James Clarke (composer)

James Clarke (born October 15, 1957) is an English composer sometimes associated with the New Complexity school.

Background

Clarke was born in London, on October 15, 1957.

Education

According to fellow English composer and music scholar Christopher Fox, in "The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians", "After studying at Southampton University and City University, London, [Clarke] was awarded a Finnish Government Scholarship to study composition with Usko Meriläinen in Helsinki."Christopher Fox, "James Clarke", "The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians", n.d., as qtd. in James Clarke, [http://www.james-clarke.org/biography.2007.12.29.html "Biography"] , "james-clarke.org", 2007, accessed May 10, 2008.]

Career

In 1979, with his colleague Richard Emsley, Clarke co-founded the new music ensemble, Suoraan, "a small band of outstanding specialist performers" based in London "which dedicatedly promoted the music of, centrally, Iannis Xenakis but also younger British and European composers such as Michael Finnissy and James Dillon." [http://www.richardemsley.com/text/biography.html Richard Emsley] official website, accessed May 10, 2008.] Yet, as Christopher Fox points out, "for much of his career [Clarke's] work has attracted most attention beyond the British Isles, including significant performances at the International Gaudeamus Music Week and the ISCM World Music Days."

Fox relates further:

According to his official biography, Clarke has been "a visiting professor at universities in various countries, including Azerbaijan, where he was appointed an honorary Professor of Music at the Baku Music Academy; Russia, at the Moscow Conservatoire [;] and Sweden, at the University of Malmö."James Clarke, [http://www.james-clarke.org/biography.2007.12.29.html "Biography"] , "james-clarke.org", 2007, accessed May 10, 2008.] In addition, he "has led composition courses at the Time of Music Festival in Viitasaari, Finland, where he was featured composer in 2000, and at the Festival junger Künstler Bayreuth." He was also "a featured composer at the 2004 Ars Musica festival in Brussels, where ten works were performed in the largest survey of Clarke’s music to date [2007] ."

Works

;"Over ninety works for symphony orchestra, ensembles, voices or solo musicians", including:

*"String Quartet" (2003), written for the Arditti Quartet, commissioned jointly by the Huddersfield Festival and Ars Musica, Brussels
*"Final Dance" (2003), written for Klangforum Wien, commissioned by Southwest German Radio for the Donaueschinger Musiktage;
*"Landschaft mit Glockenturm II" (2003), for seventeen European and Chinese instruments, commissioned by the Viennese organisation Asian Culture Link.James Clarke, [http://www.james-clarke.org/worklist.2008.01.09.html "Worklist"] , "james-clarke.org", 2007, accessed May 10, 2008.]

;Collaboration with Harold Pinter commissioned by the BBC:

*"Voices" (2005), "a large-scale work for nine actors, solo musicians and orchestra, with a text specially written by Harold Pinter," first broadcast on BBC Radio 3, in honor of Pinter's 75th birthday, on October 10, 2005.Alice Jones, [http://www.james-clarke.org/voices.1.html "Voices: Text: Harold Pinter; Music: James Clarke"] , "The Independent", October 7, 2005, rpt. in "james-clarke.org", accessed May 10, 2008.] [http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2005/09_september/13/pinter.shtml "World Premiere of Pinter's Dramatic Work on BBC Radio 3"] , "BBC" press release, September 13, 2005, accessed May 10, 2008.]

;Other commissions from, among others:

*French Ministry of Culture
*Beethovenfest Bonn
*Gaudeamus Foundation
*Dresdner Zentrum für zeitgenössische Musik
*Musik i Skåne
*University of Cambridge

;Portrait concerts given by:

*MusikFabrik NRW
*Apartment House
*Ensemble SurPlus
*Prometheus Ensemble [http://www.kalvos.org/lukosze.html "Performer Profiles: Anton Lukoszevieze"] , "kalvos.org", n.d., accessed May 10, 2008. (Lukoszevieze is cellist for the ensemble MusikFabrik NRW and the founder of Apartment House.)]

;Recent works, all untitled, including:

*"Untitled No.1", a work for eighteen instruments written for Klangforum Wien and premiered in Vienna in early 2007;
*"Untitled No.3" for solo piano, written for Nicolas Hodges and premiered at the Huddersfield Festival in 2006;
*"Untitled No.4" for the Hilliard Ensemble and the Arditti Quartet, commissioned by the Beethovenfest Bonn, in 2007;
*"2006-K" for 21 instruments, also written for Klangforum Wien and premiered at the Venice Biennale in 2006;
*"2007-R" for two percussionists, premiered at the Transit Festival in Leuven, Belgium, in 2007.James Clarke, [http://www.james-clarke.org/performances.2008.01.09.html "Recent and Current Performances"] , "james-clarke.org", 2007, accessed May 10, 2008.]

Recordings

*"James Clarke" (CD) from Zeitklang." [http://www.classicsonline.com/catalogue/product.aspx?pid=578196 James Clarke] ", catalog listing at "Classics Online" (downloadable audio site), accessed May 10, 2008. CAL-13018 (Composers' Art Label): "Kammersymphonie / Island / Oboe Quintet / La violenza delle idee." Cf. ASIN B000FWHXZ8.]
*"Trio Fibonacci - Independence Quadrilles" (CD and downloadable MP3) from NMC Recordings (UK). NMC D107." [http://nmc.greedbag.com/buy/independence-quadrilles-barry-cl-0/ Independence Quadrilles] ", "NMC Recordings", "nmc.greedbag.com", catalog listing NMC D107, MP3 audio samples (previews), accessed May 10, 2008.]

Critical reception

Describing his "String Quartet" commissioned for the Arditti Quartet, "The Globe and Mail" states: "James Clarke's 'String Quartet' was obsessive chiefly in its manner, which was that of someone determined to break through to a new sound, a new feeling, a new zone in the psyche. The piece seethed and glittered, bursting from silence with pungent tutti respirations, arraying its speedy surface melodies (whether heard as tune, ornament or symptom) like broken glass. It was rock music by other means...."Quotation featured on the home page of "james-clarke.org", accessed May 10, 2008.]

Concerning the same work, "The Toronto Star" observes: "The music pulsed with fabulous rhythmic and tonal effects that the Ardittis shaped into palpable 3-D soundscapes. Clarke's mastery of dissonance and overtone, aided by the Ardittis' playing, created sound waves that are not usually heard in a quartet program."

Awards

*1992 – Kranichsteiner Musikpreis for composition at the Darmstädter Ferienkurse für Neue Musik.

ee also

*Minimalism
*New Complexity

Notes

Further reading

*Clarke, James. [http://www.james-clarke.org/essay.2006.html "Essay: On My Work"] ; "On Teaching"; "On New Complexity"; and "On Minimalism". "Saarbrücken", October 2006. Rpt. in "james-clarke.org". 2007. Accessed May 10, 2008.
*Rovner, Anton. [http://www.musica-ukrainica.odessa.ua/i-rovner-clarke.html "Interview with James Clarke"] . "Musica Ukrainica: An Online Magazine", "musica-ukrainica.odessa.ua", n.d. Accessed May 10, 2008.

External links

* [http://www.nmcrec.co.uk/?page=composers/composer.html&id=179 "Composer: James Clarke"] at "NMC Recordings", "nmcrec.co.uk". (Drawn mostly from other sites listed below.)
* [http://www.james-clarke.org James Clarke] – Official website.
* [http://www.james-clarke.org/biography.2007.12.29.html "James Clarke: Biography"] on "james-clarke.com", Clarke's official website. (Includes substantial excerpt from entry on Clarke by Christopher Fox in "The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians", as cited above in text.)