David Carlson (born March 13, 1952) is an American composer.

Early life

Carlson studied theory and composition at the Los Angeles High School of the Arts and with

Leonard Stein Leonard David Stein (December 1, 1916 – June 23, 2004) was an American musicologist, pianist, conductor and university teacher. He was influential in promoting contemporary music on the American West Coast. He was for years Arnold Schoenbe ...

at the

California Institute of the Arts The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a Private university, private art school in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for ...

. From 1988 to 1992 he was coordinator of the San Francisco Symphony's ''New and Unusual Music'' series.

Career

David Carlson's symphonic works have been performed by the

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription concerts, n ...

, the

National Symphony Orchestra (United States) The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1930 by cellist Hans Kindler, its principal performing venue is the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The NSO regularl ...

, the

San Francisco Symphony The San Francisco Symphony, founded in 1911, is an American orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980 the orchestra has been resident at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall in the city's Hayes Valley, San Francisco, Hayes Valley ne ...

, the

BBC Symphony The BBC Symphony Orchestra (BBC SO) is a British orchestra based in London. Founded in 1930, it was the first permanent salaried orchestra in London, and is the only one of the city's five major symphony orchestras not to be self-governing. The ...

, the

Atlanta Symphony Orchestra The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO) is an American orchestra based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. The ASO's main concert venue is Atlanta Symphony Hall in the Woodruff Arts Center. History Though earlier organizations bearing the sam ...

St. Louis Symphony Orchestra The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1880 by Joseph Otten as the St. Louis Choral Society, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra is the second-oldest professional symphony or ...

Tanglewood Festival The Tanglewood Music Festival is a music festival held every summer on the Tanglewood estate in Stockbridge and Lenox in the Berkshire Hills in western Massachusetts. The festival consists of a series of concerts, including symphonic music, cha ...

, and others. He has composed several chamber pieces, including a Cello Sonata, a large work for cello and male chorus called ''Nocturno,'' and two cello concertos, as well as a large work for viola and piano called ''True Divided Light,'' premiered in 2005. Carlson is the recipient of an Academy Award in Music from the

American Academy of Arts and Letters The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, Music of the United States, music, and Visual art of the United States, art. Its fixed number ...

, two commissions from

Meet the Composer New Music USA is a new music organization formed by the merging of the American Music Center with Meet The Composer on November 8, 2011. The new organization retains the granting programs of the two former organizations as well as two media progr ...

Chamber Music America Chamber Music America (CMA) is an American non-profit organization that provides small ensemble professionals with access to a variety of professional development, networking, and funding resources. CMA's regular initiatives include grants, awards, ...

, and several other grants and fellowships. He has written four operas, three of which have had numerous performances. ''The Midnight Angel,'' to a libretto and original story by author Peter S. Beagle, was commissioned by

Opera Theatre of St. Louis Opera Theatre of Saint Louis (OTSL) is an American summer opera festival held in St. Louis, Missouri. Typically four operas, all sung in English, are presented each season, which runs from late May to late June. Performances are accompanied by the ...

Glimmerglass Opera The Glimmerglass Festival (formerly known as Glimmerglass Opera) is an American opera company. Founded in 1975 by Peter Macris, the Glimmerglass Festival presents an annual season of operas at the Alice Busch Opera Theater on Otsego Lake nort ...

, and Sacramento Opera; in 2007 it received a new production by Milwaukee's Skylight Opera Theatre. ''Dreamkeepers,'' with an original story and libretto by Aden Ross, was commissioned by the Utah Opera in celebration of the 1996 Utah Centennial and given a new production by the Tulsa Opera in 1998. ''

Anna Karenina ''Anna Karenina'' ( rus, Анна Каренина, p=ˈanːə kɐˈrʲenʲɪnə) is a novel by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy, first published in book form in 1878. Tolstoy called it his first true novel. It was initially released in serial in ...

'', in collaboration with noted British librettist and director

Colin Graham Colin Graham OBE (22 September 1931 in Hove, England – 6 April 2007 in St. Louis, Missouri) was a stage director of opera, theatre, and television. Graham was educated at Northaw School (Hertfordshire), Stowe School and RADA. Early in his ...

, was commissioned by

Florida Grand Opera Florida Grand Opera (FGO) is an American opera company based in Miami, Florida. It is the oldest performing arts organization in Florida and the seventh oldest opera company in the United States. FGO was created in 1994 from the consolidation of ...

in celebration of the 2007 opening of the Ziff Opera House in Miami, with a co-production by

Opera Theatre of Saint Louis Opera Theatre of Saint Louis (OTSL) is an American summer opera festival held in St. Louis, Missouri. Typically four operas, all sung in English, are presented each season, which runs from late May to late June. Performances are accompanied by the ...

. ''Anna Karenina'' received a new production in September 2010 by

Opera San Jose Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

, and was performed again in April 2016 by Moores Opera Center at the University of Houston.

Selected compositions

: Carlson's works are published by

Carl Fischer Music Carl Fischer Music is an American sheet music publisher. It was founded in 1872 in the East Village neighborhood of New York City as a musical instrument repair shop. Except for a brief period in the early 1930s, it has always been the family- ...

, Inc., New York. ;Orchestra * ''Toccata Robotica'' for orchestra (2010) * ''Serenade'' for chamber orchestra (based on a keyboard work by J. C. Bach) (2006) * ''Episodes'' from the opera ''Anna Karenina'' (2006) * ''Bear Dance on Ute Indian Rhythms'' (2001) * ''Quantumsymphony'' (2001) * ''Symphonic Sequences'' from the opera ''Dreamkeepers'' (1996) * ''Twilight Night'' (1989) * ''Lilacs pitaph' (1991) * ''Rhapsodies'' (1986) * ''Quixotic Variations'' (1978) ;Concertante * Tuba Concerto (2014) for double string

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

and harp * Cello Concerto No. 1 (1979) * Violin Concerto (1988) * Cello Concerto No. 2 for solo cello and string orchestra or 15 solo strings (1997) ;Chamber music * ''Two Elegies'' for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet,

Bassoon The bassoon is a musical instrument in the woodwind family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuosity ...

, Harp, and

Piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

(2017) * ''Offering'' for Cello and Harp (2017) * ''Incendiary Devices'' Three Tone Poems for Saxophone Quartet and Piano (2014) * Woodwind Quartet (Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon) (2010) * String Quartet No. 2 (2008) * ''True Divided Light,'' for viola and piano (2005) (also version for Violin and Piano) * ''Absolute Music'' for saxophone quartet (2001) * ''Glimmerglass Fanfare'' for brass quintet (2000) * ''Quantum Quartet'' for clarinet, viola, cello and piano (1998) * ''Resurrection'' for organ (1989) * Sonata for cello and piano (1992) * String Quartet No. 1 (1982) * ''Hymnal Variations'' for piano 4 hands (1968) ;Opera * ''

'' (2007); libretto by

* ''Dreamkeepers'' (1996); libretto by Aden Ross * ''The Midnight Angel'' (1993); libretto by Peter S. Beagle ;Chorus and orchestra * ''Hymn,'' for SATB chorus and orchestra (poem by Edgar Allan Poe) * ''Dona Nobis Pacem'' for chorus SATB, string orchestra, and celesta * ''Constellations'' for chorus SATB, string orchestra, and harp (2000); text by Susan Kinsolving (also version for SATB chorus and orchestra) * ''Nocturno'' (1991); Latin text from Psalms 113, 90, and 148 * ''Missa Lyrica'' (1969); Latin text ;Vocal music * ''Two Poe Songs'' for soprano and piano; poems by Edgar Allan Poe ("Dream Within a Dream" and "Hymn" * ''Himmelfarbenlied'' for soprano and piano; original lyrics by Susan Kinsolving (commissioned by Opera America) * ''Dona Nobis Pacem,'' for chorus SATB, organ, and off-stage celesta (2010), Latin text from

Psalm 133 Psalm 133 is the 133rd psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity". In Latin, it is known as "Ecce quam bonum". The psalm is one o ...

* ''The Promise of Time'', 3 Songs for soprano and large orchestra (2010); texts by Susan Kinsolving * ''Vocalise'' for soprano and piano (2005) * ''Constellations'', Cantata for chamber chorus (2000); text by Susan Kinsolving * ''Nocturno'' for solo cello and 8 male voices (1990); Latin text from Psalms 113 and 90
* ''The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian'', (1985) Concert Scene for tenor and orchestra * "Nocturno", for SATB chorus, organ, and harp (2012), text from Psalms 113, 90, and 148

Recordings

*New World Records CD: ''Symphonic Sequences from Dreamkeepers/Rhapsodies/Twilight Night/Cello Concerto No. 1'';

Stewart Robertson Stewart Robertson (22 May 1948 – 12 February 2024) was a Scottish conductor who worked internationally, especially in the United States from the 1980s, also as a radio journalist and academic teacher. Life and career Stewart Robertson was ...

, conductor; Emil Miland, cello; The Utah Symphony. *Signum Records CD (London): ''Anna Karenina'', Opera in Two Acts,

, Stewart Robertson, conductor; The Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra *MSR Classics CD (U.S.): "True Divided Light" for Viola and Piano/Sonata for Cello and Piano, Geraldine Walther, viola; Emil Miland, cello; David Korevaar, piano. MS1283 *The Opera America Songbook: "Himmelfarbenlied," Kelly Ann Bixby, soprano; Thomas Bagwell, piano. Lyrics by Susan Kinsolving. Available on Amazon. Sheet music published by Schott, New York.

References

External links

*
David Carlson's page at Carl Fischer

American Academy of Arts and Letters - Home

The Bogliasco Fellowship Program , The Liguria Study Center for the Arts and Humanities

Carl Fischer Search

New World Records - Homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carlson, David 1952 births 20th-century American classical composers 21st-century American classical composers Place of birth missing (living people) American opera composers California Institute of the Arts alumni Living people American male opera composers 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians