WFIU's contemporary composer for the month of November is Eric Moe.
Moe's music has been described as "music of winning exuberance," "maximal minimalism," and "Rachmaninoff in hell." The New York Times says his music "subversively inscribe[s] classical music into pop culture."
Moe's works range from solo works to instrumentations of large orchestral pieces, as well as electroacoustic and multi-media works. His one-woman opera, Tri-Stan, features a mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra, and combines elements of Greek mythology in the story with music from Richard Strauss' Elektra and the theme song from The Brady Bunch. Other recent works include Strenuous Pleasures for a small mixed ensemble, Hot Keys for solo piano, and Jozaphine Freedom for soprano, clarinet and piano.
A pianist and keyboard player, Moe has premiered and performed works by a wide variety of composers, from Anthony Davis to Stefan Wolpe. His playing can be heard in the music of John Cage, Roger Zahab, and Felix Draeske in addition to his own. His solo recording The Waltz Project RevisitedNew Waltzes for Piano, is a compilation of waltzes for piano by two generations of American composers.
Moe has received numerous grants and awards for his work, including commissions from the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, the Fromm Foundation, and Meet-the-Composer, USA. He has had residencies at the MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, and the American Dance Festival. He teaches composition and theory at the University of Pittsburgh, and has held visiting professorships at the University of Pennsylvania and Princeton University.
WFIU will feature music composed by Eric Moe throughout the month of November.