Leon Kirchner

Leon Kirchner (born January 24, 1919 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American composer of contemporary classical music. He is a member of The American Academy of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Kirchner studied at the University of California Los Angeles with Ernest Bloch and Arnold Schoenberg. Kirchner began graduate studies with Bloch at the University of California, Berkeley but he served in the military and studied in New York with Roger Sessions before completing his degree. He was Walter Bigelow Rosen Professor of Music at Harvard from 1961 to 1991. (Johnston, AMG)

His musical style is highly influenced by Schoenberg though Kirchner did not employ the twelve tone technique, preferring a generally linear chromatic language and irregular rhythms. He was awarded a Pulitzer prize for his "Third String Quartet". (ibid)

His notable students include John Adams, Lawrence Moss, Jonathan Kramer, Tison Street, David Borden, and Curt Cacioppo.

elected works

Opera

*Lily (1977), opera in 3 acts, libretto by the composer after Saul Bellow's novel "Henderson the Rain King", cast: 3 male, 4 female roles; chorus

Orchestra

*Sinfonia (1951)
*Concerto for Piano No. 1 (1953), received Naumburg Award
*Toccata (1955)
*Concerto for Violin, Violoncello, 10 Winds, and Percussion (1960)
*Concerto for Piano No. 2 (1963)
*Music for Orchestra (1969)
*Music for Flute and Orchestra (1978)
*Orchestra Piece (Music for Orchestra II) (1990), formerly called 'Kaleidoscope'
*Music for Cello and Orchestra (1992), received Friedheim Award
*Of Things Exactly As They Are (1997), Soprano, Baritone; SATB Chorus; texts by Robinson Jeffers, Emily Dickinson, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Wallace Stevens, and Robert Lowell

Chamber/vocal/solo

*Duo for Violin and Piano (1947)
*Piano Sonata (1948)
*Little Suite (1949) for piano
*String Quartet No. 1 (1949)
*Sonata Concertante (1952) for violin and piano
*Trio (1954) for violin, cello, and piano
*String Quartet No. 2 (1958)
*Fanfare (1965), for horn and two trumpets
*String Quartet No. 3 (1966), received Pulitzer Prize
*Words from Wordsworth (1966) for mixed voices a cappella
*Flutings for Paula (1973), for flute solo (with optional percussion)
*Fanfare II (1977), for brass ensemble
*The Twilight Stood (1982)
*Music for Twelve (1985)
*For Cello Solo (1986)
*For Violin Solo (1986)
*Illuminations (1986) for brass ensemble
*Five Pieces (1987), for piano solo
*For Violin Solo II (1988)
*Triptych (1988) for violin and cello (comprised of For Cello Solo and Two Duos for Violin and Cello)
*Two Duos (1988) for violin and cello
*Interlude (1989) for piano
*Trio II (1993) for violin, cello, and piano
*For the Left Hand (1995), for piano solo
*Duo No. 2 for Violin and Piano (2002)
*Interlude II (2003) for piano
*Piano Sonata No. 2 (2003)
*String Quartet No. 4 (2006)

ource

* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=41:3308 Biography at All Music Guide] by Blair Johnston

External links

* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=41:3308 Biography at All Music Guide] by Blair Johnston
* [http://www.schirmer.com/default.aspx?TabId=2419&State_2872=2&ComposerId_2872=834 Biography at G. Schirmer]
* [http://www.gardnermuseum.org/music/composer/kirchner.asp Recordings of compositions by Leon Kirchner] from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum