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Composer

 

Anthony Paul De Ritis is a contemporary classical music composer who was born on August 17, 1955, in Buffalo, New York. He grew up in a family of musicians, with his father being a jazz pianist and his mother a singer. De Ritis started playing the piano at a young age and later learned to play the guitar and drums. He attended the State University of New York at Buffalo, where he earned a Bachelor of Music degree in composition in 1977. After completing his undergraduate studies, De Ritis went on to pursue a Master of Music degree in composition at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. He studied under the tutelage of composers such as Gunther Schuller, William Thomas McKinley, and Malcolm Peyton. During this time, De Ritis also worked as a freelance musician, playing guitar and drums in various jazz and rock bands. In 1981, De Ritis received a Fulbright Scholarship to study composition in Italy. He spent a year in Rome, where he studied with the renowned Italian composer Franco Donatoni. This experience had a profound impact on De Ritis's musical style, as he was exposed to a wide range of European classical music and contemporary avant-garde techniques. De Ritis's early works were heavily influenced by jazz and rock music, as well as the minimalist and post-minimalist styles of composers such as Steve Reich and Philip Glass. His compositions often featured repetitive rhythmic patterns and driving, energetic melodies. One of his earliest works, "Rituals," was written for a jazz ensemble and featured improvisation and complex rhythmic interplay. In the 1990s, De Ritis began to incorporate electronic and computer-generated sounds into his compositions. He became interested in the possibilities of using technology to create new sounds and textures, and his works began to explore the intersection of acoustic and electronic music. One of his most well-known works from this period is "Devolution," a multimedia piece that combines live performers with computer-generated sounds and video projections. De Ritis's music has been performed by a wide range of ensembles and orchestras, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, and the Kronos Quartet. He has also collaborated with a number of artists from other disciplines, including choreographers, visual artists, and filmmakers. In addition to his work as a composer, De Ritis is also a professor of music at Northeastern University in Boston. He has taught courses in composition, music theory, and electronic music, and has mentored numerous young composers. Throughout his career, De Ritis has been recognized for his contributions to contemporary classical music. He has received numerous awards and honors, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Fulbright Scholarship, and a Rome Prize. His works have been featured at festivals and concerts around the world, and he continues to be an important figure in the contemporary classical music scene.

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