Role

:

Composer  

Birth

:

July 18, 1954 in New York City, NY

Period

:

Contemporary

Genre

:

Chamber

 

 

Concerto

 

 

Keyboard

 

 

Orchestral

 

Tobias Picker is an American composer of classical music, born on July 18, 1954, in New York City. He grew up in a family of musicians, with his father being a composer and his mother a pianist. From a young age, Picker showed a keen interest in music and began composing his own pieces at the age of eight. Picker received his formal education in music at the Manhattan School of Music, where he studied composition with Charles Wuorinen and Ludmila Ulehla. He also studied at the Juilliard School with Elliott Carter and Milton Babbitt. During his time at Juilliard, Picker was awarded the BMI Student Composer Award and the Charles Ives Scholarship. Picker's early works were heavily influenced by the avant-garde music of the 1960s and 1970s, but he later moved towards a more tonal and accessible style. His breakthrough work was his opera "Emmeline," which premiered at the Santa Fe Opera in 1996. The opera tells the story of a young girl who is forced to work in a New England mill during the Industrial Revolution. "Emmeline" was well-received by critics and audiences alike and established Picker as a major figure in American opera. Picker's other operas include "Fantastic Mr. Fox," based on the book by Roald Dahl, which premiered at the Los Angeles Opera in 1998, and "An American Tragedy," based on the novel by Theodore Dreiser, which premiered at the Metropolitan Opera in 2005. "An American Tragedy" was also well-received and was nominated for two Grammy Awards. In addition to his operas, Picker has composed a number of orchestral works, including "Old and Lost Rivers," which was premiered by the Houston Symphony in 1986, and "The Encantadas," which was premiered by the San Francisco Symphony in 1995. Picker has also composed chamber music, including a string quartet and a piano trio. Picker's music is characterized by its lyricism and emotional depth. He has been praised for his ability to create memorable melodies and for his skill in orchestration. His music has been performed by major orchestras and opera companies around the world, including the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and the Royal Opera House in London. In addition to his work as a composer, Picker has also served as the artistic director of the Opera San Antonio and the Tulsa Opera. He has been a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters since 2003. Overall, Tobias Picker is a highly respected composer of classical music, known for his operas and orchestral works. His music is characterized by its emotional depth and accessibility, and he has been praised for his skill in creating memorable melodies. With a career spanning several decades, Picker has established himself as a major figure in American classical music.

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