Sing every day.Rabbi Akiva, by way of Michael Cherlin’s Music’s Making, and the title of Joey’s 2026 piece for solo guitar
- Now
- (2026), an open score for any and all performers. Perform it, record it, and add your voice to the map.
- Next
- For Cecilia, for violino grande, commissioned by Cecilia Gelland
- Listen
About
Joey Crane is a composer, cellist and guitarist based in Minneapolis, and for more than a decade one of the people making new music happen in the Twin Cities. His catalogue runs from solo voice and guitar to string quartets, choirs, film scores, interactive installations and open scores anyone can perform.
His music has been played by loadbang, Ensemble Dal Niente, United Instruments of Lucilin, Tak Ensemble, Artemis Vocal Ensemble, Duo Gelland, andPlay, Kyle Hutchins and many others, in Minnesota, Chicago, Luxembourg, Kyiv and Pavia.
From 2012 to 2025 he was Executive Director and Co-Artistic Director of 113 Composers Collective in Saint Paul, and from 2019 to 2024 he produced and directed the Twin Cities New Music Festival. He also directs for the stage, including Samuel Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape and That Time.
He studied composition at the University of Missouri–Kansas City and the University of Louisville, and earned his Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota, where he later lectured in post-tonal theory. He teaches composition and theory privately.
What drives the work
We all search for ecstatic experiences…
A poem by Joey, and the idea underneath everything he makes.
An open score · 2026
PIG
For any and all performers
Three instructions that anyone can perform, anywhere, alone or together, with no training at all. PIG carries no copyright and is meant to be shared.
Joey has also turned PIG into a community workshop. He invites his community, trained or not, to perform it together: to snort, to call the pigs, and to fake-laugh at one another until someone gives in.
Along the way, the workshop asks an old question: what is music? Is a snort music? A call to the pigs? A laugh you are trying not to laugh? PIG leaves the answer open. Maybe it depends less on the sound itself than on how we listen, and on who we make it with.
So this is an open call. If you have played PIG at one of Joey’s workshops, or simply found it here, perform it, record it, and send it in. Every recording becomes a light on the map below, and together they make one long performance of PIG around the world.
PIG
For any and all performers
A
SNORT
Snort repeatedly. Initially quiet and sparse with long moments of silence.
B
SOOIE
Sing: Sooie repeatedly. Any pitches, low then high, short then long.
C
LAUGH
Try to make someone laugh by pretending to laugh. Do not laugh.
Voices of PIG
Perform it, then send it in
- Read the score above, or print the PDF. Perform it however you like: alone, with friends, a class, a choir, a crowd.
- Record it with whatever you have. A phone’s voice memo is perfect.
- Send it here with your name and where you are in the world. Every recording is listened to before it joins the map.
Thank you. Your PIG is on its way to Minneapolis.
Every recording is listened to. Once yours has been, it will join the map.
A community workshop
PIG workshop
The slides from Joey’s PIG workshop, where his community came together to listen, to perform PIG, to record everyday sounds and to arrange their own versions of it. Click through them here.
On a phone, turn it sideways or tap Full screen for a bigger view.
Recent work
Onomato-po-Polsku
The Dream Songs Project (Alyssa Anderson and Joe Spoelstra) performing Onomato-po-Polsku in April of 2026.
PIG
An open score of simple instructions that anyone can perform, whatever their training. It carries no copyright and is meant to be shared. Joey’s own fixed-media realization is built from recordings he made in his Minneapolis neighborhood.
Sing Every Day
Written in near-daily sittings through the summer of 2026, and offered as a thank-you to his teachers Michael Cherlin and James Dillon. The recording on this site is Joey’s own.
Gorilla
Mournful tones and pops of silliness, written in a notation of Joey’s own design that leaves the singers room to play.
Works
Poems
A book of poems · 2024 · free to read
wordkugels
Twenty-nine poems, to be performed aloud with abandon. Open the book and choose a poem from the contents.
Another book
Joey has a second book of poems that isn’t online. If you’d like to read it, write and ask him for a copy.
Stage & community
- 2012–25113 Composers CollectiveExecutive Director & Co-Artistic Director · Saint PaulArtistic vision and programming, curated performances featuring emerging talent, production schedules and budgets, grant proposals and funder reports.
- 2019–24Twin Cities New Music FestivalProducer & directorProduced and directed the festival across six seasons.
- StageSamuel Beckett: Krapp’s Last Tape and That TimeStage director & co-producerRehearsals, production logistics and direction.
- StageTiffany Skidmore: The Golden AssStage director & co-producerProduction of a new music-theatre work.
- 2015–Freelance composer, stage director & co-producerMinneapolisScores for concerts, film and multimedia; collaborations with musicians, dancers, filmmakers and multimedia artists; work performed internationally.
Coming
The Nothing Cafe
A third space Joey is planning in his future home: somewhere for musicians to come and experiment, record and tinker together.
Teaching & study
Teaching philosophy
In Between Rigor and Risk
Music, for me, is intertwined with who I am, with my own story. From the age of 10 onwards, I have processed my world through music. As I’ve grown, my philosophy of music has evolved, which in turn influences my teaching style. It’s the ever-present wind of change, breathing new air into my lungs, impacting how I dream, write, teach, live music.
In the mid-2000s, Kansas City found a young, eager, bright-eyed Joey Crane attending the University of Missouri–Kansas City as an undergrad. I followed the music, and the aroma of good food, a few blocks farther from campus and discovered the world of jazz clubs. Go Chicken Go had real food and, even better for me, real jazz musicians, like Bobby Watson, who hung out and jammed. In these spaces, I learned, heard and felt the magic of improvising. It shaped me just as much as the next ten years of being immersed in my education.
Together, these pieces of my story have led me into a world of in-between: somewhere between an aesthetic and a praxial philosophy, somewhere between a classical conservatory tradition and an improvised jazz one. It shows up in how I teach. More than just holding space for the dialectic, I like to have students ask whether they dance or sing in this world between academic rigor and improvised risk.
I am a student-centered teacher. My goal in teaching is to help student composers discover their own unique voice. I want to encourage students to be themselves through the medium of music. Composing is an extremely personal endeavor, and each student has their own potential and goals; I am there to help facilitate that. Many students start off imitating the music of others; I am there to guide them beyond imitation. Regardless of genre, age, or cultural background, I want students to find in music composition a means of self-discovery.
We may end up talking about poetry, film, or visual art. I may help them use a DAW or Max/MSP. We can talk about orchestration and what instruments are capable of. We’ll talk about staging: what does the performance look like? Notation lives as an intermediary between composer and performer: a starting point, and something worth questioning. Then again, I lean into the idea that most things are worth questioning: why did Beethoven love a trill so much? Theory and ear training are how we start to answer questions like that: the conservatory’s tools for explaining what we hear, and the improviser’s ear for hearing it in the first place.
Drifting back into my own past with gratitude toward my mentors, I want to stand as a guide for others to grow past imitation, as the voice asking them to lean into themselves and their own voice, holding on to something between rigor and risk.
Teaching
- 2023Lecturer, University of MinnesotaPost-tonal Theory; Post-tonal Ear-TrainingMinneapolis
- 2017–18Guest LecturerFolwell Performing Arts MagnetMinneapolis
- 2016Guest LecturerAvalon Charter SchoolSaint Paul
- 2011–15Graduate Teacher, University of MinnesotaMusic Theory, Ear Training, Sight-Singing, MusicologyMinneapolis
- 2011–Private composition & music theoryLessons, classes and workshopsTaking students. Write to Joey
Education
- 2015Ph.D., Music CompositionUniversity of MinnesotaWith James Dillon
- 2011Master of Music, Music CompositionUniversity of LouisvilleLouisville, Kentucky
- 2009Bachelor of Music, Composition & TheoryUniversity of Missouri–Kansas CityKansas City, Missouri
Curriculum vitae
Joey Crane
Composer, educator, cellist and guitarist
Minneapolis, MN · crane.joey@gmail.com · joeycrane.com
Education
- 2015Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Music CompositionUniversity of MinnesotaDissertation: once white in shadow, for baritone and string quartet. Advisor: James Dillon
- 2011Master of Music (M.M.), Music CompositionUniversity of LouisvilleComposition with Steve Rouse and Krzysztof Wolek
- 2009Bachelor of Music (B.M.), Music Composition and Music TheoryUniversity of Missouri–Kansas CityComposition with James Mobberley, Chen Yi, Zhou Long and Paul Rudy
Teaching
College Teaching Experience
- 2023Lecturer, School of MusicUniversity of MinnesotaPost-tonal Theory; Post-tonal Ear Training
- 2011–2015Graduate Teacher, School of MusicUniversity of MinnesotaMusic Theory; Ear Training and Sight-Singing; Musicology
Private and Community Teaching
- 2011–presentPrivate Instructor, Composition and Music TheoryMinneapolisPrivate composition lessons, classes and workshops in music theory and composition
- 2017–2018Guest LecturerFolwell Performing Arts Magnet, MinneapolisGuided students as they wrote and notated their own pieces, presented in public concerts of student works
- 2016Guest LecturerAvalon Charter School
Residencies, Masterclasses and Workshops Organized
Organized through 113 Composers Collective, bringing visiting composers and ensembles to students and the public.
- 2016Composition seminar and masterclass with composer Michael PisaroUniversity of Minnesota and Studio Z
- 2016Duo Gelland residenciesPerformances and student workshopsUniversity of Minnesota Twin Cities, University of Minnesota Duluth, Anoka-Ramsey Community College, Avalon School, Valley View Middle School, Pratt Community School, Loveworks Academy for the Arts and Graham Place Senior Center
- 2017Colloquium with composer Anthony CheungUniversity of Minnesota
- 2017Extended Vocal Techniques WorkshopUniversity of Minnesota and Graham Place Senior Apartments
- 2017Audio circuit design workshop with Schuyler TsudaUniversity of Minnesota Regis Center for Art
- 2017Residency with Milana Zaric and Richard Barrett
- 2019Graphic notation workshops with TAK EnsembleStudio Z, Saint Paul
- 2019Masterclass with Acute TrioUniversity of Minnesota
- 2019California tourConcerts at UC Berkeley (CNMAT) and Stanford (CCRMA), and a residency with masterclass at San Diego State University
- 2021Composer to Composer: lecture and Q&A with Steven TakasugiCo-hosted with the American Composers Forum and the University of Minnesota
Music Technology
- SoftwareSibelius, Reaper, Audacity (primary); Max/MSP, Pro Tools; Adobe Creative Cloud
- SkillsComposition and production with digital audio workstations, notation, field recording, audio and video editing, interactive and live electronics, audio and video documentation of concerts
Electroacoustic, interactive and multimedia works
- 2026PIGFixed media realization built from the composer’s field recordings
- 2013A Horse Aquarium RetrospectiveMultimedia theatrical performance, 1 hourIn collaboration with Andrew Bergmann, Maja Radovanlija and Adam Zahller. Premiered at the University of Minnesota, 2013
- 2012CisternInteractive multimedia installation, University of MinnesotaIn collaboration with Tiffany Skidmore, Peter Stauduhar and Julie Kirihara
- 2011This is all the NOISE we makeInteractive electronic music installation, University of Louisville School of MusicIn collaboration with composer Adriana Guzman
- 2011CthreeluFor voice and live electronics, 10 minutesPremiered by Matteo Barnett, University of Louisville, 2011
- 2010Doctor Sinewave vs. Bluetooth the VampireFor live electronics with two operators, 10 minutesIn collaboration with composer Lexi Bass. Premiered at the University of Louisville, 2010
- 2009Ta-DadaFor fixed electronics, 7 minutesPremiered at the University of Louisville, 2010
Film and video
- 2021Film for Bethany Younge’s zeroTwin Cities New Music Festival, 2021
- 2021Video work in Removed From Air: A Video ShowLivestreamed by 113 Composers Collective, 2021
- 2020SomeFor performers, 20 minutesPremiered as a virtual performance by the Virginia Tech New Music Ensemble, 2020
- 2016How Bluebirds Are BornSection of film scoreDirected by Lexi Bass
- 2012Lock and KeyFilm score in collaboration with Lexi BassDirected by Lexi Bass
- 2012The AdytumFilm score in collaboration with Lexi BassDirected by Lexi Bass
Compositions
Recordings and scores are in .Recordings and scores at joeycrane.com. Electroacoustic, interactive, film and multimedia works are listed under Music Technology.
Ensemble works
- 2026PIGOpen score for any and all performers, flexible duration
- 2021she was full of g-dsFor baritone, clarinet, trumpet and trombone, 10–15 minutesPremiered by loadbang, Saint Paul, 2022. Commissioned by 113 Composers Collective
- 2020Pathic PieceFor string trio, 11–27 minutesPremiered by Chartreuse Trio, Saint Paul, 2022. Commissioned by 113 Composers Collective
- 2019The Custom of BeesFor saxophone trio, 30 minutesPremiered by Acute Trio, Minneapolis, 2019
- 2018My Cast-Iron LoverFor voice, flute, clarinet, violin and percussion, 15 minutesPremiered by TAK Ensemble, Saint Paul, 2019
- 2018GorillaFor four treble voices, 11 minutesPremiered by Artemis Vocal Ensemble, Chicago, 2018
- 2016How Bluebirds Are BornFor 16 voices, 14 minutesPremiered by The Gregorian Singers, Minneapolis, 2017
- 2015Drüben IIIFor flute, clarinet and cello, 10 minutesPremiered by James DeVoll, Patrick O’Keefe and Carlynn Savot, Studio Z, Saint Paul, 2015
- 2015Drüben IIFor soprano, harp and viola, 10 minutesPremiered by Ensemble Dal Niente, Studio Z, Saint Paul, 2015
- 2015Drüben IFor flute, clarinet and viola, 10 minutesPremiered by United Instruments of Lucilin, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg, 2015
- 2015Pinning a ShredFor flute, saxophone, vibraphone, violin and cello, 10 minutesPremiered at Studio Z, Saint Paul, 2015. Commissioned by Spitting Image Collective
- 2014once white in shadowFor baritone and string quartet, 30 minutesPremiered by Justin Spenner and the Bishop String Quartet, 2017. Ph.D. dissertation
- 2014That TimeFor wind instrument and two bowed-string instruments, 15 minutesPremiered by Andrew Bergmann, Benjamin Klein and the composer, University of Minnesota, 2014
- 2013…una goccia più grandeFor two violins, 9 minutesEuropean premiere by Ricochet Ensemble, Kyiv, Ukraine, 2013; U.S. premiere by Duo Gelland, University of Minnesota, 2013
- 2013once white in shadow: OvertureFor string quartet, 6 minutesPremiered by the Euridice Quartet, Pavia, Italy, 2013
- 2013A Dream SharedFor clarinet, piano and string orchestra, 20 minutesPremiered by members of the Park University Orchestra, Leawood, Kansas, 2013. Commissioned by Congregation Beth Torah
- 2010Things for StringsFor improvising string quartet, 10 minutesPremiered at the University of Louisville, 2010
- 2010I wrung my hands…For soprano, flute and guitar, 11 minutesPremiered by Caroline Knight-Drury, Amy Ensel and Stephen Mattingly, University of Louisville, 2010
- 2010Phthsss!For orchestra, 1 minuteRead by the University of Louisville Symphony Orchestra, 2010
- 2010I See YouFor improvising ensemble, 20 minutesPremiered at the University of Louisville, 2010
- 2010Either you are sick for centuries or hit by Easter candyFor improvising ensemble, 12 minutesPremiered at the University of Louisville, 2010
- 2009Of Silence and Slow TimeFor soprano, flute, clarinet, violin, cello and piano, 12 minutesPremiered by Brave New Works, Denison University, 2011
- 2008D.C.For string quartet, 11 minutesPremiered by the Brookside String Quartet, University of Missouri–Kansas City, 2009
Duos
- 2026onomato-po-PolskuFor voice and guitar, 15 minutesPremiered by Dream Songs Project, Minneapolis, 2026. Commissioned by The Dream Songs Project, with support from the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council
- 2023ShmirFor violin and viola, 16 minutesPremiered by andPlay, Saint Paul, 2023. Commissioned by 113 Composers Collective
- 2022Love LettersFor cornet and electric guitar, 30 minutesPremiered by Adam Zahller and Noah Ophoven Baldwin, 2023
- 2019Learning the TrickFor voice and sopranino saxophone, 28 minutesPremiered by Nina Dante and Kyle Hutchins, 2021
- 2017MauschelnFor soprano and saxophone, 10 minutesPremiered by Kyle Hutchins and Alyssa Anderson, Saint Paul, 2018
- 2016Scarlet MembraneFor violin duo, 9 minutesPremiered by Duo Gelland, Minneapolis, 2016
- 2012jewfaceFor voice and clarinet, 9 minutesPremiered by Adam Zahller and Jennifer Runck, Dreamland Arts, Saint Paul, 2012
- 2012spiel for two matchesFor two double basses, 7 minutesPremiered by Andrew Bergmann and Christopher Brown, Dreamland Arts, Saint Paul, 2012
Solo works
- 2026For CeciliaFor violino grandeCommissioned by Cecilia Gelland; premiere forthcoming
- 2026Sing Every DayFor solo guitar, 10 minutesPremiered by the composer, 2026
- 2023The EngrastrimythFor solo vocalizing saxophone, 50 minutesPremiered by Kyle Hutchins, 2023
- 2016Ghost PlayFor voice, 8 minutesPremiered by Nina Dante of Fonema Consort, Minneapolis, 2017
- 2016YOMFor voice, 12 minutesPremiered by Adam Zahller, Gamut Gallery, Minneapolis, 2016
- 2015ReibenFor solo cello, 7 minutesPremiered by the composer, Studio Z, Saint Paul, 2015
- 2015Misprision or QuodFor solo marimba, 5 minutesPremiered by Bill Solomon, University of Minnesota, 2015
- 2014agape.ClosedFor solo voice, 7 minutesPremiered by Kyle Hutchins, University of Minnesota, 2014
- 2014once white in shadow, version for solo voice12 minutesPremiered by Justin Spenner, University of Minnesota, 2014
- 2011Three WomenFor solo guitar, 7 minutesPremiered by Maja Radovanlija, Minneapolis Institute of Art, 2012
- 2009TimE FluxFor solo viola, 9 minutesPremiered by Timothy Eshing, University of Minnesota, 2013
Commissions, Publications and Festivals
Commissions
- Cecilia Gelland, For Cecilia (2026)
- The Dream Songs Project, onomato-po-Polsku (2026), supported by a grant from the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council
- 113 Composers Collective, Shmir (2023), she was full of g-ds (2021), Pathic Piece (2020), Some (2020)
- Spitting Image Collective, Pinning a Shred (2015)
- Congregation Beth Torah, A Dream Shared (2013)
Publications
- Solo Works for Voice (agape.Closed, Ghost Play, YOM), 113 Composers Collective Publishing, ISBN 978-0-9981248-3-4
- The Custom of Bees, for saxophone trio, 113 Composers Collective Publishing
- PIG, open score for any and all performers, shared freely without copyright, 2026
Festivals and Courses
- Lucilin Summer Course, Luxembourg
- highSCORE New Music Festival, Pavia, Italy
- ORIENT/OCCIDENT New Music Festival, Kyiv, Ukraine
- Tutti New Music Festival, Denison University
- Young Composer Program, Cleveland Institute of Music
Performance
Cellist, guitarist and improviser. Has performed works by John Zorn, Earle Brown, John Cage, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Toru Takemitsu and Helmut Lachenmann.
- Helmut Lachenmann, Pression for solo cello, Twin Cities New Music Festival, Studio Z, Saint Paul, 2018
- Cello and voice in premieres of Vessel and Connections, Twin Cities New Music Festival, 2021
- Premieres of his own Sing Every Day (guitar, 2026), Reiben (cello, 2015) and That Time (2014)
- Nouvelle musical Cousine, concert of improvised music with University of Minnesota faculty Alex Lubet, Guerino Mazzola and Scott Currie
- Founding member of improvisation ensembles Tin Foil Ensemble (Kansas City) and Bonecrusher (Louisville), and of 113 Composers Collective (Minneapolis)
Arts Leadership and Service
- 2012–2025Co-founder; Executive Director and Co-Artistic Director113 Composers Collective, Saint Paul
- Co-founded 113 as a University of Minnesota student group, then grew it into a professional new-music organization
- Presented more than 60 world premieres by local and international composers, including works chosen through an international call for scores
- Produced the Twin Cities New Music Festival, 2019–2024
- Built residencies, workshops and outreach with universities, community colleges, public and charter schools, and a senior community (see Residencies, Masterclasses and Workshops Organized)
- Led budget oversight, fundraising strategy and resource allocation; served on the development committee and wrote grant proposals and funder reports
- Managed production schedules, marketing, and audio and video documentation of concerts
- 2015–presentStage Director and Co-ProducerMinneapolis
- Samuel Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape and That Time
- Tiffany Skidmore’s opera The Golden Ass
- Rehearsal schedules and production logistics for concert and stage projects, with musicians, dancers, filmmakers and multimedia artists
Writing, Press and Interviews
Writing
- Contributing writer, Racket (Minneapolis), 2026
- wordkugels, poetry collection, 2024
Press and Interviews
- “Alumni Profile: 113 Composers Collective,” Tutti, University of Minnesota School of Music, 2019
- “Twin Cities’ 113 Composers Collective creates opportunities for experimental music makers,” YourClassical (Minnesota Public Radio), 2019
- Is This Music?!?! podcast, Episode 1, with Tiffany Skidmore, 2021
- “Who the Folk?! Joey Crane,” TC Jewfolk, 2015
Additional Professional Experience
- Sales Associate, Schmitt Music, Bloomington, 2026–present
- Beverage industry purchasing, vendor relations and retail leadership, Minneapolis area, 2014–present; Certified Cicerone Beer Server; Certified Cider Professional
References
Available on request.
Influences
Everything on the eye globe above. Select one to open it.
Life
Off the page, Joey is a liquor-industry professional, a writer, and a dog and frog parent. He reviews what he’s drinking on Instagram, with the odd detour into music and food, and writes about food and drink for Racket, the Twin Cities alt-weekly.
Contact
Commissions, performances, lessons, collaborations and score requests. PIG is free for anyone to perform: .
Minneapolis, Minnesota
PIG
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