will be commissioned for the ACO's 2015-16 season. The composer was chosen from seven finalists during the ACO's 23rd Underwood New Music Readings on June 6 and 7 in a most coveted opportunity among his peers.
Akiho's composition, Tarnished Mirrors, won the top prize.
Alongside Akiho, audience members at the Underwood New Music Readings chose Kyle Peter Rotolo as the recipient of the Audience Choice Award for his piece Apophis. He has been commissioned to compose an original mobile phone ringtone, which will be made available to all voters for free.
"When the musicians of ACO and I performed Andy Akiho's Tarnished Mirrors, we discovered a work of intense pulse--music with syncopations, cross-rhythms, and metric modulations," said ACO music director George Manahan.
He continued, "His clarity of orchestration reflected a deep understanding of idiomatic writing for the individual instruments and an original palette of colors. We look forward to performing a new commissioned work of Andy's next season."
Upon winning, Akiho said that his experience was fruitful at the Underwood Readings. Indeed, the honor will be a golden star on his resume (on top of that hefty $15,000 prize).
With the ACO just about to open its 38th season with Monk's Sphere--a rare performance of the orchestral music of Meredith Monk--Classicalite congratulates both Andy Akiho and Kyle Peter Rotolo on their achievements.
Check out one of Andy's creations below...
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