Anna Rubin facts for kids
Anna Rubin (born in 1946) is an American composer. She creates music using both traditional instruments and electronic sounds. Her work often combines these two styles.
About Anna Rubin
Anna Rubin studied music composition with several famous composers, including Mel Powell and Pauline Oliveros. She earned a special degree called a doctorate in composition from Princeton University. This means she studied how to create music at a very high level.
After finishing her studies, Anna Rubin taught music composition at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music at Oberlin College. She also taught at Lafayette College and later at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
Rubin is part of important music groups. She is a member of the American Music Center, which supports American music. She also helped start the Independent Composers Association of LA. She has served on the editorial board of a music magazine called Perspectives of New Music. She was also the president of the International Alliance for Women in Music, an organization that supports women composers and musicians.
Anna Rubin has also written articles about the work of another composer named Francis Dhomont.
Awards and Recognitions
Anna Rubin has received several awards for her music:
- She won two awards from the Maryland State Arts Council.
- She was named a Fellow by the National Orchestral Association.
- Her piece De Nacht: Lament for Malcolm X won the Delta Ensemble Gaudeamus Prize in 1984.
- She received a jury prize at the Aether Festival #1 for her work Family Stories: Sophie, Sally, which she created with Laurie Hollander. This award was for radio art.
Her Music
Anna Rubin writes music for many different groups of instruments. She composes for small groups of musicians (called chamber ensembles), for a full orchestra, and for choirs. She also creates music using digital audio and live electronics. This means she uses computers and electronic devices to make sounds and music.
Some of her well-known works include:
- Crying the Laughing and Golden (1982–1983) – This piece was made for tape, meaning it used recorded sounds.
- De Nacht: Lament for Malcolm X (1984)
- Hiding Faces, Open Faces (1988) – This piece is for a viola (an instrument like a violin), an electronic soundtrack, and video.
- Viola a Tre (1988) – This piece is written for three violas.
- Remembering (1989) – This work is for a mezzo-soprano (a type of singer), piano, and tape.
- Seachanges (1996) – This piece is for a viola da gamba (an old string instrument) and tape.
- Family Stories: Sophie, Sally (1998)
