Michael Rosenzweig (composer)

Michael Rosenzweig (born 1951 in Oranjezicht), a suburb of Cape Town, is a South African composer, conductor and jazz musician.

This article is about the composer. For the ecologist, see Michael Rosenzweig. For the rabbi, see Michael Rosensweig.

Education

Studied composition with Donald Martino at New England Conservatory of Music and on Columbia University's doctoral programme with Chou Wen-chung, Jack Beeson, and Patricia Carpenter. Carpenter was Arnold Schoenberg's assistant at UCLA for the last 12 years of his life). He also studied theory with Patricia Carpenter and George Perle.

He studied choral conducting with Fritz Weisse of the Berliner Konzert-chor, where he was the assistant and the Musical Director of the Youth choir, whose Philharmonie debut he conducted. He also studied orchestral conducting with Lawrence Leonard and with Emanuel Hurwitz, whom he saw regularly for analysis and coaching for several years until the latter's death in November 2006.

Conducting

While assistant at the Berliner Konzertchor, he conducted the Blacher Ensemble, the new music ensemble from the Berlin Hochschule der Kunste in their international venue debut, as well as other orchestras and ensembles in major venues and festivals, performing both standard repertoire and contemporary music, including several premieres.

In the UK he has conducted the ECO, the City of London Sinfonia featuring Gervase de Peyer as soloist, the London Strings (at St James's Piccadilly) with Yonty Solomon, and Buckingham and District Music Society as well as performances of contemporary works by several composers.

In Central and Eastern Europe he has conducted the Moravian Philharmonic,[1] the Slovak State Philharmonic, Sudety Philharmonic in Wałbrzych,[2] Poland, the State Philharmonic of Iaşi[3] and Vidin State Philharmonic among others. He has also conducted the Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra. Included have been performances, premieres and recordings of a wide range of contemporary music.

He conducted the European premiere of Gervase de Peyer's new realization of the Mozart Clarinet Concerto and has also worked with Neil Black as soloist. Michael Rosenzweig is the Principal Guest Conductor of the Vidin State Philharmonic, in Vidin, Bulgaria.

Composition

His awards for composition include the Greater London Arts Council Young Composer's Award and the Gaudeamus Foundation. He held the Artists-in-Berlin Programme of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) fellowship for music in 1990.[4]

Works have been commissioned by the BBC, the London Sinfonietta,[5] the Divertimenti String Ensemble, Nina Beilina.

Rosenzweig's String Quartet No. 2 (1989) was commissioned in October 1988, by the BBC for the Arditti Quartet and delivered in April 1989. It was first performed and recorded in June 1995, and broadcast by the BBC Radio 3 on 3 January 2009 .[6]

Commissioned works
  • Chamber Orchestra
    • Sinfonietta 1[7]
    • Sinfonietta 2
  • String Orchestra
    • Elegy – for 13 solo strings[8][9]
    • Concerto for String Orchestra[10]
    • Fugue '97
  • Chamber Ensemble
    • String Octet
  • Quartet
    • Piano Quartet
    • String Quartet 2
  • Trio
    • Trio for Oboe, Oboe d'Amore and Cor Anglais – GLA Young Composer Award
    • Piano Trio – GLA Young Composer Award
  • Duo
  • Duo for Clarinet and Piano
  • Duo for Violin and Piano[10]
    • Song Cycle for High Voice and Piano
  • Solo
    • Solo for Flute[7]
    • Solo for Bass Clarinet[7]
    • Solo for Multipercussion[10]
    • Solo for Vibraphone[10]
    • Solo for Soprano Saxophone

Other works
  • Orchestra
    • Symphony in One Movement – Vaughan Williams Trust Competition & Gaudeamus Award[11][12]
  • Choir
    • Chorale – SATB
  • Quartet
    • String Quartet 1 – U Mass Bay Harbor Competition, GLA Young Composer Award
  • Solo'
    • Solo for Bass Clarinet

References
  1. "Moravian Philharmonic". Archived from the original on 9 February 2007. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  3. "Filarmonica Moldova Iași". Filarmonicais.ro. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  4. "Berliner Künstlerprogramm | Biography: Rosenzweig, Michael". Berliner-kuenstlerprogramm.de. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  5. David C.H. Wright (2005). "The London Sinfonietta 1968–2004: A Perspective. twentieth-century music". Journals.cambridge.org. pp. 109–136. doi:10.1017/S1478572205000216.
  6. Pre-Hear, Bbc.co.uk, 3 January 2009
  7. Paul Griffiths, "Concerts: Festival Hall", The Times 25 March 1986
  8. Meirion Bowen, The Guardian 22 February 1982
  9. Hampstead and Highgate Express, 26 February 1982
  10. Mellers, Wilfrid; Dreyer, Martin (1986), "Music New and Old: Two Festivals Considered", The Musical Times, 127 (1722): 494–498, doi:10.2307/964592, JSTOR 964592
  11. Michael Kennedy, The Daily Telegraph 25 November 1985
  12. Bryan Northcott, The Sunday Telegraph 12 January 1985
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