February, 2024 CAVARTS Spotlight Feature: Jonathan Newmark
Music has a way of bringing a community’s stories and emotions to the surface. In this post, we’re excited to spotlight Army Veteran Jonathan Newmark, a talented Composer whose work reflects both personal expression and the spirit of the CAVARTS community.
Through his creative journey, Jonathan reminds us why music matters and how it connects us all.
Name:
Jonathan Newmark
Branch of Service:
Army reserve 1989-1993, Army active duty 1993-2013
Bio:
Composer Jonathan Newmark, born New York City in 1953, pianist, violist, and conductor, received his MM in composition from University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music in 2015. His teachers have included Joel Hoffman, Douglas Knehans, and Michael Fiday, at CCM, as well as Jonathan Kolm, Gloria Wilson Swisher, and James McVoy. He has participated at the Chamber Music Conference of the East since 1981 and worked there with composers Allen Shawn, Martin Bresnick, Daniel Strong Godfrey, Kurt Rohde, Paul Moravec, Chen Yi, Pierre Jalbert, Jesse Jones, and Ted Hearne.
His works have premiered at the Imani Winds Chamber Music Festival, Charlotte New Music Festival, Connecticut Summerfest, nief norf summer festival, Texas New Music Festival, June in Buffalo, and Walden School’s Creative Musicians’ Retreat, and have been performed by ensembles including the Great Noise Ensemble, Four Corners Ensemble, Texas New Music Ensemble, Yarn/Wire, and Sybarite5. His bass clarinet trio Secret Atop the Bluff won the Juventas New Music score competition at the Boston New Music Festival in 2017. A CD of four chamber works was released in 2009 on the Music Unlimited label. His string quartet appears on a 2019 CD by the Altius Quartet, his piano sonata appears on a 2019 CD by British pianist Martin Jones, and a flute + marimba piece on a 2023 CD by Polish flutist Iwona Glinka. His chamber opera Haber’s Law received its workshop premiere at the Operation Opera festival in Spokane, Washington in 2022. His works are published by TrevCo Varner and WaveFront Music.
A 1974 graduate of Harvard College, he earned his MD from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1978. He is a board-certified neurologist, staff neurologist at the Washington DC VA Medical Center, full professor of neurology at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, retired Colonel, US Army Medical Corps, former Chemical Casualty Care Consultant to the Army Surgeon General, consultant to the National Institutes of Health, and one of the nation’s leading authorities on medical response to chemical warfare and terrorism. In 2022 he was appointed by Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin to a second four-year term on the Secure and Resilient Commonwealth Panel of Virginia. He lives in Burke, Virginia.
Website:
http://www.jonathannewmark.com
Title of piece:
Arithmetic
Medium of Piece:
Setting of poem by Carl Sandburg, for soprano, flute, cello, piano, and percussion
Meaning Behind Piece:
“Arithmetic” is a setting of a poem by Carl Sandburg, depicting a child’s view of mathematics. It was commissioned for and premiered at the nief-norf summer festival at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in 2018. Don’t take either the text or the music too seriously.
Piece:
What inspires you to create art?:
I always felt that I had something to say as a composer.
What part of your life has benefited the most from your creative pursuits?:
Hard to say. I was a performer for over 40 years before I finally took the plunge into composition full-time. I consider myself enormously fortunate to get a steady stream of commissions and performances. I average 10-15 performances per year; so far, they have taken place in 25 states, DC, and two Canadian provinces, not counting several online performances.
Is it important for you to challenge yourself in your art? Tell us why or why not!:
I was told at the Juilliard School, back around 1968, that I had no business becoming a composer. So I assumed that I wouldn't do it, although I thought about it on and off for the next 45-50 years. The US Army actually made it possible for me to realize this cockamamie dream of mine by giving me a full retirement at a relatively early age and full benefits under the Post-9/11 GI Bill, which I used to go back to school, age 60, for a master's degree in composition. It was a challenge, and it was worth it.
What is your process or ritual to get your creativity flowing?:
The hardest part of writing a new work for me is starting. I often take an inordinate amount of time looking for a motivic starting point. Part of the process is playing -- either recordings, or on my instruments, or both -- some of my earlier scores. Rarely, structure comes first, followed by musical motifs.
What does CAVARTS mean to you?:
A non-judgmental, supportive environment.
What words of inspiration do you have for your fellow CAVARTists?:
Try things you thought about trying when you were younger. You might find that they are intensely rewarding.
