Ethan T. Parcell is a composer, artist and educator based in Chicago. His work explores ideas of smallness, hospitality, and union, and is realized primarily though composition and drawing. His compositions have been performed throughout the US and Canada by various soloists, ensembles, and youth organizations.
A passionate educator and advocate for young people, Parcell has been a teaching artist with Sistema Ravinia, The Olive Tree Arts Network's Poetry Pals, New Music School, and many other Chicago institutions. He is the Elgin Youth Symphony Orchestra's first ever composer-in-residence, where he has developed a large body of experimental music for young musicians.
He is an active performer in experimental music and theatre, and is the founder of both the opera ensemble Focus Group LLC and the comedic ragtime group The Duck Brain Anniversary Band. Parcell appears on dozens of recordings as a percussionist, clarinetist, guitarist and singer, both as a collaborator and leader.
His handwriting, iterative drawings, and opera libretti have been exhibited in group shows in the US, Malta, and Mexico, and published in three literary magazines. Parcell is a two-time resident of Hewnoaks Artist Colony, and recipient of support from Pivot Arts and 3Arts Chicago. He received his BM in Composition from the Boston Conservatory under Andy Vores, Curtis Hughes, and Jan Swafford.
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