ACCORDION PERFORMANCES
A classically trained accordionist, Manuela has performed across Europe, the United States, New Zealand and Australia, and in networked concerts with the UK, US, Canada and South Korea, focusing on the interpretation of works of New Music, as well as improvisation.
In 2000, Manuela won the First Prize of the Austrian Youth Master Classical Accordion Competition. Subsequently, she studied Classical Accordion at the University of Music and Dramatic Arts Graz in Austria, with accordionists Janne Rättyä, James Crabb, Geir Draugsvoll and Georg Schulz.
Dedicated to a performance practice characterized by great attention to the sonic and conceptual detail of each individual piece's sound world, Manuela seeks the close collaboration of the living composers of various generations whose work she performs.
Past concerts in improvisational settings include duet performances with Pauline Oliveros. Frequently performing in ensemble contexts, Manuela has introduced to a range of audiences on several continents new ensemble works with accordion, including the North American/US premiere of Georg Friedrich Haas' La profondeur, the UK premiere of Pauline Oliveros' Droniphonia, the Austrian premiere of Gerhard Stäbler's blütenlos, the world and UK premiere of Eric Lyon's Music for the MiSS and the Australian premiere of Pedro Rebelo's cipher.
WORLD PREMIERES and FIRST PERFORMANCES (selection)
Pauline Oliveros (acc) and Manuela Meier (acc) – DUO PERFORMANCE
for two accordions
Improvisation for two crowds
Centre for Excellence in the Creative and Performing Arts
Brian Friel Theatre, Belfast, UK
Pauline Oliveros (acc), Manuela Meier (acc)
work for ensemble
Droniphonia
Sonorities Festival of Contemporary Music – European CO-ME-DI-A project
(Cooperation and Mediation in Digital Arts)
Sonic Arts Research Centre (SARC)
Belfast, UK
Georg Friedrich Haas: La profondeur, US premiere
Isabel Mundry: Spiegel Bilder, world premiere of the version for sopr. sax and acc
authorized by and in attendance of the composer
Sonic Arts Research Centre (SARC), Belfast, UK
Eric Lyon: Music for the MiSS - Noise Concerto, for modular sound sculpture by Paul Stapleton
Sonic Arts Research Centre, Belfast, world premiere
„2819 – 1-3” for computer and electronically modified accordion, collaboration of Manuela Meier and Georg Holzmann
Gerhard Stäbler: Blütenlos, Austrian premiere
in attendance of composer
ICC - Irish Composers Collective, National Concert Hall, Dublin
world premieres of Irish composers' works for saxophone and accordion, National Concert Hall, Dublin, Ireland
Sonorities – Festival of Contemporary Music, Belfast, UK
Centre for Excellence in the Creative and Performing Arts (CETL), Belfast, UK
Vienna University of Music, Austria
Institute of Electronic Music and Acoustics, Graz, Austria
Networked performance: (pre-pandemic, in 2009) United Nations Headquarters, US
Networked performance: (pre-pandemic, in 2009) University of California San Diego, US
Networked performance: (pre-pandemic, in 2009) Banff Centre, Canada
Networked performance: (pre-pandemic, in 2009) Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, South Korea
Sarajevo City Theatre, Bosnia/Herzegovina
Tuzla Theatre, Bosnia/Herzegovina
University of Music and Dramatic Arts, Graz, Austria
Minoritensaal, Graz, Austria
Sonic Arts Research Centre (SARC) Belfast, UK
Networked performance (pre-pandemic, in 2009: Audio Research Lab (MARL), New York University (NYU)
Steinhardt School, New York University, US