Franz Kamin (May 25, 1941 – April 11, 2010) was an American author, composer, poet, performance-installation artist, and pianist whose works explore structural principles derived from

topology Topology (from the Greek language, Greek words , and ) is the branch of mathematics concerned with the properties of a Mathematical object, geometric object that are preserved under Continuous function, continuous Deformation theory, deformat ...

general systems theory Systems theory is the transdisciplinary study of systems, i.e. cohesive groups of interrelated, interdependent components that can be natural or artificial. Every system has causal boundaries, is influenced by its context, defined by its struc ...

, prosody, and

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking", achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditat ...

al processes in unusual combinations of genre and technique. He made use of conventional instruments and children's toys;

sound poetry Sound poetry is an artistic form bridging literary and musical composition, in which the phonetic aspects of human speech are foregrounded instead of more conventional semantic and syntactic values; "verse without words". By definition, sound poe ...

and puppet theater; choreography and speaking chorus; systematic chance operations and both programmed and otherwise uncommon improvisation; performance scribbling and the live reading of narrative texts. Born in

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, Kamin studied composition at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma, United States. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two territories became the ...

with Spencer Norton, and at

Indiana University School of Music The Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington, Indiana, is a music conservatory established in 1921. Until 2005, it was known as the Indiana University School of Music. It has more than 1,500 students, approximately half of whom ar ...

with Roque Cordero, where he also studied piano with Alfonso Montecino. While at Indiana University, Kamin, together with fellow composer

James Brody James Brody (July 13, 1941 – April 11, 2010) was an American composer, born in Clearfield, Pennsylvania. Frank J. Oteri of the American Music Center's ''New Music Box'' called Brody "an important figure in the development of electronic music i ...

organized FIASCO, an experimental collective which meet weekly in Bloomington from 1966 to 1972. Among his compositions from this period was "The Concert of Doors", a synaesthetic work in which a number of doors, each of vastly differing design, some found, some constructed, ranging from comical to mysterious, were set on a path through a woods to be traversed by the audience-participants. Kamin moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

in the 1970s and collaborated with cellist

Charlotte Moorman Madeline Charlotte Moorman (November 18, 1933 – November 8, 1991) was an American cellist, performance artist, and advocate for avant-garde music. Referred to as the "Jeanne d'Arc of new music", she was the founder of the Annual Avant Garde Fes ...

, a fixture in the downtown avant-garde scene at that time. He eventually settled in

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, ...

, where he remained for the rest of his life. Kamin published two books full books of trans-genre work: ''Ann-Margret Loves You & Other Psychotopological Diversions'' (1980) and ''Scribble Death'' (Station Hill Press: Barrytown, New York). Several of his shorter works, musical scores and an LP recording of Behavioral Drift II and Rugugmool have also been published. He was killed in a car crash in

Roseville, Minnesota Roseville is a city in Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County, Minnesota, United States. It is one of two Minneapolis-Saint Paul, Twin Cities suburbs that are bordered directly by Saint Paul, Minnesota, Saint Paul and Minneapolis (Lauderdale, M ...

when a car driven by James Brody, who also died, left the road, jumped a curb, and hit a tree. The two composers were returning from a SEAMUS festival in

St. Cloud, Minnesota St. Cloud or Saint Cloud (; ) is a city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the largest population center in the state's central region. The population was 68,881 at the 2020 census, making it Minnesota's 12th-largest city. St. Cloud is the c ...

. Their names were released on April 12, 2010, by the Ramsey County medical examiner's office.

References

1941 births 2010 deaths American male composers American composers Road incident deaths in Minnesota University of Oklahoma alumni Jacobs School of Music alumni Writers from Milwaukee {{US-composer-20thC-stub