Gwyneth Van Anden Walker (born 22 March 1947) is an American music educator 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 ...

Biography

Walker was born in New York to a

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

family and grew up in

New Canaan, Connecticut New Canaan () is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 20,622 according to the 2020 census. The town is part of the Western Connecticut Planning Region. About an hour from New York City by train, the town ...

. She began her first efforts at composition at an early age and went on to receive BA, MM and DMA degrees in Music Composition from

Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...

and the Hartt School of Music, where she studied under Arnold Franchetti. She married composer David Burton on September 12, 1969; they divorced in 1974. She taught music for fourteen years at Hartt School of Music, the Hartford Conservatory and the Oberlin College Conservatory, and then moved to a dairy farm in Vermont and went to work as a full-time composer. In 1988, she helped found the Consortium of Vermont Composers and later became the director of the organization.

The Chord

The original Gwyneth Walker Chord is heard in the opening bars of Gwyneth Walker's Earth-Shaking Choral piece 'Tell the Earth to Shake' for SATB Chorus and Chamber Orchestra or Piano. It is made up of the notes A, Bb, D, and E:

Awards

*1999 Brock Commission (

American Choral Directors Association The American Choral Directors Association (ACDA), headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, is a non-profit organization with the stated purpose of promoting the field of choral music A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Lat ...

) *2000 Lifetime Achievement Award (Vermont Arts Council) *2008 Athenaeum Award for Achievement in the Arts and Humanities (St. Johnsbury, Vermont, Athenaeum) *2012 Elected as a Fellow of the Vermont Academy of Arts and Sciences *2017 Composer in Residence with the Great Lakes Chamber Orchestra in Petoskey, Michigan

Works and discography

Source: Walker's compositions include song cycles, jazz, folksongs and spirituals, rock-and-roll, choral music, traditional folk songs, ballads and cantatas. Orchestral: *''An American Concerto for Violin and Orchestra'' on the CD ''from the Mid-Columbia'' *''An American Concerto for Violin and Orchestra'' on the CD ''Paul Freeman Introduces... Siegmeister, Walker, Creston, Staar-Levy'' Instrumental: *''A Vision of Hills, Fantasy Etudes for violin and piano'', *''New World Dances for piano trio'', ''Craftsbury Trio for piano trio'', ''Touch the Sky for cello and piano'', and ''Vigil for violin and piano'' on the CD ''A Vision of Hills'' *''Fantasy Etudes for violin and piano'' on the CD ''Done e Doni'' *''Five Pieces for Flute and Guitar'' on the CD ''Returning the Muse to Music'' *''Five Pieces for Flute and Guitar'' and ''Silvermine Suite for flute and guitar'' on the CD ''Celestials'' *''Four American Folk Songs'' on the CD ''Birds'' *''Four Pieces for Lute'' on the CD ''The Renaissance Lute'' *''Raise the Roof! for brass quintet'' on the CD ''Americana: A University of Iowa Celebration'' and ''Strophes of the Night and Dawn'' *''Shaker Tunes for brass quintet'' on the CD ''Season to Dance'' *''Theme and Variation for flute and piano'' on the CD ''Legacy of the American Woman Composer'' Choral: *''An Hour to Dance'' for SATB chorus and piano *''Harlem Songs'' for SATB chorus and piano *''Love -- By the Water'' for SATB chorus and piano *''Three Days by the Sea'' for SATB chorus and piano *''This Train'' for SATB chorus *''God's Grandeur'' for SATB chorus on the CD ''An Hour to Dance'' *''Now Let Us Sing!'' for SSA chorus, brass quintet, percussion, and piano *''How Can I Keep From Singing?'' for SSA chorus, brass quintet, percussion, and piano *''Peace, I Ask Of Thee O River'' for SSA chorus, brass quintet, percussion, and piano *''Songs for Women's Voices'' for SSA chorus and piano *''I Thank You God'' for SSA chorus and piano *''Crossing the Bar'' for SSA chorus and piano *''Hebrides Lullaby'' for SSA chorus *''Let Evening Come'' for SSA chorus and piano *''The Spirit of Women'' for SSA chorus *''Gifts from the Sea'' for SSA chorus and piano on the CD ''Now Let Us Sing!'' *''Come All Ye Fair'' and ''Tender Ladies'' and ''Shenendoah'' on the CD ''Sounds So Entrancing'' *''The Christ-Child's Lullaby'' on the CD ''Christmas a cappella: Songs from around the World'' *''Three American Portraits for String Quartet'', ''The Golden Harp for Chorus and String Quartet'', and ''White Horses for SATB Chorus and Piano'', and ''Cheek to Cheek for SATB Chorus and Piano'' on the CD ''The Golden Harp'' *''Hebrides Lullaby'' on the CD ''A Retro Christmas With CONCORA'' *''Hebrides Lullaby'' on the CD ''Christmas in Our Time'' *''How Can I Keep from Singing?'' on the CD ''Abbondanza! Abundant Joys'' *''I Thank You God'' on the CD ''ACDA Raymond W. Brock Endowment, Commissioned Compositions, Volume I'' *''I Thank You God'' on the CD ''Amazing Day, 20th Century Music for Women's Choir'' *''My Girls'' on the CD ''Celestial Sirens Demo 2000'' *''My Love Walks in Velvet'' on the CD '' Vox Femina Los Angeles -- 2000 LA Regional ACDA Convention'' *''Rejoice! -- Christmas Songs'' on the CD ''Juletide 2001 -- Luther College'' *''River Songs'' on the CD ''Sounds & Colors of Vermont'' *''Songs for Women's Voices'' on the CD ''When I Sing'' *''Mornings Innocent'' and ''In Autumn'' on the CD ''Taking Shape'' *''Sounding Joy'' on the CD ''Sounding Joy'' *''This Train'' on the CD ''1998 All-OMEA Festival Concert'' Vocal Works: *Song cycles ''though love be a day'', ''Mornings Innocent'', ''The Sun is Love'', and solo piano ''Semplice and Rhythms from the North Country'' are on the CD "The Sun Is Love" performed by Michelle Areyzaga, soprano and Jamie Shaak, piano *Song cycles ''though love be a day'', ''Songs of the Night Wind'', ''No Ordinary Woman!'' and selected opera arias are on the CD ''Scattering Dark and Bright: Song Cycles and Arias by Gwyneth Walker'' *''As A Branch in May'' and ''Weave No Cloak Against Tomorrow'' are on the CD ''Music Sweet as Love'' *''Four American Folk Songs'' and ''Songs for Voice and Guitar'' on the CD ''Arise: Music of the Americas for Voice and Guitar'' *''maggie and millie and mollie and may'' on the CD "Women's Voices" *''No Ordinary Woman! on the CD "No Ordinary Woman!" *''though love be a day'' on the cassette "Music of Her Own" *''though love be a day'' on the CD "though love be a day" *''I Speak for the Earth'' on the CD "Donne e Doni Vol. II" Keyboard Works: *''Cantos for the End of Summer'' on the CD ''Character Sketches'' *''Evensong from Cantos for the End of Summer for piano'' on the CD ''Piano Portraits of the Seasons'' *''In Celebration for organ'' on the CD "Women Composers for Organ" *''Rhythms from the North Country for piano'' on the cassette ''Alive and Well''

External links

Composer's website

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Gwyneth Van Anden 1947 births Living people 20th-century American classical composers American women classical composers American music educators American women music educators People from New Canaan, Connecticut University of Hartford Hartt School alumni University of Hartford Hartt School faculty Brown University alumni Oberlin College faculty 20th-century American women composers American women academics 21st-century American women American choral composers