Star of the North Commissioning Corner

Celebrating MN Choral Composer Creativity: Resources and Celebration

By Laura Krider

For this past fall’s state conference, I had the genuine pleasure of putting out a call for scores to MN composers and creating a resource guide FOR YOU that shares a bit about each composer and provides links to all of their new works that are currently available to program/purchase. 🎶Download this doc and use it to inspire your programming!🎶

And now, let’s take a moment to celebrate all of the rich compositional activity happening in MN: 

📣 News: 

Patti Arntz was able to publish a trumpet method that was written by her late husband, Ralph Schwartz. It consists of 5 volumes with over 900 pages of exercises and is published by qPress, an online digital brass music publisher. Ralph was a prominent trumpeter in the Twin Cities and taught trumpet at St. Olaf and Gustavus Adolphus Colleges. Consider sharing this news with your instrumental colleagues!

Abbie Betinis is the featured composer for Friends of the Minnesota Orchestra’s Kinder Konzerts series, for which she’s written a 10-minute chamber ensemble setting of the beloved children’s book “Caps for Sale.” There will be 21 performances in Orchestra Hall this season, reaching almost 3000 pre-schoolers, and performed by members of the Minnesota Orchestra. Stay tuned for a Spanish version too!  

PaviElle French just released The Sovereign Curriculum! The Sovereign Residency: A Means for Growth is a collaborative, flexible artist residency led by Minneapolis-based interdisciplinary artist, singer, and composer PaviElle French. The curriculum is designed to guide communities in the exploration of Black liberation, freedom, healing, and sovereignty through a multidisciplinary approach that integrates education, creation/artmaking, performance, and community work. Reach out to PaviElle if you’d like to bring this curriculum to your community!

Shruthi Rajasekar is excited to be a part of programs at the BBC Studios, Victoria & Albert Museum, Asia Society Texas, LA Femme International Film Festival, and Oxford International Song Festival.

Jake Runestad has a premiere of his new work Vincent’s Sky – a 17-minute work exploring Vincent van Gogh’s emotional world through the lens of three of his paintings, guided by Walt Whitman’s words. The piece is scored for SATB choir and wind ensemble and uses projections of van Gogh’s paintings.

💿 New Albums: 

Asuka Kakitani released a new piano solo recording featuring acclaimed pianist, Shannon Wettstein called The Nights which is a collection of solo piano pieces reflecting moments of contemplation and transformation. 

Kyle Pederson recently had a big album release: All is Miracle with the vocal ensemble Transept. The album is now streaming on all platforms.

Jonathan Posthuma recently released an album of choral music, Look Back on Time, recorded by Kantorei that features several new works and newly recorded works for chorus.

Timothy C. Takach and Jocelyn Hagen co-composed a work called Rose Ever Blooming that has been released as an album with the VOCES8 Foundation Choir and Orchestra. 

💡Works in Development: 

Catherine Dalton is currently working on a commission for the Unitarian Universalist Church of Bloomington in Indiana incorporating the intertwined themes of love and grief. 

Gerald Gurss is writing a new work for the Minnesota Valley Women’s Chorale which will premiere this spring. 

Jocelyn Hagen is working on a consortium commission called Creation, an oratorio in three parts and a  celebration of beauty, creativity, and the profound act of bringing life into the world. Scored for Treble Choir with three distinct orchestrations—symphony orchestra, wind symphony, and small chamber ensemble—this work blends music, poetry, and immersive visuals to craft a deeply moving artistic experience. Consider joining the consortium!

Edie Hill is writing a new work for Cantus (to premiere fall 2026), a new song cycle for Source Song Festival (to premiere August 2027), and a new string quartet commissioned by the American Composers Forum. 

Linda Kachelmeier is working on commissions including an SSAA piece for UW-Whitewater in Wisconsin and a larger work for Marquette Symphonic Chorus in Michigan.

Isaac Lovdahl has been commissioned by Clark Weyrauch, Director of Music at Trinity Lutheran Church (Stillwater, MN), to compose a piece for his choir to sing in celebration of a church employee who is set to retire. Isaac is also composing a piece for his university concert choir, the Bemidji Choir, set to poems by two students – each poem centers on their experience at choir retreat last Fall and the sense of community/belonging that they experienced. 

Paul John Rudoi is writing a 25-minute 1-act choral opera for Raison d’Ětre Opéra, a 55+ opera company in the Twin Cities. He is also working on new works for Golden State Men’s Chorus and choirs at James Madison University and Southwest State University. 

Scott Senko is working on a new piece for The Singers – Minnesota Choral Artists which is set to premiere in April 2026 at their ‘World on Our Shoulders: Songs of the Earth’ concert. 

Linda Tutas Haugen is composing a large work for a choir in Nashville, Tennessee for SSAA voices, Mezzo Soprano solo, and chamber ensemble. The texts she’s using are based on the difficult subject of addiction – from use to death or recovery, and the many societal impacts it has on individuals, families and society. Her goal is that this work will give encouragement to those impacted by addiction to persevere, and to also provide a path for education, empathy and understanding in the listeners minds and hearts. 

Paul Winchester is in the early stages of a collaboration with ImPulse to create a new multi-movement work titled “An American Mass,” which will explore American political division through the lens of the form of the choral mass. He and poet Gary Boelhower will also be collaborating with national political dialogue organization Braver Angels to help source text from diverse sources. 

Please reach out to me any time if you’d like to talk shop, ask a question, get an introduction to a Minnesota composer, share news about a collaboration, and if there are any other ways I can support you and your ensembles as you program new music and work with living composers! It’s worth it: laura@laurakrider.com. 

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About the author

Laura is an arts consultant and singer who lives for making creative projects happen through collaborative artist support and consulting. She geeks out on systems, finds joy in being a point of connection between creatives, and approaches all of her work through the frame of equity and access. Before Laura started her own business, she spent eight years working at the American Composers Forum focusing on youth programs, artist services, composer residencies, and internal administration/communications. As a singer, she frequently works with living composers and performs with ensembles including First Readings Project, Border CrosSing, Lumina Women’s Ensemble, and others. Laura has a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Music Education and a Master of Professional Studies in Arts and Cultural Leadership from the University of MN. Along with her service with ACDA-MN, Laura also serves on the board of Schubert Club. She fills her non-working hours with comedy/culture, good friends, and loving up on her dog Mo.