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Composers participating in Sound Currents 1, February 25, 2003 Ben Houge Mike Min Geoff Ogle Korby Sears (l-r: Mike Min, Ben Houge, Korby Sears. Not pictured: Geoff Ogle. Photo by Daylon Walden. Waffle reception to follow concert.) Ben Houge (b. 1974) Ben Houge has been composing music in the Seattle area since 1996. He is a member of the Washington Composers Forum and serves the Seattle Composers Alliance as vice president. He has composed extensively for chorus, and his new work "Blossoms" will be premiered by the Northwest Girlchoir in May 2003. Ben has been composer-in-residence of the Cantorei Choir of Holy Trinity Lutheran Church since 1997, and in 1998 the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America commissioned him to compose settings of Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer, excerpts of which have been published by Augsburg Fortress. Since 1996, Ben has been a staff composer and sound designer for Sierra Entertainment, contributing audio to such interactive titles as Arcanum, King's Quest: Mask of Eternity, and Half-Life: Opposing Force. Ben obtained his Bachelor of Arts in Music Theory and Composition from St. Olaf College in 1996, studying with Peter Hamlin, and is currently pursuing a Master of Music degree in Composition at the University of Washington with Juan Pampin. Mike Min (b. 1972) In 1997, Mike Min was honorably discharged from the US Army. Between 1998 and 2000, he released three independent CD's: Popollution (1998), At Chateau Dunbar (1999, under the auspices of Halogen Orange), and The Aberdeen Transplant (2000). The releases were well received by the press, and Min supported them with frequent live performances. Outside of five years of private flute lessons and some audio engineering courses at the University of Washington, Min has had no formal music education. Since 2000, he has interned with composer Guy Whitmore and engineer Robert Lang, contributing music to several projects, including radio spots and video games. He has scored for the films True and Black Sheep of Chinatown, and, for a brief period until its demise, IgooTV employed Min as its resident composer. In 2001, Mike Min partnered with Guy Whitmore to found Music Design Network, LLC (MDN). MDN creates adaptive audio for interactive media, and Min serves as MDN's General Manager. Mike Min is a member of the Seattle Composers Alliance. Geoff Ogle (b. 1965) Geoff Ogle is the principal composer and arranger for GO Play Productions. He holds degrees from the University of Washington and the University of Miami, studying trombone with Stuart Dempster and composition with William O. Smith. Mr. Ogle recently published The Quartet Book: Chamber Music for Small Ensembles of Any Instrument Combination, which allows music educators to adapt the instrumentation for their ensembles using computer technology. He has composed for many Seattle-area artists, including works for large jazz ensemble and concert band, and in June 2002 presented a concert of his music in collaboration with the Pacific Chamber Ensemble. In the Port Townsend School District, he has been a music educator and a program manager for several of Centrum's music events. Currently, he teaches at Shoreline Community College where he is founder and director of the ConEd Art Ensemble. Mr. Ogle holds membership in ASCAP, IAJE, the Center for the Promotion of Contemporary Composers, the Washington Music Educators Association, the National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Conductors Guild; and he serves on the board of directors of the Seattle Composers Alliance. Korby Sears (b. 1969) Korby Sears attended the University of North Texas as a composition major, studying under Thomas Clark and Cindy McTee, with an instrumental concentration in organ performance. Korby has contributed music and sound design to projects in diverse media, including the films The Chasid Under the Bridge, The Break, and Zeno; the plays Private Lives and The Castle; and the interactive software titles Grandia-X and Home Study. As a performer, Korby has been principal contrabassist for the Sammamish Symphony, a pit orchestra member of the Peccadillo Players, and a freelance jazz pianist, accordionist, and contrabassist with various jazz ensembles in the Puget Sound region. As a journalist, Korby has contributed to the weekly alternative newspaper The Stranger and P-Form Magazine. Korby is a member of the Washington Composers Forum and serves the Seattle Composers Alliance as Associate Vice President, in addition to hosting and curating the SCA's Score Salon series. He is currently chief audio engineer for Worldlink Technologies.