Colorado State University saxophone faculty and Director of Jazz Studies Peter Sommer is traveling to Fife, Scotland to perform at the 2012 World Saxophone Congress XVI, held at St. Andrew's on July 10-14, 2012.
The Congress features an elite program of concerts, lectures, and recitals selected from a pool of submitted proposals and recordings, of which Sommer's was accepted. Held at different international venues every three years, Sommer was also invited to perform at the Congress in Bangkok, Thailand in 2009.
In a solo recital, Sommer will perform two works by CSU composition faculty Dr. James David ("A Hunger Artist" and "Fantasy Etudes Book 1"). "A Hunger Artist" is part of a complete work commissioned in 2011 by CSU Theatre Director Walt Jones for the original CSU production of The Kafka Project. The concerto for saxophone captures the elusive nature of Kafka’s stories while representing a particular character; in this section the Artist's torture is heard in the micro-tonal clouds of distorted sounds, juxtaposed by the humanity associated with the jazz tenor saxophone. The Kafka Project.
Sommer will also perform with the New Third Stream Quartet in a chamber recital. The quartet combines elements of modern chamber composition with the rhythmic and improvisatory language of modern jazz. A traditional level of precision and communication is balanced with the energy and flexibility of jazz improvisation and the rich harmonic and timbral colors of 21st century chamber music. Saxophonists include Rick VanMatre and James Bunte (University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music), Jim Romain (Drake University), and Sommer.
It has been a semester full of opportunities for the CSU professor. Sommer gave a performance and lecture recital at the 2012 North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference held at Arizona State University in March and performed and adjudicated at the Buddy De Franco Jazz Festival in April. His quartet - Tremolo Canteen - was featured at the recent Dazzle Recordings Artists Festival at Dazzle Restaurant and Lounge in Denver, and continues to play there regularly.