New Represented Artist: Jeffrey Irving
Jeffrey Irving is a freelance percussionist and timpanist in New York City working regularly in the orchestral, theater and chamber music idioms. He performs frequently with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, has worked on over a dozen shows on Broadway - currently Wicked and Frozen - and has a long history working with many other groups in and around NYC including the New York Philharmonic, Orchestra of St. Luke's, American Symphony Orchestra, New York City Opera, Gotham Chamber Opera, Manhattan Chamber Orchestra and Springfield Symphony Orchestra, among others. In addition to his orchestral and theater activities, Jeffrey is also an enthusiastic performer of contemporary solo and chamber music. Recent chamber music engagements include Alarm Will Sound, International Contemporary Ensemble, counter)induction, Da Capo Chamber Players, Perspectives Ensemble, Newband, American Contemporary MusicEnsemble (ACME) and the Metropolitan Opera Chamber Ensemble. He has recorded for Deutsche Grammophon, PBS, Netflix, Albany Records, Verve, Naxos, New Focus Recordings and NY Philomusica. Jeffrey is also a dedicated educator working primarily with highly talented and motivated high school percussionists. He has served on the faculty of Interlochen Arts Camp since 2011 as well as on the faculty and as a guest artist at the Juilliard Summer Percussion Seminar. He also served as Instructor of Percussion and Director of Percussion Ensemble (sabbatical replacement) at Interlochen Arts Academy in 2011. His private students have continued on to [...]
Announcing new Represented Artist: Jason Nicholson!!
We are pleased to announce that we have a new Artist joining our ranks: Jason Nicholson!! Dr. Jason Nicholson, Associate Professor of Percussion at Utah State University, received a Doctor of Musical Arts in Percussion Performance from the University of North Texas. From 2005 – 2008, he was a Graduate Teaching Fellow in Percussion at UNT where he taught Applied Lessons, Percussion Methods, and Percussion Ensemble. Jason was also a featured soloist with both the Graduate Percussion Ensemble as well the Wind Symphony (under the direction of Eugene Corporan), performing at the 2006 PASIC alongside Keiko Abe and the UNT percussion faculty. In 2006, Jason was honored with the award for The Most Outstanding Graduate Student in Percussion and also served as the principle percussionist with the UNT Wind Symphony. Prior to his studies at UNT, Jason was a Lecturer in Percussion at Winthrop University where he taught Applied Percussion, Percussion Methods, Percussion Ensemble and African drumming. He simultaneously served as the Director of Percussion Studies at Rock Hill High School where he coordinated percussion activities between the high school and the two feeding middle schools. Jason has been an active performer in orchestral, jazz, chamber, solo, pop, and world genres throughout the Salt Lake City, Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami, and Charlotte metropolitan regions. He has performed with notable groups such as the American Festival Orchestra, the Corey [...]
New Represented Artist: Ulysses Owens Jr!!
We are so pleased to welcome Ulysses Owens Jr to the APAKA family! There will be a snare drum solo coming very soon!! Check back to see this great piece of music! Here is a bit about our newest composer: Heralded as a “powerhouse of a showman” (Glide Magazine), a “legitimate jazz triple threat” (Critical Jazz) and a drummer who “take[s] a back seat to no one” (The New York Times), performer, producer and educator Ulysses Owens Jr. goes the limit in the jazz world and beyond. Owens has been named a Rising Star by DownBeat’s Critics Poll for five years straight, 3rd Runner-Up in “Classic Drum” category by Modern Drummer Magazine “Readers Poll.” He is a recipient of the 2013 ASCAP Plus Award, the 2014 Global Music Award and the 2015 Jazz at Lincoln Center Swing! Award. Claiming four successful albums of his own (It’s Time for U, Unanimous, Onward and Upward, and Falling Forward.) Owens has also gained special attention for his performances on the GRAMMY award-winning albums Dedicated to You (Kurt Elling) The Good Feeling (Christian McBride Big Band.) GRAMMY award-nominated albums; Giant Steps,” and Countdown (Joey Alexander) Out Here, Live at The Village Vanguard (Christian McBride Trio) and most recently, Nat King Cole, and Me (Gregory Porter.) Requested by Wynton Marsalis, and Dr. Aaron Flagg to become an active faculty member of the [...]
New Represented Artist!! Kramer Milan
Kramer Milan is an active educator and percussionist based in mid-Michigan. As professor of percussion at Olivet College, Kramer cares deeply about the responsibility to share his passion for music with the next generation of aspiring percussionists. He is a section percussionist in the Midland Symphony Orchestra and member of The Percussion Collective Robert van Sice. His wide collaborative experience ranges from performances with Aretha Franklin to the American Brass Quintet. As an advocate for new music, Kramer has premiered over 20 works from composers including Hannah Lash, James Wood, Krists Auznieks, David Biedenbender, and Drew Worden. Kramer holds degrees from Yale University, the Peabody Conservatory, and currently is a D.M.A. candidate at Michigan State University. He is a represented artist with Apaka Music and performs exclusively with Vic Firth drumsticks, Zildjian Cymbals, and Pearl/Adams percussion products.
New Represented Artist: Isaac Pyatt
Isaac Pyatt is a performer and composer based in Lansing, Michigan. His music has been performed at statewide days of percussion, and nationally at contemporary music festivals and composer conferences. His compositional output is varied, but through the blending of musical languages he focuses on ideas of structure, form, and texture that direct his music. His piece "Breaking the News" is featured by Vic Firth Concert. He has recently performed as a soloist with the UNC-Greensboro Symphony Orchestra and Percussion Ensembles, and frequently performs in local orchestras in Michigan and North Carolina. In 2016 and 2017, Isaac won the NC Percussive Arts Society University Soloist Competition, and he was a finalist in the 2017 Rosen-Schaffel Young Artist Compeition. He was formerly the front ensemble instructor at Ledford High School in Walburg, NC. He is a founding member of the Greensboro based percussion trio "Conduit Percussion" - an ensemble that shares its love of chamber music with the community and local schools. Isaac received his bachelor's degrees in performance and music composition from the University of North Carolina-Greensboro and is currently studying at Michigan State University. He has studied percussion with Gwendolyn Dease, Eric Willie, John Beck, Charles Ross, and Peter Zlotnick, and music composition with Mark Engebrestson and Alejandro Rutty.
Announcing New Represented Artist: Bryan Jeffs!
Bryan Jeffs is a Southern Oregon based percussionist, educator, composer and general musical tinkerer. Blending a passion for pop music and the avant-garde, his work encompasses a wide variety of interests and influences. As a composer he has created numerous works for percussion utilizing both traditional and graphic notation while also utilizing a variety of physical media. His compositions and performances evoke a sense of lighthearted playfulness balanced with complexity and technical demand. This is best exemplified in his "Rebel Frog" trilogy of pieces for percussion ensemble. Notable festival appearances include the Percussive Arts Society International Convention (PASIC), Northwest Percussion Festival, the Festival of New American Music in Sacramento, The Oregon Fringe Festival and numerous Day of Percussion events around the Pacific Northwest. His piece “Contactual Constellations”, an innovative graphic score with the notation printed directly onto drum heads, was premiered at PASIC in 2014. In 2016, the Oregon Fringe Festival commissioned the work “Ashland, Oregon”, a graphic score based on the geography of Ashland, Oregon. In 2007, Bryan graduated from Southern Oregon University, where while studying under Dr. Terry Longshore he earned Bachelor’s degrees in music performance and music education. Following that, he earned his Master’s degree in percussion performance while studying under Dr. Daniel Kennedy at California State University, Sacramento. Currently, Bryan serves as the Music Department Coordinator at Rogue Community College and also serves [...]
Announcing a new publication!!
Here is the eagerly awaited Gwendolyn Dease's arrangement of the J.S. Bach Six Suites for Marimba!!! These suites have been arranged and edited to be unique and suited specifically to the technique and sound of the marimba. According to Dease, "I believe the music of Bach is so important for all young musicians to learn not only because his music is amazing, but because it can teach and instill a number of basic musical skills that can enhance performance and knowledge of almost every other classical composer and many other styles of music as well." Please take a look at these inspiring arrangements!
Announcing new Represented Artist, Keith Aleo!!! Keith A. Aleo has a multifaceted career as an performer, educator and administrator. He is the Director of Percussion at the Interlochen Center for the Arts and an Education and Orchestral Consultant for the Zildjian Company in Norwell, MA. His playing credits include the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra and, in 2004, the Boston Symphony Orchestra. He was a member of the percussion section of the Florida Philharmonic Orchestra from 1989-2003, and a member of the percussion faculty at the University of Miami from 1994-2003. Mr. Aleo's publications include Music for Multiple Metals, Advanced Etudes for Snare Drum and Complimentary Percussion, a Handbook for Tambourine, Triangle, Cymbals and Bass Drum. He was also a contributing editor for the Encyclopedia of Percussion Instruments. His awards include Chapter President of the Year for his work as president of the Florida Chapter of the Percussive Arts Society. Mr. Aleo has given master classes and workshops on percussion instruments at numerous universities throughout the world and the Percussive Arts Society International Convention.