From Grace, today’s guest blogger. “Demetrius Spaneas is a cultural diplomat at heart. A multi-wind instrumentalist, composer, conductor and recording artist, Demetrius has travelled the world, collaborating with local organizations to present lectures and concerts on American music and Jazz. In recent years, he has received grants from the U. S. Department of State and the Fulbright-Hays Program to present performances in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and throughout the Commonwealth of Independent States.  And thanks to various grants and music festivals, including Meet The Composer’s Global Connections, Demetrius has crisscrossed the globe as a cultural diplomat; Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Latvia, Bulgaria, Greece, Germany and China, to name a few.

Demetrius’ passion for creating cultural connections and international artistic dialogue has brought him to his most recent project – “Roots Music” – a new ensemble work commissioned by the Beijing Central Conservatory, incorporating an amazing blend of traditional Irish, Chinese, European classical and jazz traditions. Fittingly, as a 2011 Composer-in-Residence, Demetrius will spend his fall composing “Roots Music” at Flushing Town Hall, where he plans to take advantage of its important role as a culturally rich gathering place.  With the assistance of Flushing Town Hall’s staff, Demetrius plans to acquaint himself with the local Chinese schools, shops and restaurants to conduct research, get to know some local musicians, and access indigenous instruments and recordings not found elsewhere.

As with all of our composers-in-residence, Demetrius has numerous other musical projects and news coming this fall. So please check back often as we continue to spotlight Demetrius and the rest of our composers!”