The Zeitgeist Commissioning Collective is an individual giving program that gives our patrons the opportunity to support Zeitgeist, composers and the music of our time by contributing money for the commission and premiere performances of a new work.

Currently, the Zeitgeist Commissioning Collective is working toward several new commissioning projects:

Victor Zupanc is creating For the Birds, a chamber suite based on a series of poems by humorist Kevin Kling. The poems were written while Kling was watching the antics of various birds outside his hospital window while recovering from a motorcycle accident. They are at once beautiful, tragic, ethereal and comic—a perfect vehicle for Zupanc’s chameleon-like musical sensibility. Music by Victor Zupanc, narration by Kevin Kling and direction by Ben Krywosz.

In 2011-2012, Mary Ellen Childs will compose Propeller for Zeitgeist and Nautilus Music Theater. Propeller will be an opera that looks at the nature of flight and the infinite by exploring three experiences of flight: 1930s barnstormers, space exploration and the experience of a mystic, in the character of a knitter who never moves from her rocking chair. Using vocal and instrumental music, video and projected still images, and staging, Propeller explores the nature of communion with the infinite and the soaring of the human heart.

With the help of our donors, these new works can develop and flourish. Contributions will support commission fees plus all musician fees and other production costs associated with the first three performances of these new works. Donors can choose to restrict their gift to one commissioning project or can elect to have their donation allocated by the ensemble. Donors can give any amount, though there are different levels of giving with various benefits:

Improvisors $50–$149

-----• Invitation to open rehearsal prior to the premiere
-----• Credit in the program

Avant Garde $150–$499

-----All of the above, plus
-----• Four free tickets to the premiere
-----• Invitation to reception for composer and ensemble

Visionaries $500 plus

-----All of the above, plus
-----• Acknowledgment in Commissioning Credit in the Score
-----• Signed and Framed First Page of the Score
-----• Recording of premiere

We delight in pushing the boundaries of our art form and bringing our audiences adventurous performances that reflect the diversity of musical thought that is the music of our time. As a formidable commissioning entity, we also respect and embrace the significant role we play in shaping today’s music. Through the Zeitgeist Commissioning Collective, our donors can join us in this role. Together we can shape the music of our time and insure its present vitality and healthy future.

Join Us!