The Nomad Ensemble, curated by Eric Sewell has become a season staple! As part of the Presidential Chamber and World Music Series the ensembles features top-tier musicians from around New Mexico and the region. This concert, titled by Sewell The Long Breath, presents pieces for flute, violin, viola, and piano in various groupings, each half ending with the full quartet. This 'modular' ensemble concept permits programming works for instrumental combinations that do not have large independent repertoires and, so, tend to be marginalized through no fault of their prodigious creative and expressive merit. Among the truly engaging pieces here are three fantastic works by women–Mel Bonis, Tatiana Nikolayeva, and Ester Mägi.

Eric Sewell, Violin/Curator, holds degrees in Violin Performance and Musicology from the University of Alabama and Columbia University, and is an alumnus of the Alabama School of Fine Arts. His primary instructors were J. Patrick Rafferty, violin; Jeffrey Milarsky, conducting; Stephen Peles, composition. He has performed in orchestras across New Mexico and is the Assistant Principal Second Violinist of the El Paso Symphony Orchestra.

While in Alabama, Eric performed regularly throughout the Southeast appearing with numerous regional orchestras, and as a concerto soloist and chamber musician. During that time he performed at festivals of contemporary music across the country; collaborated with local composers on premieres of their works; and spent two summers at the Brevard Music Center as a Repertory Training Fellow. In 2001, he completed a concert tour of South Korea which included live broadcasts on radio and television.

Eric lives in Socorro, and as a result, has put together a variety of unique concerts in this community, bringing together some of NM's finest Chamber musicians. In 2020, he co-organized a concert with Steel Pan virtuoso Mike Schwebke, forming a project ensemble +PAN Quartet, featuring contemporary international works re-arranged for steel pan, violin, cello and piano, plus one commission for this concert.

As an academic, Eric received a grant to research the musics of Harrison Birtwistle and Rebecca Saunders and has written on topics from serialism and temporality to gender and avant-rock. He continues to curate a series of community concerts in Socorro and Magdalena featuring music of the last 100 years. Highlights include Stockhausen’s complete Zodiac and an extemporaneous accompaniment to silent films by Maya Deren.

Eric is also a paper sculptor, with a handful of commissions and a solo exhibition under his belt. He enjoys hiking and occasionally runs triathlons. His violin, The Traveler, was made for him by Anne Cole.