Richard Danielpour

Richard Danielpour
Born (1956-01-28) January 28, 1956 (age 68)
New York City, US
Awards

Richard Danielpour (born January 28, 1956) is an American composer and academic, currently affiliated with the Curtis Institute of Music and the University of California, Los Angeles.

Early life

Danielpour was born in New York City of Persian Jewish descent and grew up in New York City and West Palm Beach, Florida.[1] He studied at Oberlin College and the New England Conservatory of Music, and later at the Juilliard School of Music, where he received a DMA in composition in 1986. His primary composition professors at Juilliard were Vincent Persichetti and Peter Mennin.[2]

Danielpour taught at the Manhattan School of Music from 1993 to 2017. He joined the faculty of Curtis Institute of Music in 1997.[3] He joined the faculty of the Herb Alpert School of Music of the University of California Los Angeles in 2017.

Music

In common with many other American composers of the post-war generation, Danielpour began his career in a serialist milieu, but rejected it in the late 1980s in favor of a more ecumenical and "humdrum" idiom. He cites the Beatles—along with John Adams, Christopher Rouse, and Joseph Schwantner—as influences on his more recent musical style. Danielpour's notable works include First Light (1988) for chamber orchestra, three symphonies (1985, 1986, and 1990), four piano concerti (1981, 1993, 2002 and 2009), the ballet Anima mundi (1995), and the opera Margaret Garner (2005).[4]

His students include Marcus Paus[5] and Wang Jie.[6]

Selected compositions

Operas

Ballets

Orchestral

Chamber

  • "String Quartet No. 1 – Requiem" (1983), for two violins, viola and cello
  • Piano Quintet (1988), for string quartet and piano
  • Urban Dances (Book 1) (1988), for brass quintet
  • Sonnets to Orpheus, Book 1 (1992), for soprano solo, flute, clarinet, horn, piano, percussion and string quintet
  • Songs of the Night (1993), for tenor and piano trio
  • String Quartet No. 2 – Shadow Dances (1993), for two violins, viola and cello
  • Urban Dances, Book 2 (1993), for brass quintet
  • Sonnets to Orpheus, Book 2 (1994), for baritone solo, flute, clarinet, horn, piano, percussion and string quintet
  • String Quartet No. 3 – Psalms of Sorrow (1994), for baritone solo and string quartet[2]
  • Fantasy Variations (1997), for cello and piano
  • Sweet Talk (1997), for mezzo-soprano, cello, double bass and piano
  • Feast of Fools – Concertino (1998), for bassoon and string quartet
  • A Child's Reliquary (2000), for piano trio
  • As Night Falls on Barjeantane (2000), for violin and piano
  • String Quartet No. 4 – Apparitions (2000), two violins, viola and cello
  • Portraits (2001), for mezzo-soprano, clarinet, violin, cello and piano
  • String Quartet No. 5 – In Search of "La Vita Nuova" (2004), for two violins, viola and cello
  • Troubadour's Feast (2005), for flute, clarinet, violin, viola, cello and piano
  • The Book of Hours (2006), for piano quartet
  • Benediction (2007), for two horns, two trumpets, three trombones and chimes
  • River of Light (2007), for violin & piano
  • Kaddish (2008), for violin solo & string septet[12]
  • Remembering Neda (2009), for flute, cello and piano
    • written for the Dolce Suono Ensemble, who premièred the work on October 22, 2010, at the Trinity Center for Urban Life in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
  • String Quartet No. 6 – Addio (2009)[13]
  • The Faces of Guernica (2009), for piano trio
  • String Quartet No. 7 – Psalms of Solace (2014), for two violins, viola, cello, and soprano soloist
  • String Quintet ('A Shattered Vessel'; 2019)[3]

Choral

  • Oratio Pauli (1982), for S.A.T.B. choir and string orchestra
  • Symphony No. 3 – Journey Without Distance (1990), for soprano solo, S.A.T.B. choir and orchestra
  • Canticle of Peace (1995), for baritone solo, S.A.T.B. choir & chamber orchestra
  • An American Requiem (2001), for mezzo-soprano, tenor, baritone soli, S.A.T.B. choir and orchestra
  • The Passion of Yeshua (2018), for soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor, 3 baritone soli, S.A.T.B. choir and orchestra

Vocal

  • Symphony No. 2 – Visions (1986), for soprano, tenor soli and orchestra
  • Sonnets to Orpheus, Book 1 (1992), for soprano solo and ensemble
  • Songs of the Night (1993), for tenor solo and piano trio
  • Sonnets to Orpheus, Book 2 (1994), for baritone solo and ensemble
  • String Quartet No. 3 – Psalms of Sorrow (1994), for baritone solo and string quartet
  • I Am Not Prey (1996), for soprano and piano duet
  • Elegies (1997), for mezzo-soprano, baritone soli and orchestra
  • Sweet Talk (1997), for mezzo-soprano solo and small ensemble
  • Spirits in the Well (1998), for treble solo and piano
  • Portraits (2001), for soprano solo and small ensemble
  • Songs of Solitude (2004), for baritone solo and orchestra
  • Four Arias from Margaret Garner (2005), for baritone and piano
  • 'He Is By', from Margaret Garner (2005), for soprano and piano
  • Three Arias, from "Margaret Garner" (2005), for mezzo-soprano and piano
  • Pastime (2006), for baritone solo and orchestra
  • Triptych (2006), for mezzo-soprano and orchestra
  • A Woman's Life (2007), for soprano and orchestra
  • Three Prayers (2007), for soprano solo and orchestra
  • Come Up from the Fields Father (2008) for baritone, viola and piano (text by Walt Whitman)[14]
  • Songs from an Old War (2009), for baritone and piano
  • ...Of Love and Longing, for mezzo-soprano and piano (2015)[15]
  • Canti Della Natura, for soprano, cello, and piano (texts by Antonio Vivaldi; 2019)[3]

Solo instrumental

  • Psalms (1985), for piano
  • Sonata (1986), for piano
  • The Enchanted Garden (Preludes, Book 1) (1992), for piano
  • Mardi Gras (1992), for piano
  • Elegy (2003), for piano
  • Three Preludes (2003), for piano
  • Piano Fantasy: "Wenn Ich Einmal Soll Schneiden" (2008), for piano
  • The Enchanted Garden (Preludes, Book 2) (2009), for piano

Sources

References

  1. ^ McCutchan, Ann (2003). The Muse that Sings: Composers Speak about the Creative Process. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195168129.
  2. ^ a b Allan Kozinn (February 21, 1996). "Composers Separated By Their Similarities". The New York Times. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c Lathan, Ryan (April 14, 2023). "Q&A with Composer Richard Danielpour (Part I)". Curtis Institute of Music. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  4. ^ Bernard Holland (May 9, 2005). "Giving New Voice to Former Slave's Tale of Sacrifice". The New York Times. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  5. ^ "Marcus Paus, composer," Meet the Artist, 1 November 2017
  6. ^ Wang Jie
  7. ^ Anthony Tommasini (September 13, 2017). "A Runaway Who Paid a High Price for Freedom". The New York Times. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  8. ^ Reid Sperisen (May 20, 2024). "New opera 'The Grand Hotel Tartarus' explores disease, desire in evocative score". Daily Bruin.
  9. ^ Allan Kozinn (June 15, 1989). "The Care and Feeding of the Composer at Yaddo". The New York Times. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  10. ^ Anthony Tommasini (August 10, 1997). "Again, a Quest for the Great American Symphony". The New York Times. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  11. ^ Bernard Holland (March 16, 2001). "Music Review: Modest Mideast Melodies Strike a Diplomatic Note". The New York Times. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  12. ^ Allan Kozinn (May 18, 2010). "A Blend of New Pieces and Old Suits a Sextet". The New York Times. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  13. ^ Steve Smith (September 9, 2011). "Trinity Church Calls; Composers Respond". The New York Times. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  14. ^ Steve Smith (March 4, 2012). "Double Feature: New Music With Old Soul". The New York Times. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  15. ^ Vivien Schweitzer (November 13, 2015). "Review: Isabel Leonard and Sharon Isbin in a Duet of Voice and Guitar". The New York Times. Retrieved March 29, 2024.