Whistlegraph
Intensive

I am seeking $10,000 for a Whistlegraph composition and performance intensive. A whistlegraph is a drawing performed through singing, gesture, and poetry. I want sustained time to write new material, practice it aloud and by hand, and develop it into a live program. The proposed four-week intensive includes paid guest sessions to explore how the work changes when performed with others. It will lead to a public performance in Los Angeles, with selected scores and recordings shared freely afterward. The grant pays primarily for composition, rehearsal, performance, and the space to do this work.

Working plan

The proposed project comprises four weeks of composition and rehearsal in August 2027, followed by a public performance in Los Angeles in September. Jeffrey Alan Scudder leads the intensive, with paid development and performance calls for two guest performers. Guest performers and venue are to be confirmed.

Goal and innovation

I want to develop the relation between a drawn gesture and a sung phrase: how they repeat, vary, and join into longer compositions. I compose at the board, drawing and singing, recording a take, listening, revising the marks or phrasing, and performing it again.

The intensive gives this process sustained time. In paid guest sessions, I will explore what another performer learns through demonstration, what needs a score or instruction, and what their interpretation brings to the composition. The program's length and number of pieces will follow the work.

Whistlegraph makes the drawing of a score part of its performance. The audience sees the marks take shape as it hears the voice. This project develops the compositional possibilities of that relationship, both in individual works and across a live program.

Impacted communities

The intensive supports my work as a composer and pays guest performers for development and performance time. The proposed free public performance will bring the new work to Los Angeles audiences interested in experimental music, drawing, and performance.

A whistlegraph can be approached by watching and listening to a demonstration, without first reading staff notation. Sharing selected scores and recordings will give artists, teachers, and ensembles elsewhere material to learn from and perform.

In seeking a venue, I will prioritize an accessible entrance and clear views of the drawing. Guest performers and a host have not yet been confirmed.

Impact and assessment

I will assess the intensive through the compositions it produces and their development in rehearsal and performance. Sketches and working recordings will let me compare earlier and later versions, including changes to phrasing, drawn gestures, and transitions between works.

Guest sessions will help me hear and see what changes when the material is performed with others. I will use those rehearsals to revise individual pieces and assemble the live program.

The public performance will bring the compositions before an audience. The final report will include the program, attendance, selected examples of revisions, reflections on the rehearsal and performance process, and links to the published scores and recordings. Documentation will focus on consenting performers.

Marketing and promotion

Once the date and venue are confirmed, I will publish an event page with access information and a short whistlegraph example. I will share selected rehearsal excerpts and the event announcement through Whistlegraph's existing channels and whistlegraph.org.

I will seek a Los Angeles host with an experimental-music or performance audience and ask local artist and music networks to circulate the free event. Afterward, I will publish selected scores and recordings on whistlegraph.org. The Paul R. Judy Center will be credited in event information and published materials.

Funding utilization

Of the $10,000 request, $5,000 pays for 20 days of my composition, rehearsal, and performance work at $250 per day. The proposed budget allocates $2,000 for two guest performers at four calls each; $1,200 for eight days of rehearsal and performance space; $1,000 for recording and editing; $300 for drawing materials; and $500 for preparing scores for publication.

These are planning estimates. Existing tools and the website will support the project without a separate cash charge. Expenses total $10,000, with no ticket revenue or additional grant required to balance the budget. Artist fees are gross amounts; food, travel, and lodging are not included.

Long-term sustainability

The intensive will produce compositions I can continue to rehearse and perform. Selected scores, demonstration recordings, and short performance instructions will be freely available on whistlegraph.org. Collaborators will be credited, with permissions for reuse agreed before publication.

The work uses voice, drawing materials, and a surface, keeping the material requirements for future performances modest. The resulting repertoire can support later performances, teaching, and commissions. I will retain sketches and working recordings so that future composition can build on this period of practice.

Budget

Budget figures are estimates. Each guest performer is budgeted for three development/rehearsal calls and one performance call. Twenty lead-artist days cover composition, rehearsal, and presentation.

No food, travel, lodging, equipment purchase or ticket income is included. Existing tools and website use carry no cash charge and no imputed value in this budget. Artist fees are gross amounts.

Payment timing: the funder pays 50% on acceptance and 50% after the completion report. Interim funding of up to $5,000 may be required; the source is not yet confirmed.

Schedule

Prior work

Prior practice: Whistlegraph began in 2019; the trio formed in 2020. Rhizome commissioned The Longest Whistlegraph Ever (so far) in 2021; it premiered in 2022. These are artistic precedents, not bookings or planning milestones for this intensive.

This proposal: application preparation began September 19, 2026. The composition and performance intensive was defined on September 30, 2026.

• The Longest Whistlegraph Ever (so far), 22-minute performance
• Rhizome commission: score and composition process
• Whistlegraph repertoire
• Rhizome workshop documentation