2010

Foro Internacional performance of Concerto for Flute and Orchestra
On May 30 the Foro Internacional de Música Nueva Manuel Enríquez will present the world premiere of Concerto for Flute and Orchestra, with soloist Alejandro Escuer. The performance will take place in the Blas Galindo concert hall in the Centro Nacional de las Artes in Mexico City. — (posted April 28, 2010)

Quasar Quartet premiere of From the bench of shadow
On February 2 the Quasar saxophone quartet gave the world premiere of From the bench of shadow, commissioned by them with financial assistance from the Canada Council. The premiere, which took place at the Marcel A. Desautels Faculty of Music, was followed by a Canadian tour. — (posted June 21, 2010)

2009

Agassiz Festival world premiere of Piano Quintet
In June the Agassiz Festival Ensemble presented the world premiere of Piano Quintet, commissioned by the Festival and their artistic director Paul Marleyn in celebration of their tenth anniversary. — (posted June 22, 2010)

Molinari Quartet performances of String Quartet No.3
On January 23 the Molinari Quartet gave the world premiere of String Quartet No. 3 in Montreal, at a concert commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the Canadian Music Centre. In December they performed the piece in Winnipeg and Montreal. — (posted June 22, 2010)

2008

Foro Internacional performance of Como un cielo caído and El Viento Helado
At the end of May the Foro Internacional de Música Nueva Manuel Enríquez will feature performances of Como un cielo caído by the Onix Ensemble (world premiere) and of El Viento Helado by the Mexico City Woodwind Quintet (world premiere – revised version). — (posted May 8, 2008)

GroundSwell premiere of Six Poems of Novica Tadic
Winnipeg new music series GroundSwell and the Brandon Chamber Players will present the world premiere of Six Poems of Novica Tadic, written for mezzo soprano Mireille Lebel. Michelle Mourre will conduct the Brandon Chamber Players in concerts in Brandon and Winnipeg on October 27 and 28. — (posted August 31, 2008)

World premiere of Symphony No. 3
On April 12 Douglas Sanford conducted the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra in the world premiere of Symphony No. 3. This two-movement, forty-minute work was written for the Saskatoon Symphony. — (posted May 8, 2008)

World premiere of Preludes
On April 17 pianist Roger Admiral performed Preludes No's. 1-8 and 13-14 on a concert by the Plexoos Ensemble in Edmonton. The performances of Preludes 5, 6, 13 and 14 were world premieres. — (posted May 21, 2008)

CMMAS performance of . . . of the rolling worlds
In February, bass clarinetist Fernando Dominguez performed . . . of the rolling worlds on a concert sponsored by the Centro Mexicano para la Música y las Artes Sonoras. — (posted May 8, 2008)

CMMAS residency
During February and March I was resident artist at the Centro Mexicano para la Música y las Artes Sonoras in Morelia. During that time I worked on a new commission for the Mexico City based Ensamble 3, and acted as guest editor for the inaugural edition of the journal Sonic Ideas/Ideas Sonicas.— (posted August 31, 2008)

2007

Cervantino Festival premiere of El Viento Helado
On October 8 the Mexico City Woodwind Quintet's will present the world premiere of the newly commissioned work El Viento Helado as part of the prestigious Cervantino Festival in Guanajuato, Mexico. — (posted September 29, 2007)

Foro Internacional performance of Away, Tear Away
On May 27 I will be in Mexico City for the Mexico City Woodwind Quintet's performance of Away, Tear Away on the Foro Internacional de Música Nueva Manuel Enríquez — (posted March 25, 2007)

Vertical Garden to be performed on New Music Miami Festival
On Thursday, April 12, flutist Alejandro Escuer will perform Vertical Garden on the 2007 New Music Miami ISCM Festival

Click here for more information — (posted March 25, 2007)

Violin/Viola Duos performed in Winnipeg
On Tuesday, March 20, Oleg Pokhanovski and Mikhail Pokhanovski performed the Duos for Violin and Viola on a concert presented by GroundSwell. The concert took place at Eckhardt Gramatté Hall. — (posted March 25, 2007)

United States premiere of Vertical Garden
On Friday, February 23, Flautist Haley Rempel will present the U.S. premiere of Vertical Garden in the Morse Recital Hall at Yale University. The concert will take place at 8:00 p.m. — (posted February 11, 2007)

The Skin of Night on tour in Atlantic Canada
From February 8 through 16 the Harrington/Loewen Duo will be performing The Skin of Night on their tour of Atlantic Canada . Concerts include:

Thursday, February 8 King's Theatre, Annapolis Royal, NS; Friday, February 9 – Woodlawn United Church, Dartmouth, NS (Dartmouth Community Concerts Association); Saturday, February 10 – Immaculata Hall, St. F. X. University, Antigonish, NS (Antigonish Performing Arts Series); Monday, February 12 – Arts & Culture Centre, Corner Brook, NL (Dept. of Tourism, Culture and Recreation, Gov't. of NL); Tuesday, February 13 – Arts & Culture Centre, Stephenville, NL (Dept. of Tourism, Culture and Recreation, Gov't. of NL); Wednesday, February 14 – Arts and Culture Centre, Labrador City, NL (Dept. of Tourism, Culture and Recreation, Gov't of NL); Friday, February 16 – First Church of the Nazarene, Moncton, NB (Moncton Community Concerts Association)

Click here for more information. — (posted January 27, 2007)

Residency in Mexico
From February 12 through 24 Matthews will be in residence at the Centro Mexicano para la Música y las Artes Sonoras, in Morelia, Mexico. During this time he will work on a piano and tape piece commissioned by the centre for pianist Duane Cochran. — (posted January 27, 2007)

Night Music premieres in Winnipeg
On January 27 John Racaru and Carole Pollard premiered Night Music, for violin and piano, at the Winnipeg Art Gallery. — (posted January 27, 2007)

Las Blancas Sombras premieres in Winnipeg
On January 12 Ian Hodges and Charlene Pauls gave the world premiere of Las Blancas Sombras, for soprano and guitar. The work is a setting of poems by Antonio Machado, and was commissioned with financial assistance from the Manitoba Arts Council. The Hodges/Pauls Duo presented the U.S. premiere of the piece in Minneapolis the following week. — (posted January 27, 2007)

2006

The Language of Water premieres in Winnipeg
On September 27 Theodore Kuchar conducted the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra in the world premiere of The Language of Water, a sixteen-minute composition for 22 solo strings. The work was commissioned with financial assistance from the Manitoba Arts Council. — (posted October 1, 2006)

Matthews delivers paper on Canadian music
On September 21 Matthews delivered an illustrated lecture on Canadian Electroacoustic Music, at the 2006 Visiones Sonores festival in Mexico City. — (posted October 1, 2006)

Upcoming premieres
The Skin of Night - July 2006, Harrington/Loewen Duo, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Duos for Violin and Cello - June 20, 2006, Agassiz Summer Festival, Winnipeg, Canada
New Work, Manitoba Chamber Orchestra - September 27, 2006, Winnipeg, Canada — (posted May 27, 2006)

2005

Commission from the Harrington/Loewen Duo
The Harrington/Loewen Duo has commissioned Matthews to write a new work for their 2006 tour of Atlantic Canada and their performance on the 14th World Saxophone Congress in Ljubljana, Slovenia. — (posted February 20, 2006)

String Quartet No. 2 in Belgrade
The Composers' Association of Serbia presented Matthews' String Quartet No. 2 on their 14th International Review of Composers. The concert took place in Cinema Hall, Belgrade, on October 29; the work was performed by the Vitruvius Quartet of the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra. — (posted November 13, 2005)

Away, tear away recording
At the end of October, the Mexico City Woodwind Quintet recorded Away, tear away for an early 2006 CD release. — (posted November 13, 2005)

Piano Quartet performed on GroundSwell
On October 23, 2005, the composer's 2004 Piano Quartet was performed on the GroundSwell new music series. The performers were Kerry DuWors, violin, Daniel Scholz, viola, Keira Fullerton, cello, and Daan Vandewalle, piano. — (posted November 13, 2005)

Preludes New York premiere
On October 23, 2005, three of the composer's Preludes for piano were given their New York premiere by Peter Vinograde The concert took place at Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church as part of the Saint Andrew Music Society 2005-2006 Concert Series. — (posted March 21, 2006

Commission from Meduse
The Meduse ensemble of Montreal has commissioned Matthews to write a new work for their 2006-2007 season. The commission was funded by the Manitoba Arts Council. — (posted November 13, 2005)

Violin/Viola Duos world premiere
On October 9, 2005, Oleg and Mikhail Pokhanovski gave the world premiere of Book I of the Duos for Violin and Viola. The concert took place at the Broadway Disciples United Church in Winnipeg. Also on that concert were three Preludes for piano, performed by Peter Vinograde. — (posted November 13, 2005)

Preludes world premiere
On October 8, 2005, three of the composer's Preludes for piano were given their world premiere by Peter Vinograde The concert took place at Eckhardt-Gramatté hall in the University of Winnipeg. — (posted November 13, 2005

Away, tear away performed in Mexico
On October 6 and 10, 2005, the Mexico City Woodwind Quintet performed Away, tear away at concerts at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and the Cervantino Festival. — (posted November 13, 2005)

Vertical Garden performed in Mexico
On July 19, 2005, flutist Asako Arai performed Vertical Garden in Mexico City. — (posted November 13, 2005)

Cello Concerto world premiere
On May 20, 2005, the composer conducted soloist Paul Marleyn and the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra in the world premiere of movements 2 and 3 the Concerto for Cello and Orchestra. — (posted May 23, 2005)

Prince Kaspar world premiere
On May 6 and 7, 2005, GroundSwell presented the world premiere of Prince Kaspar, a chamber opera with libretto by Per Brask. Mireille Lebel sang the title role, with Michelle Mourre conducting; the director was Mariam Bernstein. — (posted May 8, 2005)

2004

Mondriaan Quartet to perform String Quartet No. 2
On September 30, 2004, the Mondriaan String Quartet will present the European premiere of String Quartet No. 2, commissioned by the quartet in 2002. The performance will take place in the Concerthall De Buers van Berlage, Amsterdam, and will be recorded an broadcast nationally by radio De Concertzender. — (posted June 27, 2004)

Agassiz Music Festival premieres Piano Quartet
On June 21, 2004, the Agassiz Music Festival presented the world premiere of Piano Quartet. This work was commissioned by the festival for this concert; it was performed by David Stewart, violin, Aaron Au, viola, Paul Marleyn, cello, and Stéphane Lemelin, piano. — (posted June 26, 2004)

Mexico City Woodwind Quintet performs Away, Tear Away
On June 15, 2004, the Mexico City Woodwind Quintet will present the world premiere of Away, Tear Away. This work was commissioned by the quintet for their 2003/2004 season. — (posted April 4, 2004)

Saskatoon Symphony performs Fire falls, ice falls
On March 27, 2004, artistic director Douglas Sanford conducted the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra in the world premiere of Fire falls, ice falls. This work was commissioned by the Saskatoon Symphony for their 2003/2004 season. — (posted April 4, 2004)

BIT20 Ensemble premieres Particles of One
On March 21, 2004, BIT20 Ensemble of Bergen, Norway, will give the world premiere of Particles of One. Trond Korsgård will conduct the ensemble, with David Stewart as the soloist. — (posted January 11, 2004)

Saskatoon Symphony performs String Quartet No. 2
On February 1, 2004, members of the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra will present the Saskatchewan premiere of String Quartet No. 2. This work was commissioned by the Mondriaan String Quartet. — (posted January 11, 2004)

Winnipeg Symphony performs Prelude to Macbeth
On January 28, 2004, the composer's 2002 work Prelude to Macbeth will be performed as part of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's 2004 New Music Festival. This work was commissioned by the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra. — (posted January 11, 2004)

Sequitur to perform Toller in New York City
On January 22, 23, and 24, 2004, the new music ensemble Sequitur will present the United States premiere of Ernst Toller: Requiem for an Idea on a concert at Joyce Soho Theatre in Manhattan. This performance is presented as part of a collaboration between Sequitur and GroundSwell. — (posted January 11, 2004)

2003

Roger Admiral premieres Fantasy/Nocturne
On November 8, 2003, pianist Roger Admiral presented the world premiere of Fantasy/Nocturne on a concert in the University of Alberta New Music Series. The performance took place at the Fine Arts Building, University of Alberta, Edmonton.— (posted January 11, 2004)

Miniatures in Belgrade
The Composers' Association of Serbia presented Matthews' Miniatures on their 12th International Review of Composers. The concert took place in Velika Sala, Belgrade, on May 17; the performers were the Gudacki Quartet: Miloš Petrovic, violin, Ivana Cetkovic, violin, Nataša Stanojevic, viola, and Igor Cetkovic, cello. — (posted November 13, 2005)

Mondriaan Quartet to premiere String Quartet No. 2
On May 10, 2003, the Mondriaan String Quartet will present the world premiere of String Quartet No. 2 on a concert in Winnipeg. This work was commissioned by the Mondriaan Quartet for the 2002/03 season of GroundSwell. — (posted February 17, 2003)

Saskatoon Symphony to premiere . . . far off, toward forgetting . . .
On May 10, 2003, artistic director Douglas Sanford will conduct the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra in the world premiere of , , , Far Off, Toward Forgetting . . . . This work was commissioned by the Saskatoon Symphony for their 2002/2003 season. — (posted February 17, 2003)

Saskatoon Symphony performs Lorca Sketches
On February 1, 2003, artistic director Douglas Sanford will conduct the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra in the Saskatchewan premiere of Lorca Sketches. This work was commissioned by CBC Radio in 1993 for the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra. — (posted January 4, 2003)

Winnipeg Symphony performs Songs of the Masked Dancers
On January 31, 2003, the composer's 1990 work Songs of the Masked Dancers will be performed as part of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's 2003 New Music Festival. Performers will include soprano Therese Costes and narrator Ian Ross. This work was commissioned by the new music ensemble Thira. — (posted January 4, 2003)

2002

World premiere of Prelude to Macbeth
On November 16, 2002, artistic director Douglas Sanford will conduct the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra in the world premiere of Prelude to Macbeth. This work was commissioned by the Saskatoon Symphony to honour noted teacher Bob Hinitt. Read the review. — (posted September 29, 2002)

Performances in Belgrade and Novi Sad
On October 19, 2002, Matthews will travel to the Republic of Yugoslavia to attend rehearsals and performances of Lorca Sketches (the European premiere) and Landscape. Ana Simic will conduct the Chamber Orchestra of the Belgrade Faculty of Music in performances in the cites of Belgrade and Novi Sad. In addition to these concerts the composer will give master classes and lectures on his works to students in the Faculty of Music. — (Posted September 29, 2002)

Canadian premiere of Vertical Garden
On October 1, 2002, noted flautist Leslie Newman will present the Canadian premiere of Vertical Garden. The concert will take place at Brandon University School of Music. — (Posted September 29, 2002)

Mexican premieres
Two of the composer's works for instrument and tape were performed on the 2002 Festival Internacional de Arte Sonoro in Mexico City. On June 26 Bass Clarinetist Fernando Dominguez gave the Mexican premiere of The First Sea, and on June 28 flautist Alejandro Escuer presented the world premiere of Vertical Garden, a piece commissioned by him for an upcoming compact disc recording. — (Posted July 13, 2002)

World premiere of Hommage à György Kurtág
The world premiere of Hommage à György Kurtág was given on June 23, 2002, at Eckhardt­Gramatté Hall in Winnipeg. The work was commissioned by and performed as part of the 2002 the Agassiz Music Festival. — (Posted July 13, 2002)

Canadian premiere of Images
On June 22, 2002, the New Music North festival in Thunder Bay, Ontario, presented the Canadian premiere of the 1999 work Images. The performance took place at Lakehead University. — (Posted July 13, 2002)

Composer-in-Residence Appointment Announced
Effective July 1, Michael Matthews will become the Composer-in-Residence for the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra. In addition to writing new works for the orchestra, Matthews will work with newly-appointed music director Doug Sanford to develop and expand the orchestra's commitment to the music of our time. Read the Press Release. — (Posted 5/25/02)

Symphony No. 2 world premiere
The Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Michael Hall, presented the world premiere of the composer's Symphony No. 2 on February 7, 2002, at 7:00 p.m., at the Centennial Concert Hall in Winnipeg. This performance was part of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's 2002 Centara Corporation New Music Festival. Read the review. — (Posted 1/27/02, modified 2/10/02)

String Quartet No. 1 performed on New Music Festival
On February 4, 2002, at 8:00 p.m. in the Centennial Concert Hall in Winnipeg, the Cuarteto Latinoamericano performed String Quartet No. 1 as part of the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's 2002 Centara Corporation New Music Festival. This work was commissioned by the quartet for their 1999 visit to Canada. Read the review. — (Posted 1/27/02, modified 2/10/02)

Song Fragments world premiere
Cellist Paul Marleyn and pianist Sara Laimon gave the world premiere of the newly commissioned work Song Fragments as a part of the Agassiz Chamber Players 2001/2002 season. The performances took place on January 7, 2002, at 12:30 p.m. in Eva Clare Hall at the University of Manitoba, and on January 8 at 8:00 p.m. in the University of Winnipeg's Eckhardt­Gramatté Hall. — (Posted 10/28/01, modified 2/10/02)

2001

On the Outer Edge to appear on CD
The composer's new work for tape, On the Outer Edge, will shortly appear on the CD Presence III, a new compilation to be released by the Canadian Electroacoustic Community — (Posted December 9, 2001)

Into the Page of Night receives Saskatoon premiere
The Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Claude Lapalme, performed Into the Page of Night on October 20, 2001.— (Posted 10/10/01, modified 2/10/02)

Harry Sparnaay performs . . . of the rolling worlds
Esteemed Dutch Bass Clarinetist Harry Sparnaay performed . . . of the rolling worlds on the GroundSwell new music series. October 18, 2001, at the Site Gallery, Winnipeg. The work was also performed in Edmonton and Calgary. — (Posted 10/10/01, modified 2/10/02)

Deux chansons d'amour performance
Soprano Therese Costes and pianist Claudia Chen performed Deux chansons d'amour in St. John's College Chapel at the University of Manitoba at 8:00 p.m. on September 21, 2001. — (Posted 10/11/01, modified 2/10/02)

. . . of the rolling worlds receives Canadian premiere
Bass Clarinetist Milan Milosevic premiered . . . of the rolling worlds at the University of Manitoba School of Music on September 20, 2001, and at the University of Winnipeg on September 22, 2001. — (Posted 10/10/01, modified 2/10/02)