Ira Randall Thompson (April 21, 1899 – July 9, 1984) was an American composer, particularly noted for his choral works, and educator.

Career

Thompson attended

The Lawrenceville School The Lawrenceville School is a private, coeducational preparatory school for boarding and day students located in the unincorporated community of Lawrenceville within Lawrence Township in Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Lawre ...

, where his father was an English teacher. He then attended

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 ...

, A.T. Davison, Edward Burlingame Hill, ; in New York he studied privately with composer

Ernest Bloch Ernest Bloch (; ; July 24, 1880 – July 15, 1959) was a Swiss-born American composer. Bloch was a preeminent artist in his day, and left a lasting legacy. He is recognized as one of the greatest Swiss composers in history. Several of his most no ...

. He later became an assistant professor of music and choir director at

Wellesley College Wellesley College is a Private university, private Women's colleges in the United States, historically women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henr ...

, and received a doctorate in music from the

University of Rochester The University of Rochester is a private university, private research university in Rochester, New York, United States. It was founded in 1850 and moved into its current campus, next to the Genesee River in 1930. With approximately 30,000 full ...

Eastman School of Music The Eastman School of Music is the music school of the University of Rochester, a private research university in Rochester, New York, United States. Established in 1921 by celebrated industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman, it was the ...

. He went on to teach at the

Curtis Institute of Music The Curtis Institute of Music is a private conservatory in Philadelphia. It offers a performance diploma, a Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in opera, and a Professional Studies Certificate in opera. All students attend on a full scholarshi ...

(serving as its Director 1941/1942), at the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

, and at

. He is particularly noted for his choral works. He was an honorary member of the Rho Tau chapter of

Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia (legally Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America, colloquially known as Phi Mu Alpha, PMA, or simply Sinfonia) () is an American collegiate social Fraternities and sororities, fraternity for men with a special interest ...

fraternity at

Appalachian State University Appalachian State University (), or App State, is a Public university, public research university in Boone, North Carolina, United States. It was founded as a normal school, teachers' college in 1899 by brothers B. B. and D. D. Dougherty and th ...

. Thompson composed three

symphonies A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning c ...

and numerous vocal works including ''Americana'', '' The Testament of Freedom'', '' Frostiana'', and '' The Peaceable Kingdom'', inspired by

Edward Hicks Edward Hicks (April 4, 1780 – August 23, 1849) was an American folk painter and distinguished Christian minister of the Society of Friends (a.k.a. "Quakers"). He became a notable Quaker because of his paintings. Biography Early li ...

's painting. His most popular and recognizable choral work is his anthem, ''

Alleluia ''Hallelujah'' (; , Modern Hebrew, Modern ) is an interjection from the Hebrew language, used as an expression of gratitude to God. The term is used 24 times in the Hebrew Bible, Tanakh (in the book of Psalms), twice in deuterocanonical books, ...

'', commissioned by

Serge Koussevitzky Serge Koussevitzky (born Sergey Aleksandrovich Kusevitsky;Koussevitzky's original Russian forename is usually transliterated into English as either "Sergei" or "Sergey"; however, he himself adopted the French spelling "Serge", using it in his sig ...

for the opening of the

Berkshire Music Center The Tanglewood Music Center is an annual summer music academy in Lenox, Massachusetts, United States, in which emerging professional musicians participate in performances, master classes and workshops. The center operates as a part of the Tanglew ...

Tanglewood Tanglewood is a music venue and Music festival, festival in the towns of Lenox, Massachusetts, Lenox and Stockbridge, Massachusetts, Stockbridge in the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. It has been the summer home of the Boston Symphony ...

. He also wrote the operas '' Solomon and Balkis'' and ''The Nativity According to St. Luke''. ''Americana'', a

song cycle A song cycle () is a group, or cycle (music), cycle, of individually complete Art song, songs designed to be performed in sequence, as a unit.Susan Youens, ''Grove online'' The songs are either for solo voice or an ensemble, or rarely a combinat ...

, is written in a 20th-century musical art style known as "News Items"—compositions that parody newspaper layout and content, or whose lyrics are lifted from media of the day.Thomas, H. Todd. ''News Items: An Exploratory Study of Journalism in Music.'' Abilene, Texas, 1992. The lyrics are lifted from the "Americana" section of

H. L. Mencken Henry Louis Mencken (September 12, 1880 – January 29, 1956) was an American journalist, essayist, satirist, cultural critic, and scholar of American English. He commented widely on the social scene, literature, music, prominent politicians, ...

's ''

American Mercury ''The American Mercury'' was an American magazine published from 1924Staff (Dec. 31, 1923)"Bichloride of Mercury."''Time''. to 1981. It was founded as the brainchild of H. L. Mencken and drama critic George Jean Nathan. The magazine featured wr ...

'' magazine, which would reprint quotes and stories from U.S. publications. The song cycle's texts come from such publications as the Seattle, Washington, ''Post-Intelligencer'', the Little Rock, Arkansas, ''Gazette'', and a leaflet issued by the National Women's Christian Temperance Union.

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; born Louis Bernstein; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was th ...

was one of Thompson's students both at Harvard and at Curtis, according to his own testimony in a speech he gave at Curtis Institute's 75th Anniversary Banquet. Thompson's other notable students include Samuel Adler, Leo Kraft, Juan Orrego-Salas, John Davison, Thomas Beveridge, Charles Edward Hamm, George Lynn, William P. Perry, Christopher King, Joel Cohen,

Frederic Rzewski Frederic Anthony Rzewski ( ; April 13, 1938 – June 26, 2021) was an American composer and pianist, considered to be one of the most important American composer-pianists of his time. From 1977 up to his eventual death, he lived mainly in Be ...

Richard Edward Wilson Richard Edward Wilson (born May 15, 1941) is an American composer and pianist. Rejecting serialism, to some extent Wilson engages in tonality, though often with the use of considerable chromaticism. His ''oeuvre'' includes orchestral, operatic ...

, John Walter Hill, and David Borden. In honor of Thompson's vast influence on male choral music, on May 2, 1964, he became the first recipient of the prestigious University of Pennsylvania Glee Club Award of Merit. Established in 1964, this award sought "to bring a declaration of appreciation to an individual each year that has made a significant contribution to the world of music and helped to create a climate in which our talents may find valid expression." He was also a recipient of

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 ...

Sanford Medal Samuel Simons Sanford (15 March 18496 January 1910) was an American pianist and educator. Early life He was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Education He studied piano in New York with William Mason (son of Lowell Mason and student of Franz Lisz ...

Works

Choral works

*''The Last Invocation'' (1922) *''Odes of Horace'' (1924) *''Pueri Hebraeorum'' (1928) *''Americana'' (1932) *'' The Peaceable Kingdom'' (1936) – inspired by the painting by

and based on texts chosen from

Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "Yahweh is salvation"; also known as Isaias or Esaias from ) was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. The text of the Book of Isaiah refers to Isaiah as "the prophet" ...

*''Tarantella'' (1937) – on text by

Hilaire Belloc Joseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc ( ; ; 27 July 187016 July 1953) was a French-English writer, politician, and historian. Belloc was also an orator, poet, sailor, satirist, writer of letters, soldier, and political activist. His Catholic fait ...

*''

'' (1940) *'' The Testament of Freedom'' (1943) – texts from

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

*''The Last Words of David'' (1949) *''Mass of the Holy Spirit'' (1955) *''Ode to the Virginian Voyage'' (1956) *''Requiem – A Dramatic Dialogue'' (1958) *''Glory to God in the Highest'' (1958) *'' Frostiana: Seven Country Songs'' (1959) – a setting of poems by

Robert Frost Robert Lee Frost (March26, 1874January29, 1963) was an American poet. Known for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American Colloquialism, colloquial speech, Frost frequently wrote about settings from rural life in New E ...

*''The Best of Rooms'' (1963) – based on text by Robert Herrick *''A Feast of Praise'' (1963) – based on biblical texts *''A Psalm of Thanksgiving'' (1967) *'' Place of the Blest (1968) – based on texts by Robert Herrick and

Richard Wilbur Richard Purdy Wilbur (March 1, 1921 – October 14, 2017) was an American poet and literary translator. One of the foremost poets, along with his friend Anthony Hecht, of the World War II generation, Wilbur's work, often employing rhyme, and c ...

*''Bitter-Sweet'' (1970) *''A Concord Cantata'' (1975) – secular cantata based on texts by

Edward Everett Hale Edward Everett Hale (April 3, 1822 – June 10, 1909) was an American author, historian, and Unitarian minister, best known for his writings such as " The Man Without a Country", published in ''Atlantic Monthly'', in support of the Union ...

, Allen French and

*''The Twelve Canticles'' (1983) – Thompson's last composition – Dedicated to the

Emory and Henry College Emory & Henry University (E&H or Emory) is a private university in Emory, Virginia, United States. The campus comprises of Washington County, which is part of the Appalachian highlands of Southwest Virginia. Founded in 1836, Emory & Henry U ...

Concert Choir – Based on eleven of Thompson's favorite passages from the Bible *''The Passion According to St. Luke'', commissioned for the 150th anniversary of the

Handel and Haydn Society The Handel and Haydn Society is an American chorus and period instrument orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. Known colloquially as 'H+H', the organization has been in continual performance since its founding in 1815, the longest serving suc ...

*''The Nativity According to St. Luke'' *''Velvet Shoes''

Operas

*'' Solomon and Balkis''

Symphonies

*Symphony No. 1 (1931) *Symphony No. 2 (1931) *Symphony No. 3 (1947–49)

String quartets

*Quartet No. 1 in D minor (1941) *Quartet No. 2 in G major (1967)

References

External links

*
Randall Thompson, Composer

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Randall 1899 births 1984 deaths American male classical composers American opera composers 20th-century American classical composers University of Virginia faculty Harvard University alumni University of Rochester alumni Harvard University faculty Burials at Mount Auburn Cemetery Composers from New York City Pupils of Ernest Bloch Classical musicians from New York (state) 20th-century American male musicians Lawrenceville School alumni