Canetti-menagerie

Complete Work Title:

Canetti-menagerie (after Elias Canetti)

Performance Medium:

variable (2-8 players)

Duration:

variable (3:00-15:00)

Date Composed:

March 2015; rev. July 2025

Additional Information:

  • Semi-improvisational open-form work for two to eight instruments based on the composer’s character studies after Elias Canetti.
  • May be performed independently, in conjunction with the Canetti solo studies, or in an extended version incorporating various theatrical elements (including staging, lighting, text readings, dancers, etc.).
  • The “score” consists of performance instructions; source material for improvisation may be found in the individual Canetti character studies.

Recordings:

Performance of Canetti-menagerie, in an extended realization with narrator and six solo studies after Elias Canetti; Northern Illinois University, 9 March 2023.
Performance of Canetti-menagerie, including four solo studies after Elias Canetti; James Madison University Contemporary Music Festival, 23 October 2018.

Score:

Program Note:

Composed in March 2015, Canetti-menagerie is a semi-improvisational open-form work for two to eight performers, based on the composer’s collection of solo works after character studies in Elias Canetti’s 1974 book Der Ohrenzeuge (Earwitness).  In Canetti-menagerie, performers improvise in various combinations, developing musical fragments from these solo studies, which are used as raw material for a variety of musical conversations — not unlike the interaction of distinct characters at a social gathering.  Whereas the solo works in this collection explore the psychological qualities of the characters portrayed in Canetti’s Der Ohrenzeuge, Canetti-menagerie is more of a sociological study of these characters’ various relationships — very much in the spirit of another one of Canetti’s writings, Masse und Macht (Crowds and Power), an idiosyncratic yet penetrating study of group dynamics and power structures within various societal constructs.

Canetti-menagerie was first performed on 19 September 2016 at the University of North Texas by Elizabeth McNutt (piccolo), Kimberly Cole-Luevano (basset horn), John Holt (trumpet), Chris Deane (percussion), Chaz Underriner (guitar), Andrew May (violin), and Madeleine Shapiro (violoncello).

Performance/Broadcast History:

DateVenueLocationPerformer(s)
11 February 2026Grayson CollegeDenison, TXElizabeth McNutt, piccolo; Anne Dearth Maker, bass flute; Anthony Devroye, viola; Colin Stokes, violoncello; Jaymee Haefner, harp; Gregory Beyer, marimba; Dave Hall, percussion
10 February 2026University of North Texas Voertman Concert HallDenton, TXElizabeth McNutt, piccolo; Anne Dearth Maker, bass flute; Anthony Devroye, viola; Colin Stokes, violoncello; Jaymee Haefner, harp; Gregory Beyer, marimba; Dave Hall, percussion
5 November 2025Northern Illinois University Boutell Memorial Concert Hall—13th NIU New Music FestivalDeKalb, ILElizabeth McNutt, piccolo; Thomas Snydacker, alto saxophone; Zachary Good, bass clarinet; Julia Broome-Robinson, trombone; Anthony Devroye, viola; Shannon Wettstein, piano; Gregory Beyer, marimba.
9 March 2023Northern Illinois University Recital HallDeKalb, ILAnthony Devea, basset horn; Thomas Snydacker, alto saxophone; Christopher Scanlon, trumpet; Andrew Glendening, trombone; Anthony Devroye, viola; Gregory Beyer, percussion
12 December 2021The Arc Project Online Festival 2021York, UK (online)Elizabeth McNutt, piccolo; Lisa Bost-Sandberg, bass flute; Scott Sandberg, alto saxophone; Andrew May, violin; Madeleine Shapiro, violoncello; Shannon Wettstein, piano.
23 April 2019Texas State UniversitySan Marcos, TXElizabeth McNutt, piccolo; Kimberly Cole Luevano, basset horn; Kyle Stec, alto saxophone; Andrew May, violin; Madeleine Shapiro, violoncello
22 April 2019Stephen F. Austin State UniversityNacogdoches, TXElizabeth McNutt, piccolo; Kimberly Cole Luevano, basset horn; Kyle Stec, alto saxophone; Andrew May, violin; Madeleine Shapiro, violoncello
8 March 2019Texas A&M University, CommerceCommerce, TXElizabeth McNutt, piccolo; Kimberly Cole Luevano, basset horn; John Holt, trumpet; Jacob Adam Garcia, percussion; Andrew May, violin; Redi Llupa, piano
7 March 2019University of OklahomaNorman, OKElizabeth McNutt, piccolo; Kimberly Cole Luevano, basset horn; John Holt, trumpet; Jacob Adam Garcia, percussion; Andrew May, violin; Redi Llupa, piano
23 October 2018James Madison University Forbes Concert Hall—38th Annual JMU Contemporary Music FestivalHarrisonburg, VAJosh Ballinger, contrabassoon; Laurel Black, percussion; Redi Llupa, piano; Sam Suggs, contrabass
11 April 2018Moody Performance HallDallas, TXElizabeth McNutt, piccolo; Kimberly Cole Luevano, basset horn; John Holt, trumpet; Jacob Adam Garcia, percussion; Christopher Deane, cimbalom; Andrew May, violin; Madeleine Shapiro, violoncello
19 September 2016University of North Texas [premiere]Denton, TXElizabeth McNutt, piccolo; Kimberly Cole Luevano, basset horn; John Holt, trumpet; Christopher Deane, percussion; Chaz Underriner, guitar; Andrew May, violin; Madeleine Shapiro, violoncello