Edward Gold
Encyclopedia
Edward Gold is an American
pianist and composer
.
and grew up in New York City
. He attended public schools and majored
in music at CCNY (today part of the City University of New York
). He received his masters from Yale University
School of Music where he studied with Ellsworth Grumman, Mel Powell
and H. Leroy Baumgartner. Edward also studied with Nadia Reisenberg
at the Mannes College of Music
.
After completing his studies, Gold worked as a pianist and toured internationally. The recording of Gottschalk Piano Music (1973) on which he performed was named a "Recording of Special Merit" by Stereo Review. His recordings were also noted by The American Record Guide and The Musical Quarterly
.
Early on, Edward's music was in the style of atonality
(mostly Schoenberg
), but with a traditional structural style using atonal and twelve-tone techniques crossed with some Stravinsky. But he largely turned away from these styles after leaving Yale. Over the course of his career, Gold's work has been both eclectic and independent. He composes most often for orchestra
, piano
, chamber
ensemble
or various vocalists with or without accompaniment
. He is a member of the tonality-based Delian Society
but also composes at times in a structurally-based atonal style.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pianist and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
.
Biography
Gold was born in BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
and grew up in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He attended public schools and majored
Academic major
In the United States and Canada, an academic major or major concentration is the academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits....
in music at CCNY (today part of the City University of New York
City University of New York
The City University of New York is the public university system of New York City, with its administrative offices in Yorkville in Manhattan. It is the largest urban university in the United States, consisting of 23 institutions: 11 senior colleges, six community colleges, the William E...
). He received his masters from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
School of Music where he studied with Ellsworth Grumman, Mel Powell
Mel Powell
Mel Powell was a jazz pianist and composer of classical music.Mel Epstein was born to Russian Jewish parents, Milton Epstein and Mildred Mark Epstein, and began playing piano as a child. He performed jazz professionally in New York City as a teenager...
and H. Leroy Baumgartner. Edward also studied with Nadia Reisenberg
Nadia Reisenberg
Nadia Reisenberg was an American pianist of Lithuanian birth.-Life and career:Born in Vilnius, Reisenberg studied under Leonid Nikolayev at the Saint Petersburg Conservatory. Due to the upheavals of the October Revolution, she and her family came back to Vilnius, then travelled to Warsaw and...
at the Mannes College of Music
Mannes College of Music
Mannes College The New School for Music is The New School university's music conservatory. While the university's main campus is located in Greenwich Village, New York City, Mannes maintains its main academic building on the Upper West Side of Manhattan....
.
After completing his studies, Gold worked as a pianist and toured internationally. The recording of Gottschalk Piano Music (1973) on which he performed was named a "Recording of Special Merit" by Stereo Review. His recordings were also noted by The American Record Guide and The Musical Quarterly
The Musical Quarterly
The Musical Quarterly is the oldest academic journal on music in America. Originally established in 1915 by Oscar Sonneck, the journal was edited by Sonneck until his death in 1928...
.
Early on, Edward's music was in the style of atonality
Atonality
Atonality in its broadest sense describes music that lacks a tonal center, or key. Atonality in this sense usually describes compositions written from about 1908 to the present day where a hierarchy of pitches focusing on a single, central tone is not used, and the notes of the chromatic scale...
(mostly Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg
Arnold Schoenberg was an Austrian composer, associated with the expressionist movement in German poetry and art, and leader of the Second Viennese School...
), but with a traditional structural style using atonal and twelve-tone techniques crossed with some Stravinsky. But he largely turned away from these styles after leaving Yale. Over the course of his career, Gold's work has been both eclectic and independent. He composes most often for orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
, piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, chamber
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
ensemble
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
or various vocalists with or without accompaniment
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
. He is a member of the tonality-based Delian Society
Delian Society
The Delian Society, conceived by American composer Joseph Dillon Ford, was founded on 23 January 2004 as an international community of composers, performers, scholars, recording engineers, music publishers, and amateurs dedicated to the revitalization of the great tonal traditions in art music...
but also composes at times in a structurally-based atonal style.
Works
Selected works include:- Piano Variations (1959)
- Mass of John the Baptist (for three-part men's voices and organ, 1972)
- Sonatina for Flute and Piano (c. 1985)
- Schratlieder (settings for bass-baritone and piano of poems by Reinhard Paul Becker (1986)
- Carillon for Choir, Tuned Percussion, and Strings (c. 1996)
- Five Memorials (for various ensembles, 1996–97)
- Wind Quartet (2004)
- Symphonies on Ancient Tunes
- The Picture of Dorian Gray (for piano, four hands, 2006)
- Central Park Suite (orchestral version)
Discography
Gold's performances have been recorded and issued on media, including:- Gottschalk Piano Music (1973)
- Piano Music of J.L. Dussek (1974)
- Romantic Cello Encores with Albert Catell (1971)
- Music by Israeli Composers (1973)