David Amram (1930- )
The Boston Globe has described David Amram as "the Renaissance man of
American music". He has composed over 100 orchestral and chamber works,
written two operas, and early in his career, wrote many scores for
theatre and films, including Splendor in the Grass and the Manchurian
Candidate. He plays French horn, piano, guitar, numerous flutes and
whistles, percussion, and a variety of folkloric instruments from 25
countries. He has conducted and performed as a soloist with symphony
orchestras around the world, participated in major music festivals, and
traveled from Brazil to Cuba and from Kenya to Egypt. While actively
assimilating the musical cultures of the countries he has visited, he
has kept up a remarkable pace of composing, incorporating his
experiences in the worlds of jazz, folk and ethnic music as inspiration
and basic material for his formal compositions. He has collaborated
with such notables as Leonard Bernstein, Dizzy Gillespie, Lionel
Hampton, Charles Mingus, Dustin Hoffman, Thelonius Monk, Willie Nelson,
Jack Kerouac, Betty Carter, Odetta, Elia Kazan, Arthur Miller, and Tito
Puente. Since being appointed first composer-in-residence with the New
York Philharmonic in 1966-67, he has become one of the most acclaimed
composers of his generation, listed by BMI as one of the Twenty Most
Performed Composers of Concert Music in the United States since
1974. For the past twenty-seven seasons, Amram has been the
music director of young people's, family, and free summer concert
programs for the Brooklyn Philharmonic. As conductor, narrator, and
soloist on instruments from all over the world, he combines jazz, Latin
American, Middle Eastern, Native American, and folk musics of the
world, in conjunction with the European classics. In the spring of
1995, the Brooklyn Academy of Music honored his quarter of a century as
a pioneer of multicultural symphonic programming. He appears as guest
conductor and soloist with major orchestras around the world, as well
as touring internationally with his quartet, while continuing to
produce a remarkable output of new compositions.- Bernard Savoie, MulesRasch
COMPOSITIONS Amram Links ~ ~ ~ Works by Genre ~ ~ ~ Amram on Amram
Titus Andronicus, incidental music (1956)
Trio, tenor saxophone, horn and bassoon (1958)
Comes a Day, incidental music (1958) [first incidental music written for a Broadway play]
The Family Reunion, incidental music (1958)
The Power and the Glory, incidental music (1958)
Autobiography, string orchestra (1959)
Shakespearean Concerto, oboe, 2 horns and string orchestra (1959)
Overture and Allegro for Unaccompanied Flute (1959)
Pull My Daisy, voice and ensemble (1959) [from film score, Pull My Daisy, 1959]
Startime, TV series score (1 episode, 1959)
The Turn of the Screw, TV film score (1959)
Pull My Daisy, film score (1959)
J.B., incidental music (1959) [Pulitzer Prize Winner]
The Rivalry, incidental music (1959)
The Beaux Stratagem, featuring songs (1959)
Kataki, incidental music (1959)
The Great God Brown, incidental music (1959)
Lysistrata, incidental music (1959)
Friday Evening Service (Shir L'Erev Shabbat), tenor, chorus and organ (1960)
Sonata for Violin and Piano (1960)
Sonata for Piano (1960)
Sunday Showcase, TV series score (1 episode, 1960)
Peer Gynt, incidental music (1960) [chamber orchestra]
Caligula, incidental music (1960)
Henry IV, Part I, incidental music (1960)
Henry IV, Part II, incidental music (1960)
Discussions, flute, cello, percussion (2 players) and piano (1961)
String Quartet (1961)
Cry Vengeance!, TV film score (1961)
The Young Savages, film score (1961)
Splendor in the Grass, film score (1961)
Hamlet, incidental music (1961)
The American Bell, narrator and chamber orchestra (1962)
Three Songs for Marlboro, horn and cello (1962)
Dirge and Variations, violin, cello and piano (1962)
Summernight's Dream, incidental music, trp, ob, bsn, vln, vc, hpschd (pf) and perc (1962?)
The Manchurian Candidate, film score (1962)
A Midsummer Night's Dream, incidental music (1962)
The Wind and the Rain, violin and piano (1963)
A Year in Our Land, cantata, SATB soli, chorus and orchestra (1964)
Two Anthems, chorus (pub. 1964)
The Passion of Josef D., incidental music (1964) [SATB soli and chorus]
But For Whom Charlie, music arranger (1964)
The Changeling, incidental music (1964)
The Final Ingredient, TV opera in one act (1965)
King Lear Variations, band (1965)
Horn Concerto (1965) [also for horn and wind ensemble or horn and piano]
Let Us Remember, cantata, SATB soli, chorus and orchestra (1965)
After The Fall, incidental music (1965)
Tartuffe, musical director (1965)
Fanfare and Processional, brass quintet (1966)
That Summer - That Fall, incidental music (1967)
Twelfth Night, opera (1965-68)
- Five Shakespeare Songs, voice and piano (1965-68; pub. 1972) [from the opera "Twelfth Night"]
- Three Shakespeare Songs, bass and piano (pub. 1986) [drawn from Twelfth Night, 1965-68, and other incidental scores]
- Four Shakespeare Songs, high voice and piano (pub. 1986) [drawn from Twelfth Night, 1965-68, and other incidental scores]
Quintet for Winds, flute, oboe, clarinet, horn and bassoon (1968)
By the Rivers of Babylon, soprano solo and female chorus (pub. 1969)
Three Songs for America, bass voice, wind quintet and string quintet (1969)
The Arrangement, film score (1969)
Triple Concerto, woodwind quintet, brass quintet, jazz quintet and orchestra (1970)
- Rondo Alla Turca, woodwind quintet, brass quintet, jazz quintet and band (1970) [last movement of Triple Concerto]
Elegy, violin and orchestra (1970)
Bassoon Concerto (1971)
Violin Concerto (1972)
Brazilian Memories, guitar and orchestra (1973)
Fanfare for Seventeen Brass and Percussion (1974)
Zohar, alto recorder or flute (1974)
The Trail of Beauty, mezzo-soprano, oboe and orchestra (1976)
En memoria de Chano Pozo, jazz trio (flute, electric bass guitar and piano) and orchestra or band (1977)
Overture for Brass and Percussion (1977)
En memoria de Chano Pozo, jazz trio (flute, electric bass guitar and piano) and orchestra or band (1977)
Rejoice in the Lord, chorus (pub. 1977)
Native American Portraits, violin, piano and percussion (1977)
Portraits, violin, viola, cello and piano (1979)
Ode to Lord Buckley, Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra or Band (1980)
Landscapes, percussion quartet (1980)
Harold and Maude, incidental music (1980)
Aya Zehn, oboe or trumpet and orchestra (1982)
Blues and Variations for Monk, horn (1982)
Medea, incidental music (1982)
Honor Song, cello and orchestra (1983) [also called "Overture: Honor Song"]
Medea, TV film score (1983)
Across the Wide Missouri: a Musical Tribute to Harry S. Truman, orchestra (1984)
Fox Hunt, orchestra (1984)
Andante and Variations on a Theme from Macbeth, band (1984)
Travels, trumpet and orchestra (1985)
American Dance Suite, orchestra (1986)
- Cajun, band (1986) [4th movement of American Dance Suite]
Blues for String Orchestra (1986) [2nd movement of American Dance Suite]
Songs of the Soul (Shiray Neshama), orchestra (1986)
The Beat Generation: An American Dream, film score (1987)
Pigeon Feathers, TV film score (1987)
Conversations, flute, violin, viola, cello and piano (1988)
Duets, 2 flutes (1990)
Three Songs for Young People, voices (1-3 parts) and percussion (4 players) (1991)
Celebration Suite, orchestra (1992)
Theme and Variations on Red River Valley, flute and string orchestra (1992)
Retratos de Mexico, orchestra (1993)
A Little Rebellion: Letters of Thomas Jefferson, narrator, woodwind quintet, percussion and string orchestra (1995)
Journals of Kerouac, voice and chamber orchestra (1995)
On the Waterfront, incidental music (1995)
Trombone Alone, trombone (1996)
Frog Crossing, film score (1996)
The Source, film score (1999)
Kokopelli, A Symphony in Three Movements for Orchestra (1997)
Giants of the Night, flute and orchestra (2000)
Missa Manhattan, narrator, chorus and orchestra (2000?)
Symphonic Variations on a Song by Woody Guthrie, orchestra (2007) [theme: This Land is Your Land]
Visions of Paradise, film score (in development)
Incidental music to:
- 31Shakespearen production in Central Park (1956-67)
- 17 Broadway plays
- 40 Off-Broadway plays
WORKS BY GENRE Amram Links ~ top of page ~
Dramatic/Theater
The Final Ingredient, TV opera in one act (1965)
Twelfth Night, opera (1965-68)
Orchestra
Autobiography, string orchestra (1959)
The American Bell, narrator and chamber orchestra (1962)
Across the Wide Missouri: a Musical Tribute to Harry S. Truman, orchestra (1984)
Fox Hunt, orchestra (1984)
American Dance Suite, orchestra (1986)
Blues for String Orchestra (1986) [2nd movement of American Dance Suite]
Songs of the Soul (Shiray Neshama), orchestra (1986)
Celebration Suite, orchestra (1992)
Retratos de Mexico, orchestra (1993)
A Little Rebellion: Letters of Thomas Jefferson, narrator, woodwind quintet, percussion and string orchestra (1995)
Kokopelli, A Symphony in Three Movements for Orchestra (1997)
Symphonic Variations on a Song by Woody Guthrie, orchestra (2007) [theme: This Land is Your Land]
Band
King Lear Variations, band (1965)
Horn Concerto (1965) [also for horn and wind ensemble or horn and piano]
Rondo Alla Turca, woodwind quintet, brass quintet, jazz quintet and band (1970) [last movement of Triple Concerto]
Fanfare for Seventeen Brass and Percussion (1974)
En memoria de Chano Pozo, jazz trio (flute, electric bass guitar and piano) and orchestra or band (1977)
Overture for Brass and Percussion (1977)
Ode to Lord Buckley, Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra or Band (1980)
Andante and Variations on a Theme from Macbeth, band (1984)
Cajun, band (1986) [4th movement of American Dance Suite]
Soloist(s) w/Orchestra
Shakespearean Concerto, oboe, 2 horns and string orchestra (1959)
Horn Concerto (1965) [also for horn and wind ensemble or horn and piano]
Triple Concerto, woodwind quintet, brass quintet, jazz quintet and orchestra (1970)
Elegy, violin and orchestra (1970)
Bassoon Concerto (1971)
Violin Concerto (1972)
Brazilian Memories, guitar and orchestra (1973)
En memoria de Chano Pozo, jazz trio (flute, electric bass guitar and piano) and orchestra or band (1977)
Ode to Lord Buckley, Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra or Band (1980)
Aya Zehn, oboe or trumpet and orchestra (1982)
Honor Song, cello and orchestra (1983) [also called "Overture: Honor Song"]
Travels, trumpet and orchestra (1985)
Theme and Variations on Red River Valley, flute and string orchestra (1992)
Giants of the Night, flute and orchestra (2000)
other works for jazz quintet and orchestra
Chorus w/Orchestra
A Year in Our Land, cantata, SATB soli, chorus and orchestra (1964)
Let Us Remember, cantata, SATB soli, chorus and orchestra (1965)
Choral
Friday Evening Service (Shir L'Erev Shabbat), tenor, chorus and organ (1960)
Two Anthems, chorus (pub. 1964)
By the Rivers of Babylon, soprano solo and female chorus (pub. 1969)
Rejoice in the Lord, chorus (pub. 1977)
Three Songs for Young People, voices (1-3 parts) and percussion (4 players) (1991)
Missa Manhattan, narrator, chorus and orchestra (2000?)
Chamber
Trio, tenor saxophone, horn and bassoon (1958)
Discussions, flute, cello, percussion (2 players) and piano (1961)
String Quartet (1961)
Three Songs for Marlboro, horn and cello (1962)
Dirge and Variations, violin, cello and piano (1962)
Summernight's Dream, incidental music, trp, ob, bsn, vln, vc, hpschd (pf) and perc (1962?)
Fanfare and Processional, brass quintet (1966)
Quintet for Winds, flute, oboe, clarinet, horn and bassoon (1968)
Native American Portraits, violin, piano and percussion (1977)
Portraits, violin, viola, cello and piano (1979)
Landscapes, percussion quartet (1980)
Conversations, flute, violin, viola, cello and piano (1988)
Duets, 2 flutes (1990)
other works for jazz ensemble
Solo Instrument
Overture and Allegro for Unaccompanied Flute (1959)
Sonata for Violin and Piano (1960)
The Wind and the Rain, violin and piano (1963)
Zohar, alto recorder or flute (1974)
Blues and Variations for Monk, horn (1982)
Trombone Alone, trombone (1996)
Piano
Sonata for Piano (1960)
Vocal
Pull My Daisy, voice and ensemble (1959) [from film score, Pull My Daisy, 1959]
Five Shakespeare Songs, voice and piano (1965-68; pub. 1972) [from the opera "Twelfth Night"]
Three Songs for America, bass voice, wind quintet and string quintet (1969)
The Trail of Beauty, mezzo-soprano, oboe and orchestra (1976)
Three Shakespeare Songs, bass and piano (pub. 1986) [drawn from Twelfth Night, 1965-68, and other incidental scores]
Four Shakespeare Songs, high voice and piano (pub. 1986) [drawn from Twelfth Night, 1965-68, and other incidental scores]
Three Songs for Young People, voices (1-3 parts) and percussion (4 players) (1991)
Journals of Kerouac, voice and chamber orchestra (1995)
130 songs and story-songs composed for folk festivals and kids' programs
Film/TV Scores
Startime, TV series score (1 episode, 1959)
The Turn of the Screw, TV film score (1959)
Pull My Daisy, film score (1959)
Sunday Showcase, TV series score (1 episode, 1960)
Cry Vengeance!, TV film score (1961)
The Young Savages, film score (1961)
Splendor in the Grass, film score (1961)
The Manchurian Candidate, film score (1962)
The Arrangement, film score (1969)
Medea, TV film score (1983)
The Beat Generation: An American Dream, film score (1987)
Pigeon Feathers, TV film score (1987)
Frog Crossing, film score (1996)
The Source, film score (1999)
Visions of Paradise, film score (in development)
Incidental Music
Incidental music to:
- 31Shakespearen production in Central Park (1956-67)
- 17 Broadway plays
- 40 Off-Broadway plays
Titus Andronicus, incidental music (1956)
Comes a Day, incidental music (1958) [first incidental music written for a Broadway play]
The Family Reunion, incidental music (1958)
The Power and the Glory, incidental music (1958)
J.B., incidental music (1959) [Pulitzer Prize Winner]
The Rivalry, incidental music (1959)
The Beaux Stratagem, featuring songs (1959)
Kataki, incidental music (1959)
The Great God Brown, incidental music (1959)
Lysistrata, incidental music (1959)
Peer Gynt, incidental music (1960) [chamber orchestra]
Caligula, incidental music (1960)
Henry IV, Part I, incidental music (1960)
Henry IV, Part II, incidental music (1960)
Hamlet, incidental music (1961)
A Midsummer Night's Dream, incidental music (1962)
The Passion of Josef D., incidental music (1964) [SATB soli and chorus]
But For Whom Charlie, music arranger (1964)
The Changeling, incidental music (1964)
After The Fall, incidental music (1965)
Tartuffe, musical director (1965)
That Summer - That Fall, incidental music (1967)
Harold and Maude, incidental music (1980)
Medea, incidental music (1982)
On the Waterfront, incidental music (1995)
AMRAM LINKS Works by Genre ~ top of page ~
Abacadabra! David Amram Makes Me a Living Legend ... (The Blacklisted Journalist)
By Your Works Ye Shall Be Known (Ed Heflin, emptymirrorbooks.com)
The Cosmic Gourmet Delight (The Blacklisted Journalist)
David Amram - An American Original (Cornucopia, world.std.com)
David Amram: Community Music Maker (John McLaughlin, the digital folk life)
David Amram Discusses Jack Kerouac (Jerry Jazz Musician)
David Amram in the News (at composer's website)
David Amram Praise Poem
David Amram Talks About Music (Literary Kicks)
David Amram: The Oldest Teenager (Mike Zwerin, culturekiosque.com)
The Egg Cream Event (The Blacklisted Journalist)
"Hanging Out" with David Amram (Jessa Lynn, Lee Kidd and Mick Cusimano, Squawk Magazine)
Interview with David Amram (JazzWax)
"No More Walls" – A Conversation with David Amram (John McLaughlin, the digital folk life)
Report From Okemah (David Amram, woodyguthrie.org)
The Songs of David Amram: A Representative Analysis and Review (Gerald L. Bieritz)
A Vanishing America? (David Amram, Chapter & Verse)
Composer's website
Amram @ Wikipedia
Amram @ All About Jazz also here
Amram @ Answers.com
Amram @ Ask.com
Amram @ Classical Composers Database
Amram @ Classical Net
Amram @ ClassicsToday
Amram @ Cosmic Baseball Association
Amram @ Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular Music
Amram @ ebay
Amram @ Edition Peters
Amram @ Facebook
Amram @ Fandango
Amram @ Film Reference
Amram @ Grassland Cheese Consortium
Amram @ IBDB (Internet Broadway Database)
Amram @ IMDb (Internet Movie Database)
Amram @ Insomniacathon
Amram @ Jazz Forum Arts
Amram @ Kerouac Alley
Amram @ Kerouacfilms.com
Amram @ Milken Archive of American Jewish Music
Amram @ Movie Music UK
Amram @ MSN Music
Amram @ MulesRasch
Amram @ MusicWeb International
Amram @ MySpaceMusic
Amram @ NationMaster
Amram @ Naxos
Amram @ The New York Times
Amram @ Open Source
Amram @ REC Music Foundation /The Lied and Art Song Texts Page
Amram @ SoundtrackCollector
Amram @ Soundtrack Net
Amram @ Starpulse.com
Amram @ StateUniversity.com
Amram @ Turner Classic Movies
Amram @ Weblo.com
Amram @ WNYC
Amram @ Zune.net
Publisher
Amram @ Edition Peters
Streaming Audio
Amram @ American Public Media
Amram @ Edition Peters
Amram @ last.fm
Amram @ Milken Archive of American Jewish Music
Amram @ MySpaceMusic
Amram @ NPR
Amram @ Open Source
Amram @ PRX (Public Radio Exchange)
Amram @ Rhapsody
Recordings
Amram @ ArkivMusic
Amram @ ClassicsOnline
Amram @ Discogs
Amram @ YouTube
Video
Amram @ YouTube
Amram @ Google Video
Amram @ Vimeo
~ top of page ~
Amram on Amram at Pytheas: An Interview at New York Views
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