D'Arcy Reynolds is a well known composer on the West Coast where her compositions have been premiered at numerous concert halls and music festivals. In recognition for her outstanding work D'Arcy has won several grants from such prestigious organizations as the American Composers Forum, the American Music Center and Meet the Composer.
She has written works for Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra, Chorus, Chamber Ensemble, Voice and Piano. She has completed three song cycles for soprano and chamber ensemble (The Past Keeps Changing, Beyond Dreaming, and Listening to Winter), all of which have been written in collaboration with living poets. Recent premieres include Cloven Dreams, performed by Tessa Brinckman & the East/West Continuo in Portland, Oregon, Elegy by the San Jose Chamber Orchestra, 21 for piano, and The Past Keeps Changing, performed at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco, CA.
In addition to her work as a composer and pianist, D’Arcy Reynolds is the founding Director of the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of the American Composers Forum. The Chapter became an important arts organization for artists throughout Northern California, and as Director of the San Francisco Chapter, Ms. Reynolds developed an innovative Composer in the Schools Program, held salons with new works by Northern California Composers and administered interdisciplinary granting programs with composers, poets and choreographers.
She received a 2004 Meet the Composer Global Connections grant and is traveling to South Africa where the Sontonga String Quartet will perform her string quartet Cloven Dreams at the University of Cape Town.
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Thursday, May 05, 2005
N i e u-B e t h e s d a / O w l H o u s e
Driving into Nieu-Bethesda yesterday afternoon was like arriving in Mecca aftera long journey. The camel yard was alight with late afternoon sun, and the figures gradually turned to shadow as the cold crept into the high-desert mountain air. The camel yard was more playful and amusing than I had realized. Juxtaposing the owls, camels, peacocks, mona lisas, and mermaids, creates a playful flurry of activity.
Glass is imbedded in many of the figures, and the foliage around the camel yard has an interesting way of ornamenting the figures. There is a preponderance of mythic figures in the yard, with numerous wise men, the baby jesus in the manger, pyramids, and sphinxes. The massive rush of figures heading towards Oos (East) is so congested, that it is ominously reminiscent of an uncontrollable compulsive disorder to create (the figures).
Owl House has created an industry for the townspeople who sell replicas of Owl House figures, jewelry, lamps, and key chains with little owls on them. Koos, Helen Martins' last assistant, was an important figure in Helens' life, and it feels like the people who are making the Owl House figures are continuing the Koosian tradition of sculpting for a living in this tiny village.
posted by D'Arcy Reynolds
3:44 AM
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