Charles Wuorinen, winner of the 1970 Pulitzer Prize in Music and composer of the operas "Brokeback Mountain" and "Haroun and the Sea of Stories," died from injuries sustained in a fall last September. He was 81.
Wuorinen, who composed more than 270 works, died Wednesday at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center, spokeswoman Aleba Gartner said Thursday.
Known for much of his career as an admirer of the 12-tone system of composition, Wuorinen was opinionated.
"We have a world in which the instant response of the untutored becomes the sole criterion for judgment,'' he told The New York Times in 1988, ahead of his 50th birthday. "A great work like a Beethoven symphony becomes like a blob of toothpaste. There is the bored orchestra. There are the indifferent audiences. They wait it through. They applaud. They leave."
Just two years ago, he decried the awarding of that year's Pulitzer Prize in Music to hip-hop artist Kendrick Lamar, telling the Times that signaled "the final disappearance of any societal interest in high culture."
Born in New York on June 9, 1938, Wuorinen's father, John, was chairman of Columbia University's history department. Wuorinen received a bachelor's degree from Columbia in 1961 and a master's in music two years later.
He won the New York Philharmonic's Young Composers' Award when he was 16 and premiered a choral work "O Filii et Filiae (Sons and Daughters)" at Town Hall in 1954.
Wuorinen was 32 when he won the Pulitzer for "Time's Encomium," a four-channel work for synthesized sound that became the first electronic composition to earn the honor.
His work was cerebral. "Haroun," based on a children's novel by Salman Rushdie and with a libretto by James Fenton, premiered at the New York City Opera in 2004. It opened with references to Boccaccio, Proust, Tolstoy and the Dead Sea Scrolls. Actions that befuddle were called "P2C2E" — "a Process Too Complicated to Explain." The chorus sang out: "This is minimalism," prompting the audience to a laugh.
"Brokeback," based on a short story by Annie Proulx about two cowboys in love, was first adapted into a movie and then an opera. It was commissioned by New York City Opera but moved to Madrid's Teatro Real and premiered in 2014 after City Opera filed for bankruptcy.
"It is very beautiful, as the film shows," Wuorinen told The Associated Press, "but it is definitely not sentimental. It is not a romantic landscape. It's a deadly one — it's dangerous."
"Brokeback" finally reached the reconstituted New York City Opera for its American premiere in 2018.
Longtime Metropolitan Opera music director James Levine was among Wuorinen's advocates and conducted the 2008 premiere of "Time Regained," a fantasy for piano and orchestra. Levine commissioned five works by Wuorinen, including his Fourth Piano Concerto for the Boston Symphony Orchestra and pianist Peter Serkin for its premiere in 2003.
Wuorinen wrote six compositions for the New York City Ballet. His last completed work was his Second Percussion Symphony, debuted by Miami's New World Symphony last September.
He is survived by his husband of 32 years, Howard Stokar.
Oscar and Emmy-Winning Composer Kris Bowers Joins Barking Owl For Advertising, Branded Content
Music, audio post and sonic branding house Barking Owl has taken on exclusive representation of Oscar and Emmy-winning composer Kris Bowers for advertising and branded content.
Bowers’ recent film scores include The Wild Robot and Bob Marley: One Love, alongside acclaimed past works such as The Color Purple (2023), King Richard and Green Book. His contributions to television are equally impressive, with scores for hit series like Bridgerton, When They See Us, Dear White People, and his Daytime Emmy Award-winning score for The Snowy Day.
In addition to his work as a composer, Bowers is a visionary director. He recently took home the Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject for his directorial work on The Last Repair Shop. The emotionally touching short film spotlights four of the people responsible for repairing the musical instruments used by students in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). The Last Repair Shop reflects the positive influence that musical instruments have on the youngsters who play them, and the adults in the LAUSD free repair service who keep them working and in tune.
Barking Owl CEO Kirkland Alexander Lynch said of Bowers, “His artistry, diversity of style and depth of storytelling bring an unparalleled edge to the work we create for global brands. His presence on our roster reflects our continued commitment to pushing the boundaries of sound and music in advertising.”
Johanna Cranitch, creative director, Barking Owl, added, “Kris first caught my attention when he released his record ‘Heroes + Misfits’ where he fused together his jazz sensibility with a deeply ingrained aptitude for melody, so beautifully.... Read More