Paul Chihara
Encyclopedia
Paul Seiko Chihara is an American
composer.
Chihara was born in Seattle, Washington
in 1938. A Japanese American
, he spent several years of his childhood with his family in an internment camp in Minidoka, Idaho.
Chihara received a B.A. and an M.A. in English literature from the University of Washington and Cornell University, respectively. He received a D.M.A in 1965 from Cornell, studying with Robert Palmer. He also studied composition with Nadia Boulanger
in Paris, Ernst Pepping
in West Berlin, and Gunther Schuller
in Tanglewood. He was the first composer-in-residence of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra
, conducted by Neville Marriner
, and is currently
on the music faculty of UCLA
, where he is the head of the Visual Media Program.
Chihara's prize-winning concert works, which include symphonies, concertos, chamber
music, choral compositions, and ballets, have been performed to great acclaim both
nationally and internationally. His works are concerned with the evolution and expression
of highly contrasting colors, textures, and emotional levels, which are often dramatically
juxtaposed with one another. His works have been commissioned by the Guggenheim
Foundation, the Roger Wagner Chorale
, the Naumberg Foundation, and the National Endowment
for the Arts. He has also received commissions from the Boston and London Symphonies, as
well as the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Cleveland Orchestra. He was Composer-in-Residence with
the San Francisco Ballet
for ten years. Tempest and Shinju are among his well-known ballet
scores.
His music reflects interest in a variety of musical styles, and often shows influence from Asian music and culture. He sometimes incorporates quotations and stylistic borrowings from jazz standards, folk song, and the classical repertoire. He has composed music in a variety of forms, including ballets, musicals, symphonies, choral and chamber music.
His close connection with music for dramatic forms extends into film and television for which he has written nearly 100 scores. His first film score was for Roger Corman
's Death Race 2000
(1974), and came at the point that he decided to leave academia to pursue a living as a composer. His exit from the university and entrance into film music also produced a change in his concert music. It was at this point that he moved away from the 12-tone
and freely chromatic styles he had employed up to then, and embraced a more tonal style.
He has worked with directors Sidney Lumet
, Louis Malle
, Michael Ritchie
, and Arthur Penn
. His movie credits include Prince of the City
, The Morning After
and Crossing Delancey
; his television credits include China Beach
, Simon and Simon, and MacGruder and Loud, the pilot and theme music to Manimal
, among others.
He also composed the score for Shogun: The Musical
, based on James Clavell
's novel. Shogun had a short run on Broadway, running from November 1990 to January 1991.
Chihara's notable students include James Horner
, Christopher Brady, Matthew Tommasini, Sean Friar, Jeff Kryka, Joseph Trapanese
, and Cynthia Tse Kimberlin
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
composer.
Chihara was born in Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
in 1938. A Japanese American
Japanese American
are American people of Japanese heritage. Japanese Americans have historically been among the three largest Asian American communities, but in recent decades have become the sixth largest group at roughly 1,204,205, including those of mixed-race or mixed-ethnicity...
, he spent several years of his childhood with his family in an internment camp in Minidoka, Idaho.
Chihara received a B.A. and an M.A. in English literature from the University of Washington and Cornell University, respectively. He received a D.M.A in 1965 from Cornell, studying with Robert Palmer. He also studied composition with Nadia Boulanger
Nadia Boulanger
Nadia Boulanger was a French composer, conductor and teacher who taught many composers and performers of the 20th century.From a musical family, she achieved early honours as a student at the Paris Conservatoire, but believing that her talent as a composer was inferior to that of her younger...
in Paris, Ernst Pepping
Ernst Pepping
Ernst Pepping was a German composer of classical music.-Professional career:Pepping studied composition at the Berliner Hochschule für Musik with Walter Gmeindl between 1922 and 1926...
in West Berlin, and Gunther Schuller
Gunther Schuller
Gunther Schuller is an American composer, conductor, horn player, author, historian, and jazz musician.- Biography and works :...
in Tanglewood. He was the first composer-in-residence of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra
Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra
The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra is a 40-member American chamber orchestra based in Los Angeles, California, considered by music critic Jim Svejda as "America's finest chamber orchestra".-History:...
, conducted by Neville Marriner
Neville Marriner
Sir Neville Marriner is an English conductor and violinist.-Biography:Marriner was born in Lincoln and studied at the Royal College of Music and the Paris Conservatoire. He played the violin in the Philharmonia Orchestra, the Martin String Quartet and London Symphony Orchestra, playing with the...
, and is currently
on the music faculty of UCLA
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
, where he is the head of the Visual Media Program.
Chihara's prize-winning concert works, which include symphonies, concertos, chamber
music, choral compositions, and ballets, have been performed to great acclaim both
nationally and internationally. His works are concerned with the evolution and expression
of highly contrasting colors, textures, and emotional levels, which are often dramatically
juxtaposed with one another. His works have been commissioned by the Guggenheim
Foundation, the Roger Wagner Chorale
Roger Wagner
Roger Wagner, KCSG was an American choral musician, administrator and educator.-Early life:Wagner was born in Le Puy, France. His younger brother was actor and voiceover artist Jack Wagner. Roger Wagner was immersed in music from his youngest years...
, the Naumberg Foundation, and the National Endowment
for the Arts. He has also received commissions from the Boston and London Symphonies, as
well as the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Cleveland Orchestra. He was Composer-in-Residence with
the San Francisco Ballet
San Francisco Ballet
The San Francisco Ballet is a ballet company, founded in 1933 as the San Francisco Opera Ballet. The company is currently based in the War Memorial Opera House, San Francisco, under the direction of Helgi Tomasson. SFB is the first professional ballet company in the United States...
for ten years. Tempest and Shinju are among his well-known ballet
scores.
His music reflects interest in a variety of musical styles, and often shows influence from Asian music and culture. He sometimes incorporates quotations and stylistic borrowings from jazz standards, folk song, and the classical repertoire. He has composed music in a variety of forms, including ballets, musicals, symphonies, choral and chamber music.
His close connection with music for dramatic forms extends into film and television for which he has written nearly 100 scores. His first film score was for Roger Corman
Roger Corman
Roger William Corman is an American film producer, director and actor. He has mostly worked on low-budget B movies. Some of Corman's work has an established critical reputation, such as his cycle of films adapted from the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, and in 2009 he won an Honorary Academy Award for...
's Death Race 2000
Death Race 2000
Death Race 2000 is a 1975 cult action film directed by Paul Bartel, and starring David Carradine, Simone Griffeth and Sylvester Stallone. The film takes place in a dystopian American society in the year 2000, where the murderous Transcontinental Road Race has become a form of national entertainment...
(1974), and came at the point that he decided to leave academia to pursue a living as a composer. His exit from the university and entrance into film music also produced a change in his concert music. It was at this point that he moved away from the 12-tone
Twelve-tone technique
Twelve-tone technique is a method of musical composition devised by Arnold Schoenberg...
and freely chromatic styles he had employed up to then, and embraced a more tonal style.
He has worked with directors Sidney Lumet
Sidney Lumet
Sidney Lumet was an American director, producer and screenwriter with over 50 films to his credit. He was nominated for the Academy Award as Best Director for 12 Angry Men , Dog Day Afternoon , Network and The Verdict...
, Louis Malle
Louis Malle
Louis Malle was a French film director, screenwriter, and producer. He worked in both French cinema and Hollywood. His films include Ascenseur pour l'échafaud , Atlantic City , and Au revoir, les enfants .- Early years in France :Malle was born into a wealthy industrialist family in Thumeries,...
, Michael Ritchie
Michael Ritchie
Michael Ritchie may refer to:*Michael Ritchie , film director*Michael Ritchie , artistic director of Center Theatre Group...
, and Arthur Penn
Arthur Penn
Arthur Hiller Penn was an American film director and producer with a career as a theater director as well. Penn amassed a critically acclaimed body of work throughout the 1960s and 1970s.-Early years:...
. His movie credits include Prince of the City
Prince of the City
Prince of the City is an American crime drama film about an NYPD officer who chooses to expose police corruption for idealistic reasons. The character of Daniel Ciello was based on real-life NYPD Narcotics Detective Robert Leuci and the script was based on Robert Daley's 1978 book of the same name...
, The Morning After
The Morning After
The Morning After may refer to:* "The Morning After" , a 1937 song recorded by Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra*"The Morning After" , a 1969 episode of The Avengers* The Morning After , a 2010 album by James...
and Crossing Delancey
Crossing Delancey
Crossing Delancey is a romantic comedy film starring Amy Irving and Peter Riegert released in 1988. It is directed by Joan Micklin Silver and based on a play by Susan Sandler, who also wrote the screenplay...
; his television credits include China Beach
China Beach
China Beach is an American dramatic television series set at an evacuation hospital during the Vietnam War. The title refers to My Khe beach in the city of Da Nang, Vietnam, which was nicknamed "China Beach" by unknown foreigners, most likely Americans...
, Simon and Simon, and MacGruder and Loud, the pilot and theme music to Manimal
Manimal
Manimal is an American action–adventure series that ran from September 30 to December 17, 1983 on NBC. The show centers on the character Dr Jonathan Chase , a shape-shifting man who possessed the ability to turn himself into any animal he chose...
, among others.
He also composed the score for Shogun: The Musical
Shogun: The Musical
Shōgun: The Musical is a musical with a book and lyrics by John Driver and music by Paul Chihara.Based on James Clavell's 1976 epic novel and the 1980 television mini-series of the same name it spawned, it centers on shipwrecked English sea captain John Blackthorne, who finds himself drawn into a...
, based on James Clavell
James Clavell
James Clavell, born Charles Edmund DuMaresq Clavell was an Australian-born, British novelist, screenwriter, director and World War II veteran and prisoner of war...
's novel. Shogun had a short run on Broadway, running from November 1990 to January 1991.
Chihara's notable students include James Horner
James Horner
James Roy Horner is an American composer, orchestrator and conductor of orchestral and film music. He is noted for the integration of choral and electronic elements in many of his film scores, and for frequent use of Celtic musical elements...
, Christopher Brady, Matthew Tommasini, Sean Friar, Jeff Kryka, Joseph Trapanese
Joseph Trapanese
Joseph Trapanese is a composer, arranger, and producer. He works in the production of music for for films, television, theater and concerts. He currently lives in Los Angeles.-Film and Television Music:...
, and Cynthia Tse Kimberlin
Cynthia Tse Kimberlin
Cynthia Tse Kimberlin is an American ethnomusicologist. She is the Executive Director and Publisher of the Music Research Institute and MRI Press, based in Point Richmond, California...
.
Selected works
- Magnificat (1965)
- Logs double bass (1966)
- Driftwood (string quartet) (1967)
- Branches (2 bassoons & percussion) (1968)
- Willow Willow (flute, tuba & percussion) (1968)
- James Horner (orchestra)
- Forest Music (orchestra) (1970)
- Windsong (cello & orchestra) (1971)
- Redwood (viola & percussion) (1971)
- Ave Maria - Scarborough Fair (6 male voices) (1971)
- Ceremony I (oboe, 2 celli, double bass & percussion) (1972)
- Grass (double bass & orchestra) (1972)
- Ceremony III (flute & orchestra) (1973)
- Ceremony IV (orchestra) (1973)
- Ceremony II (amplified flute, 2 amplified celli & percussion) (1974)
- Elegy (piano trio) (1974)
- Piano Trio (1974)
- Guitar Concerto (1975)
- Symphony no.1 "Symphony in Celebration" (Ceremony V) (1975)
- Shinju (Lovers’ Suicide) (ballet after Chikamatsu) (1975)
- Missa Carminum (8 voices) (1975)
- The Beauty of the Rose is in its Passing (bassoon, 2 horns, harp, & percussion) (1976)
- String Quartet (Primavera) (1977)
- Mistletoe Bride (1978)
- The Infernal Machine revised as Oedipus Rag (musical after Jean CocteauJean CocteauJean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau was a French poet, novelist, dramatist, designer, playwright, artist and filmmaker. His circle of associates, friends and lovers included Kenneth Anger, Pablo Picasso, Jean Hugo, Jean Marais, Henri Bernstein, Marlene Dietrich, Coco Chanel, Erik Satie, María...
) (1978-80) - The Tempest (ballet, after ShakespeareWilliam ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
) (1980) - Concerto for String Quartet & Orchestra ("Kisses Sweeter than Wine") (1980)
- Sinfonia concertante (9 instruments) (1980)
- Saxophone Concerto (1981)
- Symphony no.2 "Birds of Sorrow" (1981)
- Sequoia (string qartet & tape) (1984)
- Clarinet Trio (Shogun Trio) (1989)
- Shogun: The MusicalShogun: The MusicalShōgun: The Musical is a musical with a book and lyrics by John Driver and music by Paul Chihara.Based on James Clavell's 1976 epic novel and the 1980 television mini-series of the same name it spawned, it centers on shipwrecked English sea captain John Blackthorne, who finds himself drawn into a...
(1990) - Forever Escher (saxophone qartet & string qartet) (1995)
- Minidoka (Reminiscences of ...) (ensemble & tape) (1996)
- Sonata (viola & piano) (1997)
- Minidoka (chorus, percussion & tape) (1998)
- Double Concerto for Violin, Clarinet & Orchestra (1999)
- Clouds (orchestra) (2001)
- Amatsu Kaze (soprano and five instruments) (2002)
- An Afternoon on the Perfume River (chamber orchestra) (2004)
- Trio Nostalgico (2004)
- Magnificat: Hannah's Prayer (2007)
- Fantasy (violin/flute, cello & piano) (2008)
- Ami (piano, 4 hands) (2008)
- When Soft Voices Die (viola & orchestra) (2008)
- Images (clarinet, viola & piano) (2009)
- Second Piano Quintet, "Aka Tombo (Dragonfly)" (2009)