Jon Appleton
Encyclopedia
Jon Howard Appleton is an American
composer
and teacher
who was a pioneer in electro-acoustic music. His earliest compositions in the medium, e.g. Chef d'Oeuvre and Newark Airport Rock attracted attention because they established a new tradition some have called programmatic
electronic music
. In 1970 he won Guggenheim
, Fulbright
and American-Scandinavian Foundation
fellowships. When he was twenty-eight years old he joined the faculty of Dartmouth College
where he established one of the first electronic music studios in the United States
. He remained there intermittently for forty-two years. In the mid-1970s he left Dartmouth to briefly become the head of Stiftelsen Elektronmusikstudion (EMS) in Stockholm
, Sweden
. In the late 1970s, together with Sydney Alonso
and Cameron Jones
he helped develop the first commercial digital
synthesizer
called the Synclavier
. For a decade he toured around the United States and Europe
performing the compositions he composed for this instrument. In the early 1990s he helped found the Theremin Center for Electronic Music
at the Moscow Conservatory of Music where he continues to teach once a year. He has also taught at Keio University
(Mita) in Tokyo
, Japan
, CCRMA at Stanford University
and the University of California Santa Cruz. In his later years he has devoted most of his time to the composition of instrumental
and choral music in a quasi-Romantic
vein which has largely been performed only in France
, Russia
and Japan
.
on January 4, 1939 to Jewish parents: Helen Jacobs Appleton (born Philadelphia, 1908) and Charles Leonard Appleton (born Haim Eppel Boim in Kishenov, Moldavia
, 1900). His mother was employed by Metro-Goldwyn Mayer and his father by Twentieth Century Fox film studios. His father left his family the year Appleton was born and he spent his first years in Mrs. Bell's (an orphanage) and with his brother (Michael Charles Appleton, born 1932) at Palomar Military Academy
. When he was six years old his mother married Alexander "Sasha" Walden (born in Ufa
, Russia
in 1897), a double-bass player in the Los Angeles Philharmonic
orchestra. He was the greatest musical influence in Appleton's young life seeing that he studied piano, encouraging him to compose music and taking him to multiple concerts. Appleton's parents were true believers in the Soviet Union
and active members of the multiple left-wing organizations including the Communist party
. In the 1950s both his parents were blacklisted
by the House Un-American Activities Committee
and lost their jobs. As a child Appleton studied piano with Jacob Gimpel and Theodore Saidenberg but preferred composing his own music rather than playing the works assigned to him (e.g. Chopin, Scarlatti
, Prokofiev). However, he developed a deep, lifelong affection for Russian music
.
in Portland, Oregon
. These years shaped his future life: he composed for his fellow students who performed everything he composed, he decided to become a college professor and in 1959 he married his first wife, a fellow student, Georganna Towne. Follow his graduation from Reed College, Appleton moved to San Francisco, California
where his first child was born (Jennifer Appleton, December 20, 1961). Simultaneously he studied composition with Andrew Imbrie
at the University of California, Berkeley
, collaborated with writer Willard Bain (1938–2000) writing musical comedies and was employed at the Macy's
department store as an assistant buyer.
In 1962-1963 Appleton was the music teacher at the Verde Valley School
in Sedona, Arizona
where he conducted the choir
and orchestra
, taught music theory
, history
and piano
lessons.
From 1963-1966 Appleton was a graduate student at the University of Oregon
in Eugene, Oregon
where he studied with Homer Keller
, Henri Lazarof
, Felix Salzer
and Robert Trotter. It was there that he assembled a primitive electronic music
studio and composed his first works in this genre. His thesis was an orchestral work, After "Nude Descending a Staircase". Most of the instrumental and vocal music he composed at this time used serial technique that he loved to compose. During his years in Eugene he became a lifelong friend of the pianist Gabriel Chodos
.
In 1966, on the basis of his early electronic music, he was invited by Vladimir Ussachevsky
at Columbia University
to study in the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center. He became an advocate for electronic music and became friends with fellow composers Charles Dodge
, Emmanuel Ghent
and Richard Taruskin
.
During 1966-1968 he was hired by Oakland University
in Rochester, Michigan
to establish an electronic music studio. When the university officials reneged on their promise, Appleton resigned and accepted a position at Harvard College
. It was during this year that Appleton's son, Jon Jason Appleton (aka JJ Appleton
) was born (November 14, 1967).
Appleton's work in electronic music was generously encouraged by the administration of President John G. Kemeny and by a generous donation from Gerald Bregman '54. The Bregman Electronic Music studio was one of the pioneering studios at American universities and became a center for many visiting composers. Two of these, Lars-Gunnar Bodin (born 1935, Stockholm, Sweden) and Jean-Claude Risset
(born 1938, LePuy, France
) became important colleagues throughout Appleton's life. In 1970 Appleton also was influenced by the work of the "father" of computer music, Max V. Mathews
and by French composers Francois Bayle
, Beatriz Ferreyra and Michel Redolfi.
It was at this time that he initiated the first competition for electronic music that was held for three years at Dartmouth College.
In 1969 Appleton's first recordings were published (Appleton Syntonic Menageire and Human Music – the latter in collaboration with jazz musician Don Cherry
– on the Flying Dutchman
label, produced by Bob Thiele
.
In 1973 Appleton began his collaboration with engineers Sydney Alonso and Cameron Jones, which led to the creation of the Dartmouth Digital Synthesizer
and ultimately the Synclavier
. However, it was not until the 1980s that Appleton composed his best works for this digital
synthesizer
and on which he gave concerts of his own music for the following decade.
His love of Sweden
led Appleton to leave Dartmouth College
in 1976-1977 and become the director of Sweden's national center for electronic music. His difficulty with the Swedish bureaucracy led to his resignation and he returned to Norwich, Vermont
as a partner, for one year, in the newly formed firm New England Digital Corporation
that had begun to manufacture the Synclavier
. The following year he returned to the faculty of Dartmouth College.
It was also during this time in his life that Appleton developed a serious interest in the music of Polynesia
and Micronesia
. He led a group of Dartmouth students to the Kingdom of Tonga
and later received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts
to train radio personnel on the Micronesian islands of Chuuk
and Phonpei to record and broadcast their own music.
) and at Fylkingen
in Stockholm, Sweden.
During his time in Bourges
, Appleton became a founding member of the International Confederation for Electro-Acoustic Music. His stimulating interaction with composers from many nations led him to believe that a similar organization in the United States might help raise the profile of electro-acoustic music in his own country. In 1984, together with a small group of like-minded composers, Appleton helped establish the Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States
(SEAMUS). He ultimately served for a time as president of the society.
In the summer of 1984 Appleton helped Moses Asch
, founder of Folkways Records
, release its first recordings of electro-acoustic music. According to Asch's wishes, these recordings have remained in print under the Smithsonian/Folkways auspices.
(Mita) in Tokyo, Japan for three years and frequently visiting Moscow, Russia where he was inspired by the enthusiasm of young composers. He encouraged the composer/engineer Andre Smirnov to establish the Theremin Center
at the Moscow Conservatory of Music. Appleton was first introduced to Russian musicians and artists by the choral conductor/ethnologist Dmitri Pokrovsky
(1944–1996) and this began his compositional return to instrumental and choral music, much of it composed for the pianist Julia Turkina and cellist Alexander Zagorinsky. In an essay entitled "How I Became a Russian Composer" (2009) Appleton explains his love of Russian music and culture that he believes his stepfather, Alexander Walden, instilled in him.
Also in this decade Appleton composed two, full-length operas for a choir of 1500 children and professional orchestra. The works, HOPI: La naissance de Desert and Le Dernier Voyage de Jean-Gallup de la Perouse, were conducted by Alain Joutard and commissioned by the Delegation Departmental à la Musique et à la Danse of the Consei General des Alpes-Maritimes in Nice, France.
in 1989, Appleton devoted most of his teaching to the graduate students in this program. The purpose of the program was to combine the study of composition
, acoustics
, computer-science and music cognition
. He came to believe this was his greatest contribution during his forty-five years as a teacher. He continues to maintain friendships with many of his former students: Gerald Beauregard, Martin McKinney, Ray Guillette, John Puterbaugh
, Ted Coffey, Anu Kirk, Yuri Spitsyn, Ted Apel, Kojiro Umezaki
, Steve Berkley
, Vanderlei Lucentini, Courtney Kennedy, Ileana Perez, Kevin Parks, Colby Leider, Matthew B. Smith, Leslie Stone, Tae Hong Park, Sean Peuquet, Andrew Tomasulo, Paul Botelho the Triple OG, Iroro Orife, Bruno Ruviaro, Masaki Kubo, Will Haslett, Irina Escalante Chernova, Michael Chinen, Kristina Wolfe, Aki Onda, Bill Brunson and Russell Pinkston
.
In 2009 Appleton retired from Dartmouth expressing discontent with the faculty and administration. He subsequently taught at the University of California, Santa Cruz
. He currently teaches at Loyola University New Orleans.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
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...
and teacher
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
who was a pioneer in electro-acoustic music. His earliest compositions in the medium, e.g. Chef d'Oeuvre and Newark Airport Rock attracted attention because they established a new tradition some have called programmatic
Program music
Program music or programme music is a type of art music that attempts to musically render an extra-musical narrative. The narrative itself might be offered to the audience in the form of program notes, inviting imaginative correlations with the music...
electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
. In 1970 he won Guggenheim
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
, Fulbright
Fulbright Program
The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright-Hays Program, is a program of competitive, merit-based grants for international educational exchange for students, scholars, teachers, professionals, scientists and artists, founded by United States Senator J. William Fulbright in 1946. Under the...
and American-Scandinavian Foundation
The American-Scandinavian Foundation
The American-Scandinavian Foundation, is an American non-profit foundation dedicated to promoting international understanding through educational and cultural exchange between the United States and Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden...
fellowships. When he was twenty-eight years old he joined the faculty of Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
where he established one of the first electronic music studios in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He remained there intermittently for forty-two years. In the mid-1970s he left Dartmouth to briefly become the head of Stiftelsen Elektronmusikstudion (EMS) in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. In the late 1970s, together with Sydney Alonso
New England Digital
New England Digital Corp. , founded originally in Norwich, Vermont and eventually relocated to White River Junction, Vermont, was best known for its signature product, the Synclavier Synthesizer System, which evolved into the Synclavier Digital Audio System or "Tapeless Studio." The company sold...
and Cameron Jones
New England Digital
New England Digital Corp. , founded originally in Norwich, Vermont and eventually relocated to White River Junction, Vermont, was best known for its signature product, the Synclavier Synthesizer System, which evolved into the Synclavier Digital Audio System or "Tapeless Studio." The company sold...
he helped develop the first commercial digital
Digital
A digital system is a data technology that uses discrete values. By contrast, non-digital systems use a continuous range of values to represent information...
synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
called the Synclavier
Synclavier
The Synclavier System was an early digital synthesizer, polyphonic digital sampling system, and music workstation, manufactured by New England Digital Corporation, Norwich, VT. The original design and development of the Synclavier prototype occurred at Dartmouth College with the collaboration of...
. For a decade he toured around the United States and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
performing the compositions he composed for this instrument. In the early 1990s he helped found the Theremin Center for Electronic Music
Theremin Center
The Theremin Center for Electroacoustic Music was created in Moscow, Russia in 1992 by the group of musicians and computer scientists, under the leadership of Andrey Smirnov...
at the Moscow Conservatory of Music where he continues to teach once a year. He has also taught at Keio University
Keio University
,abbreviated as Keio or Keidai , is a Japanese university located in Minato, Tokyo. It is known as the oldest institute of higher education in Japan. Founder Fukuzawa Yukichi originally established it as a school for Western studies in 1858 in Edo . It has eleven campuses in Tokyo and Kanagawa...
(Mita) in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, CCRMA at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
and the University of California Santa Cruz. In his later years he has devoted most of his time to the composition of instrumental
Instrumental
An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
and choral music in a quasi-Romantic
Romantic music
Romantic music or music in the Romantic Period is a musicological and artistic term referring to a particular period, theory, compositional practice, and canon in Western music history, from 1810 to 1900....
vein which has largely been performed only in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
Early life
Appleton was born in Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
on January 4, 1939 to Jewish parents: Helen Jacobs Appleton (born Philadelphia, 1908) and Charles Leonard Appleton (born Haim Eppel Boim in Kishenov, Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
, 1900). His mother was employed by Metro-Goldwyn Mayer and his father by Twentieth Century Fox film studios. His father left his family the year Appleton was born and he spent his first years in Mrs. Bell's (an orphanage) and with his brother (Michael Charles Appleton, born 1932) at Palomar Military Academy
Military academy
A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps of the army, the navy, air force or coast guard, which normally provides education in a service environment, the exact definition depending on the country concerned.Three...
. When he was six years old his mother married Alexander "Sasha" Walden (born in Ufa
Ufa
-Demographics:Nationally, dominated by Russian , Bashkirs and Tatars . In addition, numerous are Ukrainians , Chuvash , Mari , Belarusians , Mordovians , Armenian , Germans , Jews , Azeris .-Government and administration:Local...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
in 1897), a double-bass player in the Los Angeles Philharmonic
Los Angeles Philharmonic
The Los Angeles Philharmonic is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California, United States. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at the Hollywood Bowl from July through September...
orchestra. He was the greatest musical influence in Appleton's young life seeing that he studied piano, encouraging him to compose music and taking him to multiple concerts. Appleton's parents were true believers in the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and active members of the multiple left-wing organizations including the Communist party
Communist party
A political party described as a Communist party includes those that advocate the application of the social principles of communism through a communist form of government...
. In the 1950s both his parents were blacklisted
Hollywood blacklist
The Hollywood blacklist—as the broader entertainment industry blacklist is generally known—was the mid-twentieth-century list of screenwriters, actors, directors, musicians, and other U.S. entertainment professionals who were denied employment in the field because of their political beliefs or...
by the House Un-American Activities Committee
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities or House Un-American Activities Committee was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. In 1969, the House changed the committee's name to "House Committee on Internal Security"...
and lost their jobs. As a child Appleton studied piano with Jacob Gimpel and Theodore Saidenberg but preferred composing his own music rather than playing the works assigned to him (e.g. Chopin, Scarlatti
Scarlatti
Scarlatti was the name of several Italian composers:*Alessandro Scarlatti , Baroque composer known for operas and chamber cantatas*Francesco Scarlatti , Baroque composer and musician, brother of Alessandro Scarlatti...
, Prokofiev). However, he developed a deep, lifelong affection for Russian music
Music of Russia
Music of Russia denotes music produced in Russia and/or by the Russians. Russia is a large and culturally diverse country, with many ethnic groups, each with their own locally developed music...
.
1960s
From 1957 to 1961 Appleton was a student at Reed CollegeReed College
Reed College is a private, independent, liberal arts college located in southeast Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1908, Reed is a residential college with a campus located in Portland's Eastmoreland neighborhood, featuring architecture based on the Tudor-Gothic style, and a forested canyon wilderness...
in Portland, Oregon
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
. These years shaped his future life: he composed for his fellow students who performed everything he composed, he decided to become a college professor and in 1959 he married his first wife, a fellow student, Georganna Towne. Follow his graduation from Reed College, Appleton moved to San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
where his first child was born (Jennifer Appleton, December 20, 1961). Simultaneously he studied composition with Andrew Imbrie
Andrew Imbrie
Andrew Welsh Imbrie was an American composer of contemporary classical music.-Career:Imbrie was born in New York on April 6, 1921, and began his musical training as a pianist when he was 4. In 1937, he went to Paris to study briefly with Nadia Boulanger...
at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, collaborated with writer Willard Bain (1938–2000) writing musical comedies and was employed at the Macy's
Macy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
department store as an assistant buyer.
In 1962-1963 Appleton was the music teacher at the Verde Valley School
Verde Valley School
Verde Valley School is an international college preparatory boarding and day school for students in grades 9-12. It is one of only a few U.S. boarding schools to offer the International Baccalaureate curriculum as its sole curriculum for 11th and 12th grades. The school is located in Sedona,...
in Sedona, Arizona
Sedona, Arizona
Sedona is a city that straddles the county line between Coconino and Yavapai counties in the northern Verde Valley region of the U.S. state of Arizona...
where he conducted the choir
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
and 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...
, taught music theory
Music theory
Music theory is the study of how music works. It examines the language and notation of music. It seeks to identify patterns and structures in composers' techniques across or within genres, styles, or historical periods...
, history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
and 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...
lessons.
From 1963-1966 Appleton was a graduate student at the University of Oregon
University of Oregon
-Colleges and schools:The University of Oregon is organized into eight schools and colleges—six professional schools and colleges, an Arts and Sciences College and an Honors College.- School of Architecture and Allied Arts :...
in Eugene, Oregon
Eugene, Oregon
Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S...
where he studied with Homer Keller
Homer Keller
Homer T. Keller was an American composer of contemporary classical music.He graduated from Oxnard Union High School in Oxnard, California in 1933, after which he attended the Eastman School of Music, where he studied with Howard Hanson, obtaining B.M. and M.M. degrees...
, Henri Lazarof
Henri Lazarof
Henri Lazarof is a Bulgarian composer.Born in Sofia, Bulgaria his formal musical training began in Israel under Paul Ben-Haim. After a short stint in Rome, Lazarof settled in the United States, studying with Harold Shapero and Arthur Berger at Brandeis University...
, Felix Salzer
Felix Salzer
Felix Salzer was an Austrian-American music theorist, musicologist and pedagogue. He was one of the principal followers of Heinrich Schenker, and did much to refine and explain Schenkerian analysis after Schenker's death....
and Robert Trotter. It was there that he assembled a primitive electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
studio and composed his first works in this genre. His thesis was an orchestral work, After "Nude Descending a Staircase". Most of the instrumental and vocal music he composed at this time used serial technique that he loved to compose. During his years in Eugene he became a lifelong friend of the pianist Gabriel Chodos
Gabriel Chodos
Gabriel Chodos is an American pianist who has performed throughout the United States, Europe, Japan and Israel.-Education:Chodos's principal teacher was Aube Tzerko, a student of Schnabel. He also studied piano with Leonard Shure at the Aspen Music Festival, Josef Dichler in Vienna, and Carlo...
.
In 1966, on the basis of his early electronic music, he was invited by Vladimir Ussachevsky
Vladimir Ussachevsky
Vladimir Kirilovitch Ussachevsky was a composer, particularly known for his work in electronic music.-Biography:...
at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
to study in the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center. He became an advocate for electronic music and became friends with fellow composers Charles Dodge
Charles Dodge
Charles Dodge may refer to:* Charles Cleveland Dodge, Brigadier General during the American Civil War at the age of twenty-one* Charles Dodge , composer of electronic music...
, Emmanuel Ghent
Emmanuel Ghent
Emmanuel Ghent was a pioneering composer of electronic music and a psychiatric practitioner, researcher, and teacher.-Biography:Emmanuel Ghent was born on May 15, 1925 in Montreal, Quebec. He grew up in Montreal and attended McGill University to study medicine. After graduating, he moved to New...
and Richard Taruskin
Richard Taruskin
Richard Taruskin is an American-Russian musicologist, music historian, and critic who has written about the theory of performance, Russian music, fifteenth-century music, twentieth-century music, nationalism, the theory of modernism, and analysis. As a choral conductor he directed the Columbia...
.
During 1966-1968 he was hired by Oakland University
Oakland University
Oakland University is a public university co-founded by Matilda Dodge Wilson and John A. Hannah whose campus is located in central Oakland County, Michigan, United States in the cities of Auburn Hills and Rochester Hills. It is the only major research university in Oakland County, from which OU...
in Rochester, Michigan
Rochester, Michigan
Rochester is an affluent city in north Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan on the northern outskirts of metro Detroit. The population was 12,711 at the 2010 census...
to establish an electronic music studio. When the university officials reneged on their promise, Appleton resigned and accepted a position at Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
. It was during this year that Appleton's son, Jon Jason Appleton (aka JJ Appleton
JJ Appleton
JJ Appleton, born Jon Jason Appleton, is an American musician and singer-songwriter based in New York City who has toured throughout the United States extensively in support of his own records and also with other bands including Jamie Cullum, Newton Faulkner, Pete Yorn, Edwin McCain, Sister Hazel,...
) was born (November 14, 1967).
1970s
At Dartmouth CollegeDartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
Appleton's work in electronic music was generously encouraged by the administration of President John G. Kemeny and by a generous donation from Gerald Bregman '54. The Bregman Electronic Music studio was one of the pioneering studios at American universities and became a center for many visiting composers. Two of these, Lars-Gunnar Bodin (born 1935, Stockholm, Sweden) and Jean-Claude Risset
Jean-Claude Risset
Jean-Claude Risset is a French composer, best known for his pioneering contributions to computer music. He is a former student of André Jolivet and former co-worker of Max Mathews at Bell Labs....
(born 1938, LePuy, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) became important colleagues throughout Appleton's life. In 1970 Appleton also was influenced by the work of the "father" of computer music, Max V. Mathews
Max Mathews
Max Vernon Mathews was a pioneer in the world of computer music.-Biography:...
and by French composers Francois Bayle
François Bayle
François Bayle is a composer of Musique concrète or acousmatic music.In the 1950s he studied with Olivier Messiaen, Pierre Schaeffer and Karlheinz Stockhausen. In 1960 he joined the Office de Radiodiffusion Télévision Française, and in 1966 was put in charge of the Groupe de Recherches Musicales...
, Beatriz Ferreyra and Michel Redolfi.
It was at this time that he initiated the first competition for electronic music that was held for three years at Dartmouth College.
In 1969 Appleton's first recordings were published (Appleton Syntonic Menageire and Human Music – the latter in collaboration with jazz musician Don Cherry
Don Cherry (jazz)
Donald Eugene Cherry was an innovative African-American jazz cornetist whose career began with a long association with saxophonist Ornette Coleman. He went on to live in many parts of the world and work with a wide variety of musicians.-Biography:Cherry was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and...
– on the Flying Dutchman
Flying Dutchman Records
Flying Dutchman Records was a jazz record label which was owned by veteran music industry executive, producer and songwriter Bob Thiele. Initially distributed by Atlantic Records, it was later distributed by RCA Records which took over the label in 1976...
label, produced by Bob Thiele
Bob Thiele
Bob Thiele was an American record producer who worked on countless classic jazz albums and record labels.-Biography:...
.
In 1973 Appleton began his collaboration with engineers Sydney Alonso and Cameron Jones, which led to the creation of the Dartmouth Digital Synthesizer
New England Digital
New England Digital Corp. , founded originally in Norwich, Vermont and eventually relocated to White River Junction, Vermont, was best known for its signature product, the Synclavier Synthesizer System, which evolved into the Synclavier Digital Audio System or "Tapeless Studio." The company sold...
and ultimately the Synclavier
Synclavier
The Synclavier System was an early digital synthesizer, polyphonic digital sampling system, and music workstation, manufactured by New England Digital Corporation, Norwich, VT. The original design and development of the Synclavier prototype occurred at Dartmouth College with the collaboration of...
. However, it was not until the 1980s that Appleton composed his best works for this digital
Digital
A digital system is a data technology that uses discrete values. By contrast, non-digital systems use a continuous range of values to represent information...
synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
and on which he gave concerts of his own music for the following decade.
His love of Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
led Appleton to leave Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
in 1976-1977 and become the director of Sweden's national center for electronic music. His difficulty with the Swedish bureaucracy led to his resignation and he returned to Norwich, Vermont
Norwich, Vermont
Norwich is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States, located along the Connecticut River opposite Hanover, New Hampshire. The population was 3,544 at the 2000 census....
as a partner, for one year, in the newly formed firm New England Digital Corporation
New England Digital
New England Digital Corp. , founded originally in Norwich, Vermont and eventually relocated to White River Junction, Vermont, was best known for its signature product, the Synclavier Synthesizer System, which evolved into the Synclavier Digital Audio System or "Tapeless Studio." The company sold...
that had begun to manufacture the Synclavier
Synclavier
The Synclavier System was an early digital synthesizer, polyphonic digital sampling system, and music workstation, manufactured by New England Digital Corporation, Norwich, VT. The original design and development of the Synclavier prototype occurred at Dartmouth College with the collaboration of...
. The following year he returned to the faculty of Dartmouth College.
It was also during this time in his life that Appleton developed a serious interest in the music of Polynesia
Polynesia
Polynesia is a subregion of Oceania, made up of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are termed Polynesians and they share many similar traits including language, culture and beliefs...
and Micronesia
Micronesia
Micronesia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising thousands of small islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It is distinct from Melanesia to the south, and Polynesia to the east. The Philippines lie to the west, and Indonesia to the southwest....
. He led a group of Dartmouth students to the Kingdom of Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
and later received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...
to train radio personnel on the Micronesian islands of Chuuk
Chuuk
Chuuk — formerly Truk, Ruk, Hogoleu, Torres, Ugulat, and Lugulus — is an island group in the south western part of the Pacific Ocean. It comprises one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia , along with Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap. Chuuk is the most populous of the FSM's...
and Phonpei to record and broadcast their own music.
1980s
It was during this period that Appleton began to compose his best computer music and live-electronic music. Many of his works for this genre were first premiered at the annual festival held by the Groupe de Musique Experimentale de Bourges (FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) and at Fylkingen
Fylkingen
Fylkingen is a society for experimental music and arts, founded in Stockholm, Sweden in 1933, one of the world's oldest societies of its kind. Composer Ingemar Liljefors served as the organization's first Chairman from 1933-1946....
in Stockholm, Sweden.
During his time in Bourges
Bourges
Bourges is a city in central France on the Yèvre river. It is the capital of the department of Cher and also was the capital of the former province of Berry.-History:...
, Appleton became a founding member of the International Confederation for Electro-Acoustic Music. His stimulating interaction with composers from many nations led him to believe that a similar organization in the United States might help raise the profile of electro-acoustic music in his own country. In 1984, together with a small group of like-minded composers, Appleton helped establish the Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States
Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States
The Society for Electro-Acoustic Music in the United States is a nonprofit US based organization founded in 1984 which aims to promote electro-acoustic music...
(SEAMUS). He ultimately served for a time as president of the society.
In the summer of 1984 Appleton helped Moses Asch
Moses Asch
Moses Asch was the founder of Folkways Records. Asch ran the label from 1948 until his death...
, founder of Folkways Records
Folkways Records
Folkways Records was a record label founded by Moses Asch that documented folk, world, and children's music. It was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution in 1987, and is now part of Smithsonian Folkways.-History:...
, release its first recordings of electro-acoustic music. According to Asch's wishes, these recordings have remained in print under the Smithsonian/Folkways auspices.
1990s
The decade of the 1990s saw Appleton spending increasing amount of time abroad: teaching at Keio UniversityKeio University
,abbreviated as Keio or Keidai , is a Japanese university located in Minato, Tokyo. It is known as the oldest institute of higher education in Japan. Founder Fukuzawa Yukichi originally established it as a school for Western studies in 1858 in Edo . It has eleven campuses in Tokyo and Kanagawa...
(Mita) in Tokyo, Japan for three years and frequently visiting Moscow, Russia where he was inspired by the enthusiasm of young composers. He encouraged the composer/engineer Andre Smirnov to establish the Theremin Center
Theremin Center
The Theremin Center for Electroacoustic Music was created in Moscow, Russia in 1992 by the group of musicians and computer scientists, under the leadership of Andrey Smirnov...
at the Moscow Conservatory of Music. Appleton was first introduced to Russian musicians and artists by the choral conductor/ethnologist Dmitri Pokrovsky
Dmitri Pokrovsky
Dmitri Viktorovich Pokrovsky was a Russian folk music researcher and musician best known for his efforts to rediscover authentic, often near extinct rural musical traditions, from many different regions of Russia and re-enacting them with the Dmitri Pokrovsky Ensemble.-Biography:In the early...
(1944–1996) and this began his compositional return to instrumental and choral music, much of it composed for the pianist Julia Turkina and cellist Alexander Zagorinsky. In an essay entitled "How I Became a Russian Composer" (2009) Appleton explains his love of Russian music and culture that he believes his stepfather, Alexander Walden, instilled in him.
Also in this decade Appleton composed two, full-length operas for a choir of 1500 children and professional orchestra. The works, HOPI: La naissance de Desert and Le Dernier Voyage de Jean-Gallup de la Perouse, were conducted by Alain Joutard and commissioned by the Delegation Departmental à la Musique et à la Danse of the Consei General des Alpes-Maritimes in Nice, France.
2000 to the present
Having founded the graduate program in electro-acoustic music at Dartmouth College with composer David Evan JonesDavid Evan Jones
David Evan Jones is a composer of chamber music, opera, and computer music, and professor of music at UCSC. His notable compositions include Scritto, which features digitally manipulated vowel sounds. He has also written one chamber opera, Bardos, which premiered in Seoul, South Korea in 2004.-...
in 1989, Appleton devoted most of his teaching to the graduate students in this program. The purpose of the program was to combine the study of composition
Musical composition
Musical composition can refer to an original piece of music, the structure of a musical piece, or the process of creating a new piece of music. People who practice composition are called composers.- Musical compositions :...
, acoustics
Acoustics
Acoustics is the interdisciplinary science that deals with the study of all mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician while someone working in the field of acoustics...
, computer-science and music cognition
Music cognition
Music cognition is an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the mental processes that support musical behaviors, including perception, comprehension, memory, attention, and performance...
. He came to believe this was his greatest contribution during his forty-five years as a teacher. He continues to maintain friendships with many of his former students: Gerald Beauregard, Martin McKinney, Ray Guillette, John Puterbaugh
Nellymoser
Nellymoser, Inc. is a privately held company that specializes in mobile computing. Its main products include the Nellymoser Platform and Media On-Demand, Music Companion & Infotainment On-Demand Mobile Advantage Packs.- Corporate history:...
, Ted Coffey, Anu Kirk, Yuri Spitsyn, Ted Apel, Kojiro Umezaki
Silk Road Project
Silk Road Project, Inc. is a not-for-profit organization, initiated by acclaimed cellist Yo-Yo Ma in 1998, promoting collaboration among artists and institutions, promoting multicultural artistic exchange, and studying the ebb and flow of ideas among different cultures along the Silk Road. The...
, Steve Berkley
BIAS
BIAS is a privately held corporation based in Petaluma, California.- History :...
, Vanderlei Lucentini, Courtney Kennedy, Ileana Perez, Kevin Parks, Colby Leider, Matthew B. Smith, Leslie Stone, Tae Hong Park, Sean Peuquet, Andrew Tomasulo, Paul Botelho the Triple OG, Iroro Orife, Bruno Ruviaro, Masaki Kubo, Will Haslett, Irina Escalante Chernova, Michael Chinen, Kristina Wolfe, Aki Onda, Bill Brunson and Russell Pinkston
Russell Pinkston
Russell Pinkston is Professor of Composition and Director of the Electronic music Studios at the University of Texas at Austin School of Music.Pinkston is both an active composer and a researcher in the field Computer Music...
.
In 2009 Appleton retired from Dartmouth expressing discontent with the faculty and administration. He subsequently taught at the University of California, Santa Cruz
University of California, Santa Cruz
The University of California, Santa Cruz, also known as UC Santa Cruz or UCSC, is a public, collegiate university; one of ten campuses in the University of California...
. He currently teaches at Loyola University New Orleans.
Works
- Apolliana (1970)
- CCCP (In Memoriam: Anatoly Kuznetsov) (1969)
- Ce que signifie la déclaration des droits de l'Homme et du citoyen de 1789 pour les hommes et les citoyens des îles Marquises (1989)
- Chef d'œuvre (1967)
- Degitaru Ongaku (1983)
- Dima Dobralsa Domoy (1996)
- Dr Quisling in Stockholm (1971)
- Georganna's Fancy (1966)
- Georganna's Farewell (1975)
- Homage To Orpheus (1969)
- Homenaje a Milanés (1987)
- Human Music (1969)
- In Deserto (1977)
- In Medias Res (1978)
- Mussems Sång (1976)
- Newark Airport Rock (1969)
- Oskuldens Dröm (1985)
- Otahiti (1973)
- San Francisco Airport Rock (1996)
- Spuyten Duyvil (1967)
- Stereopticon (1972)
- The Sydsing Camklang (1976)
- Syntrophia (1977)
- Times Square Times Ten (1969)
- U ha'amata 'atou 'i te himene (1996)
- Yamanotesen To Ko (1997)
- Zoetrope (1974)
Recordings
- Times Square Times Ten (1969)
- Appleton Syntonic MenagerieAppleton Syntonic MenagerieSyntonic Menagerie is an album of electronic music by Jon Appleton released in 1969 on Flying Dutchman Records, a record label owned and managed by classic producer Bob Thiele...
(Flying Dutchman RecordsFlying Dutchman RecordsFlying Dutchman Records was a jazz record label which was owned by veteran music industry executive, producer and songwriter Bob Thiele. Initially distributed by Atlantic Records, it was later distributed by RCA Records which took over the label in 1976...
, 1969) - Human Music (with Don CherryDon Cherry (jazz)Donald Eugene Cherry was an innovative African-American jazz cornetist whose career began with a long association with saxophonist Ornette Coleman. He went on to live in many parts of the world and work with a wide variety of musicians.-Biography:Cherry was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and...
) (1970) - The World Music Theatre of Jon Appleton (Folkways RecordsFolkways RecordsFolkways Records was a record label founded by Moses Asch that documented folk, world, and children's music. It was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution in 1987, and is now part of Smithsonian Folkways.-History:...
, 1974) - The Dartmouth Digital Synthesizer (Folkways, 1976)
- Music for Synclavier and Other Digital Systems: With Jon Appleton, Composer (Folkways, 1978)
- The Tale of William Mariner and The Snow Queen (1982)
- Two Melodramas for Synclavier (Folkways, 1982)
- Four Fantasies for Synclavier, (Folkways, 1982)
- Contes de la mémoire (empreintes DIGITALesEmpreintes DIGITALesempreintes DIGITALes is a record label founded in 1990 and based in Montreal which specialises in contemporary electroacoustic music, acousmatic and musique concrète.In 2005, empreintes DIGITALes shifted from CD to DVD-Audio.- Composers :* Mathew Adkins...
, IMED 9635, 1996) - Wunderbra! (with Achim Treu) (2003)
- Syntonic Menagerie 2 (2003)
Further reading
- Leider, Colby. 2001. "Appleton, Jon (Howard)". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan Publishers.