In this episode, Dave and Andrew explore the first experimental composer to win the Pulitzer since Charles E. Ives. With that pedigree, what will they think of Henry Brant's Ice Field? And why is this piece called a "spatial" composition?
If you'd like to learn more about Henry Brant and Ice Field, we recommend:
This video of the work with commentary from Michael Tilson Thomas and organist Cameron Carpenter
Maria Anna Harley's article “An American in Space: Henry Brant’s ‘Spatial Music.’” American Music 15, no. 1 (1997): 70–92.
Frank Oteri's 2002 interview with Henry Brant in New Music Box
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Episode 59 - 2001: John Corigliano, Symphony No. 2 for String Orchestra
In this episode, Dave and Andrew explore the symphony of John Corigliano they don't know. After appreciating Corigliano's first and third symphonies, what will they think of the second? This piece, a rescoring and revision of Corigliano's String Quartet, is another in a recent stretch of winning works that began in a different form.
If you'd like to learn more about Corigliano, we recommend:
This interview with Corigliano by Living the Classical Life
Corigliano's composer's note about the Symphony No. 2
Elizabeth Bergman's “Of Rage and Remembrance, Music and Memory: The Work of Mourning in John Corigliano’s Symphony No. 1 and Choral Chaconne.” American Music 31, no. 3 (2013): 340–61
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Episode 58 - 2000: Lewis Spratlan, Life is a Dream, Opera in Three Acts: Act II, Concert Version
In this episode, Dave and Andrew talk about a curious winner for the year 2000 since it was originally composed 25 years earlier! What will they think about this blast from the past? It's also the first opera to win the Pulitzer Prize in many decades.
If you'd like more information about Lewis Spratlan, we recommend:
This video of Spratlan talking about the origins of the opera before the full premiere by the Santa Fe Opera.
This video of Spratlan detailing the opera's history with the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
A. Robert Lauer's article "The Santa Fe Opera’s Life Is a Dream" Bulletin of the Comediantes, Volume 63, Number 2 (2011): 155-60.
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Episode 57 - 1999: Melinda Wagner, Concerto for Flute, Strings and Percussion
In this episode, Dave and Andrew explore a concerto featuring an instrument not often put into a concerto setting: the flute. But its title also promises a balance among three forces instead of a featured soloist. What will they think of this contradictory piece?
If you'd like more information about Melinda Wagner, we recommend:
Frank Oteri's excellent interview with Melinda Wagner from 2015
Yujia Xia's dissertation "Melinda Wagner and Her Piano Concerto: Extremity of Sky" from 2021.
Mark Alburger, "Winning the Pulitzer Can Brighten Your Whole Day: An Interview with Melinda Wagner," 20th-Century Music 6, no. 6 (1999): 1-7.
In this episode, Dave and Andrew return to the venerable string quartet for a piece that mixes tonality, modernist music, Baroque dances, and Medieval modality. But will this mixture work for them?
If you'd like more information about Aaron Jay Kernis and the String Quartet #2, we recommend:
Leta Miller's book Aaron Jay Kernis, the first biography of the composer that we reference several times in the episode.
A conversation between Kernis and Frank Oteri right after the biography was published.
Hearing the Pulitzers: A piece-by-piece, episode-by-episode exploration of the winners of the Pulitzer Prize in Music with hosts Andrew Granade and David Thurmaier.
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