Role

:

Composer  

Period

:

Contemporary

Genre

:

Keyboard

 

Marti Epstein is a renowned American composer of classical music. She was born on December 22, 1959, in New York City, and grew up in a family of musicians. Her father was a jazz pianist, and her mother was a classical pianist. Epstein started playing the piano at the age of four and began composing music at the age of eight. Epstein received her Bachelor of Music degree from New England Conservatory of Music in 1981, where she studied composition with William Thomas McKinley and Malcolm Peyton. She then went on to earn her Master of Music degree from Yale University in 1984, where she studied with Jacob Druckman and Martin Bresnick. Epstein's early works were influenced by the minimalist and post-minimalist movements of the 1970s and 1980s. Her compositions often feature repetitive patterns and a focus on texture and timbre. She has also been influenced by the music of J.S. Bach, Igor Stravinsky, and György Ligeti. One of Epstein's early works, "String Quartet No. 1," was premiered in 1983 by the Arditti Quartet. The piece features intricate rhythms and complex harmonies, and it showcases Epstein's interest in exploring the possibilities of the string quartet as a medium. In the 1990s, Epstein began to incorporate electronic elements into her compositions. She has worked extensively with computer-generated sounds and has explored the use of live electronics in her performances. Her piece "The Art of the Fugue: Contrapunctus I" (1995) features a live performer interacting with a computer-generated sound environment. Epstein's music has been performed by many prominent ensembles and musicians, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Arditti Quartet, the Da Capo Chamber Players, and the New York New Music Ensemble. She has also been commissioned by numerous organizations, including the Fromm Music Foundation, the Koussevitzky Music Foundation, and the Meet the Composer/Reader's Digest Commissioning Program. One of Epstein's most notable works is "Chant" (2001), a piece for orchestra and electronics. The piece was commissioned by the Boston Modern Orchestra Project and was premiered in 2002. "Chant" features a haunting melody played by a solo cello, which is then echoed and transformed by the orchestra and electronic sounds. The piece has been praised for its evocative and otherworldly atmosphere. Epstein has also written extensively for vocal ensembles. Her piece "Cantata for the Children of Terezin" (1995) is a tribute to the children who were imprisoned in the Terezin concentration camp during World War II. The piece features texts written by the children themselves, as well as texts by Anne Frank and other young victims of the Holocaust. The piece has been performed by numerous choirs and has been praised for its emotional power and sensitivity. In addition to her work as a composer, Epstein is also a respected educator. She has taught at numerous institutions, including the New England Conservatory of Music, Boston University, and Brandeis University. She has also served as the Composer-in-Residence for the Boston Modern Orchestra Project and the Radius Ensemble. Epstein has received numerous awards and honors for her work as a composer. She was a recipient of the Rome Prize in 1991 and has also received awards from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

More....