Thomas Kotcheff
Thomas Kotcheff (born 1988) is an American composer and pianist who currently resides in Los Angeles. He is a winner of a 2016 Charles Ives Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters[1] and a 2015 Presser Foundation Music Award.[2]
Thomas Kotcheff | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Thomas Kotcheff |
Born | Wilmington, North Carolina, United States | October 14, 1988
Genres | Contemporary classical, instrumental, orchestral, film |
Occupation(s) | Composer, pianist |
Instruments | Piano |
Years active | 2009–present |
Website | www |
Biography
Kotcheff was born in Wilmington, North Carolina and raised in Los Angeles, California. He began taking piano lessons at the age of 4 and in 2006 he graduated from Los Angeles County High School for the Arts. In 2010 Kotcheff completed a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University and then attended USC Thornton School of Music from 2010 to 2019 where he received a Masters of Master of Music and a Doctor of Music in Music Composition. He has studied composition with Stephen Hartke, Donald Crockett, Frank Ticheli, and Steven Stucky, and piano with Benjamin Pasternack and Stewart L. Gordon.
Kotcheff currently serves as Ear Training and Music Theory Faculty at the Colburn School[3] He is a teaching artist at the Los Angeles Philharmonic Composer Fellowship Program.[4] Kotcheff has held residencies at Festival International d'Art Lyrique d'Aix-en-Provence,[5] the Los Angeles Philharmonic's National Composers Intensive,[6] The Hermitage Artist Retreat,[7] The Studios of Key West,[8] and The Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts.[9]
As a new music pianist, Thomas has dedicated himself to commissioning and premiering new piano works.[10] In 2020, his performance of Frederic Rzewski's Songs of Insurrection was awarded Best Instrumental Recital Performance in Los Angeles by San Francisco Classical Voice's Audience Choice Awards.[11] He released the world premiere recording of "Songs of Insurrection" on the Coviello Contemporary label.[12]
Kotcheff is a founding member of the new music piano duo HOCKET with Sarah Gibson.[13] He serves as a content contributor to 91.5 KUSC[14] and is a livestream broadcast host for the Ojai Music Festival.[15]
Selected works
Orchestral
Large ensemble
Chamber
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Solo
Vocal
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Selected awards and grants
- 2021 Illinois State University College of Fine Arts RED NOTE New Music Festival Composition Competition[16]
- 2018 New York Youth Symphony First Music Commission[17]
- 2016 Charles Ives Prize (Charles Ives Scholarship) American Academy of Arts and Letters[1]
- 2015 Presser Foundation Graduate Music Award
- 2015 BMI Foundation Student Composer Award [18]
- 2014 Aspen Music Festival Hermitage Prize [19]
Discography
- Frederic Rzewski: Songs of Insurrection (2020) Coviello Contemporary COV 92021
Film
Kotcheff provided the score to the 2019 independent film "The Planters".[20]
References
- "American Academy of Arts and Letters 2016 Music Awards Press Release".
- "University of Southern California: Composition students shine with prizes and premieres".
- "Colburn School, Faculty, Thomas Kotcheff".
- "Nancy and Barry Sanders Composer Fellowship Program".
- "ROMANTIC SCRATCHES CHAMBER MUSIC RESIDENCY".
- "10 PARTICIPANTS ANNOUNCED FOR THE LOS ANGELES PHILHARMONIC'S NATIONAL COMPOSERS INTENSIVE 2016".
- "Hermitage Artist Retreat, Meet the Artists".
- "The Studios of Key West: AIR in Concert".
- "Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts: Thomas Kotcheff".
- "Thomas Kotcheff , composer - Official Site".
- "Audience Choice Awards 2019–2020: Los Angeles Area Winners".
- "COV 92021 - Frederic Rzewksi: Songs of Insurrection".
- "HOCKET, official site".
- "The Secret Love Affair Hidden in Alban Berg's "Lyric Suite"".
- "Ojai Music Festival 2019 Live Stream Schedule".
- "RED NOTE New Music Festival Composition Competition".
- "NEW YORK YOUTH SYMPHONY ANNOUNCES 35th ANNIVERSARY FIRST MUSIC COMMISSIONS".
- "63rd Annual BMI Student Composer Award Winners Announced | News | BMI.com". bmi.com.
- "2014 Hermitage Prize Awarded at Aspen Music Festival & School".
- "The Planters, official site".