Brian Head (born October 14, 1964) is an American composer,

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...

, and music theory and composition

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professor ...

. He performs frequently as a soloist and collaboratively with numerous groups, including the

Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic, commonly referred to as the LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at th ...

, the

Los Angeles Opera The Los Angeles Opera is an American opera company in Los Angeles, California. It is the fourth-largest opera company in the United States. The company's home base is the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, part of the Los Angeles Music Center. Leadersh ...

, New World Symphony, inauthentica, Jacaranda and Xtet. His compositions have been widely performed throughout the U.S. and abroad. Brian Head holds an unusual dual appointment at the

Thornton School of Music The USC Thornton School of Music is a private music school in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1884 only four years after the University of Southern California, the Thornton School is the oldest continually operating arts institution in Los An ...

at the

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8. ...

, where he is a member of both the Classical Guitar and the Composition faculties, positions he has held since 2001. He maintains an active guitar studio there, lectures on a wide range of subjects, and directs the music theory program. As of 2010, he is the acting chair of the Classical Guitar department and Assistant Dean for curriculum. From 2004-2010, Head led the Guitar Foundation of America as its president. He now serves as the Artistic Director.

Training

Raised in

Adelphi, Maryland Adelphi is an unincorporated area An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most othe ...

, Brian Head is the son of the noted trumpeter

Emerson Head Emerson may refer to: People * Emerson (surname), a surname (and list of people with that name) * Emerson (given name), a given name (and list of people with that name) Places Australia *Emerson Crossing, a place in Adelaide Canada * Emerson, ...

and his first wife Linda Head, a piano teacher and professional accompanist. He received undergraduate degrees from the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the Flagship un ...

in both Music and Mathematics, and a master's degree from the

in guitar performance, receiving recognition as Outstanding Thornton School Graduate of 1991. Notable guitar teachers include Anthony Norris, William Kanengiser, and James Smith.

Notable compositions

* "Sketches for Friends" (1994) was first recorded by William Kanengiser for his album ''Rondo alla Turka''. * "John McLaughlin: We Know You Know: Reverie for Mahavishnu" (2004) is featured on the

Los Angeles Guitar Quartet The Los Angeles Guitar Quartet (LAGQ) is an American classical guitar ensemble that was formed in 1980. It consists of John Dearman, William Kanengiser, Scott Tennant and Matthew Greif (who replaced original member Andrew York at the end of 2006 ...

's Grammy Award-winning album, Guitar Heroes. * "Chant" and "Fanfare" are included in

Scott Tennant Scott Tennant is an American classical guitarist. He is a member of the Grammy Award-winning Los Angeles Guitar Quartet The Los Angeles Guitar Quartet (LAGQ) is an American classical guitar ensemble that was formed in 1980. It consists of Joh ...

's technique handbook ''Pumping Nylon''.

External links

USC faculty

Guitar Foundation of American Board of Directors

LAGQ Grammy Award

Absolute pitch among students in an American music conservatory: Association with tone language fluency
{{DEFAULTSORT:Head, Brian American male composers 20th-century American composers American classical guitarists American male guitarists USC Thornton School of Music faculty Living people USC Thornton School of Music alumni University of Maryland, College Park alumni 1964 births People from Washington, D.C. People from Adelphi, Maryland 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American male musicians