This is the web site for John Mackey, a composer of music for ballet and modern dance, as well as theater and concert music.
Recent/Upcoming Projects:
Turning, an eight-minute, slow work for wind ensemble, received its premiere at the CBDNA national convention in Ann Arbor in March 2007. The recording of the premiere is now posted.
Turbine, a new work for the wind ensembles of the SEC, premiered in 2006. Recent performances at Arizona State, USC (under H. Robert Reynolds), Florida State, LSU, U. Kansas, and at the Midwest Convention in Chicago, as well as the CBDNA National Convention in Ann Arbor.
Strange Humors, in a new version for wind ensemble, received its premiere in 2006 at the American Bandmasters Association convention in Texas.
"Redline Tango" transcription for wind ensemble premiered in February 2004 by Scott A. Stewart at Emory University. The work has since received over 100 performances worldwide, including with the Texas All-State Band, at the 2005 CBDNA conference in New York, at the WASBE conference in Singapore, and throughout China, Japan, and the United States. The Blue Devils performed the work in the summer of 2005. The work won the 2004 Walter Beeler Memorial Composition Competition and the 2005 ABA / Ostwald Award.
The Dallas Symphony performed "Redline Tango" in Dallas and in Vail, Colorado, in 2004. The Minnesota Orchestra, under Andrew Litton, performed it in July 2005, and Marin Alsop led a performance in August 2005. The Bergen Philharmonic of Norway performed the work in October 2006.
Recent News
(As always, check out the Journal/Blog for the latest news. This front page is updated rarely.)
JULY 24, 2007: Again, I really never update this page. All of the updates go on the blog, so you should start there.
OCTOBER 4, 2006: Lots of travel this fall. Check out the schedule. If I'm coming to your area, let me know!
MARCH 6, 2006: "Strange Humors" - a new work for winds, brass, and percussion (featuring djembe, an African hand drum) - premiered March 1 in Texas, with Richard Floyd conducting the Baylor Wind Ensemble. MP3 and score posted.
DECEMBER 20, 2005: "Redline Tango" won the 2005 Ostwald Award.
OCTOBER 4, 2005: Marin Alsop performed "Redline Tango" at the Cabrillo Festival in August. In July, Andrew Litton gave a performance of "Redline Tango" with the Minnesota Orchestra.
APRIL 19 , 2005: Lamar University, under the direction of Scott Weiss, gave the world premiere of "Sasparilla" on April 17. The recording is now posted.
JANUARY 18, 2005: I haven't been updating this page as often, as most news is now going on my Journal/Blog page. Lots of exciting performances coming up, including Ithaca Collage's performance of "Redline Tango" at the CBDNA conference in New York City on February 26, and the Texas All-State Band's performance in San Antonio on February 12.
DECEMBER 2, 2004: I've just posted the live recording of Richard Clary's performance of "Redline Tango" with the Florida State University Wind Symphony. Check it out! Tonight, the piece will be performed at Arizona State University, conducted by Gary Hill. Also, the Alvin Ailey dance company performs "Juba" tonight at City Center in New York City.
SEPTEMBER 24, 2004: The new score, "Mass," for the Juilliard Dance Division is finished! You can see and hear the piece here. I also just posted the MP3 of "Under the Rug."
AUGUST 24, 2004: There's a brief interview with me on NewMusicBox.
AUGUST 23, 2004: The United States Synchronized Swim Team will perform at the Olympics in Athens today - to my music! They'll be performing to "Damn," a work for clarinet and percussion. The performance will be on the Bravo network at 5pm EST.
MAY 5, 2004: I'll be Composer-in-Residence with the Seattle Youth Symphony in 2004-2005. The 4-week residency is my second residency through Music Alive.
