Cellist Ashley Bathgate (HOWL, eighth blackbird) performs world premieres by The Next Festival of Emerging Artists composers Ryan Lindveit, Samantha Wolf, and Adeliia Faizullina. These exciting new pieces for solo cello and cello and electronics were created as part of the 2020 Next Festival Composer Workshop. Join us for the premiere performances and a deep-dive discussion into the creative and collaborative processes with Ashley and the composers.

American cellist Ashley Bathgate has been described as an “eloquent new music interpreter”(The New York Times) and “a glorious cellist” (The Washington Post) who combines “bittersweet lyricism along with ferocious chops”(New York Magazine). Her “impish ferocity”, “rich tone” and “imaginative phrasing” (The New York Times) have made her one of the most sought after performers of her time. The desire to create a dynamic energy exchange with her audience and build upon the ensuing chemistry is a pillar of Bathgate's philosophy as a performer. Dynamism drives her to venture into previously uncharted areas of ground-breaking sounds and techniques, breaking the mold of a cello's traditionally perceived voice. For the past 10 years, Bathgate was a member of the acclaimed sextet Bang on a Can All-Stars. She is also a member of the chamber music group HOWL, TwoSense with pianist Lisa Moore, and Bonjour, a low-strung, percussive quintet.

Ryan Lindveit is an American composer who takes inspiration from literature, art, science, technology, and personal experience in order to craft colorful and emotionally vivid musical journeys. These works range from orchestral pieces premiered in Carnegie Hall and wind ensemble pieces performed at top universities to pieces for chamber ensembles, soloists, electronics, dance, and film. His work has received recognition from BMI, ASCAP, SCI, and the American Academy of Arts and Letters, among others. He has held fellowships or residencies at the Aspen Music Festival, Mizzou International Composers Festival, ACO Underwood New Music Readings, and the Next Festival of Emerging Artists, among others. Recent projects include commissions for the trombonist Zachary Haas, the saxophonist Andrew Hosler, the guitarist Bokyung Byun, and the cellist Ashley Bathgate. In addition, Ryan composed the score for the four-part, Sam Elliott-narrated docuseries Honor Guard released on Amazon Prime in December 2020. The original score was also released as a soundtrack album on major streaming platforms. Originally from Texas, Ryan holds degrees from the University of Southern California (B.M.) and the Yale School of Music (M.M., M.M.A.) and is currently pursuing doctoral studies at the University of Michigan.

Melbourne-based composer and pun enthusiast Samantha Wolf is quickly gaining recognition as one of Australia’s most distinctive young voices. A graduate of the Queensland and Melbourne Conservatoriums, and the recipient of numerous awards, her music has been described as ‘haunting’ (XS Entertainment), ‘enigmatic’ (Blue Curtains) and ‘inspired’ (Brisbane Music Festival). Her diverse practice encompasses solo, chamber, choral, band and orchestral works, interdisciplinary collaborations, and electroacoustic and fixed media works that incorporate noise, speech, and found sounds. Samantha has worked with many of Australia’s leading new music ensembles, including the Melbourne and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras, Ensemble Offspring, The Song Company, Ensemble Liaison, the Horsley Williams Duo, Rubiks Collective, and Kupka’s Piano, with whom she is an Associate Artist. Her music has been performed around Australia and internationally, including at the Darmstadt Summer Courses for New Music (Germany), soundSCAPE Festival (Italy), Impuls Academy (Austria), Norfolk Chamber Music Festival (USA), and local staples Tilde New Music Festival, 2high Festival, and the Metropolis New Music Festival. Her music has been broadcast on ABC Classic FM, 3MBS, PBS and 4MBS, and featured by Making Waves, Partial Durations, Collective Soundwaves, and ABC’s New Waves podcast. An avid writer, Samantha’s articles have been published by Resonate, CutCommon and Rehearsal Magazine.

Uzbekistan-born Tatar composer Adeliia Faizullina (b.1988) is a vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and Tatar quray player. As a composer, she explores cutting-edge vocal colors and paints delicate and vibrant atmospheres inspired by the music and poetry of Tatar folklore. Adeliia received her BM in Voice in Kazan, Russia, and BM in Music Composition in Gnessins Russian Academy of Music. She has an MM in Music Composition from the University of Texas at Austin, studying with Yevgeniy Sharlat, and in 2019 started her DMA at the University of Southern California, studying with Nina C. Young. Adeliia is a composer fellow at the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music. Her recent commissions include works for Jennifer Koh, the Tesla Quartet, Johnny Gandelsman, and the Metropolis Ensemble. In 2019, she won the Seattle Symphony Celebrate Asia Competition and performed with the Seattle Symphony in 2020. In 2018, she won first prize in the Radio Orpheus Young Composers Competition in Moscow, and was a finalist for International Rostrum of Composers, in Budapest. Her music has been performed at the Next Festival of Emerging Artists, Chamber Music Society of the Carolinas, and National Sawdust.

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