Michael Drewes

Michael Drewes Contact Seller
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Address:
Dr. Michael Drewes
20200 W. Country Club Dr.
PH 14
Aventura, FL
USA
33180-1673
United States

Michael Drewes was born in Germany and moved with his family to Mexico City at age fourteen, where he lived for twenty-six years. His youthful interests centered on drawing, sculpting and designing buildings. He received his Bachelors degree in Architecture and his Masters in Art History from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, and his Ph. D. in Architectural History from the University of Kaiserslautern, Germany. Drewes became curious about music in his mid-teens and learned to play the cello in school at that time, with Dante Barzano, Paolo Salvi and Guillermo Helguera. It was his only formal music training. Most musical knowledge was self-taught, sometimes under the guidance of experts, such as Helmut Koch, Josefina Alvarez Ierena, Ana Isabel Berlin, Rudolf Ducke, Armando Zayas, Mario Kuri Aldana, Felipe Ramirez, Arturo Cisneros and Charlotte Kaminsky. As he started college, his mild interest became more intense, and he studied music theory, harmony and composing on his own. Musical ideas began to come to him, and he would write them down, sometimes with the aid of a neighbor's piano, and sometimes right from his head to paper - even symphonies - which he never heard, since orchestral facilities were not within his reach. He started his career with Mexico's Monuments Office, supervising restoration of church organs. He continued to compose music, and filled notebooks of unplayed works. In 1985 Drewes moved to Israel, inspiring him to create different and more modern sounds, although his signature style continued to be basic classical harmonies. After eleven years living in Jerusalem (1985-1996), where he earned his living as restoration expert at the archaeological dig in Beit She'an, he and his American wife, whom he met in Israel when she made aliyah, moved to Miami for family reasons. Musical ideas continued non-stop, and he went on to write them down. He dreams of being able to make his music live and breathe. Please note his articles on Mexican baroque pipe organs in English, in ''The Organ Yearbook,'' Vols. XIII (1982), XIV (1983), XVI (1985), XIX (1988), XXVII (1997) and XXVIII (1998/99), and in Spanish, in ''Anales del Instituto de Investigaciones Esteticas,'' Mexico, Vol. XIII, No. 49 (1979), Vol. XIII, No. 51 (1983), Vol. XIV, No. 54 (1984) and Vol. XV, No. 60 (1989). NOTE: From time to time I review my scores. When I discover a flaw, I resubmit the corrected score in question. I apologize for the inconvenience. Most of my works for string orchestra can also be performed by string quartet (omitting the double bass, of course).

Composer Woes (written on 24 August 2010) Frederic Chopin was smart, because he restricted himself to writing exclusively for his instrument, the piano, with the exception of his two piano concertos, his only orchestral works. This limitation turns out to be rather a virtue, especially since he was not only a good composer but an excellent performer, and so he could present his own works in a convincing manner to an audience, given that the piano of his time had already the same capacity of expression as the one we know in our day. We could say the same about Franz Liszt who also produced mostly for the piano even though he also crated a lot of orchestral works. We should take these two as an example for being a composer in these lousy times where the faucet is turned off for cultural and educational programs, and the powers that be are not willing to cough up the dough for putting your fancies into reality. If you compose, write for the keyboard, be it organ, harpsichord, piano or a Wurlitzer, a Fender Rhodes, Korg, Roland or a rock organ! Just compare prices: imagine what it would cost to hire a classical symphonic orchestra as used in Beethoven’s time, let alone any bigger ensembles! Can you pay the salary of fifty-six musicians plus conductor? Even a string quartet, a wind quintet or a piano trio is already no longer within one’s reach. It is cheaper to go with somebody playing your works on a keyboard, and a run-down bar pianist would gladly do the job after being treated to some Campari, Amaretto di Saronno, Cointreau, Henessy VSOP, Glinfiddich, Mezcal, Tequila Sour or any other of these beverages, or a mixture thereof, and his interpretations may result quite faithful and convincing. Since I myself am rather poor and awkward as a performer, I depend on others for getting my music awakened from its slumber, but if you are great at playing a keyboard instrument, go for it! Because it offers you the possibilities of exploring your works in their full sonority, since you can play several voices at the same time, which is not possible with any other instrument. For the reasons described above I always provide piano reductions along with my orchestral works in order to have a more economical alternative at hand for getting them performed (which so far did not materialize either for the time being).

Score catalogue

Post Vivaldiana No. 6 (Keyboard Reduction) - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Post Vivaldiana No. 2 (Keyboard Reduction) - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Post Vivaldiana No. 2 (Keyboard Reduction) - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Post-Vivaldiana No. 3 (Keyboard Reduction) - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Post-Vivaldiana No. 3 (Keyboard Reduction) - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Post Vivaldiana No. 7 (1st & 2nd Movements) - Solo Solo Violoncello + piano
Post Vivaldiana No. 6 (Keyboard Reduction) - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Post Vivaldiana No. 7 (1st & 2nd Movements) - Solo Solo Violoncello + piano
Complicompositio III (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
Complicompositio III (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
COMPLICOMPOSITIO II - Solo Solo Violin + piano
COMPLICOMPOSITIO II - Solo Solo Violin + piano
COMPLICOMPOSITIO IV: Une grande melée - Solo instrument (Piano)
German Christmas Carols for Violoncello - Solo instrument (Solo Violoncello)
German Christmas Carols for Violin - Solo instrument (Solo Violin)
German Christmas Charols for Viola - Solo instrument (Solo Viola)
German Christmas Carols for Violin - Solo instrument (Solo Violin)
German Christmas Charols for Viola - Solo instrument (Solo Viola)
Miserere mei Deus (50. Psalm) - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
German Christmas Carols for Violoncello - Solo instrument (Solo Violoncello)
Miserere mei Deus (50. Psalm) - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden - Choir + keyboard
With Diana’s Violin - Solo Solo Violin + piano
Symphony No. 1, Original Version - Solo Solo Violoncello + piano
Cellostücke (Cello Pieces) - Solo Solo Violoncello + piano
Symphony No. 1, Original Version - Solo Solo Violoncello + piano
Musique en rondeau - Solo Solo Violin + piano
Rondino per il Violoncello - Solo Solo Violoncello + piano
Sonata for Viola and Piano in F Major - Solo Solo Viola + piano
Sonata for Violin and Piano in C Major - Solo Solo Violin + piano
Cellostücke (Cello Pieces) - Solo Solo Violoncello + piano
Musique en rondeau - Solo Solo Violin + piano
With Diana’s Violin - Solo Solo Violin + piano
Rondino per il Violoncello - Solo Solo Violoncello + piano
Sonata for Viola and Piano in F Major - Solo Solo Viola + piano
Sonata for Violin and Piano in C Major - Solo Solo Violin + piano
Two Pieces for Viola and Piano - Solo Solo Viola + piano
Hungarian Dances - Solo Solo Violin + piano
Barocke Spielerei - Solo Solo Viola + piano
Praeludium in festo inthronisationis episcopi - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
Slavischer Walzer - Solo instrument (Piano)
Sonata en G Major (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
Slavischer Walzer - Solo instrument (Piano)
Sonata en G Major (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
String Quartet No. 1 (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
String Quartet No. 1 (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
The Melancholy (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
Music for the Organs of the Cathedral of Mexico City - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
Prelude and Fugue for Organ - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
The Melancholy (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
Dreams on 9 July 2010 (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
Organ Prelude - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
Aliyah - Original Version for Piano - Solo instrument (Piano)
Prelude and Fugue for Organ - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
Trauermusik für Orgel [Funeral Music for Organ] - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
Praeludium in festo inthronisationis episcopi - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
Trauermusik für Orgel [Funeral Music for Organ] - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
Music for the Organs of the Cathedral of Mexico City - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
Organ Prelude - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals])
Dreams on 9 July 2010 (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
Aliyah - Original Version for Piano - Solo instrument (Piano)
Wspomnenie ze Polski II - Solo instrument (Piano)
Margie’s Little Piano Album - Solo instrument (Piano)
La valse d’une nuit (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
Le grand potpourri (Piano Reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
?????? Irini - Version for Piano - Solo instrument (Piano)
Langsamer Satz - Klavierauszug - Solo instrument (Piano)
Militärmarsch II - Klavierauszug - Solo instrument (Piano)
Militärmarsch I - Klavierauszug - Solo instrument (Piano)
Mexicanada - Large mixed ensemble
Mexicanada - Large mixed ensemble
The Joyful Windquintet - Clarinet choir
Schuldenobergrenze - Debt Ceiling - Large mixed ensemble
Estoy dispuesta - Large mixed ensemble
La vida es un tango - Large mixed ensemble
The Joyful Windquintet - Clarinet choir
La vida es un tango - Large mixed ensemble
Estoy dispuesta - Large mixed ensemble
La vida es un tango, para bandoneón - Solo instrument (Accordion)
La vida es un tango, para bandoneón - Solo instrument (Accordion)
Oh, oh, White One - Large mixed ensemble
Tango Anselmo Windhausen - String orchestra
Tango Anselmo Windhausen - Solo instrument (Piano)
Scherzo aus Symphonie Nr. 1 - Large mixed ensemble
When the Sea Levels rise - Voice + keyboard
El Xibalba, piano reduction - Solo instrument (Piano)
A Study in Minimalism (Piano reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
A Study in Minimalism (Piano reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
El Xibalba, piano reduction - Solo instrument (Piano)
Pezzo di musica - Solo instrument (Piano)
Pezzo di musica - Solo instrument (Piano)
A Study in Minimalism (Piano reduction) - Solo instrument (Piano)
The Melancholy - Orchestra
Sonata in G Major - String orchestra
Melancholy - String orchestra
Mexikanischer Walzer (Mexican Waltz) - Solo instrument (Piano)
Autodiálogos - Orchestra
Le grand potpourri - Orchestra
Canto de Solidaridad - Choir + keyboard
Ach, die lieben Vögelein - Choir + keyboard
Ach, die lieben Vögelein - Choir + keyboard
Canto de Solidaridad - Choir + keyboard
Ach, die lieben Vögelein - Choir + keyboard
Drinking Song (Trinklied) - Choir + keyboard
????? ????? - Choir
A Better Cat - Choir
Piece for Violin Solo - Solo instrument (Solo Violin)
Piece for Viola Solo - Solo instrument (Solo Viola)
Piece for Violoncello Solo - Solo instrument (Solo Violoncello)
Barcarole - Duet of Solo Violoncellos
Piece for Violin Solo - Solo instrument (Solo Violin)
Piece for Violoncello Solo - Solo instrument (Solo Violoncello)
Piece for Viola Solo - Solo instrument (Solo Viola)
Barcarole - Duet of Solo Violoncellos
Piece for Two Violoncellos - Duet of Solo Violoncellos
Piece for Two Violoncellos - Duet of Solo Violoncellos
German Christmas Carols for Violin - Solo instrument (Solo Violin)
German Christmas Carols for Violoncello - Solo instrument (Solo Violoncello)
German Christmas Charols for Viola - Solo instrument (Solo Viola)
Sonata para el trombón - Solo Tenor Trombone + piano
El Xibalba, piano reduction - Solo instrument (Piano)
Pezzo di musica - Solo instrument (Piano)
A Better Cat - Choir (barbershop)
Willkommen und Abschied - Choir + keyboard
Schuldenobergrenze - Debt Ceiling - Solo Mezzo-soprano + piano
Verfall - Voice + keyboard
Verfall - Solo Tenor + piano
Willkommen und Abschied - Voice + keyboard
Verfall - Orchestra + solo Baritone
Fighter’s Song - String quartet
Willkommen und Abschied - Orchestra + solo Tenor
Abschied in Wimpfen - Solo Solo Tenor + piano
Amselsang - Choir + keyboard
Auferstanden aus Ruinen - Choir + keyboard
Authentic Prussian Military March - Duet of Synthesizers
Autodiálogos II - Orchestra
Cabrona - String trio
Cabrona - Score and parts - Voice + keyboard
Clavier-Übung: Praeludia et fugae - Fuga - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Clavier-Übung: Praeludium et fuga I - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Clavier-Übung: Praeludium et fuga II - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Clavier-Übung: Praeludium et fuga III - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Clavier-Übung: Praeludium et fuga IV - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Complicompositio I - Choir + orchestra
Das Mondlicht tröpfelt durch die Zweige - Orchestra + solo Solo Tenor
Depressosinfonia - Orchestra
Die Berge knien am Uferrand - Solo instrument (Harpsichord)
Dos valses mexicanos para arpa - Solo instrument (Harp)
Els segadors - Choir + keyboard
Harass me, embarrass me - Voice + keyboard
He ginga ginga gó - Salsa band
He ginga ginga gó - Choir + keyboard
Imaginäre Filmmusik - Solo instrument (Piano)
In die Fremde, in die Weite - Choir + keyboard
In die Fremde, in die Weite - Voice + keyboard
Kleine Unterhaltungssymphonie - Solo instrument (Piano)
Kleiner mexikanischer Walzer - String orchestra
Lernfuge, nach Felipe Ramírez (1935-2015) - Solo instrument (Organ [manuals with pedals])
Lobgesang - Choir + keyboard
Lobgesang - Choir + orchestra
Marcha militar mexicana - Military band
Marcia militare nuova - Military band
Marcia militare nuova per il pianoforte - Solo instrument (Piano)
NOVUS TINNITUS - Orchestra
ORPHEUS - Duet
Pensieri per quintetto - Wind quintet
Pequeño vals mexicano - Wind quartet
Pequeño vals mexicano en sol menor - Solo instrument (Marimba [grand staff])
PLEASURE CITY - Salsa band
PLEASURE CITY - Voice + keyboard
PLEASURE CITY - Choir + keyboard
Sinfonia ebraica - Orchestra
Solemn March - Score and parts - Concert band / wind band
Sonata bestiale - Large mixed ensemble
Sonata in Sol maggiore - String orchestra
SONATE Nr. 1 - String trio
Stromauf - Voice + keyboard
Tango Vals - String quartet
Trauerwalzer - String quartet
Un nouveau valse mexicain - String quartet
Walzer - Solo instrument (Piano)
Walzer - Saxophone quartet
Weihnachtswalzer - Solo instrument (Harp)
When the Sea Levels rise - Choir + keyboard
With Diana's Violin - Orchestra + solo Solo Violin
??? ????, ? ? ??????? - Score and parts - Orchestra + solo Solo Tenor
??? ??????? - Choir + keyboard
??? ??????? - Choir + orchestra