Institute Announces Appointment Of Jon Magnussen As Artist-In-Residence

The Institute for Advanced Study has announced the appointment of composer Jon Magnussen as Artist-in-Residence. As a composer of music for the concert hall, drama, and dance, Magnussen will lead the Institute's annual concert series and introduce new works. He will also present lectures, associated with the concerts, on new music.

Magnussen composes for a variety of ensembles and for voice; his scores frequently combine acoustic and electronic instruments in interactive environments. Recent performances of Magnussen's work include: "The Winged," a Jos� Lim�n ballet scored for chamber orchestra, which was presented nationally and internationally; "Hermia's Dream Vision," for chamber orchestra, commissioned by the New Juilliard Ensemble and presented at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall; "Death and Eros," for amplified cello, flute, percussion, keyboard, vocalists, and MAX/msp (a real time, interactive computer programming environment), conducted by the composer at UCLA's Royce Hall; and live and recorded incidental music for the Shakespeare Theatre's Washington, D.C., production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, scored for steel drum, acoustic guitar, kalimba, tuned plastic tubing, and digital audio.

The San Francisco Chronicle described "The Winged" as "an eclectic, witty affair, percussive and evocative, stubbornly tonal ... blending nature sounds with the piano's percussive upper reaches, plush colors with flexible dance rhythms." Hailing Magnussen as a "major artist," the Los Angeles Times praised "Death and Eros" as a "bold new score."

Magnussen, born in Sierra Leone and raised in Hawaii, graduated from Cornell University in 1990 with high honors in music. He studied harmony, counterpoint, and fugue in Paris for three years, where he received the Diplome d'Ecriture Musicale from the Conservatoire National Sup�rieur de Musique de Paris, and also attended composition classes at the Ecole Normal de Musique.

Returning to the United States, he entered The Juilliard School in New York City, earning his master's degree in 1995, and his doctorate in 1999. In 1998 he received the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts Martin E. Segal Award, designed to further the careers of promising young artists associated with the Center. While a doctoral candidate, he taught Juilliard courses in electronic music, concert production, and music for dancers. As part of the Juilliard 1997-98 Educational Outreach program, Magnussen toured New York City Public Schools with his "Aukele's Odyssey," based on the adventures of a Hawaiian mythological character, and scored for cello, percussion, and actor.

Magnussen is currently engaged in several projects. In October, at the Institute for Advanced Study, the New York Percussion Quartet will premiere his "Ko'olau Sketches," a new work based on musical sketch material for a future chamber opera. Magnussen is also at work on "Psalm," a new score for the 1967 Jos� Lim�n ballet, for chorus, chamber orchestra, and baritone, commissioned by the Lim�n Dance Company for performance in February, 2002, at the Cultural Olympiad in Salt Lake City, Utah. The work will be conducted by the composer.

Other works now in progress will be heard at Institute concerts in 2002: one to be performed by baritone Sanford Sylvan and pianist David Breitman, and another, for piano and electronics, which will be performed by pianist and former Institute Artist-in-Residence Robert Taub.

The Artist-in-Residence program was established in 1994 to create, in the words of Institute Director Phillip Griffiths, "a musical presence within the Institute community, to have in residence a person whose work could be experienced and appreciated by scholars from all disciplines. Equally, we wanted to provide the opportunity for an outstanding performer or composer with strong scholarly interests, to pursue his or her art while at the Institute."

With Magnussen's appointment, says Griffiths, "We will share an exploration of the opportunities and challenges facing today's composers in a changing technological landscape. We are very enthusiastic about having Jon with us at this important stage in his career."

For information on the Institute for Advanced Study's 2001-02 concert series, call 734-8228, or see www.ias.edu/artist-in-residence.