“This Project Encore Vol. 1 album is packed with inventive and outstandingly crisp tracks that feel lush and full-bodied, and the players both put their heart and passion into the performances each and every time…it’s all quite breathtaking and on point all the time.”

Recording Artists Guild (March 2023)

“this array of talented composers born between 1953 (Marianne Ploger) and 1996 (Zoe Cutler), all rising to the occasion in different but satisfying ways. I don’t imagine I will encounter a saxophone recital exhibiting as much imaginative fun for a long time. The recorded sound is exemplary.”

Huntley Dent FANFARE Magazine (June 2023)

“The pieces performed by McAllister, in tandem with the talented pianist Liz Ames, stand out for their melodic inventiveness and liveliness and rhythmic intensity. In most cases, the authors summoned here draw liberally from extra-cultured music - jazz primarily, but also funk, rock and even Balkan music -, mixing classical, contemporary and vernacular languages with imagination and consistency…a beautiful and exhilarating CD.”

Filippo Focosi Kathodik - Italy (May 2023)

“Timothy McAllister brings his inimitable, classical sax playing to the stunning piano playing of Liz Ames here, where both minimalism and modernism fill the Latin, jazz, funk and theater nods across these daring 14 tracks…A very unique listen that embraces abstract pop moments as well as rich moments of dramatic swells, McAllister and Ames create a highly atypical version of contemporary classical sounds that requires repeated listens.”

Take Effect (February 2023)

“…an extremely high level of musicianship and especially an incredibly dense interplay. What is astounding and only revealed once one reads the hype flyer is that the pieces are composed by just as many contemporary composers as there are tracks. Although styles move between aggressive and melodic, they strangely merge into a consistent whole.
Outstanding and really fun to listen to.”

Vital Weekly (November 2023)

“Intriguing conversant duets are delivered by Timothy McAllister on alto or soprano sax alongside pianist Liz Ames. The two create a wide spectrum of moods and colors, forming a graceful unison trail on “Painting With Knives”…The two jab like middleweights on the punchy “Get Up!” and are most jazzy on the bright “Obstacle Illusion”, but throughout the two work well with volleys, relays and responses. Modern sonatas.”

George W. Harris Jazz Weekly (October 2022)

“…immense excellence…while the compositions themselves were reason enough to find great enjoyment in the presentation, it was the way that the duo played their respective instruments that enamored me…wholly in tune with the music, unbridled joy and passion.”

Aaron Barrow The Daily Mississippian (3/24/24)

Project Encore

PROJECT ENCORE, featuring today’s most celebrated classical saxophonist Timothy McAllister and acclaimed pianist Liz Ames, was born from the idea that recital curation often relies too much on tradition and time-honored chestnuts while ignoring fresh, innovative and diverse voices. Alongside the duo’s conscious efforts to weave a wide array of influences into their playing, from modernism to minimalism or popular idioms including latin, jazz, funk, and musical theater, they believe it is increasingly crucial to foster partnerships with living composers representing a broad spectrum of styles and backgrounds.

From mechanical stutterings framing arguably the most famous pop sax solo in history to a crooning theater ballad; from elegiac music inspired by pandemic lockdowns to jubilant outbursts of renewal and hope, PROJECT ENCORE, VOLUME 1, is a channel-surfing mosaic of modern composition at its finest. McAllister notes, “there is a mission and a level of musical activism behind this album, and nothing can speak to the state and richness of concert music today like the saxophone.”

The collected works on this first volume, and the Ann Arbor-based duo’s third album since 2020, features the music of Nina Shekhar, Jennifer Jolley, Andre Myers, Zoe Cutler, Griffin Candey, Matthew Evan Taylor, Karalyn Schubring, Marianne Ploger, Chad “Sir Wick” Hughes, Jim Territo, Armando Bayolo, Corey Dundee, Andrés Eloy Rodriguez, and Gonzalo Garrido-Lecca.

Recordings

Timothy McAllister & Liz Ames: Project Encore, Vol. 1

From mechanical stutterings framing arguably the most famous pop sax solo in history to a crooning theater ballad; from elegiac music inspired by pandemic lockdowns to jubilant outbursts of renewal and hope, PROJECT ENCORE, VOLUME 1, is a channel-surfing mosaic of modern composition at its finest.

The collected works on this first volume features the music of Nina Shekhar, Jennifer Jolley, Andre Myers, Zoe Cutler, Griffin Candey, Matthew Evan Taylor, Karalyn Schubring, Marianne Ploger, Chad “Sir Wick” Hughes, Jim Territo, Armando Bayolo, Corey Dundee, Andrés Eloy Rodriguez, and Gonzalo Garrido-Lecca.

Links to all streaming platforms can be found HERE!

Release date September 16th, 2022
Producer Neuma Records
Catalog Number NEUMA165
More information

Video Highlights

Applause

“…immense excellence…while the compositions themselves were reason enough to find great enjoyment in the presentation, it was the way that the duo played their respective instruments that enamored me…wholly in tune with the music, unbridled joy and passion.”

Aaron Barrow The Daily Mississippian (3/24/24)

“This Project Encore Vol. 1 album is packed with inventive and outstandingly crisp tracks that feel lush and full-bodied, and the players both put their heart and passion into the performances each and every time…it’s all quite breathtaking and on point all the time.”

Recording Artists Guild (March 2023)

“this array of talented composers born between 1953 (Marianne Ploger) and 1996 (Zoe Cutler), all rising to the occasion in different but satisfying ways. I don’t imagine I will encounter a saxophone recital exhibiting as much imaginative fun for a long time. The recorded sound is exemplary.”

Huntley Dent FANFARE Magazine (June 2023)

“The pieces performed by McAllister, in tandem with the talented pianist Liz Ames, stand out for their melodic inventiveness and liveliness and rhythmic intensity. In most cases, the authors summoned here draw liberally from extra-cultured music - jazz primarily, but also funk, rock and even Balkan music -, mixing classical, contemporary and vernacular languages with imagination and consistency…a beautiful and exhilarating CD.”

Filippo Focosi Kathodik - Italy (May 2023)

“Timothy McAllister brings his inimitable, classical sax playing to the stunning piano playing of Liz Ames here, where both minimalism and modernism fill the Latin, jazz, funk and theater nods across these daring 14 tracks…A very unique listen that embraces abstract pop moments as well as rich moments of dramatic swells, McAllister and Ames create a highly atypical version of contemporary classical sounds that requires repeated listens.”

Take Effect (February 2023)

“…an extremely high level of musicianship and especially an incredibly dense interplay. What is astounding and only revealed once one reads the hype flyer is that the pieces are composed by just as many contemporary composers as there are tracks. Although styles move between aggressive and melodic, they strangely merge into a consistent whole.
Outstanding and really fun to listen to.”

Vital Weekly (November 2023)

“Intriguing conversant duets are delivered by Timothy McAllister on alto or soprano sax alongside pianist Liz Ames. The two create a wide spectrum of moods and colors, forming a graceful unison trail on “Painting With Knives”…The two jab like middleweights on the punchy “Get Up!” and are most jazzy on the bright “Obstacle Illusion”, but throughout the two work well with volleys, relays and responses. Modern sonatas.”

George W. Harris Jazz Weekly (October 2022)

Project Composers

Nina Shekhar
https://www.ninashekhar.com

Jennifer Jolley
https://www.jenniferjolley.com

Andre Myers
http://www.andremyers.com

Zoe Cutler
https://www.zoecutler.com

Griffin Candey
https://www.griffincandey.com

Matthew Evan Taylor
https://longy.edu/team/matthew-evan-taylor

Karalyn Schubring
https://www.karalynschubring.com

Marianne Ploger
https://www.theplogermethod.com

Chad “Sir Wick” Hughes
https://sirwickmusic.com

Jim Territo
https://jimterrito.com

Armando Bayolo
https://armandobayolo.com

Corey Dundee
http://www.coreydundee.com

Andrés Eloy Rodriguez
https://andreseloyrodriguez.wixsite.com/andreseloyrodriguez

Gonzalo Garrido-Lecca
https://www.gonzalogarrido-lecca.com

Liz Ames

Liz Ames

LIZ AMES is in great demand as a collaborative pianist deeply passionate about performing and working with instrumentalists, vocalists, and composers.

Recent international appearances include performances in Belgium, England, Spain, the World Saxophone Congresses in St. Andrews (Scotland) and Strasbourg (France), the 2008 Contemporary Music Festival in Lima (Peru), and at the 2011 & 2016 International Double Reed Society Conferences. Liz has served as piano coordinator and staff pianist for the North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conferences in Tempe, AZ, Urbana-Champaign, IL, and Lubbock,TX; and has been the United States Navy Band International Saxophone Symposium staff pianist since 2016.

While specializing in saxophone literature, Liz continues to pursue projects with a wide variety of instrumentalists and vocalists. She curated a series of concerts during the 2010-2011 season featuring her performances of the entire collection of 114 Songs by Charles Ives with eight singers in Phoenix, Arizona. Alongside her work as a performer, Dr. Ames is devoted to creating unique and accessible piano reductions using extended techniques. She has generated several published reductions including Henry Brant’s Concerto for Saxophone and Orchestra, Peter Schickele’s Concerto for Simply Grand Piano, and multiple concertos and oratorios by Steven Bryant, Joel Puckett, Don Grantham, David Biedenbender, and John Mackey. Her most recent undertaking is the reduction of Wynton Marsalis’s Tuba Concerto to be performed on recital tours with renowned tubist and dedicatee, Carol Jantsch.

Ames completed her doctorate in collaborative piano at the Herberger Institute School of Music at Arizona State University and is currently living in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where she serves on the collaborative piano staff at the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre, and Dance. Additionally, she serves as collaborative pianist for workshops and summer programs, including the Interlochen Center for the Arts, the MPulse Institutes at the University of Michigan, and the Orford Music Academy (Quebec, Canada).

She performs with musicians throughout the Midwest, including flutist Amy Porter, tubist David Zerkel, bassoonist Jeffrey Lyman, and her duo partner, three-time GRAMMY-winning saxophonist, Timothy McAllister. Additionally, she will appear as soloist in Stravinsky’s Piano Concerto with the Grand Rapids Symphony during their ’23-‘24 Season, and again with the orchestra in Francis Poulenc’s “Aubade” alongside the Grand Rapids Ballet in October 2024.

The McAllister/Ames duo released two, critically-acclaimed albums during 2020, including the collected works of British composer Andy Scott for NAXOS Records, as well as a disc of iconic saxophone repertoire by Albright, Denisov, Stucky, Mantovani and Augusta Read Thomas for the XAS Records (Symphonic) label. Their third album, Project Encore Vol.1, was released in September 2022 on Neuma Records featuring music by fourteen diverse composers from across the globe. The duo’s follow-up Project Encore, Vol.2 and an anthology of the complete works for saxophone and piano by award-winning composer Vincent Ho will be due out in the 2024-2025 season.

Pictures: Nick Zoulek