Access Ensemble is a chamber music group that specializes in the performance of contemporary classical music. . We are committed to working with composers so that their music can be disseminated to as broad an audience as possible, and we do our best to give many performances of their works.
Our performances are enhanced by Access Ensemble member and video artist, Shawn Lawson, who live codes real time computer graphics for each piece.
The group was formed in 2014 with founding members Rocco Anthony Jerry – Accordion/Bayan, Eric Despard – Guitar and Michael Gilbert Ronstadt – Cello. Additional performers joined in 2018 with the group’s name changing from The Progression Ensemble to Access Ensemble.
Access Ensemble musicians include Rocco Anthony Jerry – Accordion/Bayan, Eric Despard – Guitar, Michael Gilbert Ronstadt – Cello, Shawn Lawson – Live-Coded Video, Emily Herder – Clarinet, Richard Udell – Guitar, Chelsea Snider-Katt – Vocals, and Jeff Marks – Guitar.
To date, we have premiered over 20 new works, and have collaborated with 12 composers from Norway, Austria and the United States.
New Works Written for and Premiered by Access Ensemble:
- Christopher Cook (US) “Spin Cycle”(2019)
- Peter Jarvis (US) “Bellows and Wind” (2019)
- Dale Marie Hoagland (US) “Deer” (2019)
- Christopher Cook (US) “Spectrum” (2018) @ 7 minutes
- Peter Jarvis (US) “Sotto Voce” (2018) @ 4 minutes
- Peter Jarvis (US) “Lament” (2018) @ 4 minutes
- Eric Despard (US) “Space Moving In/Space Moving Out” (2018) @ 6 minutes
- Bjorn Bolstad Skjelbred (Norway) “Before It Falls Apart” (2018) 5 minutes
- David Rothenberg (US) “One Day We’ll Know Why Whales Sing” (2018) @ 60 minutes
- Dale Marie Hoagland (US) “Triptych” (2018) @ 9 minutes
- Dale Marie Hoagland (US) “Rainbows” (2018) @ 3 minutes
- Michael Dilthey (US) “Sonata” (2018) @ 10 minutes
- Michael Dilthey (US) “Trio” (2017) @ 5 minutes
- Bjorn Bolstad Skjelbred (Norway) “The Thin Line” (2017) @ 7 minutes
- Conrad Kehn (US) “Soundtracks to Movies that Don’t Exist” (2017) @ 10 minutes
- Torstein Aagaard-Nilsen (Norway) “Musical Doodles II” (2016) @ 15 minutes
- Bjorn Bolstad Skjelbred (Norway) “as the wind behaves” (2016) @ 20 minutes
- Dan Cooper (US) “Lullaby” (arrangement for Progression Ensemble) (2018) @ 4 minutes
- Magnar Am (Norway) “On the Banks of the Eternal Second” (arrangement for The Progression Ensemble) (2014) @ 10 minutes
- Bjorn Bolstad Skjelbred (Norway) “ConVergEnce” (2013) @ 17 minutes
