Nolan Gasser is the epitome of an eclectic composer, comfortable working in a wide-range of musical genres and styles, for a wide range of instrumental and/or vocal mediums – from Pop/Rock to Contemporary Classical, from Theater to Jazz, from solo piano to full orchestra, and everywhere in between. Nolan was fortunate to have been exposed to multiple styles of music during his formative years, which combined with his natural ability to synthesize disparate musical idioms and make them his own has proven a great advantage throughout his career. Since at least the age of eleven, the long tail of “classical” music has been his most commanding calling – prodding him to undertake a rigorous educational path, culminating in his obtaining a Ph.D. in Musicology from Stanford University in 2001. Indeed, his identity as a classical composer is the most “sacred” aspect of his musical identity, and it is a source of great pride that he is able to devote so much of his time to composing orchestral, chamber, vocal, and piano works – thanks to the generosity of numerous individual and institutional patrons.
The past six years have seen the serious expansion of his compositional output and an accompanying national exposure that is still at an early stage. His orchestral and chamber works have appeared in concert halls and music festivals around the world, with recent performances by the Charleston, Memphis, Arkansas, Oakland, and Napa Valley Symphonies, the American Brass Quintet, the Alexander String Quartet, pianist Kimball Gallagher – who in 2008 performed his 3 Jazz Preludes at Carnegie Hall, and many others. In 2007, the prestigious music management firm IMG Artists, which boasts some of the world’s foremost classical musicians, signed on to promote Nolan’s large oratorio, American Festivals – beginning with a recent complete performance at the 2008 Festival del sole in Napa Valley, which featured two top vocal soloists (Jill Grove and Eric Owns) from IMG Artist’s impressive roster, along with actor Craig T. Nelson. Future performances of this oratorio are now being planned, e.g., in Washington D.C. (see the American Festivals feature page for more details). In 2009, the World Concerto for Cello and Orchestra was premiered to great success by acclaimed cellist Maya Beiser with the Oakland Symphony, along with a trio of international soloists (see the World Concerto feature for more details).
The most significant current classical project is Nolan’s narrated symphony, Cosmic Reflection, the second of two commissions associated with the launch and scientific mission of NASA’s Fermi (formerly GLAST) Space Telescope; the work was premiered at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C. on November 2, 2009, and is currently on track to be recorded professionally by the Baltimore Symphony under Marin Alsop, and accompanied by a state-of-the-art Hi-Def video by science filmmaker Thomas Lucas; the entire project would then be distributed and marketed by a hi-profile international classical label (e.g., EMI, Sony, Naxos, and Harmonia Mundi, among others, have already expressed keen interest). The first such commission was the GLAST Prelude, for brass quintet, which received considerable attention following its release in the wake of the Fermi launch in June 2008. More information on these two works can be found in the News section, as well as in the Cosmic Reflection and GLAST Prelude feature page – where the popular GLAST Prelude video can be seen.
Two other recent performances of new works include the premiere, on November 15, 2009, of V’Samachta (Rejoice!), a chamber work for violin, clarinet, cello, and piano – written to commemorate the dedication of a new Torah at Congregation Shomrei Torah in Santa Rosa, CA; and most recently, the premiere, on April 2, 2010, of the La Mirada Overture, written to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the City of La Mirada, CA – Nolan's hometown. Information on both of these works can found in the News section.
One additional new commission to mention here is for a “Sonoma Overture” to help open the beautiful new state-of-the-art Green Music Center in Sonoma County in fall 2011, by Maestro Bruno Ferrandis and the Santa Rosa Symphony; more information on this will likewise appear here in the near future.
Beyond such classical endeavors, Nolan is likewise busy composing in more popular styles, most notably on a full-fledged Broadway musical based on the film, “Benny & Joon” (for MGM On Stage; see News for more details) with veteran Broadway lyricist Mindi Dickstein; following approval by MGM On Stage, full creative work will commence shortly. Nolan also is busy composing popular songs in collaboration with vocalist/lyricist Marcus Lovett, as well as jazz works and arrangements for his Quartet (see News for more details), as well as a number of solo piano pieces combining classical and jazz elements, etc. Among future aspirations include writing music for a major film, steps toward which are just now beginning.
