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AWS is a 20-member band committed to innovative performances and recordings of today's music.

Alarm Will Sound has established a reputation for performing demanding music with energetic virtuosity.

Their performances have been described as "equal parts exuberance, nonchalance, and virtuosity" by the London Financial Times and as "a triumph of ensemble playing" by the San Francisco Chronicle. The New York Times says Alarm Will Sound is "the future of classical music."

The versatility of Alarm Will Sound allows it to take on music from a wide variety of styles. Its repertoire ranges from European to American works, from the arch-modernist to the pop-influenced.

The group fosters close relationships with contemporary composers, premiering pieces by Steve Reich, David Lang, Anthony Gatto, Cenk Ergun, Aaron Jay Kernis, Michael Gordon, Augusta Read Thomas, Stefan Freund, and Wolfgang Rihm. Alarm Will Sound may be heard on three CDs.

The latest ("Acoustica" July, 2005 release) features acoustic arrangements of music by Aphex Twin. This unique project taps the diverse talents within the group, from the many composers who made arrangements of the original electronica tracks, to the experimental approaches developed by the performers. Transforming music written for computerized equipment into live performance is precisely the kind of original, genre-bending challenge Alarm Will Sound actively pursues.

Members of the ensemble began playing together while studying at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. With diverse experience in composition, improvisation, jazz and popular styles, early music, and world musics, they bring intelligence and a sense of adventure to all their performances.