Role

:

Composer  

 

Paul Wiancko is a contemporary classical music composer, cellist, and multi-instrumentalist. He was born on August 22, 1983, in Chicago, Illinois, and grew up in a musical family. His father was a jazz pianist, and his mother was a classical pianist. Wiancko started playing the cello at the age of four and later learned to play the piano, guitar, and bass. Wiancko attended the Juilliard School in New York City, where he studied cello with Joel Krosnick and chamber music with the Juilliard String Quartet. He also studied composition with Samuel Adler and Robert Beaser. After graduating from Juilliard, Wiancko continued his studies at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where he studied cello with Peter Wiley and chamber music with the Guarneri Quartet. Wiancko has performed as a cellist with many orchestras and ensembles, including the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. He has also performed as a soloist and chamber musician in many venues around the world, including Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, the Berlin Philharmonic, and the Royal Albert Hall. In addition to his performing career, Wiancko is also a prolific composer. His compositions have been performed by many orchestras and ensembles, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. He has also collaborated with many artists outside of the classical music world, including the indie rock band Vampire Weekend and the hip-hop artist Kendrick Lamar. Wiancko's compositions are known for their eclectic style, blending elements of classical, jazz, folk, and pop music. His works often feature unusual combinations of instruments and incorporate improvisation and other non-classical techniques. Some of his most notable compositions include "LIFT," a concerto for cello and orchestra, "American Haiku," a suite for string quartet, and "The Long Walk," a multimedia work for cello, percussion, and video. "LIFT" was commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic and premiered in 2018. The piece is divided into three movements, each of which explores a different aspect of the cello's sound and technique. The first movement, "Lift Off," features fast, virtuosic passages for the cello, while the second movement, "Lullaby," is a slow, lyrical meditation. The final movement, "Landing," is a rhythmic, dance-like finale. "American Haiku" is a suite for string quartet that was inspired by the Japanese poetic form of haiku. The piece consists of five short movements, each of which evokes a different aspect of American life and culture. The first movement, "Cityscape," is a bustling, urban scene, while the second movement, "Pastoral," is a peaceful, rural landscape. The third movement, "Jazz," is a lively, improvisational tribute to the American art form, while the fourth movement, "Pop," is a catchy, upbeat tune. The final movement, "Epilogue," is a quiet, reflective meditation. "The Long Walk" is a multimedia work that was commissioned by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and premiered in 2019. The piece is inspired by the true story of a Navajo code talker who walked 400 miles to deliver a message during World War II.

More....