American art song
Encyclopedia
The composition of art song
in America began slowly in the Colonial and Federal periods, expanded greatly in the 19th century, and has become a distinguished and highly regarded addition to the classical music repertoire in the 20th and 21st centuries.
Francis Hopkinson
(1737-1791), Philadelphia native and signer of the Declaration of Independence, is usually considered the first important American song composer. His most famous song is "My Days Have been so Wondrous Free", and his Seven Songs for the Harpsichord were composed in 1788 and dedicated to George Washington
.
Other 18th Century American Song Composers
(1826-64) emerged as one of the best known American composers of songs. While many of his vocal pieces were written for Minstrel shows, the simple but effective melodies of his "songs for the hearth and home" are widely popular, often mistaken for American folksongs.
By the end of the 19th century, serious American composers were travelling to European countries to study, especially with German and French composition teachers, and they gained a thorough understanding of Romantic style, including an understanding of the Lieder tradition. American songs written between 1870 and 1910 are often dismissed as sounding too "derivative", although the compositional craft shown in these works is quite high.
Other 19th Century American Song Composers
(1874-1954) composed songs in a variety of styles, including both traditional and experimental sounds, and self-published his important collection 114 Songs. Other publications of American song, such as those in the The Wa-Wan Press
editions presented works by less-known American composers.
By the end of the 20th century, several composers emerged as the leaders of American art song composition, especially Aaron Copland
(1900-1990), Samuel Barber
(1910-1981), and Ned Rorem
(b. 1923).
Other 20th century American Art Song composers
(b. 1956), Daron Hagen
(b.1961), Jake Heggie
(b. 1961), and John Musto (b.1954), are establishing themselves as the next generation of leading American art song composers.
Active American Art Song composers
Art song
An art song is a vocal music composition, usually written for one voice with piano or orchestral accompaniment. By extension, the term "art song" is used to refer to the genre of such songs....
in America began slowly in the Colonial and Federal periods, expanded greatly in the 19th century, and has become a distinguished and highly regarded addition to the classical music repertoire in the 20th and 21st centuries.
18th Century American Art Song
Francis Hopkinson
Francis Hopkinson , an American author, was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence as a delegate from New Jersey. He later served as a federal judge in Pennsylvania...
(1737-1791), Philadelphia native and signer of the Declaration of Independence, is usually considered the first important American song composer. His most famous song is "My Days Have been so Wondrous Free", and his Seven Songs for the Harpsichord were composed in 1788 and dedicated to George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
.
Other 18th Century American Song Composers
- Peter Von Hagen (1750-1803), Dutch born
- Alexander ReinagleAlexander ReinagleAlexander Robert Reinagle was an English-born American composer, organist, and theater musician...
(c.1750-1809) - Benjamin CarrBenjamin CarrBenjamin Carr was an American composer, singer, teacher, and music publisher. Born in London, he studied organ with Charles Wesley and composition with Samuel Arnold. In 1793 he traveled to Philadelphia with a stage company, and a year later went with the same company to New York, where he...
(1768-1831), English born - Gottlieb GraupnerGottlieb GraupnerJohann Christian Gottlieb Graupner was a musician, composer, educator and publisher. Born in Hanover, Germany, he played oboe in Joseph Haydn's orchestra in London...
(1767-1836), German born, arrived in the U.S. in 1795 - Oliver ShawOliver ShawOliver Shaw , was one of the first American composers.Shaw was born at Newport, Rhode Island. A childhood accident and later yellow fever caused him to go totally blind. He studied with organist John Berkenhead and later with Gottlieb Graupner...
(1779-1848)
19th Century American Art Song
In the 19th century, many Americans composed songs for amateur musicians to sing at home (usually called parlor songs). In the middle of the century Stephen FosterStephen Foster
Stephen Collins Foster , known as the "father of American music", was the pre-eminent songwriter in the United States of the 19th century...
(1826-64) emerged as one of the best known American composers of songs. While many of his vocal pieces were written for Minstrel shows, the simple but effective melodies of his "songs for the hearth and home" are widely popular, often mistaken for American folksongs.
By the end of the 19th century, serious American composers were travelling to European countries to study, especially with German and French composition teachers, and they gained a thorough understanding of Romantic style, including an understanding of the Lieder tradition. American songs written between 1870 and 1910 are often dismissed as sounding too "derivative", although the compositional craft shown in these works is quite high.
Other 19th Century American Song Composers
- John Hill HewittJohn Hill HewittJohn Hill Hewitt was an American songwriter, playwright, and poet. He is best known for his songs about the American South, including "A Minstrel's Return from the War", "The Soldier's Farewell", "The Stonewall Quickstep", and "Somebody's Darling"...
(1801-1890), composed songs about the Civil War - Francis BoottFrancis Boott (composer)Francis Boott was an American classical music composer of art songs and works for chorus.-Biography:...
(1813-1904) - Daniel Decatur EmmettDan EmmettDaniel Decatur "Dan" Emmett was an American songwriter and entertainer, founder of the first troupe of the blackface minstrel tradition.-Biography:...
(1815-1904), composed the song "Dixie" - George Frederick RootGeorge Frederick RootGeorge Frederick Root was an American songwriter, who found particular fame during the American Civil War.-Biography:...
(1820-95), composed popular Civil War songs - Louis Moreau GottschalkLouis Moreau GottschalkLouis Moreau Gottschalk was an American composer and pianist, best known as a virtuoso performer of his own romantic piano works...
(1829-1869), piano virtuoso, also composed songs - Philip BlissPhilip BlissPhilip Paul Bliss was an American composer, conductor, bass-baritone writer of hymns and a Gospel singer. He wrote many well-known hymns, including Almost Persuaded, Hallelujah, What a Saviour!, Let the Lower Lights Be Burning, Wonderful Words of Life, and the tune for Horatio Spafford's It Is...
(1838-76) - Alfred Humphreys Pease (1838-82)
- Dudley BuckDudley BuckDudley Buck was an American composer, organist, and writer on music. He published several books, most notably the Dictionary of Musical Terms and Influence of the Organ in History, which was published in New York in 1882. He is best known today for his organ composition, Concert Variations on the...
(1839-1909), organist and composer of sacred songs - John Knowles PaineJohn Knowles PaineJohn Knowles Paine , was the first American-born composer to achieve fame for large-scale orchestral music.-Life:He studied organ, orchestration, and composition in Germany and toured in Europe for three years...
(1839-1906) - Arthur FooteArthur FooteArthur William Foote was an American classical composer, and a member of the "Boston Six." The other five were George Whitefield Chadwick, Amy Beach, Edward MacDowell, John Knowles Paine, and Horatio Parker.The modern tendency is to view Foote’s music as “Romantic” and “European” in light of the...
(1853-1937) - George Whitefield ChadwickGeorge Whitefield ChadwickGeorge Whitefield Chadwick was an American composer. Along with Horatio Parker, Amy Beach, Arthur Foote, and Edward MacDowell, he was a representative composer of what can be called the New England School of American composers of the late 19th century—the generation before Charles Ives...
(1854-1931) - Arthur BirdArthur BirdArthur Bird was an American composer, for many years resident in Germany. Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, he studied in Europe and spent a year at Weimar with Franz Liszt. He composed a symphony, Karnevalszene; three orchestral suites; some works for wind instruments alone; some music for the...
(1856-1923) - George Templeton StrongGeorge Strong (composer)George Templeton Strong was an American composer of classical music. His work has been described as Romantic. He moved to Vevey, Switzerland in 1897 and lived there and in Geneva for the remainder of his life...
(1856-1948) - Edgar Stillman KelleyEdgar Stillman KelleyEdgar Stillman Kelley was an American composer, conductor, teacher, and writer on music. He is sometimes associated with the Indianist movement in American music.-Life:...
(1857-1944) - Reginald De KovenReginald de KovenHenry Louis Reginald De Koven was an American music critic and prolific composer, particularly of comic operas.-Biography:...
(1859-1920), composed over 400 songs, known for "Oh promise me" - Charles Martin LoefflerCharles Martin LoefflerCharles Martin Loeffler was a German-born American violinist and composer.- Birthplace :Throughout his career Loeffler claimed to have been born in Mulhouse, Alsace and almost all music encyclopedias give this fabricated information. In his lifetime articles were published dissecting his...
(1861-1935) - Edward MacDowellEdward MacDowellEdward Alexander MacDowell was an American composer and pianist of the Romantic period. He was best known for his second piano concerto and his piano suites "Woodland Sketches", "Sea Pieces", and "New England Idylls". "Woodland Sketches" includes his most popular short piece, "To a Wild Rose"...
(1861-1908) - Carrie Jacobs Bond (1861-1946), wrote the wedding song "I love you truly"
- Ethelbert Woodbridge NevinEthelbert Woodbridge NevinEthelbert Woodbridge Nevin was an American pianist and composer.-Biography:Nevin was born in 1862, at Vineacre, on the banks of the Ohio River, in Edgeworth, Pennsylvania. There he spent the first sixteen years of his life, and received all his schooling, most of it from his father, Robert P...
(1862-1901) - Horatio ParkerHoratio ParkerHoratio William Parker was an American composer, organist and teacher. He was a central figure in musical life in New Haven, Connecticut in the late 19th century, and is best remembered as the teacher of Charles Ives....
(1863-1919)
20th Century American Art Song
American composers began to break from European traditions in the early part of the 20th century. Charles IvesCharles Ives
Charles Edward Ives was an American modernist composer. He is one of the first American composers of international renown, though Ives' music was largely ignored during his life, and many of his works went unperformed for many years. Over time, Ives came to be regarded as an "American Original"...
(1874-1954) composed songs in a variety of styles, including both traditional and experimental sounds, and self-published his important collection 114 Songs. Other publications of American song, such as those in the The Wa-Wan Press
Wa-Wan Press
The Wa-Wan Press was an American music publishing company founded in 1901 by composer Arthur Farwell in Newton Center, Massachusetts. The firm concentrated on publishing compositions by so-called Indianist movement members—composers who incorporated traditional Native American music into...
editions presented works by less-known American composers.
By the end of the 20th century, several composers emerged as the leaders of American art song composition, especially Aaron Copland
Aaron Copland
Aaron Copland was an American composer, composition teacher, writer, and later in his career a conductor of his own and other American music. He was instrumental in forging a distinctly American style of composition, and is often referred to as "the Dean of American Composers"...
(1900-1990), Samuel Barber
Samuel Barber
Samuel Osborne Barber II was an American composer of orchestral, opera, choral, and piano music. His Adagio for Strings is his most popular composition and widely considered a masterpiece of modern classical music...
(1910-1981), and Ned Rorem
Ned Rorem
Ned Rorem is a Pulitzer prize-winning American composer and diarist. He is best known and most praised for his song settings.-Life:...
(b. 1923).
- Sidney HomerSidney HomerSidney Homer was a classical composer, primarily of songs.Born in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, in 1864 , he was the youngest child of deaf parents. He attended Phillips Academy, Andover, in the Class of 1884, but did not attend college. He married contralto Louise Dilworth Beatty in 1895...
(1864-1953), husband of Louise HomerLouise HomerLouise Homer was an American operatic contralto who had an active international career in concert halls and opera houses from 1895 until her retirement in 1932. After a brief stint as a vaudeville entertainer in New England, she made her professional opera debut in France in 1898...
and uncle of Samuel BarberSamuel BarberSamuel Osborne Barber II was an American composer of orchestral, opera, choral, and piano music. His Adagio for Strings is his most popular composition and widely considered a masterpiece of modern classical music... - Jean Paul KürsteinerJean Paul KürsteinerJean Paul Kürsteiner was an American pianist, pedagogue, music publisher, and composer of piano pieces and art songs.-Life and musical career:...
(1864-1943), sacred and dramatic songs - Harry BurleighHarry BurleighHenry "Harry" Thacker Burleigh , a baritone, was an African American classical composer, arranger, and professional singer...
(1866-1949), student of Dvorák, spiritual arrangements and other songs - Amy BeachAmy BeachAmy Marcy Cheney Beach was an American composer and pianist. She was the first successful American female composer of large-scale art music. Most of her compositions and performances were under the name Mrs. H.H.A. Beach.-Early years:Beach was born Amy Marcy Cheney in Henniker, New Hampshire into...
(Mrs. H. H. A.) (1867-1944) - Howard BrockwayHoward BrockwayHoward A. Brockway was an American composer.Brockway was born on November 22, 1870 in Brooklyn, New York. He spent five years in Berlin, studying composition under Otis Bardwell Boise and piano under Heinrich Barth. Afterwards he returned to the U.S...
(1870-1951), wrote folksong arrangements with Loarine Wyman - Arthur FarwellArthur FarwellArthur Farwell was an American composer, conductor, educationalist, lithographer, esoteric savant, and music publisher.- Biography :Farwell was born in St Paul, Minnesota...
(1872-1952) - Oley SpeaksOley SpeaksOley Speaks was an accomplished composer and songwriter who was born in Canal Winchester, Franklin County, Ohio...
(1874-1948), famous for his setting of Kipling'sRudyard KiplingJoseph Rudyard Kipling was an English poet, short-story writer, and novelist chiefly remembered for his celebration of British imperialism, tales and poems of British soldiers in India, and his tales for children. Kipling received the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature...
"On the Road to Mandalay" - Henry Clough-Leighter (1874-1956)
- Pearl G. CurranPearl G. CurranPearl Gildersleeve Curran was an American librettist and composer of art songs and works for chorus.-Biography:...
(1875-1941), 40 songs - Frederic Ayres (1876-1926)
- John Alden CarpenterJohn Alden CarpenterJohn Alden Carpenter was an American composer.-Biography:Born in Park Ridge, Illinois, Carpenter was raised in a musical household. He was educated at Harvard University, where he studied under John Knowles Paine, and was president of the Glee Club and wrote music for the Hasty-Pudding Club...
(1876-1951) - Louis Campbell-Tipton (1877-1921)
- John Prindle Scott (1877-1932)
- Frank La ForgeFrank La ForgeFrank La Forge was an American pianist and composer and arranger of art songs.-Life and musical career:...
(1879-1953) - Ernest Bloch (1880-1959), Swiss-American
- Clara EdwardsClara Edwards (composer)Clara Edwards was an American singer, pianist, and composer of art songs. She also used the pseudonym Bernard Haigh.-Biography:...
(1880-1974), composed over 100 songs, many in anthologies - Charles Wakefield CadmanCharles Wakefield CadmanCharles Wakefield Cadman was an American composer.Cadman’s musical education, unlike that of most of his American contemporaries, was completely American. Born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, he began piano lessons at 13...
(1881-1946), Songs of the American Indian - Richard HagemanRichard HagemanRichard Hageman was a Dutch-born American conductor, pianist, composer, and actor.- Biography :...
(1882-1970) - Mary Howe (1882-1964)
- Bainbridge Crist (1883-1969)
- Charles Tomlinson Griffes (1884-1920)
- Wintter WattsWintter WattsWintter Watts was an American composer of art songs.-Life and musical career:...
(1884-1962), settings of Sara TeasdaleSara TeasdaleSara Teasdale , was an American lyrical poet. She was born Sara Trevor Teasdale in St. Louis, Missouri, and after her marriage in 1914 she went by the name Sara Teasdale Filsinger.-Biography:... - Deems TaylorDeems TaylorJoseph Deems Taylor was a U.S. composer, music critic, and promoter of classical music.-Career:Taylor initially planned to become an architect; however, despite minimal musical training he soon took to music composition. The result was a series of works for orchestra and/or voices...
(1885-1966) - Henry CowellHenry CowellHenry Cowell was an American composer, music theorist, pianist, teacher, publisher, and impresario. His contribution to the world of music was summed up by Virgil Thomson, writing in the early 1950s:...
(1887-1965) - Hall JohnsonHall JohnsonHall Johnson was one of a number of American composers and arrangers—including Harry T. Burleigh, R. Nathaniel Dett, and Eva Jessye—who elevated the African-American spiritual to an art form, comparable in its musical sophistication to the compositions of European Classical...
(1887-1970) concert arrangements of spirituals - David W. Guion (1892-1981), collected folk songs; composed sacred songs
- John Jacob NilesJohn Jacob NilesJohn Jacob Niles was an American composer, singer, and collector of traditional ballads. Called the "Dean of American Balladeers", Niles was an important influence on the American folk music revival of the 1950s and 1960s, with Joan Baez, Burl Ives, and Peter, Paul and Mary, among others,...
(1892-1980), arranged folk songs and composed original settings of Thomas Merton poems - Katherine K. DavisKatherine K. DavisKatherine Kennicott Davis was a composer, pianist, and author of the famous Christmas tune "The Little Drummer Boy".-Biography:...
(1892-1980) - Douglas Moore (1893-1969) opera composer, some songs
- Ernest CharlesErnest CharlesErnest Charles was an American composer of art songs.-Life and musical career:...
(1895-1984) a few songs still in the repertoire - Albert Hay MalotteAlbert Hay MalotteAlbert Hay Malotte was an American pianist, organist, composer and educator.-Biography and career:...
(1895-1964) famous setting of "Lord's Prayer" - Leo SowerbyLeo SowerbyLeo Sowerby , American composer and church musician, was the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for music in 1946, and was often called the “Dean of American church music” in the early to mid 20th century.-Biography:...
(1895-1968)
- William Grant StillWilliam Grant StillWilliam Grant Still was an African-American classical composer who wrote more than 150 compositions. He was the first African American to conduct a major American symphony orchestra, the first to have a symphony performed by a leading orchestra, the first to have an opera performed by a major...
(1895-1978) the "Dean" of African-American composers - Roger SessionsRoger SessionsRoger Huntington Sessions was an American composer, critic, and teacher of music.-Life:Sessions was born in Brooklyn, New York, to a family that could trace its roots back to the American revolution. His mother, Ruth Huntington Sessions, was a direct descendent of Samuel Huntington, a signer of...
(1896-1985) - Virgil ThomsonVirgil ThomsonVirgil Thomson was an American composer and critic. He was instrumental in the development of the "American Sound" in classical music...
(1896-1987) - Henry CowellHenry CowellHenry Cowell was an American composer, music theorist, pianist, teacher, publisher, and impresario. His contribution to the world of music was summed up by Virgil Thomson, writing in the early 1950s:...
(1897-1965) - Ernst BaconErnst BaconErnst Lecher Bacon was an American composer, pianist, and conductor. A prolific author, Bacon composed over 250 songs over his career. He was awarded three Guggenheim Fellowships and a Pulitzer Scholarship in 1932 for his Second Symphony.-Biography:Ernst Bacon was born in Chicago, Illinois, on May...
(1898-1990) - Roy HarrisRoy HarrisRoy Ellsworth Harris , was an American composer. He wrote much music on American subjects, becoming best known for his Symphony No...
(1898-1979) - John Woods DukeJohn Woods DukeJohn Woods Duke , an American composer and pianist born in Cumberland, Maryland, became arguably best-known for his art songs.-Biography :John Woods Duke was the oldest child in a large musical family...
(1899-1984) - Sven Lekberg (1899-1984)
- Randall ThompsonRandall ThompsonRandall Thompson was an American composer, particularly noted for his choral works.-Career:He attended Harvard University, became assistant professor of music and choir director at Wellesley College, and received a doctorate in music from the University of Rochester's Eastman School of Music...
(1899-1984) - Otto LueningOtto LueningOtto Clarence Luening was a German-American composer and conductor, and an early pioneer of tape music and electronic music....
(1900-96) - Elinor Remick WarrenElinor Remick WarrenElinor Remick Warren was an American composer of contemporary classical music and pianist. She composed in a predominantly neo-Romantic style....
(1900-91) - Ruth Crawford SeegerRuth Crawford SeegerRuth Crawford Seeger , born Ruth Porter Crawford, was a modernist composer and an American folk music specialist.-Life:...
(1901-53) - Thodore Chanler (1902-61)
- Celius DoughertyCelius DoughertyCelius Dougherty was an American pianist and composer of art songs and other music.-Biography:...
(1902-86) - Vittorio GianniniVittorio GianniniVittorio Giannini was a neoromantic American composer of operas, songs, symphonies, and band works.-Life and work:...
(1903-66) - Vernon DukeVernon DukeVernon Duke was a Russian-American composer/songwriter, who also wrote under his original name Vladimir Dukelsky. He is best known for "Taking a Chance on Love" with lyrics by Ted Fetter and John Latouche, "I Can't Get Started" with lyrics by Ira Gershwin, "April in Paris" with lyrics by E. Y...
(1903-1969) - Undine Smith MooreUndine Smith MooreUndine Smith Moore was a notable and prolific female African-American composers of the 20th century.She began studying piano at age seven, and at the age of 20 became the first graduate of Fisk University to receive a scholarship to Juilliard...
(1904-1989) - Marc BlitzsteinMarc BlitzsteinMarcus Samuel Blitzstein, better known as Marc Blitzstein , was an American composer. He won national attention in 1937 when his pro-union musical The Cradle Will Rock, directed by Orson Welles, was shut down by the Works Progress Administration...
(1905-1964) - Louise TalmaLouise TalmaLouise Talma was a composer. She was raised in New York City and studied at the Institute of Musical Arts , 1922–1930, and received her bachelor of music degree from New York University and masters of arts degree from Columbia University...
(1906-96) - Paul CrestonPaul CrestonPaul Creston was an Italian American composer of classical music.Born in New York City to Sicilian immigrants, Creston was self‐taught as a composer. He was an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia music fraternity, initiated into the national honorary Alpha Alpha chapter...
(1906-85) - Ross Lee FinneyRoss Lee FinneyRoss Lee Finney Junior was an American composer born in Wells, Minnesota who taught for many years at the University of Michigan. He studied with Nadia Boulanger, Edward Burlingame Hill, Alban Berg and Roger Sessions...
(1906-1997) - Howard SwansonHoward SwansonHoward Swanson was an American composer. Swanson studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music and was then taught by Nadia Boulanger in Paris. He received fellowships, awards and prizes. His preference was for linear construction and lyrical works with subtle tonal centers...
(1907-1978) - Elliot Carter (b. 1908), composed a few songs, from 1938-43 and the 1970s
- Sergius KagenSergius KagenSergius Kagen was an American pianist and composer and voice teacher.-Life and musical career:...
(1908-1964) - Jean BergerJean BergerJean Berger was a German-born pianist, composer, and music educator.-Early years:...
(1909-2002) - Charles NaginskiCharles NaginskiCharles Naginski was an American composer of art songs and other musical works.-Biography:...
(1909-1940) - Paul NordoffPaul NordoffPaul Nordoff was an American composer and music therapist. His music is generally tonal and neo-Romantic in style.-Career:...
(1909-1977) - Elie SiegmeisterElie SiegmeisterElie Siegmeister was an American composer, educator and author.His varied musical output showed his concern with the development of an authentic American musical vocabulary...
(1909-91) - Paul BowlesPaul BowlesPaul Frederic Bowles was an American expatriate composer, author, and translator.Following a cultured middle-class upbringing in New York City, during which he displayed a talent for music and writing, Bowles pursued his education at the University of Virginia before making various trips to Paris...
(1910-99) - Sam RaphlingSam RaphlingSam Raphling was an American composer and pianist. He studied under Artur Schnabel at the University of Michigan.He wrote in a variety of musical genres, including orchestral works, chamber pieces, and vocal art songs; the latter of which remain his most notable legacy...
(1910-88) - Alan HovhanessAlan HovhanessAlan Hovhaness was an Armenian-American composer.His music is accessible to the lay listener and often evokes a mood of mystery or contemplation...
(1911-2000) - Gian-Carlo Menotti (1911-2007)
- John CageJohn CageJohn Milton Cage Jr. was an American composer, music theorist, writer, philosopher and artist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading figures of the post-war avant-garde...
(1912-1992), songs include "The Wonderful Widow of 18 Springs" - Hugo WeisgallHugo WeisgallHugo David Weisgall was an American composer and conductor, known chiefly for his opera and vocal music compositions...
(1912-1997) - Margaret BondsMargaret BondsMargaret Allison Bonds was an American composer and pianist. One of the first black composers and performers to gain recognition in the United States, she is best remembered today for her frequent collaborations with Langston Hughes.-Life:...
(1913-1972) - Norman Dello JoioNorman Dello Joio- Life :He was born Nicodemo DeGioio in New York City to Italian immigrants. He began his musical career as organist and choir director at the Star of the Sea Church on City Island in New York at age 14. His father was an organist, pianist, and vocal coach and coached many opera stars from the...
(b. 1913) - John Edmunds (1913-86)
- Vivian FineVivian FineVivian Fine was an American composer.Over her 70 year career, Vivian Fine became one of America’s most important composers. She wrote virtually without a break for 68 years, producing over 140 works...
(1913-2000) - Gardner ReadGardner ReadGardner Read was an American composer and musical scholar....
(1913-2005) - Irving FineIrving FineIrving Gifford Fine was an American composer. Fine's work assimilated neo-classical, romantic and, later, serial elements...
(1914-62) - David DiamondDavid Diamond (composer)David Leo Diamond was an American composer of classical music.-Life and career:He was born in Rochester, New York and studied at the Cleveland Institute of Music and the Eastman School of Music under Bernard Rogers, also receiving lessons from Roger Sessions in New York City and Nadia Boulanger in...
(1915-2005) - George PerleGeorge PerleGeorge Perle was a composer and music theorist. He was born in Bayonne, New Jersey. Perle was an alumnus of DePaul University...
(b. 1915) - Vincent PersichettiVincent PersichettiVincent Ludwig Persichetti was an American composer, teacher, and pianist. An important musical educator and writer, Persichetti was a native of Philadelphia...
(1915-1987) - Gordon Binkerd (1916-2003)
- Leonard BernsteinLeonard BernsteinLeonard Bernstein August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
(1918-90) - George RochbergGeorge RochbergGeorge Rochberg was an American composer of contemporary classical music.-Life:Rochberg was born in Paterson, New Jersey. He attended the Mannes College of Music, where his teachers included George Szell and Hans Weisse, and the Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied with Rosario Scalero and...
(1918-2005) - John La MontaineJohn La MontaineJohn La Montaine is an American composer, born in Oak Park, Illinois, who won the 1959 Pulitzer Prize for Music for his Piano Concerto no. 1, Op. 9, "In Time of War" , which was premiered by Jorge Bolet....
(b. 1920) - Jack BeesonJack BeesonJack Beeson was an American composer. He was known particularly for his operas, the best known of which are Lizzie Borden, Hello Out There! and The Sweet Bye and Bye.-Biography:...
(1921–2010) - Seymour BarabSeymour BarabSeymour Barab is an American composer, organist, pianist,. He is known for his fairy tale operas for young audiences, such as Chanticleer and Little Red Riding Hood. He is a long time member of the Philip Glass Ensemble.-References:**-External links:*...
(b. 1921) - William BergsmaWilliam Bergsma-Biography:After studying piano with his mother, a former opera singer, and then the viola, Bergsma moved on to study composition; his most significant teachers were Howard Hanson and Bernard Rogers. Bergsma attended Stanford University for two years before moving on to the Eastman School of...
(1921-1994) - Ernest Gold (1921-1999) film music, cycle Songs of Love and Parting
- Lloyd Pfautsch (1921-2003) much sacred music, some songs
- Lukas FossLukas FossLukas Foss was a German-born American composer, conductor, and pianist.-Music career:He was born Lukas Fuchs in Berlin, Germany in 1922. His father was the philosopher and scholar Martin Fuchs...
(b. 1922) - Robert Kreutz (1922-96)
- Richard OwenRichard Owen (judge)Richard Owen is a United States federal judge.Born to an opera-loving attorney, he grew up in New York, New York. Owen was in the United States Army Air Corps from 1942–45, and then received an A.B. from Dartmouth College in 1945. He received an LL.B. from Harvard Law School in 1950, and entered...
(b. 1922) lawyer, judge, and composer - Jean Eichelberger IveyJean Eichelberger IveyJean Eichelberger Ivey was an American composer who produced an extensive and diverse catalog of works in virtually every medium, including solo, chamber, vocal, orchestral, in addition to being a, "respected electronic composer." Her music has been frequently represented on the programs of major...
(b. 1923) - Daniel PinkhamDaniel PinkhamDaniel Rogers Pinkham, Jr. was an American composer, organist, and harpsichordist. Pinkham was one of America's most active composers during his lifetime...
(1923-2006) - Lee HoibyLee HoibyLee Henry Hoiby was an American composer and classical pianist. Best known as a composer of operas and songs, he was a disciple of composer Gian Carlo Menotti. Like Menotti, his works championed lyricism during a time when such compositions were deemed old fashioned and irrelevant to modern society...
(1926-2011) - Dominick ArgentoDominick ArgentoDominick Argento is an American composer, best known as a leading composer of lyric opera and choral music...
(b. 1927) - William RoyWilliam RoyMajor-General William Roy FRS was a Scottish military engineer, surveyor, and antiquarian. He was an innovator who applied new scientific discoveries and newly emerging technologies to the accurate geodetic mapping of Great Britain....
(1928-2003), art songs and theater music - Richard HundleyRichard HundleyRichard Albert Hundley is an American pianist and composer of American art songs for voice and piano. -Early life:Hundley was born in Cincinnati, Ohio....
(b. 1931) - H. Leslie Adams (b. 1932)
- Luigi ZaninelliLuigi ZaninelliLuigi Zaninelli is an Italian-American composer from New Jersey. He is currently the composer-in-residence at the University of Southern Mississippi.-References:...
(b. 1932) - Kenneth Benshoof (b. 1933)
21st Century American Art Song
American art song composition continues to be lively and strong in the early 21st century. Commissions from well-known singers have added a number of new works to the repertoire, and composers such as Tom Cipullo (b. 1960), Ricky Ian GordonRicky Ian Gordon
Ricky Ian Gordon is an American composer of songs, stage musicals and opera. The death of his lover from AIDS inspired Dream True and Orpheus and Euridice...
(b. 1956), Daron Hagen
Daron Hagen
Daron Aric Hagen , is an American composer, conductor, pianist, educator, librettist, and stage director of contemporary classical music and opera.- Early life and education :...
(b.1961), Jake Heggie
Jake Heggie
Jake Heggie is an American composer and pianist.Jake Heggie is the composer of the operas Dead Man Walking , The End of the Affair , At The Statue of Venus , To Hell and Back , and Moby-Dick , as well as the stage work For a Look or a Touch...
(b. 1961), and John Musto (b.1954), are establishing themselves as the next generation of leading American art song composers.
Active American Art Song composers
- André PrevinAndré PrevinAndré George Previn, KBE is an American pianist, conductor, and composer. He is considered one of the most versatile musicians in the world, and is the winner of four Academy Awards for his film work and ten Grammy Awards for his recordings. -Early Life:Previn was born in...
(b. 1929) - Robert Baksa (b. 1938)
- William BolcomWilliam BolcomWilliam Elden Bolcom is an American composer and pianist. He has received the Pulitzer Prize, the National Medal of Arts, two Grammy Awards, the Detroit Music Award and was named 2007 Composer of the Year by Musical America. Bolcom taught composition at the University of Michigan from 1973–2008...
(b. 1938) - John CoriglianoJohn CoriglianoJohn Corigliano is an American composer of classical music and a teacher of music. He is a distinguished professor of music at Lehman College in the City University of New York.-Biography:...
(b. 1938) - John HarbisonJohn HarbisonJohn Harris Harbison is an American composer, best known for his operas and large choral works.-Life:...
(b. 1938) - Thomas PasatieriThomas PasatieriThomas Pasatieri is an American opera composer.He began composing at age 10 and, as a teenager, studied with Nadia Boulanger...
(b. 1945) - Judith Lang ZaimontJudith Lang ZaimontJudith Lang Zaimont is an American music educator, music writer and composer.-Life:Judith Ann Lang was born in Memphis, Tennessee, and grew up in Bellerose, Queens, New York. She began studying piano at age five, and performed on The Lawrence Welk Show at age eleven...
(b. 1945) - Stephen PaulusStephen PaulusStephen Paulus is an American composer, best known for his operas and choral music. His best-known piece is his 1982 opera The Postman Always Rings Twice, one of several operas he has written for the Opera Theatre of St. Louis, which prompted The New York Times to call him "a young man on the road...
(b. 1949) - Libby LarsenLibby LarsenLibby Larsen is one of America’s most performed living composers. She has created a catalogue of over 400 works spanning virtually every genre from intimate vocal and chamber music to massive orchestral works and over fifteen operas...
(b. 1950) - Daniel Brewbaker (b. 1951)
- John MustoJohn MustoJohn Musto is an American composer and pianist. As a composer, he is active in opera, orchestral and chamber music, song, vocal ensemble, and solo piano works. As a pianist, he performs frequently as a soloist, alone and with orchestra, as a chamber musician, and with singers.-Career:Born in 1954...
(b. 1954) - Lori LaitmanLori LaitmanLori Laitman is one of America's most prolific and widely performed composers of vocal music. She has composed two operas, an oratorio, choral works and over 200 songs, setting the words of classical and contemporary poets, among them the lost voices of poets who perished in the Holocaust...
(b. 1955) - Richard DanielpourRichard DanielpourRichard Danielpour is an American composer.-Biography:Danielpour is born of Persian/Jewish descent. 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...
(b. 1956) - Mohammed FairouzMohammed FairouzMohammed Fairouz is an Arab American composer.Having fulfilling many commissions and created a substantial body of frequently performed works, he is considered one of the most sought after composers of the young generation. Fairouz began composing at an early age and studied at the New England...
(b. 1985)