Photo by Elena Snow
Today we rebroadcast a program featuring compositions of award-winning composer Jonas Tarm of Highland Park, whose work “Marsh u Nebuttya” or “March to Oblivian” in Ukranian, was supposed to make its Carnegie Hall debut by the New York Youth Symphony this Sunday.
The symphony administration pulled the work this week after learning that it includes a musical quotation from the “Horst Wessel” song, the Nazi anthem. Learn more about the controversy, which has garnered worldwide attention, here.
Jonas Tarm, 17 and a senior at Highland Park High School at the time of this broadcast, has drawn widespread recognition for his musical compositions. That’s included a National YoungArts Foundation award, a first place in the Music Teachers National Association’s 50-state composition contest and multiple other awards.
Jonas’s works have been performed at venues around the world, such as Miami’s New World Center, Beijing Forbidden City Concert Hall in China, House of Blackheads in Estonia, Altenhof Kuhhaus in Germany and many more. His music has been commissioned by, among others, the Chicago Beethoven Festival, New York Youth Symphony, New York Virtuoso Singers and the Estonian Composer’s Union. Jonas’s Carnegie Hall debut is scheduled with the New York Youth Symphony in March, 2015. He is currently studying at the New England Conservatory in Boston with composer and pianist Anthony Coleman. Jonas’s music has also been frequently heard on Chicago’s 98.7 WFMT classical radio station and Estonia’s ERR Classical Radio.
As a violinist, Jonas attended the Meadowmount School of Music. He’s also played in festival orchestras under the baton of Maestros Riccardo Muti and Neeme Järvi. He’s participated in master classes with members of the the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Berlin Philharmonic, the Vermeer String Quartet and others.
Jonas started studying music in Estonia, where he was born. At age 7, he started violin studies at Tallinn’s Vanalinna Hariduskolleegium, and also sang in one of the school’s boys choirs. At 10, his family moved to Chicago, where his musical education kicked into high gear, including violin studies with Portuguese violinist Gerardo Ribeiro and composition with Matthew Hagle at the Music Institute of Chicago’s Academy. Jonas began collecting scores at age 12, with an early fondness for Mahler and Beethoven. At 14, he completed his first composition for solo piano.
Jonas was a highly active member of the Midwest Young Artists program for 4 years; there, he soloed with the I’Solisti Orchestra and was part MYA’s Symphony and intensive chamber music program. Jonas also has soloed with the Highland Park High School Symphony and Chamber orchestras. Summer programs include, MYA Chamber Music Camp, International Haapsalu String Festival, Meadowmount School of Music and more. A senior, Jonas currently serves as concert master of the Highland Park High School Symphony Orchestra and Honors Chamber Orchestra; he also has served as co-principle second in the 2011 IMEA All-State Honors Orchestra.
Currently Jonas is the Illinois State Representative for the 2012 MTNA National Composition Contest. He also at the moment has a merit fellowship, the Kal Novak Musicianship Award, with Mischa Zupko and the MIC Composer’s Lab. As a composer, Jonas has collaborated with musicians and composers from Chicago Symphony Orchestra MusicNOW, Eight Blackbird, Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble, Fulcrum Point New Music, Chicago Lyric Opera and more. Jonas has won an award for arranging in the IMEA composition contest and has been a finalist in the ASCAP Morton Gould prize and BMI Young Composers Competition. He currently is looking forward to record one of his compositions with Grammy winning new music group “Orchestra of Our time”. Jonas’s playing and composition, “Las Ruinas Circulares”, has been previously featured on WFMT Introductions. Jonas is a member of ASCAP.
Jonas is also a current member of the Ravinia Festival Student Marketing Board, part of a mission to promote classical to younger audiences.
Program:
- Las Ruinas Circulares
Jorie Butler-Geyer (violin), Letitia Chim (flute), Yong Park (cello) and Anne McLaughlin (piano)
1st place in the IMEA Composition Contest Instrumental Category, currently the Illinois Representative for the Music Teachers National Association Regional Composition Competition, finalist in BMI Young Composer Competition and won the Orchestra of Our Time Call for Scores.
This work is based on a short story by the celebrated Argentinean writer Jorge Luis Borges. Since the story is from Argentinean culture, I was also influenced by Latin and Argentinean music, such as the tango, and also by the composer Astor Piazzolla. Borges paints a landscape of a surreal world and he challenges the concept of what is real and what is not. To incorporate this, I decided to put different types of music against each other: tonal, chromatic, atonal, graphic, messianic and more. Each one tries to find the answer to the question – “What is real?” -JT
- World Premiere: “Nachtmusik: Vokalise der Nacht” for High Voice and String Quartet
Henriët Fourie (voice), Zach Spontak and Allie Switala (violins), Devon Naftzger (viola), Ye Young Yoo (Cello)
Finalist in the ASCAP Young Composer’s Competition.
- World Premier: “Two Pieces for Violin and Piano”
Laura Park (violin), Matthew Hagle (piano)
Recorded in WFMT’s Levin Performance Studio for this broadcast.