User:Idilla/Faye-Ellen Silverman

Faye-Ellen Silverman (b. 1947) is a classical music composer and pianist from New York City.

Dr. Silverman began her music studies before the age of four at the Dalcroze School of Music. She first achieved national recognition by winning the Parents League Competition, judged by Leopold Stokowski, at the age of 13. She holds a BA from Barnard College, cum laude and honors in music, and an AM from Harvard and a DMA from Columbia University, both in music composition. She spent her junior year of college at Mannes College of Music. Her teachers have included Otto Luening, William Sydeman, Leon Kirchner, Lukas Foss, Vladimir Ussachevsky, and Jack Beeson.

Silverman's awards include the selection of her Oboe-sthenics to represent the United States at the International Rostrum of Composers/UNESCO, resulting in international radio broadcasts (1982); winning the Indiana State [Orchestral] Composition Contest, resulting in a performance by the Indianapolis Symphony (1982); a Governor's Citation (1982); and having September 30, 1982 named Faye-Ellen Silverman Day in Baltimore by Mayor Donald Schaefer. Additionally, she has been the recipient of the National League of American Pen Women’s biennial music award (2002), yearly Standard Awards from ASCAP (now known as ASCAPlus) since 1983, several Meet the Composer grants, and an American Music Center grant. She has been a fellow at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts (2007), a resident scholar at the Villa Serbelloni of the Rockefeller Foundation (1987), a Composers' Conference Fellow (1985), a Yaddo Fellow (1984), and a MacDowell Fellow (1982). She is currently a Founding Board Member of the International Women's Brass Conference (for which she has served as composer-in-residence), and a founding member of Music Under Construction, a composers’ collective.

The Baltimore Symphony, the Brooklyn Philharmonic, the Greater Bridgeport Symphony, the New Orleans Philharmonic, the International Experimental Music Festival in Bourges, ISCM - Korea section, Nieuwe Oogst (Belgium), Grupo Musica Hoje (Brazil), the Monday Evening Concert series (L.A.), and the Aspen Music Festival have performed Dr. Silverman’s works. She has received commissions from the Edinboro University Chamber Players, Seraphim, Philip A. De Simone (in memory of Linda J. Warren), Larry Madison, Thomas Matta, the International Women’s Brass Conference, the Monarch Brass Quintet, the Sylvia and Danny Kaye Playhouse, the Great Lakes Performing Artist Associates, the Con Spirito woodwind quintet, the Greater Lansing Symphony Orchestra, the Fromm Music Foundation, the Chamber Music Society of Baltimore, and a joint commission from the American Brass Quintet, the Catskill Brass Quintet, the Mt. Vernon Brass Players, and the Southern Brass quintet (under the National Endowment for the Arts Consortium Commissioning Program). She has also created pieces at the request of flutist Nina Assimakopoulos (Laurels Project), Sergio Puccini (Argentina), and the Corona Guitar Quartet of Denmark, and Volkmar Zimmermann, among others.

Silverman is also the author of several articles, record reviews for The Baltimore Sun, and the 20th century section of the Schirmer History of Music. She has taught at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, the Aspen Music Festival, and the Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University, Goucher College, several branches of the City University of New York and Columbia University. She has been a member of the Mannes College The New School for Music faculty since 1991, and of its Extension Division since 1995. She also teaches at the Eugene Lang College The New School for Liberal Arts.

An accomplished pianist as well, former student of Irma Wolpe and Russell Sherman, she has recorded for Radio Cologne (WDR), and has performed at the International Festival of Experimental Music in Bourges, the Library of Congress, and as soloist with the Brooklyn Philharmonic.

Works:
ORCHESTRA

* Adhesions for orchestra. (1987) c. 12’ Commissioned by The Greater Lansing Symphony * Candlelight for piano and orchestra. (1988) c. 16’ * Just For Fun for chamber orchestra. (1994) c. 10 1/2’ * Madness for narrator and chamber orchestra. (1972) 5’13”   * Stirrings for chamber orchestra. (1979) 13’   * Winds and Sines for orchestra. (1981) c. 15’ Winner of the Indiana State University Composition Contest.

OPERA / THEATER / CHORUS

* Manhattan Fixation - soprano, mezzo-soprano and cello (solo voices) for female chorus and cello. I11 1/2' long. The voices sing only syllables. * The Miracle of Nemirov – a one-act opera with libretto by the composer, for 9 singers and fl/picc, ob, cl/bcl, bn, 3 Fr hn, perc (temple blocks, wood block, xylophone), 2 vln, vla, vc, cb, and electronic tape. Tape realized at the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center. (1974) c. 30’ Based on a short story by I. L. Peretz. * A Free Pen – a cantata with libretto compiled by the composer, for narrator, soprano, alto, tenor, bass, chorus (8 singers), fl/picc, ob, cl/bcl, bn, 2 hn, tpt, tb, hp, 1 perc, 2 vln, vla, vc, and cb. (1990) c. 33’ Texts are from Socrates, Spinoza, Zenger, and others. * K. 1971 for F. and M. narrator, tenor, bass, female chorus, fl, cl, vln, vla, vc, cb, and electronic tape. Tape realized at the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center. (1972) c. 20’ Based on Kafka’s The Trial, added texts from the Kafka Diaries, Balzac, and the Chinese poet Wen I–to. * For Showing Truth for SSA a cappella. (1972) (ending rev. 1978) 4’35” Text by John Keats. * Hymn of Compassionate Love for SATB soloists, SATB choir, trumpet, timpani, and strings. (2005). 13 _’ Text is I Corintheans 13. Commissioned by and dedicated to Larry Madison.

LARGE CHAMBER ENSEMBLE

* Bridges in Time for tpt, perc, 4 vln, 2 vla, 2 vc, cb. (1986) c. 10’ * No Strings for fl/picc, ob, bcl, bn, alto sax, hn, tpt, tb, tuba, and 1 perc. (1982) c. 11’ * Passing Fancies for picc/fl, ob, cl/bcl, bn, hn, tpt, tb, perc, 2 vln, vla, vc, cb. (1985) c. 16’ Commissioned by the Fromm Music Foundation, and dedicated to Paul Fromm. * Shadings for fl, ob, alto sax, bn, hn, tuba, 2 perc, vln, vla, cb. (1978) 10’

VOCAL WORKS

* Manhattan Fixation - soprano, mezzo-soprano and cello (solo voices) or female chorus and cello. I11 1/2' long. The voices sing only syllables. * Echoes of Emily for alto and English horn. (1979) c. 6 1/2’ Texts by Emily Dickinson. * In Shadow for soprano, guitar and clarinet. (1972) c. 6 1/2’ Texts by Emily Dickinson. * Journey Towards Oblivion for soprano, tenor, fl/picc, Eng hn, cl/bcl, 1 perc, vla, vc, and cb. (1991) c. 10’ Based on texts by Christina Rosetti and D.H. Lawrence. Dedicated to the memory of Vladimir Ussachevsky. * Left Behind for horn and mezzo. (2006) c. 11’ Written for Ann Ellsworth and Jo Williamson. Sets poetry by Edna St. Vincent Millay. * Love Songs for soprano and flute/alto flute. (1997) c. 12 1/2’ Texts by Sara Teasdale.Also for mezzo and flute/alto flute. (2005)   * Mariana for mezzo-soprano, clarinet, and piano. (1995) c. 11 Text by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Commissioned by The Sylvia and Danny Kaye Playhouse. * To Love? for bass-baritone and piano. (1980) 9 1/4’ Settings of an Elizabethan song and poems by Coventry Patmore and Ralph Waldo Emerson. * Wilde’s World for tenor, viola, & guitar. (2000) 14’ Text: Oscar Wilde’s “To L.L.”

BRASS

* Alternating Currents for bass trombone and piano. (2002) c. 7’ Commissioned by Thomas Matta. * At the Colour Café for brass choir (4 C tpts, 4 hns, 2 tb, bass tb, tuba, perc). (1997) c. 10’ Written for the Monarch Brass for the second International Women’s Brass Conference. * Dialogue for horn and tuba. (1976) c. 4 1/2’ * Dialogue Continued for horn, trombone, and tuba. (2000) c. 9 1/2’ Commissioned by Susan Slaughter for the Monarch Brass’s concert at the National Museum of Women. * Double Threat for two trumpets. (2002) c. 6’ * First Position for trombone and marimba. (1992) c. 7’ Written for the First International Women’s Brass Conference. Requires a virtuoso trombonist. * From Sorrow for trumpet, horn, and bass trombone. (2001) c. 10 1/2’ * Kalends for brass quintet. (1981) 15’ Meetings for 2 euphoniums, 2 tubas. (2003) c. 9’ Commissioned by the International Women’s Brass Conference for Junction. * Protected Sleep for horn and marimba. (2006) c. 9’ Written for David Jolley. * Quantum Quintet for brass quintet. (1982) c. 12 1/2’ A National Endowment for the Arts Consortium Commission [combining the American Brass Quintet, the Catskill Brass Quintet, the Mt. Vernon Brass Players, and the Southern Brass Quintet]. * Triple Threat for three trumpets. (2001) c. 7 1/2’ * Trysts for two trumpets. (1982) c. 5 1/2’ * Zigzags for tuba. (1988) c. 8 1/2’

WOODWINDS

* Conversations for alto flute and clarinet. (1975) 5’17”   * Layered Lament for English horn and electronic tape. (1983) 5’37” Tape realized at the University of Utah Electronic Music Studio. * Oboe–sthenics for oboe. (1980) 6 3/4’ Meant to show off advanced oboe techniques, including numerous multiphonics (a calisthenics for the oboe). Chosen to represent the United States at the International Rostrum of Composers/UNESCO. * On Four for Electronic Valve Instrument, oboe/English horn, & piano (4 hands). (1983) 11’33”   * Restless Winds for woodwind quintet. (1986) c. 5’ Commissioned by and dedicated to the Con Spirito Woodwind Quintet. * Speaking Alone for flute. (1976) c. 5’ Uses flute harmonics and whistle tones. * Taming the Furies for solo flute. (2003). 4’35” Based on the Orpheus myth. Written for (commissioned by) Nina Assimakopouls. * Three Movements for Saxophone Alone for soprano saxophone. (1971) c. 6 1/2’ * Windscape for woodwind quintet. (1977) 5’09”   * Xenium for flute and piano. (1992) c. 8’

PERCUSSION

* Memories and Alterations - solo marimba. (2008) 6 1/2' Two bagatelles for marimba, designed to challenge the intermediate level player. * Of Wood and Skins for percussion duo. (2003) c. 11’ * Pas de Deux for marimba and piano. (1991) c. 6’ * Three by Three for percussion trio. (1979) c. 8’

STRINGS

* Let's Play - string quartet. (2007) c. 11' * Azure Skies for violin, cello, and harp. (1993) c. 7 1/2’ * Duplex Variations violin and piano. (1995) c. 11’ * Memories for viola. (1974) c. 8 1/2’ * Obsessions for cello and piano. (1999) c. 9’ * Paula’s Song for string quartet. (1996) c. 9’ Dedicated to Faye's mother. * Reconstructed Music for violin, cello, and piano. (2002) c. 7 1/2’ * Speaking Together for violin and piano. (1981) 9 3/4’   * String Quartet (Untitled) (1976) c. 9’ * Translations for violin and cello. (2004) c. 6’ Commissioned by Philip A. DeSimone in memory of Linda J. Warren (1947-1988) * Trial Balance for double bass. (1999 ) c. 6’

PIANO / HARP / GUITAR

* Gliffs for piano. (1984) c. 15’ Influenced by the dance techniques of Pina Bausch. * Settings for piano. (1978) c. 9 1/2’ * Two Bagatelles for piano, (2007) c. 6’ The second bagatelle, Three/Four, is newly composed. The first bagatelle is Two/Three from 1996. * Two/Three for piano. (1996) c. 3’ * Volcanic Songs for harp. (1983) c. 10’ Commissioned by the Chamber Music Society of Baltimore for Karen Lindquist. * Pregnant Pauses for guitar quartet. (2005) c. 9’ Written for(commissioned by) the Corona Quartet. * Processional for guitar. (1996) c. 7 1/4’ Written for Sergio Puccini. * 3 Guitars (1980) c. 13’

MIXED ENSEMBLE

* Connections for clarinet, cello, and marimba. (1994) c. 11’ Based on a Passover melody. * For Him for flute, cello, and vibraphone. (1975) 10’ For Otto Luening on his 75th birthday. * Hollowed Refrains for oboe, violin, and piano. (1987) 11’09’’ Commissioned by the Great Lakes Performing Artist Associates. Written in memory of Paul Fromm. * Troubled Repose for flute, vla, and cb. (1998) c. 6 1/2’ * Unquiet Dreams for clarinet, violin, and piano. (1992) c. 9’ * Yet For Him for flute, cello, and piano. (1980) c. 10’ For Otto Luening on his 80th Birthday.