Carolyn Yarnell facts for kids

Carolyn Yarnell (born in 1961) is an American composer and visual artist. This means she creates music and also makes art that you can see. She is especially known for her works that combine both music and visual art, often showing landscapes and light. Many of her pieces are inspired by the beautiful landscapes of California, where she grew up.

Carolyn Yarnell has received several important awards. These include the Rome Prize, the Charles Ives Prize, and a Guggenheim Fellowship. These awards recognize her talent and contributions to music and art.

Early Life and Education

Carolyn Yarnell grew up in the Sierra Nevada mountains in California. This area is famous for its stunning natural beauty. She began her journey in music by studying composition.

She attended the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. There, she earned her Bachelor of Music degree in 1986. Later, she continued her studies at Yale University, where she received her master's degree in 1989.

In 1991, two parts of her first symphony, called Enemy Moon and Exit, were performed for the first time. This happened at the Festival of Contemporary Music at Tanglewood.

Common Sense Composers Collective

Carolyn Yarnell is a long-time member of a group called the Common Sense Composers Collective. This group works together to create and share new music. They often team up with other music groups, like the New Millennium and American Baroque ensembles.

Through these partnerships, they have helped many new musical pieces by their members and other composers be performed for the first time. The collective has also released several music CDs. These include TIC (released in 2007) and The Shock of the Old (released in 2002). The album The Shock of the Old was special because it featured modern compositions played on baroque period instruments. These are instruments from a much older time in music history.

Selected Musical Works

Carolyn Yarnell has created many different types of musical pieces. Here are some of her notable works:

• The Same Sky: This piece is for piano, electronic sounds, and a video projection.
• Symphony No. 1: A large-scale musical work for an orchestra.
• Mean Harp: A piece written for a solo piano.
• Living Mountains: This is a tone poem for an orchestra. A tone poem is a piece of music that tells a story or describes a scene.
• Lapis Lazuli: A piece of chamber music. Chamber music is written for a small group of instruments, usually one player per part.
• Yosemite and the Range of Light: A multi-movement orchestral work. This means it has several parts and is played by a full orchestra.
• Film score for La Souriante Madame Beudet: She composed music for this silent film from 1927.

Recordings of Her Music

Carolyn Yarnell's music has been featured on several recordings. These albums allow people around the world to listen to her compositions.

• The Shock of the Old (2002): This album features works by members of the Common Sense Composers Collective, including Carolyn Yarnell. It was recorded with the American Baroque Ensemble.
• Sonic Vision (2003): This recording is entirely dedicated to Carolyn Yarnell's own works. It was released on the Tzadik label.
• Kathy Supové: Infusion (2004): This album features contemporary piano works by several composers, including Carolyn Yarnell. It was released by Koch International Classics.
• TIC (2007): Another album from the Common Sense Composers Collective, featuring works by its members, including Yarnell. They collaborated with the New Millennium Ensemble for this recording. It was released by Albany Records.