Coastal Choral Consortium    

The Coastal Choral Consortium is a group of forward thinking choral ensembles, representing primarily the southeastern U.S. and the U.S. coast, banding together to support the commission of the choral suite COLOR ALL MAPS NEW.  The piece explores the effects of climate change on the southeastern U.S. through the lens of family, community, and cultural lineage. A percentage of the commission fee and performance royalties will be directed to coastal restoration funds and Indigenous coastal communities in perpetuity.

Meet the Composer — Dylan Trần
Born in a rural parish hospital, one of eleven children, and raised in a double-wide trailer in central Louisiana, Dylan’s first dream was to be a rockstar / actor / Pokémon trainer. At 14 years old, he put those dreams on hold and joined his high school choir. Since then, he has won numerous composition awards, residencies, and competitions and has been commissioned by HULU, the Oxford American Journal, TAAF, and more. He has conducted and coached ensembles throughout the U.S. and in Europe and has volunteered for music programs across the country and in Vietnam. His arrangements have been performed in Australia, Austria, Finland, India, and the United Kingdom.

“A confluence of styles… an entirely refreshing and distinct compositional voice.”
The Choral Arts Initiative, Tupelo Poems

“Hands down my favorite thing to perform… it's so cathartic to throw myself into the intensity of it.”
Michelle Zhang, Pacific Edge Voices, If Music

COLOR ALL MAPS NEW — The Music

My compositional philosophy is as follows: play, exploration, and expression rooted in total idiomaticness. A heavy emphasis on voice leading, a thorough understanding of tessitura and a tasteful implementation of written-in tuning and blending techniques creates a positive feedback loop that exponentially rewards time and effort put into my work. It is my reciprocal gift to those who bring my music to life.

My philosophy permeates the music of COLOR ALL MAPS NEW. This 7-movement choral suite, lasting 18-26 minutes, explores imaginative, world-building polyphonic textures, but consistently and frequently returns to a place of homophony as a means of grounding. The harmony implements a quasi-tonicization of sub-dominant functions, but is almost entirely tonal, creating a harmonic anchor from which exploration can take place. The overall rhythm of the piece is derived from unrelenting and dramatically informed prosody, resulting in a text delivery that is totally unique, but still innately accessible. Any rhythmic confusion that yields from the presence of mixed-meters and duplet/triplet relationships on first-glance is easily remedied by recognizing and “leaning into” the natural rhythm of the poetry.

This philosophy creates music that roots itself in what it means to be human first and foremost— only then does it push the boundaries of what we can do and what we can create.

But don’t take my word for it, listen for yourself. As a proof of concept, I’ve solicited a demo recording of the opening movement and a preview performance of the closing movement.

LISTEN TO THE OPENING MOVEMENT (excerpt)

LISTEN TO THE CLOSING MOVEMENT (excerpt)

Mvm. I — An unsuspecting, peaceful opening quickly stirs into a foreshadowing declaration of denial.

Mvm. II and III — Energetic pieces juxtapose the innocence and excited impatience of children with the inevitable passing of time.

Mvm. IV — We mourn. An epitaph for the Indigenous communities already being ravaged by climate change. Declamatory, furious, stormy.

Mvm. V — We face our own mortality. “Lord…
hold me here as long as you can…” Desperate,
extended polyphony is the peak of the whole suite.

Mvm. VI — We glimpse the future. A young person wonders if they are brave enough to leave home…

Mvm. IV — We take solace in family and community, and our power to choose what we pass on to the next generation… like a sense of stewardship for the natural world. In a way, this is how we come to terms with our own mortality, by living on through what we pass on.

The Structure

The Timeline

SUMMER ‘23
Proof of concept, preliminary composition

FALL ‘23 - SPRING ‘24
Lead commissioner selection;
Consortium member recruitment

SUMMER ‘24
Bulk of composition (Helene Wurlitzer Residency)

AUGUST 15, 2024
DEADLINE TO JOIN,
FEE DUE (payment
plans are available)

AUGUST 15-25, 2024
Opportunity for Review/Feedback from
C.C.C. Members

SEPTEMBER , 2024
Completion and distribution.

FALL 2024
Performance cycle begins.

Commission Fee Disclosure and Explanation

To make participation more accessible, consortium membership is tiered and utilizes a sliding-scale. The New Music USA Commissioning Fees Calculator values a commission like this at $10,000 — $25,000. In consideration of the many unfavorable economic factors we are all experiencing, I am lowering that cost to $7,200 — $13,000 the cost of which will be divided amongst the consortium members.

This fee goes towards:

  • compensation for my own creative and logistical labor towards the piece and its organization.

  • sustaining me through my upcoming residency with the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation, where I plan to do the bulk of composition work on the piece (I will not have any income during this time due to the foundation’s “no work policy.”).

  • any travel costs associated with visiting consortium members for rehearsals, workshopping, and performance.

  • 20% of the commission fee (and 40% of all my performance royalties for this piece) will be directed towards coastal restoration funds and Indigenous coastal communities.

Consortium Structure and Member Benefits

ALL Consortium Members will receive:

  • a proportional feature on my social media channels (Cumulative: 6,000+ followers, 960,000+ views, and 5,000+ hours of watch time. Vast majority of engagement is choir-specific.).

  • free access to the sheet music and full performance rights in perpetuity.

  • proportional recognition in the score.

  • a visit from the composer, either in person or virtual depending on location, tier, and composer availability.

  • NOTE: a performance of the entire suite is NOT necessary for participation. Performances of excerpts or even single movements are more than welcome.

Lead Commissioner (1 slot, must be a Louisiana-based choir)

  • Exclusive rights to premiere performance (must be within one year of piece’s completion).

  • Guaranteed composer attendance (in person) for a rehearsal and the premiere performance.

  • Priority feedback and review.

  • Lead commissioners typically take on some responsibility in recruiting other consortium members. Breadth of responsibility is flexible and can discussed with the composer.

  • Fee: $2,200 — $3,000

Consortium Member, Tier I — (5 slots left)

  • Exclusive performance rights for six months after the piece’s premiere.

  • Guaranteed composer attendance for at least one rehearsal (may be virtual depending on choir location and composer availability).

  • Fee: $600 — $1,000

Current Members:

  • Loyola University New Orleans - Dr. Meg Frazier (New Orleans, LA)

Consortium Member, Tier II — (9 slots left)

  • Exclusive performance rights for six months starting six months after the piece’s premiere.

  • Guaranteed composer attendance for at least one rehearsal (may be virtual depending on choir location and composer availability).

  • Fee: $200 — $500, or Pay What You Can

Current Members:

  • Opus Vocal Ensemble - Rose Rodrigue (Baton Rouge, LA)

Meet the Poet — Jack B. Bedell
Jack B. Bedell is Professor of English and Coordinator of Creative Writing at Southeastern Louisiana University where he also edits ​​​Louisiana Literature and directs the Louisiana Literature Press. His work has appeared in the Southern Review, Radar Poetry, The Fourth River, Terrain.org, Construction, Grist, Sugar House, Shenandoah, Pidgeonholes, Cotton Xenomorph and other journals. Bedell is the recipient of the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities Individual Achievement in the Humanities Award and the Governor’s Award for Artistic Achievement. He served as Louisiana Poet Laureate, 2017-2019. 

Let’s talk!

If you’re interested in joining the Coastal Choral Consortium, just send me a message with your choir’s information and what tier of membership you’re interested in. After a brief chat, I’ll issue a contract and an invoice and add you and your group to the Current Members section of this page.

If you have have questions or you just want to talk, feel free to message me here or on my IG. We can even set up a call if you like!