The 442s: April 7, 2021
The 442s:
Adam Maness, multi-instrumentalist / vocals
Shawn Weil, violin
Michael Casimir, viola
Bjorn Ranheim, cello
Bob DeBoo, double bass
Special Guest Artists:
Peter Henderson, piano
Brendan Fitzgerald, double bass
The Road by Adam Maness
Perk & The Mess by Adam Maness
Missouri Song by Paul Reuter (2021)
World premiere – Commissioned by the Sheldon Arts Foundation in celebration of the 2021 Missouri Bicentennial
Double Heart, Double Soul by Christopher Stark (2018)
Shibuya 2 (ya) by Stefan Freund (2018)
Ozark Autumn by Jack Snelling (2021)
World premiere – Commissioned by The Sheldon with the support of the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation and Mizzou New Music Initiative
Irish is Reel by Adam Maness
Phender’s Pholk Song by Adam Maness
Program Notes:
Missouri Song (2021), Paul Reuter
Paul Reuter’s “Missouri Song,” with lyrics by the composer, is scored for vocalist, guitar, piano, violin, viola, cello, and double bass, and contains solos that pay tribute to Osage Nation, Missouri fiddlers, ragtime, blues and jazz. The piece was commissioned by the Sheldon Arts Foundation in celebration of the 2021 Missouri Bicentennial.
Shibuya 2 (ya) (2018), Stefan Freund
Shibuya 2 (ya) by Stefan Freund was written for The 442s, a quartet joining two members of the St. Louis Symphony with two of St. Louis’s finest jazz musicians. The piece combines popular influences with virtuosic writing for the performers. Also, in the spirit of The 442s’ repertoire, it calls upon the players to use their instruments in unconventional ways to create percussive effects.
The piece alternates between a fast 7/8 running tune and a grinding 7/4 bass groove before developing both ideas in an extensive coda. The title comes from “Shibuya,” the opening track on The 442s’ debut album. The hustle and bustle of Shibuya Crossing in Japan, one of the busiest intersections in the world, is portrayed by the energetic lines and animated solos of the players.
Ozark Autumn (2021), Jack Snelling
Ozark Autumn came about from a lifelong passion of mine: driving. Since I first got my driver’s license and obtained a car, taking long drives exploring the Missouri countryside has been simultaneously an escape from stress, a fun pastime to share with friends, a method of research for my geography classes, and pure serotonin when life is tough.
One October afternoon, inspired by the changing colors of the trees and the majesty of the Ozark mountains, driving became something else: musical inspiration. The notes I hummed to myself in the car as I drove through Tuscumbia on Highway 52 became what is now the first theme of Ozark Autumn, and I imagine the grooviness and intensity of the piece to imitate the feeling of driving over hills of orange and gold, while smiling the whole way.
Artist Bios:
The 442s
Combining three members of the world-class St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and two of the St. Louis’ finest jazz musicians, The 442s are a genre-defying acoustic quintet named for the modern standard tuning of 442 Hz! Brought together by the innovative and inspired compositions of Adam Maness, who plays piano, guitar, accordion, melodica and glockenspiel in the group, The 442s features Shawn Weil on violin, Michael Casimir on viola, Bjorn Ranheim on cello and Bob DeBoo on bass. Formed in 2012, this unique ensemble blends virtuosic musicianship, group singing and inventive improvisation, all while breaking down barriers between jazz, classical, folk and pop music.
The 442s were born of a common musical inquisitiveness and a search for new and exciting musical possibilities and collaborations. This search has taken them to venues and concert series throughout the Midwest; including Powell Symphony Hall, Jazz Saint Louis and The Sheldon Concert Hall. They have appeared as soloists with The Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra and Metropolitan Orchestra of St. Louis.
The 442s have released three albums to date; their 2014 self-titled debut album has been featured on radio stations worldwide. Relay and Home for Christmas, both released in 2016, feature collaborations with celebrated musicians from across the musical spectrum.
The 442s have been profiled on the nationally syndicated television program, Arts America, and their music serves as the soundtrack for the 2016 Emmy Award winning documentary film, Show Me 66: Main Street Through Missouri, which was produced by the Missouri History Museum. In the summer of 2016, The 442s were named the first ever Artists-In-Residence at Forest Park and embarked on a unique public commissioning project in collaboration with the people who love and use the park. The culminating multi-media work was premiered in 2016.
Stefan Freund
Stefan Freund received a B.M. from Indiana University and an M.M. and a D.M.A. from the Eastman School of Music. He is presently Professor of Composition at the University of Missouri. Previously he was Assistant Professor of Composition at the Eastman School of Music.
Freund is the recipient of prizes from ASCAP, BMI, MTNA, MU and the National Society of Arts and Letters. He has received commissions from the Carnegie Hall Corporation, the Lincoln Center Festival, the New York Youth Symphony, Town Hall Seattle, the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, Sheldon Concert Hall, and other ensembles and venues. His music has been performed by ensembles such as the St. Louis Symphony, the Phoenix Symphony, and the Copenhagen Philharmonic. Internationally, Freund’s music has been played in ten European countries, Canada, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. His works have been recorded on the Albany, Innova, Crystal, and Centaur labels.
Freund is the founding cellist of the new music ensemble Alarm Will Sound, described by The New York Times as “the future of classical music.” In addition, he serves as the Artistic Director of the Mizzou New Music Initiative and the Music Director of the Columbia Civic Orchestra.
Paul Reuter
Paul Reuter is a musician who has composed, conducted and performed jazz, folk and classical music. He has a B.A. in vocal music education and an M.A. in music composition from the University of Missouri-Columbia and studied with composer Sir Peter Maxwell Davies in Dartington, England. He has had compositions performed by the St. Louis Symphony and many other orchestras, the Fires of London, guitarist Timothy Walker, trumpeter Susan Slaughter, violinist David Halen, sopranos Christine Brewer and Sylvia McNair, and St. Louis Children’s Choirs. Reuter was the Music Director of KBIA, the NPR radio station in Columbia, Missouri, for five years before working for the Hartford Symphony Orchestra for sixteen years, the last nine as Executive Director. He served as Executive Director of The Sheldon from 1994 – 2019, where he created new concert series for the Sheldon Concert Hall, a wide range of education programs and collaborations with many community organizations.
Jack Snelling
Jack Snelling (b. 2000) is an American composer, pianist and bassoonist, whose influences span many genres, from Oscar Peterson and Brad Mehldau to Earth, Wind, and Fire and Ben Folds. His music is commonly characterized by emphasizing improvisation and creativity within interesting parameters. It is not easy to fit Snelling’s works into one or two boxes, either; he describes his style as a meshing of all the different artists and performers that inspire him, regardless of their backgrounds or genres.
Hailing from St. Louis, Snelling is currently in his third year of study towards Bachelor’s degrees in Composition and Geography at the University of Missouri-Columbia. As a composer, he is a recipient of the MNMI Composition Scholarship, and his works have been played by a variety of groups thanks to the MNMI’s support, including the Mizzou New Music Ensemble, Khemia Ensemble, Tesla Quartet and Quatuor Diotima. Outside of school, Snelling is part of a professional jazz quartet, Sharp the Nine, which prior to COVID-19 played extensively around the Columbia area.
Snelling would like to thank his family and friends for their continued support, and the numerous teachers over the years who continue to inspire him today. He also thanks Dr. Jeanne and Rex Sinquefield for their continued support over his musical career. He currently studies with Dr. Yoshiaki Onishi.