Adam Knauss - Composer

Adam Knauss, composer

Recent News

February 7, 2012 - Upcoming performances of Portrait, Entropy Variations

After a successful performance at the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, a fifth performance has been scheduled for the Emerging Voices Project, including Portrait, for March 15th in Jersey City, NJ. Zach and Elisabeth will be presenting the program in workshop format, discussing the project with the audience between performances of the pieces.

Also, coming this Friday, February 10th, percussionist Greg Jukes will perform the first movement of my piece Entropy Variations for vibraphone and audible breathing. The performance is part of a program called "Early Drafts," presented by Windfall Dancers, Inc. in Bloomington, IN, in which artists of many disciplines present new works or works in progress.

Details of both performances can be found on the Upcoming Events page.

January 13, 2012 - EVP to perform at Pratt Free Library in Baltimore

Zach Herchen and Elisabeth Halliday will perform Portrait, along with their other commissioned pieces in a performance at the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, MD on February 4th at 2:00 PM. The program will also include performances by saxophonists Jeremiah Baker and Cara Salveson. See the Upcoming Events page for performance details.

December 13, 2011 - EVP to perform at the Navy Band's International Saxophone Symposum

The Emerging Voices Project has been selected for performance at the 35th International Saxophone Symposium, to be hosted by the U.S. Navy Band at George Mason University in January 2012. Zach Herchen and Elisabeth Halliday will perform Portrait, along with George Lam's The Person In The Room Wishes To Be Left Alone and Kathleen Bader's Two Songs For The Sounds Outside. See the Upcoming Events page for performance details.

The EVP played its first two tour dates in September 2011 and met with success. I was able to attend the performance in New York City and was very happy with the performance of Portrait. The Emerging Voices Project CD is now available for sale at Zach Herchen's website: Click here to buy the CD or MP3s. You can also hear the studio recording of Portrait here.

September 3, 2011 - Lexington performance of Portrait rescheduled

The first tour date for the Emerging Voices Project has been rescheduled for Sunday, September 18th in Lexington, MA. My piece Portrait will be premiered in this concert. See the Upcoming Events page for details, and check out the project's website for more information.

August 27, 2011 - Lexington performance of Portrait postponed

Due to Hurricane Irene, the first tour date for the Emerging Voices Project, originally scheduled for August 28th in Lexington, MA, has been postponed. Check back soon for information on the rescheduled performance.

August 14, 2011 - Emerging Voices Project begins its tour

Elisabeth Halliday and Zach Herchen have announced their first two tour dates for the Emerging Voices Project: Sunday, August 28th in Lexington, MA, and Sunday, September 25th in New York City. They will premiere my piece Portrait, along with pieces by Kathleen Bader, George Lam, Amy Beth Kirsten, and Lori Laitmann. See the Upcoming Events page for details, and check back here soon, or on the project's website, for a more complete list of tour dates.

April 26, 2011 - Marvell Repertory Theatre's inaugural season closes, meets with favorable reviews

Marvell Rep's first season ran from late February through the first weekend in April, and met with success. I am happy to report that I attended performances of The Dybbuk and Blood Wedding, both of which were excellent productions. I was very happy with the performances of my original music. The productions were also reviewed on backstage.com and theatermania.com.

March 7, 2011 - Blood Wedding and The Dybbuk now playing!

Marvell Repertory Theatre presents its inauguaral season, including two plays featuring my original scores. The plays run until the first weekend in April, and tickets are on sale now. See Upcoming Events for the show dates, and visit Marvell Rep's homepage for more information.

March 1, 2011 - Emerging Voices Project Achieves its Fundraising Goal

The Emerging Voices Project, which includes my piece Portrait, smashed its fundraising goal of $3,000, raising a grand total of $4,220! A big thank-you to all who have supported and donated to the project. Thanks to your generosity, Zach and Elisabeth will be able to expand the scope of the project, now commissioning composer Amy Beth Kirsten, in addition to Lori Laitman, George Lam, and myself. They will also be expanding their CD-release tour, now to include Boston, New York City, and a third city to be determined later. Check out the project's website for details and updates.

January 25, 2011 - Show Dates Announced

Marvell Repertory Theatre has announced the show dates for its upcoming season, including Federico Garcia Lorca's Blood Wedding and S. Ansky's The Dybbuk, for which I've composed scores. Check out the Upcoming Events page or Marvell Rep's homepage for details.

January 11, 2011 - Fundraising Underway

The Emerging Voices Project, which includes my new piece Portrait, is underway, and needs your support! With 20 days to go until the deadline, the project has reached approximately two thirds of its fundraising goal of $3000. Please visit the project's website to learn more, check out photos, and listen to audio samples. If you'd like to make a donation, visit the fundraising page. Donations are greatly appreciated, and come with benefits!

See the official project announcement below:

Elisabeth Halliday and Zach Herchen have created the Emerging Voices Project to commission, perform, and record music for voice and saxophone. The project was inspired by Lori Laitman's "I Never Saw Another Butterfly", a musical setting of poetry written by Jewish children who lived in the concentration camp Theresienstadt. Elisabeth and Zach have selected composers Kathleen Bader, Adam Knauss, and George Lam to write pieces based on the themes of childhood and loss of innocence. In 2011 they will premiere these works and release them on CD alongside "I Never Saw Another Butterfly."

This is a big project and they've spent months planning the details. Elisabeth and Zach are now ready to begin, but need support to make it happen. They are using Kickstarter to fundraise $3,000 to cover the cost of commissioning the composers and recording/producing the CD. In return for support they are offering unique awards such as a pre-release signed CD and a one-of-a kind recording of your favorite song.

October 23, 2010 - Music for Theater

I have recently finished composing a piece entitled Portrait, a setting of an excerpt of James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, for Zach Herchen and Elisabeth Halliday. This piece is on track for recording and performance this winter. For my next project, I've been commissioned by director Lenny Leibowitz to compose scores for two plays, Federico Garcia Lorca's Blood Wedding and S. Ansky's The Dybbuk. Both plays will be performed by Leibowitz's company, Marvell Rep, at the Abingdon Theatre in New York City, and are set to open in February 2011. More details to follow as the date gets closer.

April 29, 2010 - Upcoming Projects

I am happy to announce that I will soon be composing a piece for soprano and saxophone as part of a series of commissions from singer Elisabeth Halliday and saxophonist Zach Herchen. This piece, along with pieces by the other commissioned composers (to include George Lam and Kathleen Bader) and a cycle by Lori Laitman, will tentatively be recorded and performed several times between late 2010 and mid 2011. Check back soon for more details!

April 24, 2010 - White Fog: A Dreamscape places in Avalon Competition!

White Fog: A Dreamscape, for cello, tenor saxophone, and vibraphone, was recently awarded third place in the Robert Avalon Competition for Composers, hosted by the Foundation for Modern Music, based in Houston, Texas. See the Works/Media page for a recording of the piece and program notes.

September 1, 2009 - Website is up and running

Welcome to adamknauss.com! This site was launched in the spring of 2009, and I have been working on getting it into working condition since then. While portions of it are still under construction, I have recently fixed an error on the Works/Media page, and now many of the recordings are up and running. I hope you'll take some time to listen! More recordings and further updates should follow soon.