Composers in Red Sneakers
Encyclopedia
The Composers in Red Sneakers are a Boston-based composers collective founded in 1981. The founding members were Thomas Oboe Lee
, Christopher Stowens, Robert Aldridge, Roger Bourland
, Amy Reich, and Gary Philo. Concerts were given in the Old Cambridge Baptist Church
and in Harvard University
's Sanders Theatre and were consistently reviewed by Boston newspapers. One of their early champions was Richard Dyer, the music critic of the Boston Globe. The group appeared at Symphony Space
in New York City in 1985 and produced an eponymous LP that same year. Although none of the founding members are still involved, since 1985, the consortium has subsequently recruited many new composers including Richard Cornell, Michael Carnes
, Lyle Mays
, Peter Schickele
, Robert J. Lurtsema
.
Thomas Oboe Lee
Thomas Oboe Lee is a Chinese American composer.- Life :He and his family left Communist China in 1949, and lived in Hong Kong for ten years until 1959, when he moved to São Paulo, Brazil. He emigrated to the USA in the summer of 1966.His musical education began in Brazil during the Bossa Nova craze...
, Christopher Stowens, Robert Aldridge, Roger Bourland
Roger Bourland
Roger Bourland is an American composer, publisher, blogger, and Chair of the UCLA Department of Music.- Biography :Born in Evanston, Illinois, Bourland received a Bachelor of Music in Music Theory and Composition from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, studying with Leslie Thimmig and Randall...
, Amy Reich, and Gary Philo. Concerts were given in the Old Cambridge Baptist Church
Old Cambridge Baptist Church
Old Cambridge Baptist Church is an historic Baptist church at 398 Harvard Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts.The congregation was founded in 1844 when several members of First Baptist Church in Cambridge decided to start a new church. The original meeting house was sold to the Congregationalists...
and in Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
's Sanders Theatre and were consistently reviewed by Boston newspapers. One of their early champions was Richard Dyer, the music critic of the Boston Globe. The group appeared at Symphony Space
Symphony Space
Symphony Space is a multi-disciplinary performing arts organization at 2537 Broadway on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Performances take place in the 760-seat Peter Jay Sharp Theatre or the 160-seat Leonard Nimoy Thalia theater. Programs include music, dance, theater, film, and literary readings...
in New York City in 1985 and produced an eponymous LP that same year. Although none of the founding members are still involved, since 1985, the consortium has subsequently recruited many new composers including Richard Cornell, Michael Carnes
Michael Carnes
Michael Page Carnes is an American composer of contemporary classical music.-Life and career:Carnes was born in North Carolina. The son of a piano teacher, he received his first formal musical training on trumpet in the public schools. He formed and played in several rock bands beginning in the...
, Lyle Mays
Lyle Mays
Lyle Mays is an American jazz pianist and composer from Wausaukee, Wisconsin. He is best known for his work with guitarist Pat Metheny as a member of the Pat Metheny Group...
, Peter Schickele
Peter Schickele
Johann Peter Schickele is an American composer, musical educator, and parodist. He is best known for his comedy music albums featuring his music that he presents as music written by the fictional composer P. D. Q...
, Robert J. Lurtsema
Robert J. Lurtsema
Robert J. Lurtsema was a public radio broadcaster.Lurtsema hosted the classical music show Morning pro musica on WGBH in Boston, Massachusetts, from 1971 until his death from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis...
.
Sources
- Cleary, David, "The Boston New-Music Scene: Present and Recent Past, with Special Emphasis on Composers in Red Sneakers", 21st Century Music, June 2000, Volume 7, Number 6
- Holland, Bernard, "Review: Composers in Red Sneakers", New York Times, 13 October 1985
- Page, Tim, "Numic Notes; Moderns in Red Sneakers", New York Times, 6 October 1985.
- Philadelphia Inquirer, "Bostonians Make Their Own Album", 23 June 1985, (subscription access)
External links
- Boston Musicians Association – Composers in Red Sneakers
- Composers in Red Sneakers on WorldCatWorldCatWorldCat is a union catalog which itemizes the collections of 72,000 libraries in 170 countries and territories which participate in the Online Computer Library Center global cooperative...