BIOS
Tiffany Du Mouchelle, soprano
with Steven Solook, percussion
Friday, April 19 2024 7 p.m.
Experimental Theater UCSD
Soprano Tiffany Du Mouchelle is known for her fearless performances of contemporary repertoire and her commitment to bringing commissioned works to life. Currently on faculty at the University of Buffalo and a graduate of the UC San Diego Department of Music, along with husband, the distinguished percussionist Steven Solook, they will present a program of works that celebrate stylistic diversity in contemporary musical languages, and the expressive capacity of the singing voice.
Program to include:
Lonh, Kaija Saariaho
The Mussels, Carolyn Chen
Bird Songs, Susan Botti
Soprano Tiffany Du Mouchelle is praised for her musical versatility, an electric stage presence and exceptional dramatic sensibilities. Most recognized for her fearlessness in exploring new and challenging repertoire, she ushers the voice into new realms of expressivity, including a vast array of musical styles and languages, featuring over 100 different languages and exploring the genres of classical, world, contemporary, cabaret, and theatrical works. Recipient of the prestigious Richard F. Gold Career Grant for American Opera Singers, Du Mouchelle has performed with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus, Bang on a Can All-Stars, Center for Contemporary Opera, Yellow Barn Music Festival, Skålholt Summer Music Series in Iceland, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, and American Composers Alliance, and in such prestigious venues as Lincoln Center, Disney Hall, The Consulate of the Republic of Poland, The New York Historical Society, The Ukrainian Institute, the residence of the United States Ambassador in Cairo, and the Acropolium in Carthage. Recent collaborations include the AUSTRALIAN PREMIERE of Stockhausen’s Sirius with Bendigo International Festival of Exploratory Music, the MODERN PREMIERE of Karl von Seckendorff’s Proserpina (1777) combined with the WOLRD PREMIERE of Paul Botelho’s electro-acoustic mono-opera Proserpina (2016), the WORLD PREMIERE of Roger Reynolds’ JUSTICE: The Songs (Clytemnestra), the WEST COAST PREMIERE of Pasqual Dusapin’s To Be Sung (Voice Two), along with residencies at Yellow Barn and Songfest. An active chamber musician, she is the co-founder of Aurora Borealis, a voice and percussion duo with her husband, Stephen Solook. They frequently commission and perform new works, expanding the repertoire for this unusual combination. A frequent collaborator with the cultural diplomacy organization Cultures in Harmony, she has served as an instructor of voice, musical outreach specialist, and performer for projects in Cameroon, Tunisia, Egypt and Papua New Guinea. In fall 2015, Du Mouchelle moved to Buffalo, NY, joining the faculty at University at Buffalo, where she serves as the director of the vocal performance program.
Critically acclaimed percussionist Stephen Solook currently resides in Buffalo, NY. As a vivacious interpreter of contemporary music Steve has worked with such composers as Pulitzer Prize winners Paul Moravec and Roger Reynolds, Chinary Ung, Bruce Adolphe, and David Loeb. With co-founder, Tiffany Du Mouchelle, of the Aurora Borealis duo (for soprano and percussion) they have performed together more then any other duo of its kind. Venturously they encourage the development of and explore equally composed works for this primal combination. Mr. Solook has performed as a soloist throughout the United States, Egypt, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, and is a sought after concerto soloist for many ensembles and composers. As an orchestral musician, Steve has served as principal percussionist/timpanist with multiple New York City ensembles, was a member of the La Jolla Symphony in San Diego, California, and performed as an substitute percussionist with the Buffalo Philharmonic. As a member of the non-profit organization Cultures in Harmony, Mr. Solook has traveled to perform, teach, and lead workshops in Cameroon, Egypt, Mexico, and Papua New Guinea. Ethnomusicological research has brought Steve to Fiji in a search to locate and document pre-colonial music, as a conservation project with Pacific Blue Foundation. Steve has performed with Bang on a Can All-Stars, Eighth Black Bird, the International Contemporary Ensemble, red fish blue fish, San Francisco Contemporary Music Players, Joseph Alessi, Bob Becker, David Krakauer, Steven Schick, Lucy Shelton, Socalled, Gordon Stout, Glen Velez, and the Jose Limon Dance Company. He has had the privilege to work under such conductors as John Rutter, JoAnn Falletta, Paul Nadler, and Edwin Outwater, and in venues ranging from Los Angeles’s Disney Hall and New York City’s Lincoln Center to the legendary nightclub CBGB’s. Steve can be seen on QPTV and heard on Bridge, Vortex, and Mode labels, as well as additional forthcoming productions with Mode records. Dr. Solook is on the percussion faculty at Buffalo State University.
