Where are you from?

I am from Aurora, IL!

What is one thing about yourself that you want everyone to know?

My favorite punctuation symbol is the exclamation point!

A link to something about you (website, video, post, etc.)

https://instagram.com/cole_counihan

What are you up to these days?

I am about to start my age-out summer of Drum Corps International with the Blue Stars out of Lacrosse, WI. After that, I will return to Belmont University to finish out my BM in Classical Percussion Performance!

When did you intern with TCP?

January 2024 – May 2024

How did you connect with TCP?

I met Reba after a Chicago concert, and while talking to her about her journey in arts administration learned about the internship program. The program was a great way to continue my studies while away from school!

Did you gain anything from the internship that you’d like to share?

Interning with TCP was a great way to make professional connections and learn about the rigor of being a practicing professional musician, both behind the instrument and in the office. Watching TCP’s production process and schedule helped me further understand how to make a career out of music, and I am greatly appreciative for my time there!

What else did you do while you were interning?

Most of the work I did while interning was with Colin, TCP’s Production Manager. Other notable moments included being a camera operator for the “Dueling With Time” shoot, producing the “5 Days To Downbeat” videos, working on logistics for various excursions, and redesigning the merch webpage.

Did you leave a legacy or mark on the organization that you’re particularly proud of?

I feel like my largest accomplishment was producing the “5 Days to Downbeat” miniseries – This project started out as one line in a production meeting for the concert, and I had the capacity to take that idea and embellish it into the youtube videos we released! It was great to both learn about filming and editing, and also learn a lot about how TCP prepare for a concert!

Favorite memory?

TCP hosted an event for their Chicago Circle members: an open rehearsal/composition workshop for an upcoming commission. Peter was unfortunately occupied that day, and Sean asked that I stand in and cover his part for the short session. After a brief rehearsal, some amazing folk from TCP’s Chicago Circle arrived and got to watch the rehearsal and composition process! After the rehearsal, the ensemble, staff, guests, and myself had a social outing where I got the opportunity to meet some of TCP’s biggest fans and learn about the reasons they have chosen to support the organization!

A GIF or YouTube link that sums up your experience with TCP?

Doggo Spin Sticker

If you were a cartoon character, who would you be?

Arnold from The Magic School Bus

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Our interns can experience every part of TCP’s organization, from visiting recording sessions to writing grants and everything in between. We accept interns almost year-round. If you’re interesting in learning more about an internship with Third Coast, please contact Sean Connors at [email protected].

Where are you from?

Jupiter, FL

What is one thing about yourself that you want everyone to know?

I don’t think there’s one thing in particular that I care for everyone to know about me. I’m nice and hardworking and I’ll be your friend even though I’m shy hahaha.

A link to something about you (website, video, post, etc.)

Here’s a link to a project I got to play on several years ago! Ft. Me and my friend Tim in the 3rd photo!

https://www.jacksonville.com/picture-gallery/news/2020/10/02/song-skink-playable/3597475001/

What are you up to these days?

Well, I’m on summer break between my two years of my MM at Northern Illinois University. I’ve been traveling, writing music, and visiting family.

When did you intern with TCP?

I interned with them from June 3rd – June 21st.

How did you connect with TCP?

I’ve been a big fan of TCP for years! Their album Paddle to the Sea was my first introduction to their awesome work. Since I found myself in Illinois for my masters degree, it only seemed natural to reach out to Sean and ask about an internship.

Did you gain anything from the internship that you’d like to share?

I’ve learned a lot about the various responsibilities of making a non-profit music organization function smoothly. From day to day tasks and bookkeeping, going on tour and recording sessions.

What else did you do while you were interning?

One of my favorite things I did while interning was help Colin as the “assistant producer” for a recording session the team was working on.

Did you leave a legacy or mark on the organization that you’re particularly proud of?

My one mark I’ve left that I’m proud of was cleaning up and vacuuming the left side of their rehearsal studio. It really needed some cleaning (they do far more practicing than spring cleaning in there hahaha), and it was my lowkey way of showing some appreciation. Hopefully it stays clean over there.

Favorite memory?

My favorite memory was going on tour with the team to Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin in Wisconsin. Sean and I went up in the truck and I had a lot of fun talking with him and sharing music. That night we met up with Rob and the guest house and enjoyed a Wisconsin cheese platter and some Spotted Cows!

A GIF or YouTube link that sums up your experience with TCP?

https://giphy.com/gifs/manwithavan-mwav-manwithavanmelbourne-Y3MHH3ThV88kTEt3K9

If you were a cartoon character, who would you be?

A funny or embarrassing story from the internship?

When the Ensemble, Nolan (a hired hand and cool dude), and I were hanging out in the Green room before their show at Taliesin we had Chinese take out for dinner and we were reading our fortune cookies. The fortunes predicted a less than stellar show, and reminded Sean to wear pants next time he’s warned about bugs, and it was just so relaxed and funny.

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Our interns can experience every part of TCP’s organization, from visiting recording sessions to writing grants and everything in between. We accept interns almost year-round. If you’re interesting in learning more about an internship with Third Coast, please contact Sean Connors at [email protected].

Where are you from?

I am originally from Rockford, Illinois.

What is one thing about yourself that you want everyone to know?

One thing that is important about me is that I am very passionate about food and if I didn’t pursue music as a career, I would love to be a food critic.

A link to something about you (website, video, post, etc.)

This is a percussion ensemble arrangement my friend Justin Leggero created of the Tigran Hamasyan tune “Vardavar” that I performed on and recorded! This song gets stuck in my head all of the time.

What are you up to these days?

Recently I completed my Master’s Degree in recording arts technology from NIU. I just moved to Chicago full time and I look forward to settling in and beginning my career here!

When did you intern with TCP?

I was an intern with TCP in Summer 2021!

How did you connect with TCP?

I had been a fan of the group for a couple of years (my favorite album is Fields) and I found an album that my undergraduate professor, Dr. Greg Beyer, had collaborated with TCP on as a performer- specifically the John Cage Works for Percussion vol. 2 album from 2012. As a lover of chamber ensembles and new music, I reached out to Sean through email about an internship largely because I wanted to see what it looked like to perform music full time as a career. 

Did you gain anything from the internship that you’d like to share?

When I was an intern with TCP, I feel like I had the opportunity to have all of the guys in the quartet, as well as the other TCP staff, be role models for myself since each person had a music degree that they utilized in a different way. This made me see that there are lots of opportunities for a career in music rather than the scope I had originally thought. Working with Colin to help prepare for a video recording in the TCP studio and watching him record audio for that session was inspiring to me as well. This was an instance when I realized that I enjoyed working “behind the scenes” equally as much as being in the spotlight as a performer and was a turning point in my decision to study recording arts for my graduate studies.

What else did you do while you were interning?

My role as an intern was a hybrid position, so I completed a significant amount of work remotely for TCP. I remember that I helped create a Soundcloud page for one of TCP’s educational projects called Making Waves. I also compiled demographic information of donors in a number of charts and graphs for TCP to present to its executive board for an annual meeting. There were lots of small office tasks that I was able to be helpful with as well, such as proofreading documents or helping organize spreadsheets of concert venues and contact information. When I was able to, I also helped move instruments and gear for performances within Chicago.

Did you leave a legacy or mark on the organization that you’re particularly proud of?

I believe that more than anything, I made the lives of each of the TCP members and staff a little bit easier by completing lots of the remote tasks that I did! Getting to know everyone at TCP was a great experience and the professional relationships that I got out of this internship made a lasting impact on myself.

Favorite memory?

My favorite memory would have to be sitting in and observing TCP in a recording session that they had at their studio space with Four/Ten Media. During this day I got to meet Evan Chapman, one of the founders of Four/Ten and a well known percussionist/composer that I admire very much. The kindness of this interaction meant a lot to me and I loved being a fly on the wall in the studio that day. 

A GIF or YouTube link that sums up your experience with TCP?

If you were a cartoon character, who would you be?

Personally, I really identify with Chowder.

A funny or embarrassing story from the internship?

It’s not really a funny story, but rather something I didn’t foresee myself doing for the internship. One of the days I attended in person I went on a Home Depot run to get some supplies to construct sandbags for the production set of a recording about to happen in the TCP studio space. I also helped adjust several of the lights in the studio space with Colin in preparation for this video shoot. Both of these things felt insignificant at the time but made a big difference to the overall production of this video shoot that I attended later on. 

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Our interns can experience every part of TCP’s organization, from visiting recording sessions to writing grants and everything in between. We accept interns almost year-round. If you’re interesting in learning more about an internship with Third Coast, please contact Sean Connors at [email protected].

Congratulations to Erik Hall, lili m. namazi and Alexander Noice, the composers selected for our 2024/25 Currents Creative Partnership! We will be collaborating with all three composers to create new works to be premiered by Third Coast next season. Read more about these outstanding music-makers below.

We received over 200 applications this year! It is so inspiring to see the creative and amazing work displayed by all of the proposals, and we know that our field will continue to be made better by the work of these composers! Thank you to everyone who submitted music and ideas this year.

Applications for the Currents Creative Partnership are reviewed each fall, and applications will open this summer. Click here for more information.

Erik Hall is a musician, composer, and record producer in southwest Michigan. He has recorded and performed solo, as In Tall Buildings, and with NOMO, Wild Belle, His Name Is Alive, and Lean Year, appearing at Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, Coachella, Pitchfork Music Festival, SXSW, WOMEX, Montreal Jazz Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, CONAN, and The Tonight Show. As a producer/engineer Erik has worked on records for Lean Year (Western Vinyl), Natalie Bergman (Third Man Records), Small Sur (Worried Songs), and Justin Walter (Kranky). He composed the score for the feature film The Night Clerk (2020) and contributed music to The Mountain (2019), which premiered worldwide at the Venice International Film Festival and in the US at Sundance. In 2020 Erik released his solo re-creation of Steve Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians, which won the 2021 Libera Award for Best Classical Record. He followed in 2023 with a multitracked reinterpretation of Simeon ten Holt’s Canto Ostinato. 

Click here to see Erik’s work and learn more.

lili m. namazi (b. 2007) is a composer interested in exploring queerness, divinity, and somatic sensation through their music. Among the ensembles they have written for are the International Contemporary Ensemble, ChamberQUEER, New York Youth Symphony, Da Capo Chamber Players, and the National Youth Orchestra-USA. lili has held fellowships with the National Youth Orchestra, Yellow Barn Young Artists Program, NPR’s From the Top, and Luna Composition Lab, where they were awarded the 2023 G. Schirmer Prize. They study anthropology and music composition at Bard College and Conservatory. 

Click here to see lili’s work and learn more.

Alexander Noice has received critical recognition for his work displayed in various configurations, including chamber ensembles, improvised ensembles, rock bands, and music for film. From 2008-2012, Alexander led the highly revered art rock/punk trio Falsetto Teeth, and in 2016, Noice released his first solo electronic album called “Music Made With Voices.” In 2014, Alexander started NOICE, a six-piece ensemble that seamlessly melds art rock, electronica, post-minimalism, and jazz. The ensemble is celebrated for electrifying live performances – “acrobatic in its execution and cinematic in scope.” Their 2019 debut album was met with critical acclaim by several media outlets internationally. 

Noice has recorded on over 40 albums and has performed throughout the world with many notable artists, including Charlie Haden, Wadada Leo Smith, Famoudou Don Moye, Greg Saunier, Vinny Golia, David Binney, Wild Up, and Dorian Wood, to name a few. He has performed his compositions and collaborated with other artists on stages from all corners of the musical landscape, including Walt Disney Concert Hall, Redcat, Blue Note Tokyo, the Troubadour, and the Hammer Museum, along with many festivals such as Sonar Tokyo, the Monterey Jazz Festival, Angel City Jazz Festival, Desert Daze Festival, and Green Umbrella at the LA Phil.

Click here to see Alexander’s work and learn more.

We are thrilled to announce that our album Perpetulum has been nominated for a GRAMMY® Award in the “Best Chamber Music / Small Ensemble Performance” category!

This is our second GRAMMY® Award nomination, following our first nomination and win in 2017 for Third Coast Percussion | Steve Reich. It’s an honor to be nominated alongside so many incredible musicians that we admire and respect.

Big thanks to the team that helped us put this album together: Jesse Lewis (producer, editing, mixing, mastering), Dan Nichols (engineer), Kyle Pyke (editing), Sonnenzimmer (album artwork), and the Orange Mountain Music label.

We are ever-grateful to Philip Glass and Gavin Bryars for writing such incredible music for us, and to all of the co-commissioners who made these works possible. This album holds extra-special significance to us as it also features music composed by three of our own ensemble members: Robert Dillon, Peter Martin, and David Skidmore.

Most of all, thanks to all of you for listening to and supporting TCP and this album.