Period

:

Contemporary

 

 

Modern

Genre

:

Avant-Garde

 

 

Keyboard

 

Marilyn Nonken is a renowned classical pianist and musicologist who has made significant contributions to the world of contemporary classical music. Born in Chicago, Illinois in 1963, Nonken began playing the piano at the age of five and showed exceptional talent from an early age. She went on to study at the Eastman School of Music, where she earned her Bachelor of Music degree, and later at the University of California, Berkeley, where she received her Ph.D. in musicology. Nonken's career as a performer began in the early 1990s, when she began to gain recognition for her interpretations of contemporary classical music. She quickly established herself as a leading interpreter of the works of composers such as Tristan Murail, Philippe Manoury, and Joshua Fineberg, and her performances were praised for their technical precision and emotional depth. One of Nonken's most notable performances came in 1995, when she premiered Murail's "Territoires de l'Oubli" at the Festival d'Automne in Paris. The piece, which was written specifically for Nonken, is a complex and challenging work that requires the pianist to use a variety of extended techniques, including playing inside the piano and using the sustain pedal to create a shimmering, ethereal sound. Nonken's performance was widely praised for its virtuosity and sensitivity, and it helped to establish her as one of the leading interpreters of contemporary classical music. Nonken's career continued to flourish throughout the 1990s and 2000s, and she became known for her collaborations with other contemporary classical musicians and composers. In 2001, she founded the New York City-based contemporary music ensemble Ensemble 21, which has since become one of the leading ensembles of its kind in the United States. Nonken has also worked closely with composers such as Michael Finnissy, Brian Ferneyhough, and James Dillon, and has premiered numerous works by these and other contemporary composers. In addition to her work as a performer, Nonken is also a respected musicologist and scholar. She has written extensively on contemporary classical music, and her research has focused on the works of composers such as Murail, Ferneyhough, and Morton Feldman. Her book "The Spectral Piano: From Liszt, Scriabin, and Debussy to the Digital Age" (2014) is considered a seminal work in the field of contemporary classical music studies. Nonken's contributions to the world of contemporary classical music have been recognized with numerous awards and honors. In 2000, she was awarded the prestigious Kranichsteiner Musikpreis at the Darmstadt International Summer Courses for New Music, and in 2005 she received the Fromm Foundation Commission from Harvard University. She has also been awarded grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, and the American Music Center, among others. Nonken's career continues to thrive, and she remains one of the most respected and influential performers and scholars in the world of contemporary classical music. Her performances and recordings continue to inspire and challenge audiences, and her research and writing continue to shape the way we think about and understand this important and vibrant genre of music.

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