Curtis OB Curtis-Smith

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Curtis Otto Bismarck Curtis-Smith (* 1941 in Walla Walla , Washington ; † October 10, 2014 in Kalamazoo , Michigan ) was an American composer .

Life

Curtis-Smith studied at Whitman College with David Burge , Northwestern University with Alan Stout , the University of Illinois with Ken Gaburo and in Tanglewood with Bruno Maderna . From 1968 until his retirement in 2011 he taught at the School of Music at Western Michigan University , where he was professor of piano and composition. In 1979 he was the youngest faculty member to date to receive the highest academic honor, the WMU's Distinguished Faculty Scholar Award. His numerous other awards include a Guggenheim Fellowship , the Koussevitzky Prize and the Prix ​​du Salabert .

One focus of Curtis-Smith's compositional work was the piano. Building on John Cage , for example , he also used the techniques of prepared piano . Performers such as the pianist Leon Fleisher or the conductors Neeme Järvi and Dennis Russell Davies have incorporated works by Curtis-Smith into their repertoire.

Curtis-Smith passed away on October 10, 2014.

literature

  • Matthias Warzecha: CD booklet Mediaphon MED 72.155 (including Curtis-Smith: Sextett for Piano and Wind Quintet , Dennis Russell Davies, Stuttgarter Bläserquintett)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Longtime WMU music professor, internationally known composer dies - WMU News - Western Michigan University. In: wmich.edu. October 13, 2014, accessed February 12, 2017 .
  2. ↑ Linda S. Mah: WMU composer and pianist C. Curtis-Smith, 72, had a long affiliation with Gilmore Festival. In: mlive.com. October 14, 2014, accessed February 12, 2017 .
personal data
SURNAME Curtis-Smith, Curtis OB
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Curtis-Smith, Curtis; Curtis-Smith, Curtis Otto Bismarck
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American composer
DATE OF BIRTH 1941
PLACE OF BIRTH Walla Walla (Washington)
DATE OF DEATH October 10, 2014
Place of death Kalamazoo