This concert will feature the western tradition of percussion in the 21st century with most of the pieces being written in the last 10 years.  No dead composers on this one.  We will pull out most of the percussion inventory and be ready for an eclectic and modern chamber music experience. 

Omar Carmenates is currently the Professor of Percussion at Furman University in Greenville, SC where he oversees all aspects of the percussion program including classical, jazz, and world percussion studies. He holds a Doctor of Music degree from Florida State University, a Master of Music Degree in Percussion Performance from the University of North Texas, and a bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the University of Central Florida.  

Carmenates is a versatile musician with a strong interest in performing and recording contemporary solo and chamber music. His debut solo recording, entitled The Gaia Theory, was released through Rattle Records in 2013 and he can also be heard on the Cantaloupe Records release of John Luther Adams’ concert-length Inuksuit for 9-99 outdoor percussionists, a work that he both co-commissioned and directed in its United States premiere. He is also the director, producer, and arranger of the “John Psathas Percussion Project”, a multi-year collaboration aimed at recording and performing percussion ensemble arrangements of the works of New Zealand’s most prominent composer, John Psathas. The recordings and scores from this project are published through PARMA Records and Promethean Publications respectively. 

In addition to his duties at Furman, Omar is an avid participant in the pageantry arts whose work can be seen and heard around the globe. While currently serving as an adjudicator for WGI Sport of the Arts, he has also served as a composer/arranger for the Cadets, the Boston Crusaders, the Spirit of Atlanta, and the Beatrix (Hilversum, Holland) Drum & Bugle Corps and has also acted in various teaching capacities at the Phantom Regiment, the Spirit of Atlanta, and the Boston Crusaders.