Anthony Davis (born February 20, 1951) is an American pianist and
composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and def ...
. He incorporates several styles including
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
, rhythm 'n' blues, gospel, non-Western, African, European classical, Indonesian
gamelan
Gamelan (; ; , ; ) is the traditional musical ensemble, ensemble music of the Javanese people, Javanese, Sundanese people, Sundanese, and Balinese people, Balinese peoples of Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussion instrument, per ...
, and
experimental music
Experimental music is a general label for any music or music genre that pushes existing boundaries and genre definitions. Experimental compositional practice is defined broadly by exploratory sensibilities radically opposed to, and questioning of, ...
. He has played with several groups and is also a professor of music at the
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Es ...
.
Davis is perhaps best known for his
operas
Opera is a form of Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a li ...
; he has been called "the dean of African-American opera composers." His better known compositions include '' X, The Life and Times of Malcolm X'', which was premiered by the
New York City Opera
The New York City Opera (NYCO) is an American opera company located in Manhattan in New York City. The company has been active from 1943 through its 2013 bankruptcy, and again since 2016 when it was revived.
The opera company, dubbed "the peopl ...
in 1986; ''Amistad'', which premiered with the
Lyric Opera of Chicago
Lyric Opera of Chicago is an American opera company based in Chicago, Illinois. The company was founded in Chicago in 1954, under the name 'Lyric Theatre of Chicago' by Carol Fox (Chicago opera), Carol Fox, Nicola Rescigno and Lawrence Kelly, w ...
Paterson, New Jersey
Paterson ( ) is the largest City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The son of Professor Charles Davis, an expert on author Richard Wright, Davis was brought up in a series of college towns. He has a 1975 degree from
Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
, and has taught at Yale and
Harvard University
Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
.
Davis is a Distinguished Professor of Music at the
University of California, San Diego
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Es ...
, having joined the department in 1996. He has received acclaim as a free-jazz pianist, a co-leader or
sideman
A sideman is a professional musician who is hired to perform live with a solo artist, or with a group in which they are not a regular band member. The term is usually used to describe musicians that play with jazz or rock artists, whether solo o ...
with various ensembles. Such ensembles include those that featured Smith as
bandleader
A bandleader is the leader of a music group such as a dance band, rock or pop band or jazz quartet. The term is most commonly used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhyth ...
from 1974 to 1977. He has played with
Anthony Braxton
Anthony Braxton (born June 4, 1945) is an American experimental composer, educator, music theorist, improviser and multi-instrumentalist who is best known for playing saxophones, particularly the alto. Braxton grew up on the South Side of Chi ...
and Leo Smith. In 1981, Davis formed an octet called Episteme. He also wrote the
incidental music
Incidental music is music in a play, television program, radio program, video game, or some other presentation form that is not primarily musical. The term is less frequently applied to film music, with such music being referred to instead as th ...
Tony Kushner
Anthony Robert Kushner (born July 16, 1956) is an American author, playwright, and screenwriter. Among his stage work, he is most known for ''Angels in America'', which earned a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award, as well as its subsequent acclaime ...
's ''
Angels in America
''Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes'' is a 1991 American two-part Play (theatre), play by American playwright Tony Kushner. The two parts of the play, ''Millennium Approaches'' and ''Perestroika'', may be presented separate ...
''.
Many of his operas have explored people and events from African-American history. In a 1986 interview with writer
Samuel R. Delany
Samuel R. "Chip" Delany (, ; born April 1, 1942) is an American writer and literary critic. His work includes fiction (especially science fiction), memoir, criticism, and essays on science fiction, literature, sexual orientation, sexuality, and ...
and historian Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Anthony Davis provides a detailed account of his influences and motivations for writing '' X, The Life and Times of Malcolm X.'' In 1997 his opera ''Amistad'', with a libretto by his cousin Thulani Davis, premiered at the Chicago Lyric Opera. Its ambition was recognized but the production received mixed reviews. It was accepted for production in 2008 at Spoleto Festival USA. It underwent a major revision and the production was highly praised. ''Opera Today'' said that the revised ''Amistad'' was "much leaner, more focused and dramatically far more effective than the original. And in so doing they he Davisescreated not only a masterpiece of American opera, but further a work that — against a contemporary horizon darkened by undercurrents of racism — resonates today far beyond Memminger and Spoleto USA.""Revised ''Amistad'' makes its mark" ''Opera Today'', May 2008, Accessed June 25, 2019
Davis has also explored Native American history in his work. His opera '' Wakonda's Dream'' (2007), with a libretto by Yusef Komunyakaa, is a tale of a contemporary Native American
Ponca
The Ponca people are a nation primarily located in the Great Plains of North America that share a common Ponca culture, history, and language, identified with two Indigenous nations: the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma or the Ponca Tribe of ...
family in Nebraska and the history that affects them.
His opera, ''Lilith'', (
libretto
A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...
by Allan Havis) had its world premiere at the Conrad Prebys Music Center at
UCSD
The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing ...
on December 4, 2009. The story is about the demon figure of Jewish mythology who was sometimes said to be biblical
Adam
Adam is the name given in Genesis 1–5 to the first human. Adam is the first human-being aware of God, and features as such in various belief systems (including Judaism, Christianity, Gnosticism and Islam).
According to Christianity, Adam ...
's first wife. It is set in a modern era.
He began working on the music for the opera '' The Central Park Five'' in 2014. An early version, titled ''Five'', was performed in
Newark, New Jersey
Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...
in 2016 by the Trilogy Company. The librettist for both the early and final versions was playwright
Richard Wesley
Richard Wesley (born July 11, 1945) is an American playwright and screenwriter. He is an associate professor at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in the Rita and Burton Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing.
Early life
Wesley w ...
. ''The Central Park Five'' premiered on June 15, 2019, in a production by the Long Beach Opera Company in
San Pedro, California
San Pedro ( ; ) is a neighborhood located within the South Bay (Los Angeles County), South Bay and Los Angeles Harbor Region, Harbor region of the city of Los Angeles, California, United States. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los ...
. In 2020 the work won him the Pulitzer Prize for Music. He is the third UCSD professor in the university's 60-year history to win a Pulitzer. He commented, "it's also very exciting for me that you can create political work that has an impact and speaks to issues in our society. I've done my career creating political works, and I never thought I would ever get a Pulitzer." He learned that he had won the prize while in a Zoom meeting with music faculty colleagues, so they all heard the phone call; one of them later commented "Best Zoombomb ever!"
In 2022, the Detroit Opera staged a production of '' X, The Life and Times of Malcolm X'', directed by Robert O'Hara. This was followed by the
Metropolitan Opera
The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...
's production of the same opera in Fall 2023, which received significant critical acclaim in sources such as
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
, San Francisco Classical Voice and
Smithsonian Magazine
''Smithsonian'' is a magazine covering science, history, art, popular culture and innovation. The first issue was published in 1970.
History
The history of ''Smithsonian'' began when Edward K. Thompson, the retired editor of ''Life'' magazine ...
.
In 2023, he composed the opening fanfare "If a Fish Kept His Mouth Shut, He Wouldn't Get Caught!" for the Bandshell's 100th anniversary, commissioned by the Naumburg Orchestral Concerts, and performed in the Naumburg Bandshell, Central Park, in the summer series.
Since 2024 he has been composing an opera based on the children's book ''Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote'' by Duncan Tonatiuh.
Davis's first wife was the science fiction writer Deborah Atherton (1951-2014), and their son, Timothy (born c. 1980), is a science fiction writer living in New York City. In 1994 Anthony Davis married his second wife, the opera singer Cynthia Aaronson-Davis,https://www.timteeman.com/2023/11/11/how-anthony-davis-put-malcolm-x-and-black-power-center-stage/ and the two had a son named Jonah (born c. 1997), who was a professional baseball player.
Works
Orchestral
*''Wayang V'' (Piano Concerto, 1984)
*''Maps'' (Violin Concerto, 1988)
(These two works were released on Gramavision 18-8807-1, a 12" long playing record, with Davis as soloist in the piano concerto and dedicatee Shem Guibbory as soloist in the violin concerto. In each, the William McGlaughlin led the Kansas City Symphony Orchestra.)
*''You Have the Right to Remain Silent'' (Clarinet Concerto, 2007)
*''Amistad Symphony'' (2009)
Michael John LaChiusa
Michael John LaChiusa (born July 24, 1962) is an American musical theatre and opera composer, lyricist, and librettist. He is best known for musically esoteric shows such as '' Hello Again'', '' Marie Christine'', '' The Wild Party'', and '' See W ...
, about
Patricia Hearst
Patricia is a feminine given name of Latin origin. Derived from the Latin word '' patrician'', meaning 'noble', it is the feminine form of the masculine given name Patrick. Another well-known variant is Patrice.
According to the US Social Secu ...
and events following her kidnapping by the Symbionese Liberation Army
* ''Amistad'' (1997/revised 2008), with libretto by Thulani Davis, about a case of an 1839 slave mutiny on a Spanish ship that reached the US Supreme Court, which ruled in favor of the Mende, freeing them
* '' Wakonda's Dream'' (2007), with libretto by Yusef Komunyakaa, about a contemporary
Ponca
The Ponca people are a nation primarily located in the Great Plains of North America that share a common Ponca culture, history, and language, identified with two Indigenous nations: the Ponca Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma or the Ponca Tribe of ...
family in Nebraska, and the spiritual journey of their son
* ''Lilith'' (2009), with libretto by Allan Havis, explores a figure from Jewish mythology, sometimes said to be Adam's first wife, set in modern times
* ''Lear on the 2nd Floor'' (2012), with libretto by Allan Havis, shifts the story of
King Lear
''The Tragedy of King Lear'', often shortened to ''King Lear'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is loosely based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his ...
to feature a woman neuroscience researcher who has
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...
, and her relationships with her three daughters and her late husband Mortimer, the Fool.
* '' The Central Park Five'' (2019), with libretto by
Richard Wesley
Richard Wesley (born July 11, 1945) is an American playwright and screenwriter. He is an associate professor at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in the Rita and Burton Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing.
Early life
Wesley w ...
. It premiered on June 15, 2019, by the Long Beach Opera Company in California.
James Newton
James W. Newton (born May 1, 1953) is an American jazz and classical flutist.
Biography
He was born in Los Angeles, California, United States. From his earliest years, James Newton grew up immersed in the sounds of African-American music, inclu ...
*1980: '' Lady of the Mirrors'' (India Navigation)
*1980: '' Under the Double Moon'' ( MPS) - with Jay Hoggard
*1981: ''Epistēmē'' ( Gramavision)
*1982: ''I've Known Rivers'' (Gramavision)
*1982: ''Variations in Dream-Time'' (India Navigation)
*1983: ''Hemispheres'' (Gramavision)
*1984: ''Middle Passage'' (Gramavision)
*1985: ''Return from Space (Wonder Nonfiction)'' (Gramavision)
*1986: ''Undine'' (Gramavision)
*1988: ''Ghost Factory'' (Gramavision)
*1990: ''Trio, Vol. 2'' (Gramavision)
*1989: ''Trio, Vol. 1'' (
Rhino
A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...
)
*1993: ''Lost Moon Sisters/In Dora Ohrenstein's Urban Diva''
*1992: ''X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X'' (Gramavision)
*2001: ''Tania'' ( Koch)
*2008: ''Amistad'' (
New World
The term "New World" is used to describe the majority of lands of Earth's Western Hemisphere, particularly the Americas, and sometimes Oceania."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: ...
)
As sideman
With
Barry Altschul
Barry Altschul (born January 6, 1943, in New York City) is a free jazz and hard bop drummer who first came to notice in the late 1960s for performing with pianists Paul Bley and Chick Corea.
Biography
Altschul is of Russian Jewish heritage, ...
Anthony Braxton
Anthony Braxton (born June 4, 1945) is an American experimental composer, educator, music theorist, improviser and multi-instrumentalist who is best known for playing saxophones, particularly the alto. Braxton grew up on the South Side of Chi ...
Antilles
The Antilles is an archipelago bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the south and west, the Gulf of Mexico to the northwest, and the Atlantic Ocean to the north and east.
The Antillean islands are divided into two smaller groupings: the Greater An ...
Black Saint
Black Saint and Soul Note are two affiliated Italy, Italian independent record labels. Since their conception in the 1970s, they have released albums from a variety of influential jazz musicians, particularly in the genre of free jazz.
History
...
Hue and Cry
In common law, a hue and cry is a process by which bystanders are summoned to assist in the apprehension of a criminal who has been witnessed in the act of committing a crime.
History
By the Statute of Winchester of 1285, 13 Edw. 1. St. 2. c. ...
'' (Enja, 1992)
With David Murray
* '' Ming'' (Black Saint, 1980)
* ''
Home
A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be p ...
Wadada Leo Smith
Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith (born December 18, 1941) is an American trumpeter and composer, working primarily in the field of creative music. He was one of three finalists for the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Music for ''Ten Freedom Summers'', released on ...
Tzadik
Tzadik ( ''ṣaddīq'' , "righteous ne; also ''zadik'' or ''sadiq''; pl. ''tzadikim'' ''ṣadīqīm'') is a title in Judaism given to people considered righteous, such as biblical figures and later spiritual masters. The root of the word ...
Cuneiform
Cuneiform is a Logogram, logo-Syllabary, syllabic writing system that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Near East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. Cuneiform script ...
Cuneiform
Cuneiform is a Logogram, logo-Syllabary, syllabic writing system that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Near East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. Cuneiform script ...