Roger Nixon

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Roger Nixon (born August 8, 1921 in Tulare , † October 13, 2009 in Burlingame ) was an American composer and music teacher .

Life

Roger Nixon took clarinet lessons from Frank Mancini at Modesto's Junior College ; then he moved to Berkeley , where he studied composition with Roger Sessions , Ernest Bloch and Arthur Bliss . There he was awarded a Dr. phil. PhD. He also traveled regularly to Los Angeles in 1948 , where he attended courses with Arnold Schönberg at the University of Southern California . From 1951 to 1959 he taught at his old college in Modesto. From 1960 to 1990 he was professor of music at San Francisco State University .

Nixon was married and had five children.

plant

Nixon's compositional style has been described as eclectic ; in doing so, he further developed the starting material without giving up the connection to it. He was inspired by music from his native California. Nixon is best known as a wind orchestra composer ; but he also created orchestral and choral works.

Nixon wrote numerous commissioned compositions , including a piece for wind orchestra for the 200th anniversary of the United States for the company JC Penney .

Wind band (selection)

  • 1958 Elegy and Fanfare March
  • 1962 Reflections
  • 1966 Fiesta del Pacifico
  • 1966 Nocturne
  • 1970 A Solemn Processional
  • 1970 Centennial Fanfare March
  • 1970 Reflections
  • 1972 dialogue
  • 1972 psalm
  • 1973 Festival Fanfare March
  • 1975 Music for a Civic Celebration
  • 1979 Pacific Celebration Suite
  • 1980 Chamarita!
  • 1982 Academic Tribute
  • 1983 California Jubilee
  • 1998 Monterey Holidays
  • Flower of Youth
  • Las Vegas Holiday
  • Music of Appresiation
  • Prelude and Fugue

Others (selection)

  • 1984 Preludes for Piano
  • 1994 Music for Piano
  • Ceremonial piece for brass
  • Green grow'th the holly for choir

Awards

Nixon received a total of five National Endowment for the Arts grants . In 1973 Mahr received the Sousa / ABA / Ostwald Award of the American Bandmasters Association for his Festival Fanfare March . In 1979 he received the Neil A. Kjos Memorial Award for the Pacific Celebration Suite ; in the same year he was named a member of the American Bandmasters Association .

Recordings (selection)

  • Fiesta! (1968, Decca, DL 710157), Eastman Wind Ensemble , Donald Hunsberger (conductor).
  • A Bicentennial Celebration (1975, Columbia Masterworks, M 33838), The Goldman Band, Richard Franko Goldman, Ainslee Cox, Leonard dePaur (conductors).
  • Robert Hoe V: In Memoriam (1984, ARK, MC-20443), US Coast Guard Band, Lewis J. Buckley (conductor).
  • Winds of War and Peace (1988, Wilson Audiophile, W-8823), National Symphonic Winds, Lowell Graham (conductor).
  • No Mo 'Chalumeau! (2001, Mark Records, 3919-MCD), UNLV Wind Orchestra, various conductors.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Roger Nixon. University of Maryland website, accessed November 1, 2017 .
  2. ↑ Joshua Kosman: SFSU composer Roger Nixon dies. SF Gate, October 17, 2009; accessed October 29, 2017 .
  3. ↑ a b In Memoriam Roger Nixon. San Francisco State University website, accessed October 29, 2017 .
  4. ↑ ABA Awards. The American Bandmasters Association, accessed October 29, 2017 .
  5. ↑ Read We Forget - Membership History 2012. (PDF; 619 kB) American Bandmasters Association, archived from the original on September 10, 2016 ; accessed on November 1, 2017 .
personal data
SURNAME Nixon, Roger
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American composer and music teacher
DATE OF BIRTH August 8, 1921
PLACE OF BIRTH Tulare
DATE OF DEATH October 13, 2009
Place of death Burlingame (California)