Ben S. Jacob

Musician · Composer · Educator · Multi-media performing artist · Aesthetic innovator

Location: Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.A.
E-mail: bensjacob@yahoo.com
Website: www.bensjacob.com

Professional objective

• To enhance the human experience through aesthetic innovation, inter-disciplinary collaboration, and cultural productivity.

Education

Master of Music in Composition, Indiana University Jacobs School of Music (2008)

• Studied composition with Don Freund and Claude Baker.
• Attended private masterclasses with composers Jonathan Kramer and Lansing D. McLoskey.
• Studied orchestration with P.Q. Phan.
• Studied electronic music with Jeffrey Hass.

Bachelor of Arts in Music (Composition), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign School of Music (2000)

• Studied composition with Guy Garnett, P.Q. Phan, Zack Browning, and William Brooks.
• Attended private masterclasses with composers Chou Wen-Chung, Chen Yi, and Kui Dong.
• Studied and performed Balinese gamelan music with Ketut Gede Asnawa.
• Studied and performed Javanese gamelan music with Maryono and Raharja.
• Participated in a study-abroad program to to study and perform Balinese music and dance in Indonesia (Summer 2000).
• Studied North Indian classical music and the sitar with Paul Warnock.
• Studied and performed the music of the Aymara of the Andes with LaDonna Martin-Frost.

Professional experience

Director, composer, arranger, producer, manager, and guitarist, BASILICA music and multi-media performing arts group (2005 - present)

Composer, arranger, producer, manager, and performer, BENJAMINJAMINMAN Violin Duo (2003 - 2005).

• Oversaw production of music recordings.
• Organized numerous performances and performance events.

Performer, arranger, and assistant manager, Harlots (2004 - 2005)

• Performed bass guitar in 43 performances, including a an extended tour of 12 performances across 6 states in the continental U.S.A.
• Assisted in booking performances, producing commercial recordings, merchandise, and other promotional materials.
• Provided piano and violin arrangements for the forthcoming  album This Is the Second Death (Corrosive Recordings, 2006).

Radio program host, WIUS AM 1570 Pure Student Radio (2004)

• Produced and hosted a weekly radio program that featured underground and experimental music.
• As a member of the Music Committee, selected and reviewed new recordings for the radio station’s music library.
• As a member of the Special Events Committee, organized and promoted music events for live broadcast.

Composer, arranger, producer, manager, and performer, Eve’s Revenge music ensemble (2003 - 2004)

• Oversaw production of music recordings, music videos, merchandise, and other promotional materials.
• Organized tours and other performances.

Discussion leader, Composition Department, Indiana University Jacobs School of Music (2002 - 2003)

• Led the weekly Composition Department seminar in discussions of compositional techniques and musical aesthetics and in analysis of student compositions.

Associate Instructor of Music Theory, Indiana University Jacobs School of Music (2000 - 2002)

• Taught undergraduate courses in music theory.

Music copyist (Freelance) (1998 - present)

• Uses latest versions of Finale music publishing software.
• Copied music for performance by the Kronos Quartet and other professional and academic ensembles.
• Copied music scores for publication in scholarly journals such as the Music Library Association's journal Notes.

Additional activities

• Guest composer and lecturer, Finger Lakes Chamber Ensemble, Ithaca, NY (2003).
• President, Student Composers Association, Indiana University Bloomington (2002 - 2003).
• Guest speaker, International Music Hour hosted by Naimah Bilal on WFIU radio in Bloomington, Indiana. I was interviewed about my experiences with Indonesian gamelan music during a program dedicated to the gamelan music of Indonesia (2002).
• Council member, The Camerata Nouveaux multi-media performance art group, Bloomington, Indiana (2002).
• President and Founder, Student Composers Association, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (1999 - 2000).
• President and Founder, Gamelan Performance Organizational Committee, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (1999 - 2000).
• Guest composer, Midwest Composers Symposium at the University of Iowa (1998) and at the University of Michigan (1999).
• Co-director, University of Illinois Gamelan orchestra (1999).

Awards

• Winner, New Music for Young Audiences and Performers Competition (2003).
• Finalist, ASCAP Foundation Morton Gould Young Composer Awards (2003).
• Winner, Second Biennial Finger Lakes Chamber Ensemble New Music Competition (2003).
• Winner, 51st Annual BMI Student Composer Awards (2003).
• Second Prize winner, National Association of Composers, U.S.A. (NACUSA) 24th Annual Young Composers' Competition (2002).
• Regional winner, Society of Composers, Inc. (SCI)/American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) Student Composer Commission Competition (2000).
• Winner, Battle of the Bands music composition and performance competition, Springfield, IL (1993).

Compositions and performances

No. 1 for solo piano “Handhammer” (2002)

• Introduction performed 19 April 2003 in Ford Hall, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by Yihsien Chien.

Two monoliths for orchestra (2222.2220.11.harp.strings) (2002)

• 14 April 2003 in the Musical Arts Center, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by the Indiana University Concert Orchestra.
• 16 April 2002 in the Musical Arts Center, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by the Indiana University Concert Orchestra.

No. 1 for piano quartet (Vn., Va., Vc., and Pf.) "Rivetbasher" (2002)

• 20 November 2003 at the 2003 SCI National Student Conference at the University of Miami School of Music in Miami, FL.
• 8 June 2003 at the Lodi Historical Society Building in Lodi, NY by the Finger Lakes Chamber Ensemble.  Performance included demonstration and question-and-answer sessions with the audience
• 22 November 2002 in the Indiana Memorial Union, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN by William Harvey (violin), Naimah Bilal (viola), Adrienne Taylor, (violoncello), and Nino Cocchiarella (pianoforte).
• 19 October 2002 in Auer Recital Hall, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by William Harvey (violin), Naimah Bilal (viola), Adrienne Taylor, (violoncello), and Nino Cocchiarella (pianoforte).
• 25 April 2002 in the Musical Arts Center, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by Rodolfo Mellado (violin), Naimah Bilal (viola), Jason Raff (violoncello), and Chris Lysack (pianoforte).

Miniatures for solo piano, Vol. I (2001)

• 26 February 2002 in Auer Recital Hall, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by Nora Lesly.

Hommage à la musique concrète for electronic media (2001)

• 1 May 2001 at the Musical Arts Center, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN.

Thickness for solo drum set (2001)

• 19 October 2002 in Auer Recital Hall, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by Owen Rockwell.
• 10 May 2001 in Smith Recital Hall, University of Illinois School of Music, Urbana, IL by Owen Rockwell.

Aphorism for solo flute (2000)

• 22 November 2002 in the Indiana Memorial Union, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN by Trayon Bailey.
• 19 October 2002 in Auer Recital Hall, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by Trayon Bailey.
• 26 February 2002 in Auer Recital Hall, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by Trayon Bailey.   

Avia Pieridum for mixed choir, a cappella (2000)

• 30 October 2003 in Tilson Music Hall at the 37^th Annual Contemporary Music Festival at Indiana State University in Terre Haute, IN.
• 19 October 2002 in Auer Recital Hall, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by an ad hoc choir including Jolaine Kerley and Angelique Zuluaga (soprano soloists) and Amanda Gardner (alto soloist).
• 4 December 2001 in Auer Recital Hall, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by an ad hoc choir including Jolaine Kerley and Angelique Zuluaga (soprano soloists) and Hannah Penn (alto soloist).

Woodwind Quintet (2000)

• 17 October 2000 in Auer Recital Hall, Indiana University School of Music, Bloomington, IN by Jeanie Jang (flute), Kate Green (oboe), Bue Skov Thomassen (clarinet), Daniel Wions (horn), and Kiyo Kojima (bassoon).

Fanfare for Gamelan, Brass, and Timpani (1999)

• 1 May 2000 in the Music Building Auditorium, University of Illinois School of Music, Urbana, IL by the University of Illinois Javanese Gamelan Ensemble.
• 20 November 1999 in the Music Building Auditorium, University of Illinois School of Music, Urbana, IL by the University of Illinois Javanese Gamelan Ensemble.

Alur sungai (The Flow of the River) for Javanese chamber gamelan ensemble (1999)

• 8 August 1999 in the Music Building Auditorium, University of Illinois School of Music, Urbana, IL by the University of Illinois Summer Javanese Gamelan Ensemble.

Bubaran Laras Molak Malik for Javanese gamelan orchestra (1999)

• 8 August 1999 in the Music Building Auditorium, University of Illinois School of Music, Urbana, IL by the University of Illinois Summer Javanese Gamelan Ensemble.

a light rage for string quartet (1999)

• 1 May 2000 in the Music Building Auditorium, University of Illinois School of Music, Urbana, IL by Michelle Lee (violin), Katarzyna Jaskowska (violin), Jieyeon Kim (viola), and Dmitri Atapine (violoncello).
• 30 October 1999 at the University of Michigan School of Music, Ann Arbor, MI by Michelle Lee (violin), Katarzyna Jaskowska (violin), Jieyeon Kim (viola), and Jim Lee (violoncello).

brittledrydamp for percussion trio (1998)

• 6 March 2000 in the Smith Memorial Room, University of Illinois School of Music, Urbana, IL by Brandon Pool, Kevin O’Connor, and Owen Rockwell.

Solo violin (1998)

• 7 November 1998 at the University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA by Anna Cleworth.

Last updated October 6, 2006
URL: http://www.bensjacob.com/resume.html