Adjunct Professor of Piano Jeffrey Biegel might be adding to his Grammy trophy case after “Dreams of the Fallen” from the album A Dream So Bright: Choral Music of Jake Runestad was nominated for Best Choral Performance. Part piano concerto and part choral symphony, “Dreams of the Fallen” was commissioned by Biegel and a consortium of five orchestras from around the country. The powerful piece of music explores a soldier’s emotional response to the experience of war using texts written by Iraq War veteran and award-winning poet Brian Turner. Biegel has created more than 25 commissioning projects spanning 25 years and also performed in the Grammy-winning recording for Best Classical Compendium in 2018 for Kenneth Fuchs’s Piano Concerto. With November being National Veterans and Military Families Month, this Grammy nod means a little bit more to him and everyone involved. Jeffrey Biegel sits at the piano and works with Jake Runestad. “Dreams of the Fallen” is one of two works on Runestad’s “A Dream So Bright: Choral Music of Runestad” album that Biegel performed on. The second, “Earth Symphony,” depicts the future of the planet through text written by Todd Boss. Biegel explained the project actually dates back to 2011 when Runestad’s appeared at the stage of Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis after Biegel’s rehearsal of William Bolcom’s “Prometheus” for piano, orchestra and chorus. It took a decade to find the best fit for the first recordings. True Concord Voices and Orchestra in Tucson brought in the finest voices in the country together to perform and record. “Jake revealed himself as a profound composer of choral music, adding orchestra and piano to his writings when we met nearly a decade ago. Few composers excel at all three,” said Biegel. “Within weeks, be called me and shared information about people he knew well who had served in the military. He wanted to create a relevant work reflecting PTSD, focusing on veterans returning from their military duties. “He brought in Brian Turner with his powerful poems about war and what he lived through during his return. I also interviewed veterans to probe into their mindsets as I had to portray the returning veteran at the piano. To be part of such a powerful project that was inspired by such a talented person who also served our country so valiantly is a tremendous honor,” Biegel said. “Dreams of the Fallen” is one of two works on Runestad’s A Dream So Bright: Choral Music of Runestad album that Biegel performed on. The second, “Earth Symphony,” depicts the future of the planet through text written by Todd Boss. You can listen to “Dreams of the Fallen” here.
