Dorothy Hindman facts for kids

Dorothy Hindman, March 2016

Dorothy Hindman (born March 13, 1966) is an American composer. She also teaches music.

Early Life and Music Journey

Dorothy Hindman was born in Miami, Florida, on March 13, 1966. She grew up surrounded by classical music. Her mother, Dorothy Hindman Lyon, was a talented classical pianist and scientist. Her father, William Murphy Hindman, worked at WTMI, Miami's classical radio station.

Dorothy started formal music lessons later, at age 16. She began studying piano at Miami-Dade College. She wanted to learn about electronic music. This led her to study avant-garde electronic music. At 19, she started studying music composition at the University of Miami. She learned from composer Dennis Kam. She graduated with honors in 1988.

She continued her studies at Duke University with Stephen Jaffe and Thomas Oboe Lee. She earned her Master of Arts degree in 1989. In 1990, she returned to the University of Miami. She studied again with Dennis Kam. They both loved discussing philosophy and the meaning of music. In 1994, she also studied with composer Louis Andriessen. This helped her explore how music is put together. She also learned to mix social and popular influences into her music.

Her Career as a Composer

Dorothy Hindman has worked with many famous music groups. These include the Empire City Men's Chorus and the Caraval Quartet. She has also worked with the Gregg Smith Singers and the Corona Guitar Kvartet from Denmark. She has written solo pieces for amazing musicians. These include bassist Robert Black and cellist Craig Hultgren.

Her music has been played by professional orchestras. These include the Alabama Symphony Orchestra and the Kyiv Philharmonic. Youth orchestras like the Greater Miami Youth Symphony have also performed her works. She has also worked with visual artists. She created music for videos by Carrie Mae Weems. She also made music for an art exhibit called "The Wall Calls to Me." This exhibit was shown in museums across the Southeast.

Where Her Music Has Been Heard

Dorothy Hindman's music has been performed all over the world. It has been played at famous places like Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York. It has also been heard at the United Nations. Her music has traveled to France, Germany, Italy, and Denmark. It has also been played in Cuba, Australia, and England. In the United States, her music has been performed in many cities. These include Miami, Atlanta, and Birmingham.

Her music has also been featured at many festivals. These include the Australian Flute Festival and the Havana Contemporary Music Festival. She has also been part of the Birmingham New Music Festival.

Awards and Special Appearances

Dorothy Hindman has received many awards and honors. She won an Artist Access Grant in 2015. She also won the Audience Favorite and Second Prize at Analog Arts' Iron Composer. She received an Award of Excellence from the Global Music Awards. She also won the Nancy Van de Vate International Composition Prize for Opera. She was also a winner of the International Society of Bassists Solo Composition Competition.

She has been a guest composer at many places. These include the Miami International Piano Festival Academy. She was also a visiting artist at the American Academy in Rome. She has given special classes to students at many universities. These include the University of Florida and Florida International University.

Promoting New Music

Besides composing, Dorothy Hindman has helped new music reach more people. For ten years, she helped start the Birmingham Art Music Alliance. This group put on concerts. From 2012 to 2014, she hosted "The Po-Mo Show" on wvum.org. This radio show played modern classical music. She also wrote reviews about classical music for the South Florida Classical Review and the Miami Herald. She also wrote an article about "Composition, profession" for the Encyclopedia of Women in Music.

Dorothy Hindman returned to Miami, Florida, in 2010. She is now an Associate Professor of Composition. She teaches at the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami. Her music is published by Subito Music Distribution and other companies. She is married to composer Charles Norman Mason.

Her Unique Music Style

Dorothy Hindman's music is special and has many layers. She organizes her music very carefully.

How Her Music is Organized

Her personal style uses materials wisely. For example, in her piece "drowningXnumbers" for cello, she takes one idea. Then she develops it a lot to create complex structures. She likes balanced harmonies and uses different sounds to build her music. Her newer works use "spectral techniques." This means she uses the natural sounds of instruments to create her music. The shape of her music comes from the sounds themselves. She uses quick changes and small pieces of ideas. This helps keep a certain mood throughout a piece. Strong, rhythmic patterns give her music an immediate impact.

Music Inspired by Her Life

Her music often tells stories about her own life. It changes based on events that happen to her. For example, the rhythms in her music might match important numbers, like phone numbers. The harmonies might be based on names, dates, or places. The feelings in her music are often subtle and complex.

How Listeners Experience Her Music

Her music is often about how people hear and understand things. She explores how music works based on ideas from philosophers like Edmund Husserl and Martin Heidegger. Sometimes, her music presents ideas that are not complete. She wants the listener to finish these ideas in their own mind. It's like a language of hints. In each piece, she creates a new way of speaking. This allows active listeners to respond to or complete her musical ideas. Then, she might comment on these ideas later in the piece. She wants to involve the listener. When you pay close attention, you are rewarded by understanding her music better.

List of Works

Orchestral Music

• Beijing for youth orchestra, 1989
• Magic City for orchestra, 1999
• With Sighs too Deep for Words ..., Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, 2000
• Setting Century for orchestra, 2003
• Strata for orchestra, 2004
• Urban Myths for youth orchestra in three parts: The Babysitter, Roswell, and The Hook, 2009

Large Chamber Ensemble Music

• Fury's Chalice for wind octet, 1992
• Chemistry for chamber orchestra, 1993
• Nine Churches for guitar quartet and chamber orchestra, 2006–07
• Cascade for saxophone ensemble, 2012
• Mechanisms for flute ensemble, 2012
• Fission for wind band, 2013

Small Chamber Ensemble Music

• From Censer Smoke ... for soprano, flute, violin, guitar and marimba, 1994
• Setting Century for flute, clarinet, violin, cello and piano, 1999
• Jerusalem Windows for Violin, Cello and Piano, 2002
• Drift for saxophone quartet 2003
• Taut for guitar quartet, 2003
• Lost in Translation for soprano saxophone and piano, 2005
• Monumenti for Violin and Cello, 2005
• centro for Violin and Piano, 2005
• three small gestures for Violin and Guitar, 2006 (for Duo46)
• The Pillow Book, song cycle for mezzo-soprano, saxophone, violin, cello and piano, 2009
• The Road to Damascus for string quartet, 2010
• Big Fun for baritone saxophone and piano, 2012
• Heroic Measures for clarinet, violin and piano, 2014
• R.I.P.T for saxophone and percussion, 2014
• Entwined for B-flat clarinet and alto saxophone, 2015

Instrumental Solo Music

• Soliloquy for Clarinet, 1991
• Forward Looking Back, Piano Suite, 1991–92
• Beyond the Cloud of Unknowing for marimba, 1992
• "drowningXnumbers" for amplified cello, 1994–95
• Echo for French horn, 1996
• Trembling for flute, 1998
• Time Management for double bass, 2004
• Needlepoint for classical guitar, 2004
• The Steinway Preludes for piano, 2004
• Swell for organ, 2005
• Tapping the Furnace for speaking percussionist, 2006
• Echoi for French horn, 2011
• I Feel Fine for classical guitar, 2013
• Rough Ride for speaking cellist, 2016

Choral Music

• I Have Heard ... for SATB choir, 1993, 1996
• Echo for Horn, 1996
• Resurrection an Easter choral anthem 1998
• Incarnation, a Christmas choral anthem, 1998
• Of the Father's Love Begotten anthem for SATB choir and organ, 2000
• Psalm 121 for a capella SATB choir, 2000
• Sursum Corda for a capella SATB choir, 2008
• Prothalamia for men's chorus and organ, 2010
• You Shall Not Go Down for a cappella men's chorus, 2010

Vocal Music

• Three Songs of Reminiscence for tenor and piano, 1997
• Is this then a touch? for baritone and piano, 2006

Operas

• Pandora's Box, youth opera for children's choir and piano, 1999
• Louise: the Story of a Magdalen, opera, 2002

Fixed Media Music (with or without instruments)

• fin de cycle for piano and tape, 1996
• Tonal Music for mobile phones in 2004
• Italian Dreams, soundfile for video of the same name by Carrie Mae Weems, 2006
• Bathtime for soundfile (stereo), 2007
• Seconds for soundfile (5.0 surround, stereo versions), 2005.
• Multiverses for marimba solo with Max/MSP or marimba quartet, 2009
• Fantasia for Karen Alone for violin and soundfile, 2010
• The Wall Calls to Me for soundfile (mp3) and 8 channels, for visual art installation by Sally Wood Johnson, 2010
• Sound/Water for cello and soundfile, 2011
• 1000 Swimmers in the Canals for 2 electric guitars, keyboard, and live processing, 2013

Discography

Here are some of the albums featuring Dorothy Hindman's music:

• Tapping the Furnace: innova Recordings 848, © 2013. This album includes "Drift" for saxophone quartet and "Magic City" for orchestra.
• 60X60 (2006-2007): Vox Novus VN 002, © 2008. Features "bathtime" for soundfile.
• Musings: Society of Composers, Inc. Series, no. 22: Capstone Records CPS-8787, 2007. Features "Needlepoint," played by Paul Bowman on guitar.
• A Slice of the Scene: 60X60 2005: Vox Novus VN 001, © 2007. Features "Seconds" for soundfile.
• Masterworks of the New Era: ERMMedia, Vol. 7, © 2005. Features "Magic City," performed by the Kiev Philharmonic.
• Semantemes: Living Artist Recordings, Vol. 10, © 2002. Features "Trembling," played by Donald Ashworth, Jr.
• From Shook Foil: Living Artist Recordings, Vol. 6, © 2000. Features "I Have Heard…," performed by the Gregg Smith Singers.
• Winds and Voices: Living Artist Recordings, Vol. 5, © 2000. Features "Three Songs of Reminiscence."
• Places Not Remote: Music from the Setting Century, Living Artist Recordings, Vol. 3, © 1998. Features "fin de cycle."
• In Yet Longer Light's Delay: Music from the Setting Century, Living Music Recordings, Vol. I, © 1996. Features "drowningXnumbers."
• University of Miami/Society of Composers, Inc: NEW MUSIC/YOUNG COMPOSERS, © 1994. Features "Beyond the Cloud of Unknowing."