New Music Mosaic (NMM) selected Brown University PhD candidate James May as one of six composers for their Call for Collaborators 2024. James and his fellow artists will each write works for saxophone and viola to be premiered by Re:duo, NMM's inaugural ensemble-in-residence. These collaborations will include a professional level studio recording provided by NMM. Congratulations and best of luck, James!

James May is a composer, improviser, teacher, and writer. His work explores unfurling, fragile spaces, generating unpredictable systems in which performers can dwell. He combines approaches such as improvisation environments, live electronics, notated scores, field recordings, extended vocal technique, and text, often inspired by the natural world or other art forms—especially film photography and literature. James is a member of Versipel New Music (New Orleans), has published writing in Sound American and RTÉ Culture, and was a 2024 Ucross Artist in Residence. He has collaborated on performances and recordings with Versipel, Apply Triangle, Hypercube, Chamber Choir Ireland and Paul Hillier, Birdfoot Festival, New Music on the Bayou, Stephanie Lamprea, Will Yager, Jamie Monck, the San Francisco Choral Artists, and Longleash. James was one of 12 recipients of the 2018-19 George J. Mitchell Scholarship, funding an MA in Experimental Sound Practice at University College Cork; prior, he earned an MM in Composition from the University of Louisville, and a BMus in Theory & Composition and a BA in English from The College of Wooster.

RE:duo (“Reply Duo”) engages audiences with innovative programming that blurs the lines between artistic disciplines. Consisting of saxophonist, Wilson Poffenberger, and violist, Elsie Bae Han, the duo formed following an interdisciplinary collaboration exploring the intersection between sound and movement. RE:duo has since expanded its repertory to include works that feature theater, improvisation, movement, speech, as well as other performative elements. Both duo members founded and hold executive positions with New Music Mosaic, a new music collective dedicated to the dissemination of resources to artists. Through New Music Mosaic, RE:duo curates a series of concerts across the U.S. as a part of their biennial open call for scores initiative. Recognized nationally and internationally, RE:duo has performed most recently at conferences and institutions such as the International Saxophone Symposium, the Cortona Sessions for New Music, North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference, Valdosta State University, Georgia State University, the University of North Texas, and the Boston Conservatory at Berklee.