Reynold Tharp

Reynold Tharp (b. June 17, 1973) is an American composer of contemporary classical music. His music reflects a fascination with transitory physical aspects of sound, such as resonance and decay.

Tharp was born in Indiana, and studied music composition and history at Oberlin College before entering the graduate program in composition at the University of California, Berkeley. As a recipient of the university's Ladd Fellowship, he spent two years in Paris studying composition with Philippe Leroux and orchestration with Marc-André Dalbavie. He was selected for the Stage d’Automne at IRCAM in 2000 and has participated in workshops and seminars with Ivan Fedele, Brian Ferneyhough and Jonathan Harvey.

In recent years, his music has been performed in the U.S. and Europe by groups such as the Berkeley Contemporary Chamber Players, the Orchestre Lyrique de Region Avignon-Provence and the Nieuw Ensemble (Amsterdam), which commissioned and premiered his work "A Backward Glance" in 2000. Several of these performances have been broadcast on French and Dutch radio.

Awards for his music include BMI’s William Schuman Prize, Columbia University’s Joseph H. Bearns Prize for his orchestral work "Drift" and UC Berkeley’s Nicola DeLorenzo Prize. Recent projects include commissions from the Irving M. Klein International String Competition, the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players for their 2008-2009 season and a duo for flute and harp for Jonathan Keeble and Ann Yeung.

Tharp has taught composition, orchestration, analysis and theory at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, UC Berkeley, Northwestern University and San Francisco State University.

Compositions

*"San Francisco Night", for eight players (2008)

*"Duo for flute and harp" (2007)

*"Vertiginous Lines", for solo violin (2006)

*"Fog Lines", for solo viola (2006)

*"Wavering Lines", for solo cello (2006)

*"Littoral", for solo piano (2006)

*"Mountains and Seas", for piano and percussion (2005)

*"Cold Horizon", for chamber orchestra (2003-5)

*"In Passing", for chamber orchestra (2001)

*"Cold", for vibraphone and piano (2000, rev. 2002)

*"Dis-moi vite", for chamber ensemble (2000)

*"A Backward Glance", for 12 players (1999)

*"Far and Away", for string quartet (1998)

*"Etching", for cor anglais, clarinet, viola, and piano (1997)

*"Drift", for orchestra (1996)

*"Three Fables", for flute and string quartet (1996)

References

* [http://www.music.uiuc.edu/facultyBio.php?id=218 Faculty page at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign]
* [http://www.nea.gov/grants/recent/08grants/08AAE.php?CAT=Access&DIS=Music National Endowment for the Arts Grant Awards list for 2008]
* [http://www.acanthes.com/centre_2007/gb/consultation.htm Acanthes Seminar Archive]
* [http://www.grand-theatre.nl/programma/2000_prog.html Brochure from Nieuw Ensemble's premiere of "A Backward Glance"]
* [http://www.dailycal.org/sharticle.php?id=13249 Concert preview by the Daily Cal]

External links

* [http://us.ft.com/ftgateway/superpage.ft?news_id=fto050720081457292820 Review of "San Francisco Night" by the Financial Times]
* [http://www.sfcv.org/2008/05/06/musical-fragrances-in-the-air/ Review of "San Francisco Night" by the San Francisco Classical Voice]
* [http://ar.clip-arabe.com/clip-ZpQFrkp7mic.html Video of "Vertiginous Lines"]
* [http://www.sfcv.org/arts_revs/berkedgefest_6_7_05.php Review of "Mountains and Seas" by the San Francisco Classical Voice]
* [http://www.sfcv.org/arts_revs/bccp_11_17_98.php Review of "Etching" by the San Francisco Classical Voice]