Alan Hovhaness (1911-2000)
Alan
Hovhaness was one of the 20th century's most prolific composers. Of
Armenian and Scottish descent, Hovhaness grew up in the Boston area,
studying music at the New England Conservatory. As far back as his
student days, he showed great interest in non-Western music. Listening
to the Armenian singer Komitas, Hovhaness learned about "saying as much
as possible with the fewest possible notes." This was a radical path to
take in the 1940s, and one from which he rarely strayed. Hovhaness
cites his studies in the Far East, as well as his exposure to Uday
Shankar (brother of Ravi) as the source of the mysticism in his music.
But despite this ethereal influence, Hovhaness composed in a clear,
linear style. He once wrote: "I've always listened to my own voice. I
was discontented with the kind of music that everyone said I should
write - all clever and dissonant, intellectualized. I wanted to write
music that was deeply felt, music that would move people." As a
tribute to Hovhaness' unswerving vision, he was inducted into the
American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1977. In 1991, the American
Composers Orchestra, in conjunction with the Armenian Apostolic Church
of America, presented the Alan Hovhaness 80th Birthday Gala Celebration
at Carnegie Hall. Featuring Pulitzer Prize-winning conductor and
composer Karel Husa, Grammy Award-winning singer Richie Havens, and
clarinetist Lawrence Sobol, and with Hovhaness himself conducting the
first and last works, the celebration saw the world premiere of his Symphony No. 65, Artstakh. It carried the phenomenal opus number of 428.- Peermusic Classical
COMPOSITIONS Hovhaness Links ~ ~ ~ Works by Genre
[under construction]
for a complete list of Hovhaness' works see here
WORKS BY GENRE Hovhaness Links ~ top of page ~
[under construction]
for a complete list of Hovhaness' works see here
Dramatic/Theater
Orchestra
Band
Soloist(s) w/Orchestra
Chorus w/Orchestra
Choral
Chamber
Solo Instrument
Piano
Vocal
Incidental/Film
Electronic
HOVHANESS LINKS Works by Genre ~ top of page ~
Alan Hovhaness: Catalog of Works (Richard Howard & Tom Lewis, MusicWeb International)
Alan Hovhaness, a Composer Whose Vast Catalog Embraced Many Genres, Dies at 89 (Allan Kosinn, NY Times)
The Alan Hovhaness Collection (Armenian Cultural Foundation)
Alan Hovhaness in Conversation with Bruce Duffie (bruceduffie.com)
Alan Hovhaness Makes the Right Connections (Richard Kostelanetz, worldandi.com)
Composer Alan Hovhaness Dies at 89 (NewMusicBox)
Other Minds Salutes Alan Hovhaness (Other Minds)
Composer's website . . . inquire about Alan Hovhaness: here
The Alan Hovhaness International Research Centre
Alan Hovhaness Centennial Website
Hovhaness @ Wikipedia
Hovhaness @ American Music Center
Hovhaness @ Answers.com
Hovhaness @ Armeniapedia
Hovhaness @ Art of the States
Hovhaness @ Celestial Harmonies
Hovhaness @ Classical 101FM
Hovhaness @ Classical Archives
Hovhaness @ Classical Composers Database
Hovhaness @ Classical Net
Hovhaness @ ClassicsToday
Hovhaness @ Daily Kos
Hovhaness @ Dr. Estrella's Incredibly Abridged Dictionary of Composers
Hovhaness @ enotes.com
Hovhaness @ Facebook
Hovhaness @ Frank Perry
Hovhaness @ Good Music Guide
Hovhaness @ IMDb (Internet Movie Database)
Hovhaness @ InstantEncore
Hovhaness @ Karadar Classical Music
Hovhaness @ Kunst der Fuge
Hovhaness @ Luck's Music Library
Hovhaness @ MSN Music
Hovhaness @ MusicWeb International
Hovhaness @ musicianguide.com
Hovhaness @ MySpaceMusic
Hovhaness @ Naxos
Hovhaness @ The New York Times
Hovhaness @ On an Overgrown Path
Hovhaness @ Other Minds
Hovhaness @ Peermusic
Hovhaness @ REC Music Foundation /The Lied and Art Song Texts Page
Hovhaness @ Talk Classical
Publisher
Hovhaness @ Composer website/publisher listings
Hovhaness @ Associated Music Publishers (AMP)/G. Schirmer
Hovhaness @ Fujihara Music Co. Inc., PO Box 88381, Seattle, WA 98138-2381 (telephone: 206-246-9880; hovhanessfuji@aol.com)
18206 51st Avenue So., Seattle, WA 98188-4640 USA/Hinako Hovhaness, widow of Alan Hovhaness/Do not call before 12 noon
Hovhaness @ Luck's Music Library
Hovhaness @ Peermusic
Hovhaness @ Edition Peters
Streaming Audio
Hovhaness @ Composer's website/Interviews
Hovhaness @ Art of the States
Hovhaness @ Classical Archives
Hovhaness @ Internet Archive/RadiOM
Hovhaness @ Internet Archive/RadiOM/KPFA's Ode To Gravity Series
Hovhaness @ last.fm
Hovhaness @ MySpaceMusic
Hovhaness @ PRX (Public Radio Exchange)
Hovhaness @ Rhapsody.com
Recordings
Hovhaness @ ArkivMusic
Hovhaness @ ClassicsOnline
Hovhaness @ Discogs
Hovhaness @ Celestial Harmonies
Hovhaness @ Crystal Records
Hovhaness @ Eric Kunze
Video
Hovhaness @ YouTube
Hovhaness @ Google Video
Hovhaness @ Vimeo
Hovhaness on Hovhaness: The World of Alan Hovhaness/KPFA (streaming audio)
Composers
Speak on the Web at Pytheas~ click on composer picture to listen ~
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