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Bernard Rands

Bernard Rands

Country of origin: United States of America
Birthday: March 2, 1934

About Bernard Rands

… in the Canti Trilogy… Rands unspools a shining thread to guide us and keep us safe. Still another pleasure is the alluring sensuousness of surface Rands stretches over troubling depths. The composer has an extraordinary ear; the sonorities and ideas are deep, dark and magical.
—The Boston Globe

Through more than a hundred published works and many recordings, Bernard Rands is established as a major figure in contemporary music. His work Canti del Sole, premièred by Paul Sperry, Zubin Mehta and the New York Philharmonic, won the 1984 Pulitzer Prize in Music. His large orchestral suites Le Tambourin won the 1986 Kennedy Center Friedheim Award. Conductors including Barenboim, Boulez, Berio, Maderna, Marriner, Mehta, Muti, Ozawa, Rilling, Salonen, Sawallisch, Schiff, Schuller, Schwarz, Silverstein, Sinopoli, Slatkin, von Dohnanyi, and Zinman, among others, have programmed his music.

The originality and distinctive character of his music have been variously described as ‘plangent lyricism’ with a ‘dramatic intensity’ and a ‘musicality and clarity of idea allied to a sophisticated and elegant technical mastery’ - qualities developed from his studies with Dallapiccola and Berio.

Rands served as Composer-in-Residence with The Philadelphia Orchestra for seven years, from 1989 to 1995 as part of the Meet The Composer Residency Program for the first three years, with four years continued funding by the Philadelphia Orchestra. Rands’s works are widely performed and frequently commercially recorded. His work, Canti d’Amor, recorded by Chanticleer, won a Grammy Award in 2000.

Born in England, Rands emigrated to the United States in 1975 becoming an American citizen in 1983. He has been honored by the American Academy and Institute of the Arts and Letters; Broadcast Music, Inc.; the Guggenheim Foundation; the National Endowment for the Arts; Meet the Composer; the Barlow, Fromm and Koussevitsky Foundations, among many others. In 2004, Rands was inducted to the American Academy of Arts & Letters.

Numerous commissions have come from The Suntory Hall in Tokyo; the New York Philharmonic; Carnegie Hall; the Boston Symphony Orchestra; the Cincinnati Symphony; the Los Angeles Philharmonic; The Philadelphia Orchestra; the BBC Symphony Orchestra; the National Symphony Orchestra; the Internationale Bach Akademie; the Eastman Wind Ensemble and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Many chamber works have resulted from commissions from major ensembles and festivals from around the world. His chamber opera, Belladonna, was commissioned by the Aspen Festival for its fiftieth anniversary in 1999.

A dedicated and passionate teacher, Rands has been guest composer at many international festivals and Composer-in-Residence at the Aspen and Tanglewood festivals and was Walter Bigelow Rosen Professor of Music at Harvard University.

Notable works include his opera Vincent (2011), which debuted to critical acclaim at Indiana University Opera Theatre, conducted by Arthur Fagen and directed by Vincent Liotta, Danza Petrificada (2011), which premiered with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, led by the composer's longtime friend and collaborator Maestro Riccardo Muti, Concerto for Piano and Orchestra (2014), which premiered with pianist Jonathan Biss and the Boston Symphony Orchestra with subsequent performances by the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig as well as with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra at the 2014 BBC Proms, Folk Songs (2014), for voice and chamber ensemble, which premiered at the Tanglewood Festival of Contemporary Music, and Concerto for English Horn and Orchestra (2015), which premiered with soloist Robert Walters and The Cleveland Orchestra, conducted by Lionel Bringuier.

In recent years, Bernard Rands has composed a number of major additions to his distinguished catalogue of orchestral and chamber works. The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, led by Riccardo Muti, commissioned and performed the world premiere of DREAM in 2019, and Allen Tinkham led the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra in the world premiere performance of AURA at Chicago's Orchestra Hall in 2022 before taking the work on its European tour. The Spektral Quartet gave the world premiere of String Quartet Music in 2022 and that same year the Boston Symphony Orchestra performed the world premiere of Rands’s Symphonic Fantasy under the baton of Alan Gilbert. Symphonic Fantasy will receive its UK premiere in February 2024 conducted by Hannu Lintu at the Barbican Centre in London. 

Bernard Rands's music is published exclusively worldwide by Schott Music.

To learn more, visit www.bernardrands.com

 

Worklist

Chronology

1934

Born March 2 in Sheffield, England, U.K.

1940-1952
Studied piano, organ, counterpoint and harmony with private teachers.
1952
Entered the University of Wales to study music, philosophy, English and Celtic literatures.
1958-1960
Composition studies in Italy with Roman Vlad (1958–59) in Rome; and Luigi Dallapiccola (1959–60) in Florence.
1960-1965
Professor of Composition at the University of Wales.
1962-1963
Further studies in Italy with Luciano Berio.
1963
First publications by U.E. Vienna and London.

Darmstadt Festival Premiere of "Actions for Six" by Kranischsteiner Ensemble, conducted by Bruno Maderna.

Studies at the Ferienkurse für Neue Musik, Darmstadt, with Bruno Maderna and Pierre Boulez.
1965
Darmstadt Festival Premiere of "Espressione IV" by Aloys and Alfons Kontarsky.
1966
Premiere of "Formants I (Les Gestes)" – now titled "Memo 3" – by Francis Pierre, harp, at the Royan Festival, France.
1966-1968
Harkness International Fellowship in the United States. Composer-in-Residence for one year at Princeton University and for one year at University of Illinois, Urbana.
1969-1975
Professor of Composition at York University, England.
1969–1975
During this time, several works were commissioned by the British Broadcasting Corporation and premiered by the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Pierre Boulez: "Mésalliance" for piano and orchestra, "Wildtrack 1" for orchestra, "Wildtrack 2" for soprano and orchestra, "Aum" for harp and orchestra
1970-71
Creative Arts Fellow, Bresenose College, Oxford University
1972
"Metalepsis II" for mezzo-soprano, six voices and 11 instruments premiered in London by Cathy Berberian, London Sinfonietta, conducted by Luciano Berio.
1975
Emigrated to the United States.
1975-1985
Professor of Composition at the University of California, San Diego. Guest conductor of orchestras and ensembles in many countries.
1976-1981
Founder and Music Director of SONOR
1977
"Madrigali" for chamber orchestra, commissioned and premiered by the National Symphony Orchestra, Washington, DC, conducted by Rafael Druian.
1978-1979
Co-director of the Aspen Music Festival and School Composition Seminar.
1980
"Canti Lunatici" for Soprano and Ensemble premiered by Carol Plantamura and SONOR, conducted by the composer.
1981
"Canti Lunatici" for Soprano and Orchestra premiered by Dorothy Dorow, BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by the composer.
1983
Became a U.S. citizen.

"Canti del Sole" for Tenor and ensemble premiered by Paul Sperry and SONOR, conducted by the composer.

"Canti del Sole" for Tenor and orchestra premiered by Paul Sperry and the New York Philharmonic, conducted by Zubin Mehta.
1984
"Canti del Sole" awarded the 1984 Pulitzer Prize.
1985
"Le Tambourin Suites" for orchestra awarded Friedheim 1st Prize, Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, DC.
1989
"Ceremonial 2" for Orchestra commissioned by and premiered at Suntory Hall, Tokyo, Japan.
1989-1996

Composer-in-Residence with The Philadelphia Orchestra.

1989-2005
Walter Bigelow Rosen Professor of Music at Harvard University.
1990
"Bells" for large chorus and orchestra commissioned and premiered by Northeastern Philharmonic, Pennsylvania.

"...body and shadow..." for orchestra commissioned and premiered by the Boston Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Seiji Ozawa.
1991

"Ceremonial III" for orchestra commissioned by Carnegie Hall for its 100th anniversary. Premiered by The Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by Riccardo Muti.

1992

"Tre Canzoni Senza Parole" commissioned and premiered by The Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by the composer.

1993

"Canti dell’Eclisse" for Bass voice and orchestra commissioned and premiered by Thomas Paul and the The Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by Gerard Schwarz.

"where the murmurs die..." commissioned and premiered by New York Philharmonic, conducted by Leonard Slatkin.

1995

"Symphony" commissioned and premiered by Los Angeles Philharmonic, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen.

"Canzoni per orchestra" commissioned and premiered by The Philadelphia Orchestra, conducted by Wolfgang Sawallisch.

"Trio" commissioned and premiered by Chicago Symphony Orchestra (for Boulez 70th birthday celebration.)

"Interludium" for chorus and orchestra commissioned by the Internationale Bach Akademie, Stuttgart and premiered by the Israel Philharmonic, conducted by Helmut Rilling.

1997
"Cello Concerto No. 1" commissioned for and premiered by Mstislav Rostropovich and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Seiji Ozawa.
1999
Chamber opera "Belladonna" commissioned and premiered by the Aspen Music Festival, conducted by David Zinman.
2000
"Canti d’Amor" for chamber chorus commissioned, premiered and recorded by Chanticleer; wins a Grammy Award.
2004
"apókryphos" for soprano, large chorus and orchestra commissioned and premiered by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus conducted by Daniel Barenboim.

Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
2006
"Walcott Songs" for Mezzo-soprano and cello, premiered at the Tanglewood Music Festival.

"now again" – fragments from "Sappho" commissioned and premiered by the Network for New Music, Philadelphia.
2007
"12 Preludes" for piano commissioned by the Ruhr International Piano Festival and premiered by Robert Levin at the Essen Festival.
2008
"chains like the sea" commissioned and premiered by the New York Philharmonic, conducted by Lorin Maazel.
2010
Jonathan Biss premieres "Three Pieces" for Piano in Mainz, Germany on December 3 and performs the piece on tours throughout the US and Europe, which includes its Carnege Hall debut on January 21, 2011.
2011
"Vincent", an opera in two acts commissioned by Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music, premieres in Bloomington, IN, conducted by Arthur Fagen.

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra premieres "Danza Petrificada" on May 5, 2011.
2013

Bridge Records releases "Bernard Rands: Piano Music 1960-2010" with recordings of "Tre Espressioni", "Espressione IV", "Memo V" and "Impromptu" by Robert Levin and Ursula Oppens.

2014

"Concerto for Piano and Orchestra" debuts on April 3, 2014 with soloist Jonathan Biss and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, led by Robert Spano, in celebration of the composer's eightieth birthday. German premiere follows with Biss and the Leipzig Gewandhausorchester, led by Sir Andrew Davis, and the UK premiere at the BBC Proms with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Markus Stenz.

"Folk Songs", for voice and chamber ensemble, commissioned by the Tanglewood Festival, premieres at Ozawa Hall in Lenox, MA.

Major portrait events at Miller Theatre (NY), Sheffield University (UK), June in Buffalo (NY), Royal Northern College of Music (UK), Thailand International Composition Festival, and London Festival of American Music in honor of the composer's 80th birthday year.

Named Recipient of 2014 Order of Lincoln

2015

Rands's "Concerto for English Horn and Orchestra" premieres with soloist Robert Walters and The Cleveland Orchestra, conducted by Lionel Bringuier.

OPERA America presents concert performance of "Vincent" at Trinity Wall Street

2018

Led by Ben Gernon, the BBC Philharmonic presents the European premiere of Bernard Rands’s “Concerto for English Horn and Orchestra,” featuring soloist Gillian Callow at the BBC Philharmonic Studio at MediaCityUK, Salford.

Robert Walters and musicians from The Cleveland Orchestra perform the world premiere of Rands’s “Music for Shoko: Aubade” at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami. 

Rands’s “Four Impromptus” is published in a new Edition Schott collection.

2019

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, led by Riccardo Muti commissions and premieres Rands’s “DREAM” for orchestra.

A CD of Bernard Rands's orchestral music titled "Chains Like the Sea" released by NMC Recordings. 

A recording of Bernard Rands's “Concerto for Piano and Orchestra,” performed by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, led by Markus Stenz, and featuring Jonathan Biss, “Music for Shoko: Aubade,” featuring English Horn player, Robert Walters, and “Canti del Sole,” performed by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, led by William Boughton, and featuring tenor Stephen Chaundy, is released by Lyrita (Nimbus Records).

2020

Naxos releases "Rands at Oberlin" featuring the recorded premiere of the “Concerto for English Horn.”

2022

Allen Tinkham leads the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra in the world premiere performance of “AURA” at Chicago's Orchestra Hall before taking the work on its European tour.

The Spektral Quartet gives the world premiere performance of Bernard Rands’s “String Quartet Music.”

The Boston Symphony Orchestra performs the world premiere of Rands’s “Symphonic Fantasy” under the baton of Alan Gilbert.

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