The Central Florida Composers’ Forum presents its 2025 Composer’s DIY Salon Concert on Sunday, September 28th, at Timucua. This long-standing CF2 institution is unlike most CF2 events, which have a set instrumentation and theme, in this one, each composer writes for an ensemble or performer of their choice and provides their own performers, hence the DIY sobriquet. This evening’s concert will features premières and world premières of new works by Alex Burtzos, Nate Chivers, Troy Gifford, Kristi Ouellette, Mark Piszczek, and Paul Austin Sanders. Performers include Samantha Barnes Daniel (soprano), Jessica Hall Speak (clarinet), Yun-Ling Hsu (piano), Nate Chivers (guitar), Maria Pikoula (piano), Kristi Ouellette (soprano and piano), Heather Langs (piano), Emily Heumann (mezzo-soprano), Elaine Corriveau (piano), and Paul Austin Sanders (guitar).
Presented by Voices of Orlando, Orlando Contemporary Chamber Orchestra, Central Florida Youth Chorus, Central Florida Composers Forum, and Performing Arts Matter
Sunday, September 14, 2025 | 2:00 PM | Cathedral Church of Saint Luke | $30 Suggested Donation
Orlando, FL — On Sunday, September 14, audiences are invited to step into the glow of Celestial Light, a concert of music that explores radiance, memory, and transcendence. Performed in the soaring space of the Cathedral Church of Saint Luke, this collaboration brings together Voices of Orlando, members of the Orlando Contemporary Chamber Orchestra, organist Michael Petrosh, and the Central Florida Youth Chorusunder the direction of Julie Simmons.
The program features a blend of choral and instrumental works by living composers, including local Central Florida Composers Forum members William Ayers, Charlie Griffin, and Enrique Ynaty. Together with music by Jonathan Dove, Mark Kilstofte, Pasquale Tassone, Michael Petrosh, Jacob Lack, and Julianna Hinton, the concert offers a rich palette of sound, from shimmering stars to solemn reflections to jubilant praise.
Highlights include:
O quam dulcis by William Ayers — evoking the comfort of a warm library on a cold day, as singers voice words of wisdom discovered among the shelves.
The Crown of Joy by Charlie Griffin — a moving homage to J.S. Bach for choir, organ, and timpani.
Lux Aeterna by Enrique Ynaty — a luminous meditation on eternal light.
four o’clock in the afternoon by Julianna Hinton — a powerful new work preserving the testimony of Armenian Genocide survivor Guleeg Haroian.
Everyone’s Voice by Mark Kilstofte — setting Siegfried Sassoon’s poetry, reminding us that “the singing will never be done.”
Flight Paths by Jacob Lack — inspired by Malcolm Arnold, a buoyant piece that imagines planes dancing across the sky.
Lauda Anima Mea Dominum by Pasquale Tassone — a majestic setting of Psalm 145 for choir, organ, brass, and timpani.
With brass quintet, timpani, organ, and two local choral groups, Celestial Light celebrates music’s power to lift us, comfort us, and connect us.
Celestial Light Sunday, September 14, 2025 | 2:00 PM Cathedral Church of Saint Luke 130 North Magnolia Ave, Orlando, FL $30 Suggested Donation
Presented by Voices of Orlando, Orlando Contemporary Chamber Orchestra, Central Florida Composers Forum, Central Florida Youth Chorus, and Performing Arts Matter.
Sunday, August 24, 2025 | 7:30 PMTimucua Arts Foundation
Join us for an evening of rich language, expressive music, and vibrant cross-cultural collaboration, where poetry and composition meet in a shared celebration of the Hispanic diaspora.
This second installment features all newly penned works by local composers setting iconic poems by remarkable poets from Nicaragua, Cuba, Argentina, Peru, and Chile. Featuring texts by Rubén Darío, Gertrudis Gómez de Avellaneda, José Martí, Alfonsina Storni, César Vallejo, Gabriela Mistral, and Vicente Huidobro, the concert pairs expressive new music with readings and cultural commentary, creating a rich, bilingual artistic experience.
Performers from OCCO, VoxO, and CF2: Keri Lee Pierson (soprano) Emily Heumann (mezzo-soprano) Julia Gessinger (violin) Kristine Griffin (piano) Troy Gifford (guitar)
Poems will be recited in both Spanish and English by Charlie Griffin (OCCO/CF2) and Thamara Bejarano, with cultural context provided by Bejarano (Open Scene Orlando).
The evening’s program brings to life the words of celebrated Latin American poets, each reimagined in new musical settings by composers from Central Florida. These vivid, contemporary interpretations, featuring combinations of voice, piano, guitar, and violin, create an intimate and expressive tapestry of sound and verse.
NICARAGUA Rubén Darío’s Sonatina, set by Gerald Law II for mezzo-soprano and guitar, opens the program with a dreamlike portrait of a young princess longing for a life beyond her royal surroundings.
CUBA Al partir by Gertrudis Gómez de Avellaneda is a poignant farewell to Cuba, filled with longing and sorrow, and is set by James Hall for soprano and piano. Orlando maverick composer Keith Lay offers a bold setting for soprano and piano of José Martí’s iconic Yo soy un hombre sincero, a powerful declaration of honesty, openness, and personal resolve.
ARGENTINA Alfonsina Storni’s Dulce tortura is a stirring depiction of conflicted desire and emotional complexity. Eric Heumann sets this poem for mezzo-soprano and piano, revealing both its sensuality and its quiet anguish.
PERÚ In Los Heraldos Negros, César Vallejo gives voice to deep spiritual and existential pain. Paul Austin Sanders’s setting for mezzo-soprano and piano draws out the poem’s dark gravity and unanswered questions of suffering.
CHILE Gabriela Mistral’s Hallazgo, a lyrical discovery of love, is set by Bob Walker Jr. for soprano, mezzo, and guitar, striving to capture the poem’s brief, luminous intimacy. Two works by Vicente Huidobro close the program: Días y noches te he buscado…, a symbolic search for truth and selfhood, set by Mark Piszczek for mezzo-soprano and piano; and Altazor, Canto I (fragment), an excerpt from Huidobro’s avant-garde masterpiece, set by Troy Gifford for soprano and guitar, evoking themes of flight, dislocation, and transcendence.
CF2 champions the creation and performance of new music by Central Florida composers, while Open Scene fosters artistic exchange across cultures and disciplines, amplifying the voices of Latin America. This shared vision makes Songs of the Hispanic Diaspora II a resonant and meaningful artistic gathering.
WINTER PARK, FL – The Orlando Contemporary Chamber Orchestra (OCCO), led by Music Director Todd Craven, joins forces with Claire Hodge and the vocal ensemble VoxO for Between Islands, a compelling evening of new music for chamber orchestra and voices. The concert will be held on Saturday, July 19, 2025, at 8:00 PM at the Blue Bamboo Center for the Arts in Winter Park, Florida.
This performance marks one of the first concerts in the newly opened Blue Bamboo venue and features works by nine living composers, including several based in Central Florida. The program centers on themes of loss, renewal, community, and connection.
Ethan Soledad’s Legacy Songs of Unity is the centerpiece—a sweeping, lyrical choral work written in 2024 that celebrates resilience, community, and the power of music to unite and heal.
Central Florida Composers Forum members offer deeply personal contributions:
Charles Griffin’s Between Islands (2025) reimagines his 2016 trumpet‑and‑audio work with meditative winds and ritualistic percussion, tracing grief’s transformation into memory and peace.
Troy Gifford’s The Night is based on the poem The Night Has a Thousand Eyes by Francis William Bourdillon.
Alan Gerber’s sensitive setting of the traditional Irish blessing May the Road Rise to Meet You.
This program also includes:
Erich Barganier – Speaking in Tongues: Inspired by glossolalia and spiritual ecstasy, this piece explores fluid vocal expression and layered ensemble textures.
Saman Shahi – I HEARD A FLY BUZZ: A poignant SATB setting of Emily Dickinson’s poem emphasizing the fly’s “buzz” motif, silence, and stillness in death.
Maciej Bałenkowski – Comets: An early work (age 18) focused on expression, melody, and emotion, reflecting the composer’s fascination with the universe.
Robert Cohen – Connecticut Autumn: A choral‑orchestral setting of Hyam Plutzik’s poem, using autumnal imagery to explore aging, mortality, and passage of time.
Gerson de Sousa Batista – Babalon: A tribute to life, nature, and birth, inspired by the mother figure and celebrating creative origins.
These works span cosmic wonder, mystical ritual, personal reflection, and communal affirmation, offering a profoundly moving and varied evening of contemporary music.
Tickets are $30 and include an intermission. Location: Blue Bamboo Center for the Arts, 460 E. New England Ave., Winter Park, FL More Information:occo.music | voxomusic.org
WINTER PARK, FL – The Orlando Contemporary Chamber Orchestra (OCCO), led by Music Director Todd Craven, will present Bending Lightward, a program of new music for chamber orchestra, on Friday, June 27, 2025, at 8:00 PM at Blue Bamboo Center for the Arts in Winter Park, Florida.
The concert features recent works by six living composers, each offering a distinct musical voice and approach:
Michael Olson – Prisms
Oleksandr Shymko – Ecstatics
Alex Burtzos – The F-Word, featuring guest electric guitarist, Thomas Harrison
Han Xu – A Few Practices of Chinese Acoustic Justice
Among the highlights of the program is The F-Word by Alex Burtzos, a piece originally composed for ShoutHouse and premiered in New York City in 2016. Written during a difficult creative period, the work explores themes of artistic struggle and is performed here with electric guitar soloist Thomas Harrison.
Rebekah Todia’s Golden Harvest reflects on seasonal change and personal growth. As the composer notes, “Golden Harvest has less to do with crops, and more about our personal experiences… It’s a time to reconnect with loved ones and to share our journey of self-discovery.”
Other works on the program include Olson’s Prisms, which examines light and texture through sound; Shymko’s Ecstatics, a piece full of energy and motion; Zhou’s Roundabout, with intricate rhythmic interplay; and Xu’s A Few Practices of Chinese Acoustic Justice, which draws on cultural perspectives in sound and form.
A truly unique and fascinating event will feature premières of works by 8 composers from the Central Florida Composers’ Forum on Wednesday, January 29th, starting at 5:30 PM as part of the “Music in the Gallery” at the Art & History Centers of Maitland (231 W. Packwood Ave., Maitland, FL 32751.) This concert is in conjunction with “Future Nature: The Silent Conversations of Sinuhé Vega,” the new exhibit featuring works of the artist Sinuhé Vega Negrin, whose painting and ceramic sculptures explore ecological and human frailty, drawing on the Dutch Vanitas tradition, and themes of magic realism, surrealism, and of humanity’s mental constructs and disconnection from nature.
The artist will give a talk about his work. The soprano Anna Eschbach, violinist Galen Kaup, and guitarist Troy Gifford will be performing a recital of lush, intimate and arresting music comprised of the premières of Erik Branch’s “There Was Always Time” (poem by Logan Anderson), Alex Burtzos’ “Four Haiku” (poems of Natsune Sо̄seki, Aida Bunosuke, and Yosa Buson), Charlie Griffin’s “Sunken City” (poem by Ariel Francisco), Gerald Law II’s “Take a Look” (poem by the composer), Nate Chivers’ “A Cloud of Flowers” Matsuо̄ Bashо̄, Nick Scout’s “Conversing With Statues” (poem by the composer), Paul Austin Sanders’ “Nature’s Connection To Us…As One We Are,” and Troy Gifford’s “Nothing Gold Can Stay” (setting Robert Frost’s well-known poem.) The event is free and open to the public (register for it on the Eventbrite link below as part of the museum’s “Last Wednesday” series, and is a co-production with the Howey Music Series.
Prepare to be captivated by the sheer expanse of expression as classical stylings intertwine with innovative multimedia, rock fusions, jazz improvisations, and audacious new tonal territories. Three consummate guitarist-composers — Nate Chivers, Nick Scout, and Troy Gifford — converge on one stage, united by their passion for the guitar, but each charting a unique creative cosmos.
Special guests include drummer Jaysen Rosario, guitarists Michael van Gelder and Allen Nicholas Kooken, multi-instrumentalist Nathan Taylor, and cellist/bassist Elliot May.
Guest composers include Alex Burtzos and Benoit Glazer.
Special pricing is available for members, students, teachers, frontline workers, veterans, and seniors.
In-person and livestream tickets are available. This event is part of Timucua’s International Guitar Festival 2024.
The concert will open with Troy Gifford performing his own solo works Cherith, Woodbury, Danza Triste, Valsera, and Evocacion y Furia. Nick Scout will play his A Toast to the Old Us followed by his La Danse de Rats, performed by Troy Gifford and Allen Nicholas Kooken on guitar. The program continues with Scout’s Loss of a Child, performed by Michael Van Gelder and Nathan Taylor on guitar, along with Elliot May on cello. Troy Gifford and Nick Scout will then team up for Benoit Glazer’s MaraTanVal. Alex Burtzos’s Atoms will be performed by Nate Chivers on guitar and Jaysen Rosario on drum kit. Finally, Nate Chivers will close the concert with Flower, Getting Better, Slink, and Simplicity.
These pioneering artists will explore cherished guitar traditions with bold new visions for the future, promising a transcendent evening of expansive guitar odysseys that will make you see the guitar in a new light.
On Saturday, August 17, 2024, at 7:30 p.m., Timucua Arts Foundation hosts “Songs from the Hispanic Diaspora” — an intimate musical exploration of the resonating experiences of exile, displacement, and the dreamlike impermanence of existence through the poetic lens of the Spanish-speaking world. This powerful concert by the Central Florida Composers Forum (CF2) features six newly commissioned works bringing to life poetry by pillars of Hispanic literature meticulously curated by Thamara Bejarano from Open Scene.
From Spain, Alex Burtzos sets Pedro Calderón de la Barca’s famed “La vida es sueño” in English, while Rebekah Todia captures Juan Ramón Jiménez’s “Yo no volveré” – both grappling with life’s illusory nature. Colombian poet Eduardo Carranza’s vivid imagery of the dead catalyzes a new work by Nate Chivers. Sorjuanista Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz’s amorous “Amor empieza por desasosiego” inspires Erik Branch’s musical perspectives on love’s ephemeral passions. The sensual longing of Puerto Rican writer Luis Llorens Torres’ poetry fuels Brandon Martin‘s latest work. And Jeremy Umlauf captures the Venezuelan poet Vicente Gerbasi’s mystical ode to nature “Bosque de música.”
Performed by an intimate ensemble of Orlando Contemporary Chamber Orchestra musicians (flute, cello, piano) and singers from the vocal ensemble VoxO, these arresting musical offerings immerse the audience in the nostalgic dreamscapes and metaphysical reckonings born of the diasporic experience. Contextual insights by Open Scene’s Thamara Bejarano intersperse the performances, guiding a transcendent exploration of Hispanic literary and musical consciousness.
This performance represents a 5-way collaboration between Central Florida Composers Forum, Open Scene, Orlando Contemporary Chamber Orchestra, VoxO and the Timucua Arts Foundation. OCCO and VoxO appear under the auspices of Performing Arts Matter.
Join Orlando’s premier chamber orchestra, OCCO, and the sensational VoxO for an unforgettable night of music focused on transformation and renewal inspired by the Phoenix. Experience world and regional premieres by composers from around the globe, including local talents from CF2. Don’t miss this powerful performance celebrating victory, beauty, and grace.
Featuring music by Barbara Kaszuba, Erik Branch, Bill Freas, Loren Loiacono, Eric Heumann, Jeremy Umlauf, Ayan Desai, Richard Rather, Anthony Mosakowski, and Derek Weagle.
Orlando, FL. This summer, the stage is set for an epic collision of music, visual art, and storytelling. On Saturday, June 1st at 7 pm, the Harriet’s Orlando Ballet Center will host “Heroes and Villains: A Comic Con(cert),” an extraordinary collaborative concert bridging the creative worlds of contemporary classical music and comic book artistry.
Presented by the Orlando Contemporary Chamber Orchestra (OCCO) in collaboration with Central Florida Composers Forum and Silverline Comics, this first-of-its-kind event will immerse audiences in compelling musical narratives of heroism and villainy written by a fascinating array of exciting compositional voices from Florida, the U.S., and abroad.
The evening’s program features an eclectic array of contemporary compositions by ascending artists such as Matt Browne, Jason Capehart Jr., Alexandros Darna, Inna Onofrei, and Erik Valdemar Sköld, among others, including a premiere by Orlando’s own Jeremy Umlauf. Visual projections featuring the work of local comic book publishing house Silverline Comics will enhance the musical experience.
Prior to the concert and during intermission, concertgoers will have the opportunity to meet comic book creators, who will display, sell, and sign their original works. Get your tickets now! BAM!
