ian james erickson
composer | craftsman | drummer
works
The Ground: A Visual Sonic Poem by Odd Savvy - drum set, electronics, pump organ, kolvorgan, invented instruments - 50:00 live accompaniment
fences and the bridge between - percussion quartet - 30:00+
\textures/ [listen] - drum set, keyboards, electronics, kolvorgan - 29:00 - made possible through the Dresher Ensemble Artist Residency
ïv - 2 viola, cello, bass - 3:30
improvisations - drum set, piano, and electronics - 9:00
untitled #13 - tuned glass bottles - 8:00
t ö l u r [listen] - piano, drum set, mixed electronics - 20:00
qdbp - string quartet, drum set, piano - 11:00+
-velte- - 3 soprano, 3 alto, 3 tenor, 3 bass - 7:45
f i e l d - chamber orchestra - 8:10
water dance [listen] - keyboards, drum set, percussion - 8:00 - commissioned by Azaria R. Baggett for Missouri State University
ygdræl - 4 percussionists, 4 cellos, piano - 9:30
an interchangeable collection for string quartet [listen] - string quartet - 33:00
elsewhere - soprano, 2 alto, tenor, piano, bass, drum set, celesta - 10:30
…ooOlso… - orchestra + optional choir - 25:00
Ͼgk - 3 viola, 3 cello, 2 double bass, piano, small pump organ - 23:30
ełhń - 2 violas, cello, bass, piano - 6:50
æth - string quartet - 3:30
waiting for… - orchestra - 22:00
hvild - piano, bass, drum set - 5:30
three sketches for piano - piano - 10:00
untitled #2 - 3 violin, 3 viola, 3 cello, 3 bass - 1:30+
untitled #1 - 2 viola, 2 cello, bass, piano - 1:50
.(orǵ). - organ - 8:00
two [listen] - piano, violin - 2:10
lágt [listen] - 3 trombones, bass trombone - 5:30
friðsælum [listen] - piano, bass, drum set - 7:11
cognition [listen] - piano, bass, drum set - 8:30
ten sketches for piano [listen] - piano - 22:00
einveru - string orchestra - 13:45
ivan - 2 violin, viola, 2 cello, bass, celesta, piano - 3:33
untitled #4 - mixed electronics - 1:25
untitled #0 - piano and e-bows - 10:30
Ian Erickson is a composer, musician, and craftsman based in Berkeley, California.
Ian’s work typically aims to explore polyphonic textures through the use of complex rhythms and dense harmonies.
As a composer Ian has worked with the Sirius Quartet and PARMA Recordings. In 2020 he was selected for the USF International New Music Consortium, and in 2021 released his first solo album, t ö l u r, consisting of works written for piano, drum set, and mixed electronics. In 2024 he will perform for the Sirius Quartet’s Progressive Chamber Music Festival in New York City, as well as compose and perform for Odd Savvy’s The Ground.
A recipient of a 2023 Dresher Ensemble Artist Residency, Ian designed and built an original instrument called a kolvorgan. The residency culminated in writing and recording an album titled \textures/. The album was released in 2024 and is comprised of solo works performed on drum set, keyboard, electronics, and his kolvorgan.
For the 2023-2024 season, Ian was selected by the JACK Quartet for their Studio Program. The ensemble is slated to record his piece an interchangeable collection for string quartet.
In the Bay Area Ian has worked as a dance accompanist for The University of California Berkeley, as a freelance musician at The Berkeley Playhouse, and as a regular studio assistant for Paul Dresher.
Originally from southwest Missouri, he is a graduate of Missouri State University, and holds two Bachelor of Arts degrees in Music Composition and Jazz Studies with an emphasis in drum set performance. Ian has also obtained formal instruction from the Port Townsend School of Woodworking.