November 18th, 2024

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I'm so delighted to be one of four nominees for the Gaudeamus Award 2025.

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302 composers internationally applied for four spots to present multiple works at the 2025 festival in Utrecht (NL), including a new commission.

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My submitted works were:

. Calls to this number are being diverted (music theatre)

. ctrl+Y (four performers with QWERTY keyboards, live electronics and instruments)

. Silberblau (for solo guitar and electronics)

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The other three nominated composers are: Golnaz Shariatzadeh (1996, IRN) Robin Haigh (1993, IRL/GBR) and Yaz Lancaster (1996, USA)

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Hear what the jury (Yannis Kyriakides, Isabel Mundry and Moritz Eggert) had to say about the nominated composers HERE

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"The Gaudeamus Award is our yearly incentive prize for young composers. Ever since the first winner (Peter Schat in 1957) the Award has been a kickstarter for the career of many composers, including Louis Andriessen, Pauline Oliveros, Unsuk Chin, Michel van der Aa and Yannis Kyriakides."

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November 18th, 2024

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On January 26th, in the Symphonic hall at Musikhuset, Aarhus, the fantastic Aarhus Kammerorkester and I premiere my most recent commission "En Dansk Symfoni".

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Not an easy brief to say the least >>

write a partner piece to Mendelssohn's Scottish Symphony, that draws on your experience of Denmark from your perspective as a foreign resident. 

 

Questions that have regularly come up during this process:

1. Who really wants to hear what I have to say about Denmark?

2. Do I even have anything insightful to say about Denmark?

3. Why am I writing a symphony in 2024?

 

Movement titles:

I. Hej

II. Skattestyrelsen

III. Mathilde

IV. Symphony

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October 28th, 2024

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I'm delighted to have been appointed as the new composition teacher at Sankt Annæ Gymnasium (MGK course) in Copenhagen.

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The role involves: 1-1 composition teaching, group lessons (fællestimer) and responsibilities involved in the development of the programme, recruiting new students and supervising projects.

 

For MGK Sankt Annæ Gymnasium, the MGK course is a 4–year integrated high school course, which prepares students for higher-education in their chosen musical discipline. Students are typically between 15-25 years old.

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October 15th, 2024

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Calls to this number are being diverted (evening-length music theatre for 2 soloists and an ensemble of 3) has been nominated for an Ivor Novello Award in the Best Stage Work category. The other nominees in the category are: Philip Venables, George Benjamin, Jonathan Dove and Bushra El-Turk

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The awards ceremony and announcement of the winners takes place on the 12th of November at the BFI on the Southbank, in London

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August 26th, 2024

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A very exciting product launch (for 5 players, audience participation and electronics) will receive two performances in Denmark in the autumn of 2024. The first (September 25th) will be played by Aarhus Sinfonietta at Institut for X, Aarhus. The second (November 16th) will be played by Athelas Sinfonietta at Alice, Copenhagen.

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UPDATE: The Athelas Sinfonietta gig has been postponed indefinitely

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April 26th, 2024

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I am grateful for the support of Statens Kunstfond (Danish Arts Foundation), who have generously supported my music in the form of a working scholarship (arbejdslegat) for 2024. 

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April 6th, 2024

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As part of Danish Radio's 'Debutkoncert' series, on their channel 'P2', Rie Koch interviewed me about my recent music-theatre work Calls to this number are being diverted. (The interview is held in Danish and English) - The programme ends with a handful of excerpts from the final performance of the premiere run that took place in Aarhus, February 2024. The broadcast is now available on-demand on DR LYD (click here)

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February 12th, 2024

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Here comes a new release on Don't Look Back Records!

 

COLD CALLS is a supplementary collection of short pieces connected to Matthew Grouse’s music-theatre work ‘Calls to this number are being diverted’. Each of these short pieces were first conceived as mono files to be transmitted over the phone to signed up members of the public.

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Pre-order and RSVP for the listening party here!

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Listening party: 15.02.2024 CET 20:00

Album release: 23.02.2024

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January 19th, 2024

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Henrik Marstal at Seismograf has written an extensive feature on my upcoming work CALLS TO THIS NUMBER ARE BEING DIVERTED. 

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Read the article here!

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November 20th, 2023

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Calls to this number are being diverted, an evening-length music-theatre work set in an absurd call centre will be performed 3 times in February 2024 (2nd-4th at Teater Refleksion, Aarhus). Produced by Aarhus Unge Tonekunstnere, the work involves a fantastic cast of musicians. Soloists: Andreas Borregaard (accordion and voice) & Anna Jalving (violin and voice) - Ensemble members: Joss Smith, Kirstine-Elise Pedersen and Hsiao Tung Yuan.

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Generous support for the project comes from: William Demant Fonden, Det Obelske Familiefond, Augustinus Fonden, Dansk Komponistforening, Koda Kultur, Statens Kunstfond, CAC Fonden, Knud Højgaards Fonden, Aarhus Kommune (Musikpulje).

 

More details coming soon!

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October 18th, 2023

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'Silberblau' for solo guitar and electronics has been nominated for an Ivor Novello Award in the 'Best Small Chamber Composition' category. Other nominated composers in the category include Philip Venables, Larry Goves, Josephine Stephenson and Newton Armstrong. Read more HERE

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Silberblau was commissioned by Sasha Savaloni in 2020.

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August 9th, 2023

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'Silberblau' for solo guitar and electronics has been shortlisted for a SAFNM in the category: The Dorico Award for Small-scale Work, sponsored by Steinberg. Other nominated composers in the category include David Fennessy, Ruth Morley and 'Turning the Elements'. Read more HERE

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Silberblau was commissioned by Sasha Savaloni in 2020.

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June 13th, 2023

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In collaboration with EKKI MINNA (Jónas Ásgeir Ásgeirsson and Andrew Power), I'll participate in a residency at Inter Arts Center in Malmö (selected by Dansk komponistforening and IAC). The trio will develop our collaborative work 'We're Pleased To Meet Us', which will be premiered in 2025 at MINU_festival_for_expanded_music.

 

December 17th, 2022

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Silberblau, performed here by Sasha Savaloni and mixed by Timothy Cooper was selected for Score Follower's open call, and has now been uploaded to the Score Follower YouTube channel. 

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CLICK HERE to watch!

 

September 1st, 2022

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A very exciting product launch (for oboe, clarinet, string trio, interactive video, audience participation and electronics) premieres 30.09.22 at 20.00 (Kammermusiksalen, Aarhus Musikhuset)

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March 12th, 2022

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ctrl+Y, first performed by Curious Chamber Players was selected for Score Follower's open call, and has now been uploaded to the incipitsify YouTube channel. 

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CLICK HERE to watch!

 

December 22nd, 2021

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I'm enormously grateful to be one of four recipients of the NYE VEJE scholarship, which is aimed at supporting a lengthy artistic process. 

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About my work, the committee said (roughly translated from Danish):

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Matthew Grouse's music is bursting with inner life and technical surplus. With a sharp analytical and perhaps satirical outlook, he introduces everyday technologies, google-searches read aloud and banal actions placed on an equal footing with traditional instruments, in works that manage to engage and retain the listener. Through the desire to reach even closer to his audience, among others, by creating more installation-based and audience-participatory works, Matthew Grouse has embarked on a fruitful development of his art.

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Read more about the grant here

 

September 24, 2021

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ctrl+Y  [2021] for four performers and live electronics, originally written for Curious Chamber Players, has been selected as one of four works that will represent Denmark in the 2022 edition of Ung Nordisk Musik Festival, which is set to take place in Reykjavík.

 

June 30, 2020

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LEFT RIGHT, LEFT RIGHT is now available to stream:

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CLICK FOR YOUTUBE VIDEO:

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I'm one of 6 composers to receive a Zeitgeist Commission in partnership with Riot Ensemble and Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival. I'll be collaborating with Sam Wilson on a new work for percussion, live electronics and video. Find out more about the project at the following link:

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https://hcmf.co.uk/hcmf-and-the-riot-ensemble-announce-new-zeitgeist-commissions/  

March 06, 2020

 

A live recording of 'Daily Rituals', performed by the Hermes Experiment has been released amongst other pieces from The Night With's 2019 season. The album is available to buy through 

http://tnwmusic.com/ and on all major streaming platforms. 

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Track listing (disc 2):

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18. Daily Rituals - I. Autopilot (excerpt from letter F)

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19.Daily Rituals - II. Verisimilitude

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20.Daily Rituals - III. and what do you do after that?

January 06, 2020

 

Mine and Andy Sowerby's third collaboration, CONTACT will be premiered at Glasgow's Contemporary Centre of Arts as part of Cryptic Nights 2020. The event will be on the 26th March and will be preceded by screenings of two earlier audiovisual works, 'Scratch' and 'Eye of the Storm'. CONTACT is an interactive AV show that foregrounds the touch sense and makes use of multi-channel projections; custom-built tactile electronic instruments; prepared, electronically processed violin (performed by Harry Gorski-Brown); audio-reactive video; and at times, music being felt through vibration motors rather than heard.

August 11, 2019

 

I'm incredibly grateful to have been invited to travel to Mexico for 2 weeks at the end of September, courtesy of CMMAS www.cmmas.org & Cryptic Glasgow as part of SHUM, a 3 year collaboration program for artistic exchange between Anglo Arts, British Council, CMMAS and Cryptic. ​

 

The world premiere of my solo clarinet piece 'Apertures' will be given by Fernando Domínguez, member of Onix Ensemble @ the 15th anniversary of Visiones Sonoras Festival in Morelia. I'll also be presenting some talks on my music at the festival's conference and at ENES of UNAM Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. ​

 

As a concert extension of the Visiones Sonoras Festival, I'll end the trip by performing some of my electronic & audiovisual work at Ex Teresa Arte Actual in Mexico City alongside Alex Menzies who will present his beautiful piece 'So Below'.