John Aylward’s opera film “Oblivion” wins Best Musical Film at Cannes World Film Festival

Stratis Minakakis, music director and conductor

EarRelevant: “Boston-based composer and librettist John Aylward’s chamber opera film Oblivion has won Best Musical Film at this year’s Cannes World Film Festival, marking its first major international recognition.

The 70-minute one-act work, inspired by Dante’s Purgatorio, was produced by Ravenser Odd Productions with independent filmmaker Graham Swon as co-producer. Directed by Laine Rettmer with cinematography by Alice Millar, the film stars Ty Boque, Nina Guo, Lukas Pappenfuscline, and Cailin Marcel Manson.”

Credits:

The Bound Man / The King: Lukas Papenfusscline, tenor
The Hunter: Cailin Marcel Manson, baritone
First Wanderer: Tyler Boque, baritone
Second Wanderer: Nina Guo, soprano

Laura Williamson, viola
Issei Herr, cello
Greg Chudzik, contrabass
Daniel Lippel, electric guitar
John Aylward, electronics
Tianyi Wang, electronic sound design assistant
Stratis Minakakis, music director & conductor

Lowell Etudes on WUSF's Modern Notebook

Lowell Etudes was featured on the June 29th, 2025 episode of Modern Notebook with Tyler Kline (hour two, final selection).

Hour 1

  • Water Dance: III. Very lightly, like a harp by Karen Tanaka

  • Brian Dozier Brown’s Left Wanting

  • Seesaw by Karl Mitze

  • Miriama Young’s Wood Wide Web II

  • String Quartet No. 12, "Her Charms Invited" by Ian Wilson

  • Minoo Dixon’s A Whale's Cry

  • la flor más linda by Gilda Lyons

Hour 2

  • Gabriela Ortiz’s Mambo Ninón

  • Double Concerto for Oboe, Violin and Orchestra by Thierry Escaich

  • Stratis Minakakis’s Lowell Etudes – Three Etchings on Solitude

Album Release feat. For Felipe M

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We are excited to share the recording of For Felipe M, written for and in collaboration with Don-Paul Kahl on solo baritone saxophone. This work is featured on Don-Paul’s album Go Within and is available for purchase here.

For more info about the work, including program notes, visit here: https://www.stratisminakakis.info/for-felipe-m