As part of the Private Works festival, Seattle composer Nat Evans will be presenting an original, site and time-specific music event that fuses nature, music, community, and subjectivity of experience, which will take place just after sunset on April 28th at The Hartt School. Participants will download the music onto their iPods or other portable listening device ahead of time and arrive at the Sukman Foyer (at Millard Auditorium) by 7:30pm. Participants will then walk to the viewing locale, and just after sunset the cue will be given to press play and participants will sit back and observe while listening.

The music for Blue Hour is a mix of new and pre-existing compositions that have been arranged to best compliment the changing of light during the hour after sunset, and is available to download from the composer’s website (natevansmusic.com). This is the third in a series of time-specific pieces Evans has written – his Sunset + Music event was presented across the country in 2011, as well as at a number of festivals. Blue Hour was commissioned by Scott Comanzo for the Private Works festival.

To review...
1. Participants download the music onto their ipods. (Click here to download)
2. Show up Sukman Foyer (at Milard Auditorium) by 7:30pm on April 28th.
3. Press play when instructed to just after sunset!

About the composer
Seattle Composer Nat Evans writes concert music for various mixed chamber ensembles, distinctive electro-acoustic music, and site-specific music events that fuse nature, community and subjectivity of experience. His music is regularly presented across the United States and has also been performed in Europe, South America, Australia and China. Evans has received numerous commissions including the Seattle Percussion Collective, the Harrison Center for the Arts, ODEONQUARTET, Seattle Pacific University Men's Choir and Percussion Ensemble, Beta Test Ensemble, The Northwest School Chamber Orchestra, among others. His music has been featured on a number of radio stations in the United States, as well as BBC3, and in the 2011 Music Issue of The Believer. He studied music at Butler University with Michael Schelle and Frank Felice.

Last year I began presenting the second in a series of pieces based around sunrise and sunset that eventually evolved into the Sunset + Music tour, and opportunities to present the event at a few festivals arose as well. One of the places I presented it was in Los Angeles and sound artist Chris Kallmyer attended the event and wrote an amazing article for NewMusicBox that uses my Sunset + Music event as a jumping off point into the larger themes of space, place, and perception. Make sure to check out the article on the NewMusicBox website.

Composer Scott Comanzo attended the initial New York City event, and has since commissioned me to do another time and iPod based piece for his Private Works festival. This new work, which I've been working on for about 3 months, is entitled Blue Hour. Participants will download the music onto their personal listening device and show up to a predetermined and west-facing location. At sunset the cue will be given to press play, and participants will sit back and listen while observing. The music will continue on for around 45 minutes, deep into twilight. The music, which is similar to these other time-specific pieces sonically, is also composed in the same way in that it utilizes both new and preexisting works as well as field recordings to best complement the changing of light at the pivotal moment beginning at sunset until dark. Blue Hour will be presented in Hartford for the aforementioned festival on April 28th, and it will also be presented in New York, Seattle, Los Angeles and other cities on different days throughout 2012.