Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

A cabin in the woods

"For a guy in his 60s to receive more than one is a good day for me."

Dresser plans to use his six weeks in New Hampshire (he leaves San Diego on July 18) to compose new music for his bi-coastal ensemble the Mark Dresser Seven. - Image by Peter Gannushkin
Dresser plans to use his six weeks in New Hampshire (he leaves San Diego on July 18) to compose new music for his bi-coastal ensemble the Mark Dresser Seven.

“I have all the tools I need to accomplish this here in San Diego, but to have the opportunity to compose in seclusion without distraction for six weeks without having to worry about anything is truly priceless,” says composer/bassist and UC San Diego professor Mark Dresser, who has been awarded his third fellowship to the MacDowell Colony in New Hampshire in the last 18 years.

A MacDowell Fellowship is a pretty heady deal. The artist colony has been operating since 1907, and their mission statement reads: “To nurture the arts by offering creative individuals an inspiring environment in which they can produce enduring works of the imagination.”

Sponsored
Sponsored

“You have to have a strong application and letters of recommendation, but basically the fellowship is awarded on the strength of your work,” Dresser continued. “I think my position was strengthened by winning other grants like the Doris Duke Impact Award and two from the Shifting Foundation.”

Dresser’s fellowship was for composition. Other notable MacDowell Colony Fellows include Aaron Copland and Leonard Bernstein. They have also enabled scores of writers including Thornton Wilder and James Baldwin.

“I got my first fellowship in 2001 and I didn’t get another one until 2015, and that was as a sub. I think they are always looking to feature younger artists, so for a guy in his 60s to receive more than one is a good day for me.”

Video:

Mark Dresser, excerpt from Guts DVD/CD

Dresser explains his approach to music, with footage from a performance of "Bacachaonne," a solo bass piece dedicated to Cuban bass player Cachao.

Dresser explains his approach to music, with footage from a performance of "Bacachaonne," a solo bass piece dedicated to Cuban bass player Cachao.

Dresser plans to use his six weeks in New Hampshire (he leaves San Diego on July 18) to compose new music for his bi-coastal ensemble, the Mark Dresser Seven, and a new recording on the Portuguese label Clean Feed.

“What’s great about MacDowell is that they give you a work space, which is a cabin in the woods with no internet – no diversions – my studio will have a grand piano and a desk. I’ll bring everything else I need like my bass and a laptop [for composing] and a recording device. They deliver lunch to you, and in the evening dinner is a communal meal where you can meet with the other artists.”

He plans on making the most of the opportunity. “Sometimes, it’s hard to be as focused when I’m at home. It’s easy to be distracted by email and the other trappings of digital life. I’m just going to try and stay organized and be as productive as I possibly can.”

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Reader writer Chris Ahrens tells the story of Windansea

The shack is a landmark declaring, “The best break in the area is out there.”
Next Article

Oceanside toughens up Harbor Beach

Tighter hours on fire rings, more cops, maybe cameras
Dresser plans to use his six weeks in New Hampshire (he leaves San Diego on July 18) to compose new music for his bi-coastal ensemble the Mark Dresser Seven. - Image by Peter Gannushkin
Dresser plans to use his six weeks in New Hampshire (he leaves San Diego on July 18) to compose new music for his bi-coastal ensemble the Mark Dresser Seven.

“I have all the tools I need to accomplish this here in San Diego, but to have the opportunity to compose in seclusion without distraction for six weeks without having to worry about anything is truly priceless,” says composer/bassist and UC San Diego professor Mark Dresser, who has been awarded his third fellowship to the MacDowell Colony in New Hampshire in the last 18 years.

A MacDowell Fellowship is a pretty heady deal. The artist colony has been operating since 1907, and their mission statement reads: “To nurture the arts by offering creative individuals an inspiring environment in which they can produce enduring works of the imagination.”

Sponsored
Sponsored

“You have to have a strong application and letters of recommendation, but basically the fellowship is awarded on the strength of your work,” Dresser continued. “I think my position was strengthened by winning other grants like the Doris Duke Impact Award and two from the Shifting Foundation.”

Dresser’s fellowship was for composition. Other notable MacDowell Colony Fellows include Aaron Copland and Leonard Bernstein. They have also enabled scores of writers including Thornton Wilder and James Baldwin.

“I got my first fellowship in 2001 and I didn’t get another one until 2015, and that was as a sub. I think they are always looking to feature younger artists, so for a guy in his 60s to receive more than one is a good day for me.”

Video:

Mark Dresser, excerpt from Guts DVD/CD

Dresser explains his approach to music, with footage from a performance of "Bacachaonne," a solo bass piece dedicated to Cuban bass player Cachao.

Dresser explains his approach to music, with footage from a performance of "Bacachaonne," a solo bass piece dedicated to Cuban bass player Cachao.

Dresser plans to use his six weeks in New Hampshire (he leaves San Diego on July 18) to compose new music for his bi-coastal ensemble, the Mark Dresser Seven, and a new recording on the Portuguese label Clean Feed.

“What’s great about MacDowell is that they give you a work space, which is a cabin in the woods with no internet – no diversions – my studio will have a grand piano and a desk. I’ll bring everything else I need like my bass and a laptop [for composing] and a recording device. They deliver lunch to you, and in the evening dinner is a communal meal where you can meet with the other artists.”

He plans on making the most of the opportunity. “Sometimes, it’s hard to be as focused when I’m at home. It’s easy to be distracted by email and the other trappings of digital life. I’m just going to try and stay organized and be as productive as I possibly can.”

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Memories of bonfires amid the pits off Palm

Before it was Ocean View Hills, it was party central
Next Article

Bringing Order to the Christmas Chaos

There is a sense of grandeur in Messiah that period performance mavens miss.
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader