Larry Austin
Larry Don Austin(September 12, 1930 – December 30, 2018) was an Americancomposernoted for hiselectronicandcomputer musicworks. He was a co-founder and editor of theavant-garde musicperiodicalSource: Music of the Avant Garde.[1]Austin gained additional international recognition when he realized a completion ofCharles Ives'sUniverse Symphony.[2]Austin served as the president of theInternational Computer Music Association(ICMA) from 1990 to 1994 and served on the board of directors of the ICMA from 1984 to 1988 and from 1990 to 1998.[3]
Early life
[edit]Austin was born inDuncan, Oklahoma.He received a bachelor's (Music Education, 1951) and master's degree (Music, 1952) fromUniversity of North Texas College of Music.[4]In 1955 he studied atMills College,and from 1955 to 1958 he engaged in graduate study at theUniversity of California, Berkeley,leaving to accept a faculty position at theUniversity of California, Davis.Austin studied with Canadian composerViolet Archerat theUniversity of North Texas,[5]French composerDarius MilhaudatMills College,[6]and with American composerAndrew Imbrieat theUniversity of California, Berkeley.[7]
Teaching career
[edit]Austin taught at the University of California, Davis from 1958 till 1972 rising from assistant professor to full professor. While at the University of California, Davis, he founded the improvisational New Music Ensemble. In 1972 he accepted a position at the University of South Florida, where he taught until 1978. In that year he returned to Texas, teaching at his alma mater, the University of North Texas, from 1978 until 1996 when he was namedprofessor emeritus.[8]His notable students includeWilliam Basinski,Dary John MizelleandRodney Waschka II.
Compositions
[edit]Austin received early recognition for his instrumental and orchestral works and of those pieces,Improvisations for Orchestra and Jazz Soloists,was performed and recorded by theNew York PhilharmonicunderLeonard Bernstein.[9]Other orchestral works of special note include Charles Ives'sUniverseSymphony, "as realized and completed by Larry Austin" (1974–93) for large orchestra,[10]andSinfonia Concertante: A Mozartean Episode[11](1986) for chamber orchestra and tape. Chamber works with particularly significant computer music/electro-acoustic music aspects includeAccidents[12]for electronically prepared piano (1967), written forDavid Tudor,Canadian Coastlines: Canonic Fractals for Musicians and Computer Band[13]for eight musicians and tape from 1981, andBluesAxfor saxophonist and tape (1995), which won the Magisterium Prize, at Bourges in 1996.[14]BluesAxhas been recorded bySteve Duke.[15] Later work includedJohn Explains...(2007) foroctophonic sound,[16]based on a recording of an interview withJohn Cage.John Explains...was premiered at the 2008 North Carolina Computer Music Festival.[17]At the CEMI Circles festival, Austin's 2013 piece,Suoni della Bellagio—Sounds and sights of Bellagio, July–August, 1998for video and two-channel tape was premiered.[18]
The noted criticTom Johnsonhas written of Austin's music, "His style is neither uptown nor downtown, nor is it minimal, eclectic, hypnotic, or European. But it works, it is strongly personal, and it has something to say in all these directions.... The real source of Austin's music, however, is clearly Charles Ives, who also liked musical symbols, enjoyed collaging them together as densely as he could, and never had much of a knack for prettiness."[19]
Austin said that "Exploring new concepts, new materials and their interaction is essential to my work as a composer."[8][dead link]
Partial discography
[edit]- Leonard Bernstein Conducts Music of Our Time.New York Philharmonic, Columbia Masterworks, MS6733, 1965.[20]
- Improvisations for Orchestra and Jazz Soloists
- Robert Floyd Plays New Piano Music by Hans Werner Henze and Larry Austin,Advance Records, FGR10S, 1970.[21]
- Piano Set in Open Style
- Piano Variations
- New Music for Woodwinds,Advance Records, FGR9S, 1974 (performed by Phil Rehfeldt, clarinet and Thomas Warburton, piano).[22]
- Current
- Larry Austin Hybrid Musics: Four Compositions,Canton, Texas:IRIDA Records0022, 1980.
- Maroon Bells
- Catalogo Voce
- Quadrants: Event/Complex No. 1
- Second Fantasy on Ives' Universe Symphony
- Volume 1, CDCM Computer Music Series.Baton Rouge: Centaur Records, Inc., (CRC 2029) 1988.[23]
- Sinfonia Concertante (chamber orchestra conducted by Thomas Clark)
- Sonata Concertante (performed by pianist Adam Wodicki)
- The Virtuoso in the Computer Age—I,Volume 10, CDCM Computer Music Series. Centaur Records, Inc., (CRC 2110) 1991.[24]
- Montage:Themes and Variations for Violin and Computer Music on Tape (1985)
- The Virtuoso in the Computer Age—III,Vol. 11, CDCM Computer Music Series, Baton Rouge: Centaur Records, 1993
- La Barbara: The Name/The Sounds/The Music
- A Chance Operation: The John Cage Tribute.New York: Koch International Classics (KIC-CD-7238) 1993.[25]
- art is self-alteration is Cage is...(1983/93), performed by Robert Black
- Charles Ives's Universe Symphony, as realized and completed by Larry Austin (1974–93).Baton Rouge: Centaur Records, CRC 2205, 1994.
- Charles Ives's Universe Symphony, as realized and completed by Larry Austin (1974–93)
- Composers in the Computer Age II.Baton Rouge: Centaur Records, CRC 2193, 1994.
- SoundPoemSet(1990–91), computer music on tape.
- Tárogató,New York: Romeo Records (7212), 2001. Esther Lamneck, performer.[26]
- Tárogató
- UNconventional Trumpet,Camas, Washington: Crystal Records, CD763, 2004.[27]
- Charley's Cornet
References
[edit]- ^Source.
- ^"IVES Universe Symphony Col Legno WWE1CD20074 [TH]: Classical CD Reviews- May 2004 MusicWeb(UK)".
- ^"Larry Austin".University of North Texas.Archived fromthe originalon 2019-07-11.Retrieved2018-11-03.
- ^http://www.googlesyndicatedsearch.com/u/unorthtexas?q=+larry+austin&hq=inurl%3Awww.unt.edu%2Fdevelopment&sa.x=0&sa.y=0[dead link]
- ^Clark, Thomas (1 January 1984). "Duality of Process and Drama in Larry Austin's Sonata Concertante".Perspectives of New Music.23(1): 112–125.doi:10.2307/832907.JSTOR832907.
- ^"Universities: Cow College Conversion".29 November 1963. Archived fromthe originalon November 6, 2012 – via www.time.com.
- ^"Miva Merchant: Fatal Error".Archived fromthe originalon 2011-07-16.
- ^ab"cdemusic.org".Archived fromthe originalon 2011-06-14.
- ^Music: Copland Plays at Philharmonic
- ^IVESUniverseSymphony etc [RB]: Classical CD Reviews- April 2001 MusicWeb(UK)
- ^Austin Larry, Clark Thomas, Hunt Jerry, Winsor Phil: CDCM Computer Music Series Vol 1 – Austin, Hunt, Clark, etc | EAN: 0789368051229 | Our price: 14.38 USD[permanent dead link]
- ^"UbuWeb Sound – Source – Music of the Avant-Garde".
- ^Clark, Thomas; Austin, Larry (1 January 1989). "Coasts: On the Creative Edge with Composer Larry Austin".Computer Music Journal.13(1): 21–35.doi:10.2307/3679852.JSTOR3679852.
- ^Institut International de Musique Electroacoustique – Collection "Cultures électroniques"Archived2007-09-16 at theWayback Machine
- ^Steve Duke – NIU – School of MusicArchivedFebruary 16, 2008, at theWayback Machine
- ^Clark, Thomas:Larry Austin: Life and Times of an Experimental Composer.Raleigh: Borik Press, 2012. p. 85.
- ^"Classical Voice of North Carolina".
- ^"schedule – Center for Experimental Music & Intermedia, UNT".Archived fromthe originalon 2014-10-25.
- ^"Larry Austin – Performances and ActivitiesArchived2007-11-22 at theWayback Machine"
- ^Kollecta – Item (Vinyl Record (music))[dead link]
- ^"Robert Floyd – Plays New Music By Hans Werner Henze – Larry Austin".Discogs.
- ^"Phillip Rehfeldt is Professor of Woodwind Instruments (".Archived fromthe originalon 2006-08-06.
- ^"CDCM Computer Music Series Vol 1 – Austin, Hunt, Clark, etc – Centaur – CEN 2029 – 044747202921".Archived fromthe originalon 2018-11-16.Retrieved2008-03-10.
- ^"Cdcm Computer Music Series Vol 10 – Virtuoso I... – Buy from ArkivMusic".[permanent dead link]
- ^Welcome To KOCH EntertainmentArchived2011-07-13 at theWayback Machine
- ^"Esther Lamneck – Tarogato CD Album".
- ^Amazon.com: UNconventional Trumpet:Larry Austin, Rule Beasley,Merrill Ellis,William P. Latham,Martin Mailman,Cindy McTee,Fisher Tull,Jason Baker, Mark Ford, Natalia Bolshakova, John Holt, Keith Johnson: Music
Further reading
[edit]- Zimmerman, Walter,Desert Plants – Conversations with 23 American Musicians,Berlin: Beginner Press in cooperation with Mode Records, 2020 (originally published in 1976 by A.R.C., Vancouver). The 2020 edition includes a CD featuring the original interview recordings with Larry Austin,Robert Ashley,Jim Burton,John Cage,Philip Corner,Morton Feldman,Philip Glass,Joan La Barbara,Garrett List,Alvin Lucier,John McGuire, Charles Morrow, J. B. Floyd (onConlon Nancarrow),Pauline Oliveros,Charlemagne Palestine,Ben Johnston(onHarry Partch),Steve Reich,David Rosenboom,Frederic Rzewski,Richard Teitelbaum,James Tenney,Christian Wolff,andLa Monte Young.
External links
[edit]- EMF Media: Larry Austin
- David Tudorand Larry Austin: A ConversationApril 3, 1989, Denton, Texas
- Art of the States: Larry Austin
- Robert Floyd's 1969 recording of Austin'sPiano VariationsonYouTube
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
- 1930 births
- 2018 deaths
- 20th-century classical composers
- 20th-century American composers
- 21st-century classical composers
- 21st-century American composers
- American male classical composers
- American classical composers
- Electroacoustic music composers
- American experimental composers
- Jazz-influenced classical composers
- People from Duncan, Oklahoma
- Pupils of Darius Milhaud
- Texas classical music
- University of North Texas College of Music faculty
- University of North Texas College of Music alumni
- Centaur Records artists