Third Coast Percussion Sets 2023-2024 Season, Including New Album BETWEEN BREATHS
Grammy-winning percussion quartet and composer collective.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz Aug. 08, 2023
Third Coast Percussion (TCP), is a GRAMMY Award-winning Chicago-based percussion quartet and GRAMMY-nominated composer collective, and is the first percussion ensemble to ever win the revered music award. Celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2025, the ensemble (Sean Connors, Robert Dillon, Peter Martin, David Skidmore) is embarking on the most ambitious collaborative projects of their career, with some of the world's leading musicians, choreographers, and composers from around the world. In addition to an annual Chicago season, TCP maintains a full-time touring and recording schedule, with nearly 30 albums and past performances in 39 of the 50 states and Washington, D.C., plus international tour dates across four continents.
Among Third Coast Percussion's high-profile touring engagements in the 2023-24 season are a European tour of their Metamorphosis program with dance, including performances at DeDoelen in The Netherlands and a European concerto debut during a five-day residency at the Musikkollegium Winterthur in Switzerland. Within the United States, TCP performs the world premiere of PLAY!, a new concerto with orchestra by and with fellow Chicagoan Clarice Assad with the Santa Rosa Symphony (CA) and then the Wheeling Symphony (WV); Toru Takemitsu's From me flows what you call Time with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (WI); a world premiere by Michael Burritt in honor of Zildjian's 400th anniversary at the PASIC Conference; and tours of riveting chamber programs, including the GRAMMY-nominated Perspectives and a family program, Think Outside the Drum.
On September 8, 2023, Cedille Records releases Third Coast Percussion's latest album, Between Breaths, a musical exploration of meditation and escapism through five world premiere recordings: Missy Mazzoli's Millennium Canticles, Tyondai Braxton's Sunny X, Ayanna Woods' Triple Point, and Gemma Peacocke's Death Wish; as well as TCP's own collaborative piece, In Practice. To celebrate the new album, Third Coast Percussion officially kicks off its season with a performance of the entire Between Breaths program at the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts in Chicago on Saturday, September 2, 2023.
Third Coast Percussion: Between Breaths
Out September 8, 2023 on Cedille Records
More Information
(Physical Copies Available Upon Request)
Between Breaths builds on the success of the ensemble's 2022 album Perspectives, which was hailed by NPR as "pushing percussion in new directions, blurring musical boundaries and beguiling new listeners," and was nominated for a 2023 GRAMMY Award. Exploring the myriad ways that classical music is being created today, Perspectives features four new works written for - and with - Third Coast Percussion by Danny Elfman, Philip Glass, Jlin, and Flutronix. Third Coast Percussion tours the program this season to the Windgate Center for the Performing Arts at the University of Central Arkansas (Sept. 21); Heindl Center for the Performing Arts at Northwest Mississippi Community College (Oct. 2); UCLA's Center for the Art of Performance (Apr. 5); Montalvo Arts Center (Apr. 10); and Friends of Chamber Music Troy (Apr. 25). The Friends of Chamber Music Troy residency will also include an outdoor community performance of Terry Riley's In C.
Third Coast Percussion's fun, interactive, and educational presentation for all ages, Think Outside the Drum, is presented by Chicago Live! at Navy Pier on September 23, 2023. Focusing on the "Building Blocks of Music," the program intersperses performances by TCP with teaching moments that introduce the building blocks of music (rhythm, melody, and timbre) through participation in a series of interactive activities including clapping, singing, and a listening game.
The family program is also presented at the Musikkollegium Winterthur in Switzerland, part of a five-day residency of six concerts that also feature Third Coast Percussion's European concerto debut in Christopher Cerrone's Meander, Spiral, Explode Concerto with Orchestra; a performance of Jlin's Perspective, a work commissioned by TCP and named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize; two performances of Think Outside the Drum, and a guided sound meditation.
November brings the world premiere of Clarice Assad's PLAY! a Concerto for Percussion Quartet, Vocalist & Orchestra with the Santa Rosa Symphony (CA) in three performances with Assad as vocal soloist from November 4-6, 2023. Assad reminisces, "Play has always meant exploring new worlds and finding awe in the little things. As an artist, I seek connections through playful art, transcending differences and worries, uniting us in a harmonious symphony of life." TCP performs the concerto again with the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra on March 8, 2024.
On November 10, 2023, TCP performs the world premiere of composer Michael Burritt's Since Time Began at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention in Indianapolis. Burritt served a vital role as a mentor to all members of the ensemble throughout their studies at Northwestern University, and his compositions for percussion have become standard repertoire for soloists and ensembles. Burritt has composed a monumental new work for TCP in celebration of the 400th anniversary of Zildjian cymbals-one of the music world's oldest and most iconic brands. The ensemble performs the work again on November 30 at the Eastman School of Music and on December 5 in TCP's Chicago Concert Season at DePaul University.
Third Coast Percussion's program with dance, Metamorphosis, features the groundbreaking choreography of Movement Art Is (Lil Buck and Jon Boogz), for an intimate, evening-length experience exploring the duality of human nature. At once intensely personal and fiercely virtuosic, the program seamlessly blends two disparate styles of street dance with new music by Jlin and Tyondai Braxton, as well as Third Coast Percussion's critically-acclaimed arrangements of Philip Glass's Aguas da Amazonia. The program debuts this season in the first week of TCP's residency at Denison University in Ohio from November 12-18, 2023, and at the Illinois Music Educators Conference (instrumental only) on January 23, 2024. In February 2024, Third Coast Percussion takes Metamorphosis on an international tour, beginning in De Doelen in The Netherlands (February 17) before continuing on to high profile dates in London and Poland to be announced.
The quartet joins forces with celebrated guitarist Sérgio Assad and composer Clarice Assad for Archetypes, a program of 12 collaboratively-composed musical portraits of timeless character types that appear in stories, legends, and myths throughout the world, at the University of Nevada Las Vegas on December 13, 2023. An album of the collection was released to critical acclaim in 2021, described as "intensely magnetic" (Gramophone) and "a sparkling tonic of a disc" (Musical America). An education residency with Minnesota's Schubert Club on February 28, 2024 features a "Courtroom Concert" and performance of Think Outside the Drum.
As part of the ensemble's Chicago concert season, acclaimed composer, violinist, and educator Jessie Montgomery, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's Mead Composer-in-Residence and Musical America's 2023 Composer of the Year, collaborates with TCP in a dynamic program that equally showcases her excellence as visionary creator and virtuosic performer. Her first-ever work for percussion quartet - drawing a universe of sounds and characters out of a highly compact percussion setup - will be paired with Lou Harrison's Concerto for Violin with Percussion Orchestra on May 3, 2024 at DePaul University. TCP will also workshop new collaborations for the 2024-2025 season and work with students from Chicago's People's Music School.
On May 17 and 18, 2024, Third Coast Percussion performs as featured soloist in Toru Takemitsu's From me flows what you call Time with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. Summer 2024 also brings a performance in Taliesin (WI), engagements at Denison University, and more.
The annual Currents concert is TCP's chance to stretch in new artistic directions, often including the most innovative and experimental work of the season. This year's program on June 21, 2024 at Constellation in Chicago features world premieres of new works by Northwestern University Professor of Composition Hans Thomalla, and by this year's participants in TCP's Currents Creative Partnership - a collaborative program with innovative emerging music creators: Joel St. Julien, Srayamurtikanti, and Nick Zoulek.
Third Coast Percussion 2023/2024 Season
September 2, 2023
Between Breaths
Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts | Chicago, IL
Link: https://thirdcoastpercussion.com/event/between-breaths-logan-center/
Program:
Ayanna Woods - Triple Point
Tyondai Braxton - Sunny X
Gemma Peacocke - Death Wish
Missy Mazzoli - Millennium Canticles
Third Coast Percussion - In Practice
September 8, 2023
Between Breaths Out on Cedille Records
Link: https://thirdcoastpercussion.com/music/albums/between-breaths/
September 21, 2023
Windgate Center for the Performing Arts Presents Perspectives
University of Central Arkansas, Windgate Center for the Performing Arts | Conway, AR
Link: https://thirdcoastpercussion.com/event/university-of-central-arkansas-windgate-center/
Program:
Clarice Assad - The Hero
Philip Glass - Metamorphosis One
Danny Elfman - Percussion Quartet
Gemma Peacocke - Death Wish
Jlin - Perspective
September 23, 2023
Chicago Live! Presents Think Outside the Drum
Navy Pier | Chicago, IL
Link: https://navypier.org/events-and-public-programs/chicago-live/
Program:
Andrea Venet - Bulldog
Steve Reich - Music for Pieces of Wood
Ivan Treviño - 2+1
Jlin - Derivative
Alexis Lamb - Matters / Mind
October 2, 2023
Heindl Center for the Performing Arts Presents Perspectives
Northwest Mississippi Community College, Heindl Center for the Performing Arts
Link: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36646/performance/11302365
Program:
Clarice Assad - The Hero
Philip Glass - Metamorphosis One
Danny Elfman - Percussion Quartet
Gemma Peacocke - Death Wish
Jlin - Perspective
October 5, 2023
Third Coast Percussion Fall Benefit with Guest Jessie Montgomery
Floating World Gallery | Chicago, IL
Link: https://thirdcoastpercussion.com/event/tcp-fall-benefit23/
Program:
A preview of Jessie Montgomery's new work for percussion quartet
Conversation with Jessie Montgomery + TCP
October 25-29, 2023
Concerts at Musikkollegium Winterthur
Musikkollegium Winterthur | Winterthur, Switzerland
Link: www.musikkollegium.ch/programm-tickets/programm
Oct. 25 and 26 Programs:
Christopher Cerrone - Meander, Spiral, Explode Concerto with Orchestra
Oct. 27 Daytime Program:
Think Outside the Drum Family Show
Oct. 27 Evening Program:
Christopher Cerrone - Meander, Spiral, Explode Concerto with Orchestra
Jlin - Perspective
Oct. 28 Daytime Program:
Think Outside the Drum Family Show
Oct. 29 Program:
Guided Sound Meditation
November 4-6, 2023
World Premiere of Clarice Assad's PLAY! with the Santa Rosa Symphony
Sonoma State University's Green Music Center | Santa Rosa, CA
Link: https://gmc.sonoma.edu/santa-rosa-symphonymahlers-titan/
Program:
Clarice Assad - PLAY! [World Premiere]
November 10, 2023
World Premiere by Michael Burritt in Honor of Zildjian's 400th Anniversary
PASIC Conference | Indianapolis, IN
Link: https://pasic.org/
Program:
Michael Burritt - Since Time Began [World Premiere]
Jlin - Perspective
November 12-18, 2023
Residency Week #1: Metamorphosis with Dance
Denison University | Granville, OH
Link: https://denison.edu/series/vail
Program:
Philip Glass - Metamorphosis No. 1
Jlin - Perspective
Tyondai Braxton - Sunny X
November 30, 2023
TCP at Eastman School of Music
Eastman School of Music | Rochester, NY
Link: www.esm.rochester.edu/theatre/events/kilbourn-concert-series-presents-third-coast-percussion/
December 5, 2023
Since Time Began at DePaul University
Gannon Concert Hall, Holtschneider Performance Center, DePaul University | Chicago, IL
Link: https://thirdcoastpercussion.com/event/since-time-began-at-depaul-university/
Program:
Clarice Assad - The Hero
Gemma Peacocke - Death Wish
Machado Mijiga - Situations Suite
Michael Burritt - Since Time Began [Chicago Premiere]
December 13, 2023
Archetypes with Sergio and Clarice Assad
University of Las Vegas Nevada | Las Vegas, NV
Link: www.unlv.edu/announcement/performing-arts-center/unlv-performing-arts-center-announces-2023-2024-season
Program:
Archetypes
The Rebel (Clarice Assad)
The Innocent (Sérgio Assad)
The Orphan (Sérgio Assad)
The Lover (David Skidmore)
The Magician (Sérgio Assad)
The Ruler (Peter Martin)
The Jester (Clarice Assad)
The Caregiver (Clarice Assad)
The Sage (Robert Dillon)
The Creator (Sean Connors)
The Hero (Clarice Assad)
The Explorer (Sérgio Assad)
January 23, 2024
IL Music Educators Conference Presents Metamorphosis
Peoria, IL
Link: https://ilmea.org/imecinfo
Program:
Philip Glass - Metamorphosis No. 1
Jlin - Perspective
Tyondai Braxton - Sunny X
February 5-10, 2023
Denison Residency Week #2: Ensemble in Residence Work
Denison University | Granville, OH
February 17, 2024
De Doelen Presents Metamorphosis with Dance
Willem Burger Hal | Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Link: www.dedoelen.nl/en/agenda/20547/Metamorphosis_/Third_Coast_Percussion_and_Movement_Art_Is_
Program:
Philip Glass - Metamorphosis One
Jlin - Perspective
Tyondai Braxton - Sunny X
February 28, 2024
TCP Education Residency + Courtroom Concert + Think Outside the Drum
Schubert Club | Saint Paul, MN
Link: https://schubert.org/education/kidsjam/
Program:
Andrea Venet - Bulldog
Steve Reich - Music for Pieces of Wood
Ivan Treviño - 2+1
Jlin - Derivative
Alexis Lamb - Matters / Mind
March 8, 2024
Clarice Assad's PLAY! with Wheeling Symphony Orchestra
The Capitol Theatre | Wheeling, WV
Link: https://wheelingsymphony.com/events/music-at-play/
Program:
Clarice Assad - PLAY!
April 5, 2024
CAP UCLA Presents Perspectives
UCLA Nimoy Theater | Los Angeles, CA
Link: https://cap.ucla.edu/event/third-coast-percussion
Program:
Clarice Assad - The Hero
Philip Glass - Metamorphosis One
Danny Elfman - Percussion Quartet
Gemma Peacocke - Death Wish
Jlin - Perspective
April 10, 2024
Montalvo Arts Center Presents Perspectives
Carriage House Theatre | Saratoga, CA
Link: https://my.montalvoarts.org/2165/2202
Program:
Clarice Assad - The Hero
Philip Glass - Metamorphosis One
Danny Elfman - Percussion Quartet
Gemma Peacocke - Death Wish
Jlin - Perspective
April 15-20, 2024
Residency Week #3
Denison University | Granville, OH
April 25, 2024
Friends of Chamber Music Troy Presents Perspectives and Terry Riley's In C
Massry Center for the Arts, The College of St. Rose | Albany, NY
Link: www.friendsofchambermusic.org/concert/641c5ff0bd55e19998a40c6a
Program:
Clarice Assad - The Hero
Philip Glass - Metamorphosis One
Danny Elfman - Percussion Quartet
Gemma Peacocke - Death Wish
Jlin - Perspective
Community Performance:
Terry Riley - In C
May 3, 2024
World Premiere by Jessie Montgomery and Lou Harrison's Concerto
Gannon Concert Hall, Holtschneider Performance Center, DePaul University | Chicago, IL
Link: https://thirdcoastpercussion.com/event/jessie-montgomery-third-coast-percussion/
Program:
Jessie Montgomery - New Work [World Premiere]
Lou Harrison - Concerto for Violin with Percussion Orchestra
Jessie Montgomery, violin soloist
Additional Works TBA
May 17 and 18, 2024
Toru Takemitsu's From me flows what you call Time with Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
Bradley Symphony Center | Milwaukee, WI
Link: www.mso.org/concerts/the-sorcerers-apprentice/57674/
June 21, 2024
World Premiere of Currents
Friday, June 21, 2024, 8:30 p.m.
Constellation | Chicago, IL
Link: https://thirdcoastpercussion.com/event/currents-at-constellation-4/
Program:
World premieres by Hans Thomalla, Joel St. Julien, Srayamurtikanti, and Nick Zoulek
More About Third Coast Percussion
A direct connection with the audience is at the core of all of Third Coast Percussion's work, whether the musicians are speaking from the stage about a new piece of music, inviting the audience to play along in a concert or educational performance, or uniting fans around the world via one of their free mobile apps. The four members of Third Coast are also accomplished teachers, and make active participation by all students the cornerstone of all their educational offerings, including thoughtfully curated K-12 workshops and family programming.
The quartet's curiosity and eclectic taste have led to a series of unlikely collaborations that have produced exciting new art. Their omnivorous musical appetite, paired with approachable and flexible working methods, remove collaborative boundaries across cultures and disciplines. The ensemble has worked with engineers at the University of Notre Dame, architects at the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, dancers at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, and musicians from traditions ranging from the mbira music of Zimbabwe's Shona people, to indie rockers and footwork producers, to some of the world's leading concert musicians. Third Coast Percussion served as ensemble-in-residence at the University of Notre Dame's DeBartolo Performing Arts Center from 2013-2018, and currently serves as ensemble-in-residence at Denison University.
A commission for a new work from composer Augusta Read Thomas in 2012 led to the realization that commissioning new musical works can be - and should be - as collaborative as any other artistic partnership. Through extensive workshopping and close contact with composers, Third Coast Percussion has commissioned and premiered new works by Philip Glass, Missy Mazzoli, Jlin, Danny Elfman, Clarice Assad, Gemma Peacocke, Flutronix, Tyondai Braxton, Augusta Read Thomas, Devonté Hynes, Georg Friedrich Haas, Donnacha Dennehy, Glenn Kotche, Christopher Cerrone, and David T. Little, plus many of today's leading up-and-coming composers through their Currents Creative Partnership program. TCP's commissioned works have become part of the ensemble's core repertoire and seen hundreds of performances around the world. In 2023, Jlin's Perspective, commissioned by TCP, was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.
Third Coast Percussion's recordings include 17 feature albums, and appearances on 14 additional releases. Besides putting its its stamp on iconic percussion works by John Cage and Steve Reich, the quartet has created first recordings of commissioned works by Philip Glass, Augusta Read Thomas, Devonté Hynes, Gavin Bryars, Donnacha Dennehy, David T. Little, Ted Hearne, and more - in addition to recordings of original Third Coast compositions. In 2017 the ensemble won the GRAMMY Award for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance for their recording of Steve Reich's works for percussion. Third Coast has since received four additional GRAMMY nominations as performers, and in 2021 they received their first GRAMMY nomination as composers.
Third Coast Percussion has always maintained strong ties to the vibrant artistic community in their hometown of Chicago. They have collaborated with Chicago institutions including Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, the Uniting Voices Chicago choir, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, Chicago Humanities Festival, and the Adler Planetarium. TCP performed at the grand opening of Maggie Daley Children's Park; conducted residencies at the University of Chicago and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago; created multi-year collaborative projects with Chicago-based composers Jessie Montgomery, Clarice and Sérgio Assad, Augusta Read Thomas, Glenn Kotche, and chamber ensemble Eighth Blackbird; and has taught tens of thousands of students through partnerships with Uniting Voices Chicago, The People's Music School, the Chicago Park District, Rush Hour Concerts, Urban Gateways, Changing Worlds, and others.
The four members of Third Coast Percussion (Sean Connors, Robert Dillon, Peter Martin, and David Skidmore) met while studying percussion music at Northwestern University with Michael Burritt and James Ross, and formed the ensemble in 2005. Settling in Chicago, the four friends have carefully and thoughtfully built a thriving nonprofit organization - including full-time staff, office/studio space, and a board of directors - to support their vision and facilitate their efforts to bring new works to life. Members of Third Coast also hold degrees from the Eastman School of Music, Rutgers University, the New England Conservatory, and the Yale School of Music.
Stay up-to-date and go behind-the-scenes by following Third Coast on Instagram (@ThirdCoastPercussion), YouTube (@thirdcoastpercussion), TikTok (@thirdcoastpercussion), Twitter (@ThirdCoastPerc), and Facebook (@Third Coast Percussion).
Photo Credit: Saverio Truglia
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