John Luther Adams: Anchorage, AK
From 1994-1997, John Luther Adams served as Composer-In-Residence with the Alaska Public Radio Network, Anchorage Opera, and the Anchorage Symphony Orchestra. Mr. Adams created several new works for the partner organizations to celebrate the rich contributions of Alaska traditions to the musical and cultural vitality of the state. The premiere of Mr. Adams' chamber opera Earth and the Great Weather about the Arctic took place during the first year of the residency.

Subsequent new pieces included Resonance of Place, a one-hour work for radio, Alaskan Dances, a cycle of chamber pieces based on traditional Alaska Native dance songs, and Sauyatugvik: The Time of Drumming, composed for the 50th anniversary of the Anchorage Symphony.

In the final year of his residency, Mr. Adams composed a "sonic geography" of Western Alaska for broadcast by the Alaska Public Radio Network.

Tina Davidson: Wilmington, DE
In 1994, composer Tina Davidson began her residency with partner organizations Opera Delaware, the Newark Symphony, and the YWCA of New Castle County. Ms. Davidson worked with homeless women at the YWCA's HomeLife Management Center, which teaches parenting skills through the arts. She developed two pieces with the residents, the longer of which was performed at the YWCA's annual meeting in 1996.

Wanting to become involved with the children of the Wilmington community, Ms. Davidson worked with sixth graders to build instruments, explore graphic notation, and write lyrics and music as a group. In 1995, Ms. Davidson wrote a new piece for the Newark Symphony entitled Over Salt River for her cousin who had died of AIDS, and in the final year of the residency, she created a new opera, Billy and Zelda, which Opera Delaware produced in September 1998.

Jon Deak: Denver, CO
Composer Jon Deak's three year residency was hosted by the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, the Colorado Children's Chorale, and Denver Public Schools. He devoted his time to activities in several public schools in a "Classroom Connections" music education project, giving talks, interviews, and masterclasses with the Symphony and Children's Chorale, and composing several new works. Mr. Deak's Fanfare: Colorado Variations was premiered by the Colorado Symphony in 1994.

In addition, Mr. Deak served as an artistic advisor to the partnering organizations, helped plan future activities for the groups, and built relationships with local composers.

James Mobberly: Kansas City, MO
Composer James Mobberly's residency made a significant impact on the host organizations: the Kansas City Symphony, the State Ballet of Missouri, and the Kansas City School District/Paseo Academy. His new piece Arena, written for the Ballet with the Symphony's Ballet Orchestra in the pit, was very well received at its initial four performances. Mr. Mobberly's Marimba Concerto, a collaboration with the ensemble Marimba Yajalon, was a great success on the Symphony's Classical Series.

At the Paseo Academy, Mr. Mobberly, as guest composer, offered classes in theory and composition, and facilitated workshops and other collaborative projects between Paseo and the State Ballet of Missouri. He also established the American Composers' Day workshop, featuring performances and composer discussions for students, senior citizens, and the general public.