Roland Trogan
Encyclopedia
Roland Trogan is an American composer, teacher and author.
, Trogan was a musical prodigy. He performed classical piano music as a teenager on WKNX Radio in Saginaw from 1947 to 1950, before beginning formal training in composition at the University of Michigan
. There he studied with Ross Lee Finney
, Luigi Dallapiccola
and Leslie Bassett
and received his B.Mus.
in 1954, M.Mus.
in 1955, and D.M.A.
in 1963. His compositional work during this time was recognized by awards from BMI
and the Louisville Symphony, which performed Trogan's Two Scenes for Orchestra in 1955. A Fulbright Scholarship for study in Rome was rescinded by the House Committee on Un-American Activities because Trogan had signed a petition supporting the prominent socialist, Norman Thomas
. In addition to graduate fellowships in music theory and English, Trogan was engaged as Associate Conductor and Composer-in-Residence by the Saginaw Civic Symphony, under the Russian conductor Josef Cherniavsky. Trogan came to Cherniavsky's attention after learning of Trogan's prize winning one-act opera, The Hat Man (1954), which was widely performed. While a graduate student Trogan produced chamber works for vocal and instrumental ensembles: the Sextet for Wind Quintet and Piano, Elegy for String Quartet and Contralto, and incidental music for Berthold Brecht's The Good Woman of Szechuan. Additional works from that time include Duos on Tone Rows, Five Pieces for Piano, and his Soliloquy for Piano, which was published in 1955 in Generation magazine as an homage to Arnold Schoenberg
.
In 1960 Trogan began studies with Roger Sessions
in Princeton, New Jersey
and divided his musical activities between Michigan and New York. In New York he organized public concerts, lectures and seminars featuring prominent individuals and ensembles including the composers Henry Cowell
and Wallingford Riegger
, the Grand Prix du Disque
-winning Kohon String Quartet, the violinist Max Polikoff and the violist Walter Trampler
. After completing his doctoral thesis, the Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in 1963, Trogan relocated to Staten Island, New York and began his public musical career. His works were performed in New York City's major concert venues, including Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall
. Recordings of his music were widely broadcast and interviews of the composer were frequent on both TV and international radio. Premieres of his piano music were presented by Paul Jacobs
and Metropolitan Opera
conductor Richard Woitach, and his Sonata for Unaccompanied Violin was performed by Harold Kohon at The Town Hall
. Trogan also taught for several years for at New York University
, and privately for prominent individuals and families, including the families of violinist Isaac Stern
, actor Richard Burton
, diplomat Felix Rohatyn
, actor Christopher Plummer
, Sarasota Opera
director Victor DeRenzi, and New York City Opera
conductor Julius Rudel
. His compositions of this period included The Seafarer Cantata, Five Nocturnes for Piano, and the first Piano Sonata.
He then took a hiatus from composing and turned his attention to his family and to the founding of a music school on Staten Island in 1975, which he continues to direct to this day. Although he adopted a lower public musical profile, he continued to be recognized with three grants from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 1997, Trogan's second compositional period began with the creation of much piano music, his Chamber Symphony, and Más ficciones (por Jorge Luis Borges
) for unaccompanied violin. In 2004 he founded Patrice Editions, L.L.C., a company devoted to recording and publishing contemporary music. Trogan has written a book, The Circle and the Diamond: The Odyssey of Music, in which he proposes new procedures for the analysis of music as well as ways of understanding Western music in relation to the changing temporal perspectives in European civilization. He continues to compose new works and as of 2010 was finishing Missa Cavuto, a work for soprano and piano.
Biography
Borm in Saginaw, MichiganSaginaw, Michigan
Saginaw is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of Saginaw County. The city of Saginaw was once a thriving lumber town and manufacturing center. Saginaw and Saginaw County lie in the Flint/Tri-Cities region of Michigan...
, Trogan was a musical prodigy. He performed classical piano music as a teenager on WKNX Radio in Saginaw from 1947 to 1950, before beginning formal training in composition at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
. There he studied with Ross Lee Finney
Ross Lee Finney
Ross 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...
, Luigi Dallapiccola
Luigi Dallapiccola
Luigi Dallapiccola was an Italian composer known for his lyrical twelve-tone compositions.-Biography:Dallapiccola was born at Pisino d'Istria , to Italian parents....
and Leslie Bassett
Leslie Bassett
Leslie Bassett is an American composer of classical music, and the University of Michigan’s Albert A. Stanley Distinguished University Professor Emeritus of Composition...
and received his B.Mus.
Bachelor of Music
Bachelor of Music is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree; the majority of work consists of prescribed music courses and study in applied music, usually requiring a...
in 1954, M.Mus.
Master of Music
The Master of Music is the first graduate degree in Music awarded by universities and music conservatories. The M.Mus. combines advanced studies in an applied area of specialization with graduate-level academic study in subjects such as music history, music theory, or music pedagogy...
in 1955, and D.M.A.
Doctor of Musical Arts
The Doctor of Musical Arts degree is a doctoral academic degree in music. The D.M.A. combines advanced studies in an applied area of specialization with graduate-level academic study in subjects such as music history, music theory, or music pedagogy. The D.M.A...
in 1963. His compositional work during this time was recognized by awards from BMI
Broadcast Music Incorporated
Broadcast Music, Inc. is one of three United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP and SESAC. It collects license fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed...
and the Louisville Symphony, which performed Trogan's Two Scenes for Orchestra in 1955. A Fulbright Scholarship for study in Rome was rescinded by the House Committee on Un-American Activities because Trogan had signed a petition supporting the prominent socialist, Norman Thomas
Norman Thomas
Norman Mattoon Thomas was a leading American socialist, pacifist, and six-time presidential candidate for the Socialist Party of America.-Early years:...
. In addition to graduate fellowships in music theory and English, Trogan was engaged as Associate Conductor and Composer-in-Residence by the Saginaw Civic Symphony, under the Russian conductor Josef Cherniavsky. Trogan came to Cherniavsky's attention after learning of Trogan's prize winning one-act opera, The Hat Man (1954), which was widely performed. While a graduate student Trogan produced chamber works for vocal and instrumental ensembles: the Sextet for Wind Quintet and Piano, Elegy for String Quartet and Contralto, and incidental music for Berthold Brecht's The Good Woman of Szechuan. Additional works from that time include Duos on Tone Rows, Five Pieces for Piano, and his Soliloquy for Piano, which was published in 1955 in Generation magazine as an homage to Arnold 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...
.
In 1960 Trogan began studies with Roger Sessions
Roger Sessions
Roger 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...
in Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton is a community located in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It is best known as the location of Princeton University, which has been sited in the community since 1756...
and divided his musical activities between Michigan and New York. In New York he organized public concerts, lectures and seminars featuring prominent individuals and ensembles including the composers Henry Cowell
Henry Cowell
Henry 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:...
and Wallingford Riegger
Wallingford Riegger
Wallingford Constantine Riegger was a prolific American music composer, well known for orchestral and modern dance music, and film scores...
, the Grand Prix du Disque
Grand Prix du Disque
The Grand Prix du Disque is the premier French award for musical recordings. The award was inaugurated by l'Académie Charles Cros in 1948 and offers prizes in various categories. The categories vary from year to year, and multiple awards are often made in any one category in the same year...
-winning Kohon String Quartet, the violinist Max Polikoff and the violist Walter Trampler
Walter Trampler
Walter Trampler was a German musician and teacher of the viola and viola d'amore.Born at Munich, he began to study music at the age of 6, learning from his father, a violinist. In his youth, he toured Europe performing as the violist of the Strub String Quartet...
. After completing his doctoral thesis, the Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in 1963, Trogan relocated to Staten Island, New York and began his public musical career. His works were performed in New York City's major concert venues, including Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
. Recordings of his music were widely broadcast and interviews of the composer were frequent on both TV and international radio. Premieres of his piano music were presented by Paul Jacobs
Paul Jacobs
Paul Jacobs can refer to:*Paul Jacobs , American activist**Paul Jacobs and the Nuclear Gang, documentary film about the above*Paul Jacobs , Flemish author*Paul Jacobs , professional hockey player...
and Metropolitan Opera
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager...
conductor Richard Woitach, and his Sonata for Unaccompanied Violin was performed by Harold Kohon at The Town Hall
The Town Hall
The Town Hall is a performance space, located at 123 West 43rd Street, between Sixth Avenue and Broadway, in New York City. It seats approximately 1,500 people.-History:...
. Trogan also taught for several years for at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
, and privately for prominent individuals and families, including the families of violinist Isaac Stern
Isaac Stern
Isaac Stern was a Ukrainian-born violinist. He was renowned for his recordings and for discovering new musical talent.-Biography:Isaac Stern was born into a Jewish family in Kremenets, Ukraine. He was fourteen months old when his family moved to San Francisco...
, actor Richard Burton
Richard Burton
Richard Burton, CBE was a Welsh actor. He was nominated seven times for an Academy Award, six of which were for Best Actor in a Leading Role , and was a recipient of BAFTA, Golden Globe and Tony Awards for Best Actor. Although never trained as an actor, Burton was, at one time, the highest-paid...
, diplomat Felix Rohatyn
Felix Rohatyn
Felix George Rohatyn is an American investment banker known for his role in preventing the bankruptcy of New York City in the 1970s, who also served as United States Ambassador to France. He was a long term advisor to the U.S...
, actor Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
, Sarasota Opera
Sarasota Opera
Sarasota Opera is a professional opera company in Sarasota, Florida, USA, which owns and performs in the now-renovated 1,119-seat Sarasota Opera House. The 2011-2012 season is currently featuring Puccini’s Madama Butterfly in the fall...
director Victor DeRenzi, and New York City Opera
New York City Opera
The New York City Opera is an American opera company located in New York City.The company, called "the people's opera" by New York Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, was founded in 1943 with the aim of making opera financially accessible to a wide audience, producing an innovative choice of repertory, and...
conductor Julius Rudel
Julius Rudel
Julius Rudel is an American opera and orchestra conductor who emigrated to the United States from Austria at the age of 17 and studied conducting at the Mannes College of Music in New York City. He then forged a 35-year career with the New York City Opera, from 1944 to 1979, and was the Music...
. His compositions of this period included The Seafarer Cantata, Five Nocturnes for Piano, and the first Piano Sonata.
He then took a hiatus from composing and turned his attention to his family and to the founding of a music school on Staten Island in 1975, which he continues to direct to this day. Although he adopted a lower public musical profile, he continued to be recognized with three grants from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 1997, Trogan's second compositional period began with the creation of much piano music, his Chamber Symphony, and Más ficciones (por Jorge Luis Borges
Jorge Luis Borges
Jorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges Acevedo , known as Jorge Luis Borges , was an Argentine writer, essayist, poet and translator born in Buenos Aires. In 1914 his family moved to Switzerland where he attended school, receiving his baccalauréat from the Collège de Genève in 1918. The family...
) for unaccompanied violin. In 2004 he founded Patrice Editions, L.L.C., a company devoted to recording and publishing contemporary music. Trogan has written a book, The Circle and the Diamond: The Odyssey of Music, in which he proposes new procedures for the analysis of music as well as ways of understanding Western music in relation to the changing temporal perspectives in European civilization. He continues to compose new works and as of 2010 was finishing Missa Cavuto, a work for soprano and piano.
External links
- Dr. Trogan's Music School – official website
- Roland Trogan 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...