George Crumb facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
George Crumb
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Crumb in 2019 attending a performance at Alice Tully Hall in honor of his 90th birthday
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George Henry Crumb Jr.
24 October 1929 |
| Died | 6 February 2022 (aged 92) Media, Pennsylvania, U.S.
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| Alma mater | University of Michigan |
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Notable work
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List of compositions |
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George Henry Crumb Jr. (October 24, 1929 – February 6, 2022) was an American composer. He created a unique style of contemporary classical music. His music often used unusual sounds and playing techniques.
Crumb's pieces are known for their intense feelings. They can range from peaceful to dreamlike or even a bit scary. He often pushed musicians to try new ways of playing their instruments. His music creates amazing soundscapes that can be very powerful.
Some of his most famous works include Echoes of Time and the River (1967). This piece won the 1968 Pulitzer Prize for Music. Another well-known work is Star-Child (1977). It won a Grammy Award in 2001. Crumb mostly wrote music for small groups of instruments or solo players.
Other important pieces are Black Angels (1970). This was a powerful piece for an electric string quartet about the Vietnam War. He also wrote Ancient Voices of Children (1970) and Vox Balaenae (1971). Vox Balaenae means "Voice of the Whale" and sounds like a humpback whale.
George Crumb grew up in a musical family. He loved classical music from a young age. Composers like Mahler, Debussy, and Bartók greatly influenced him. Crumb's four-volume piano set, Makrokosmos (1972–1979), was a response to Bartók's Mikrokosmos.
His music sometimes includes parts of other famous songs or pieces. These can be from composers like Bach or even the jazz musician Thelonious Monk. Crumb also often used poems by Federico García Lorca in his vocal works. His musical scores were often drawn by hand. They looked like art, with musical lines bent into circles and other shapes.
Life and Musical Journey
Growing Up and Learning Music (1929–1959)
George Henry Crumb Jr. was born on October 24, 1929. His hometown was Charleston, West Virginia. He came from a very musical family. His parents played in the Charleston Symphony Orchestra. His father played the clarinet, and his mother played the cello.
George Crumb started composing music when he was young. He studied music at Mason College of Music and Fine Arts. He earned his bachelor's degree there in 1950. Later, he continued his studies at the University of Illinois. He also studied in Berlin, Germany, for a short time. Finally, he earned his advanced degree from the University of Michigan in 1959.
Teaching and New Musical Ideas (1960s – early 1970s)
Crumb mostly worked as a teacher. He taught at a college in Virginia first. Then, in 1958, he became a professor at the University of Colorado. There, he met a pianist named David Burge.
One night, while writing a piece for Burge, Crumb had a big realization. He felt he had just been copying other composers. From that moment, he decided to try new, experimental musical ideas.
In 1965, he started teaching at the University of Pennsylvania. He stayed there for many years. During this time, Crumb's music became popular with concertgoers. His style was new and interesting, but not too extreme.
Crumb wanted his music to connect with audiences. He often added theatrical elements to his performances. For example, he used masks, costumes, and special sounds. In some pieces, musicians would walk on and off the stage. His musical scores also looked unusual. Sometimes, the notes were arranged in circles or spirals.
Many of Crumb's vocal pieces used poems by Federico García Lorca. He wrote several madrigals and a song cycle called Ancient Voices of Children (1970). This piece even used a toy piano. Many of his vocal works were written for the talented singer Jan DeGaetani.
Black Angels was written in 1970. It was a protest against the Vietnam War. This piece used spoken words, bowed water glasses, and electronic sounds. It also featured an electric string quartet. The musicians had to play percussion instruments and even bow small cups. This piece is one of Crumb's most famous works. It inspired the Kronos Quartet to form.
The Makrokosmos Series (1972–1979)
One of Crumb's biggest and most famous works is Makrokosmos. This collection has 24 pieces in four books. The first two books (1972, 1973) are for solo piano. They use many special piano techniques. The piano often needs to be amplified to hear all the sounds.
The third book, Music for a Summer Evening (1974), is for two pianos and percussion. The fourth book, Celestial Mechanics (1979), is for two pianists playing one piano.
The name Makrokosmos is a nod to Mikrokosmos by Béla Bartók. Both are collections of short piano pieces. Crumb also admired Claude Debussy, who wrote two books of 12 piano pieces. Crumb's first two Makrokosmos books also have 12 pieces each.
In these pieces, the pianist sometimes has to sing, shout, whistle, or whisper. They also play the piano in unusual ways. The pianist David Burge first performed and recorded Makrokosmos.
Later Works and Retirement (1988s – early 2000s)
Crumb composed less often in the 1980s and 1990s. But starting in 2000, he began a series called American Songbook. These works are new versions of American hymns, spirituals, and popular songs. He planned for four volumes, but ended up writing seven. The last one, Voices from the Heartland, was finished in 2010.
In these pieces, Crumb kept the original tunes. But he added very wide ranges of sounds and instruments for the piano and percussion. The American Songbook series includes over five hours of music.
Crumb retired from teaching in 1995. However, he continued to compose new music.
Family Life and Passing
George Crumb's son, David, is also a composer. His daughter, Ann, was an actress and singer. She performed some of his works. Ann passed away in 2019.
In his later years, Crumb returned to setting Lorca's poems to music. These pieces were called Spanish Songbook. George Crumb died at his home in Media, Pennsylvania, on February 6, 2022. He was 92 years old.
Crumb's Musical Style
Exploring Unique Sounds
George Crumb was very interested in exploring unusual sounds, or timbres. He thought these sounds were as important as rhythm or harmony. He often asked musicians to play their instruments in new and different ways. Many of his pieces, even for small groups, used electronic amplification.
Crumb believed music was "a system of proportions in the service of spiritual impulse." This means he saw music as a way to express deep feelings and ideas. Music expert Richard Taruskin said Crumb chose sounds not just for their style, but as symbols of timeless meaning.
In 1980, Crumb wrote an essay called "Music: Does It Have a Future?". He believed that music from all over the world was coming together. He thought composers could use sounds from Asian, African, and South American cultures. This idea of a "worldwide phenomenon" in music greatly influenced his work. By using sounds from different cultures, Crumb created a unique sound world.
Crumb's works were published by Edition Peters. Many recordings of his music are available. Bridge Records has released a series of CDs called the Complete Crumb Edition.
Famous Compositions
Here are some of George Crumb's notable works:
Orchestral Music
- Echoes of Time and the River (Echoes II) (1967)
- A Haunted Landscape (1984)
Vocal Music with Orchestra
- Star-Child (1977, revised 1979), for singers and large orchestra
Chamber Music (for small groups)
- Four Nocturnes (Night Music II) (1964), for violin and piano
- Black Angels (Images I) (1970), for electric string quartet
- Vox Balaenae (Voice of the Whale) (1971), for electric flute, electric cello, and amplified piano
- Music for a Summer Evening (Makrokosmos III) (1974), for two amplified pianos and percussion
Piano Music
- Makrokosmos, Volume I (1972), for amplified piano
- Makrokosmos, Volume II (1973), for amplified piano
- Celestial Mechanics (Makrokosmos IV) (1979), for amplified piano (four hands)
- A Little Suite for Christmas, A.D. 1979 (1980)
- Eine Kleine Mitternachtmusik (A Little Midnight Music) (2001)
Vocal Music (for voices and instruments)
- Night of the Four Moons (1969), for alto voice, flute, banjo, electric cello, and percussion
- Ancient Voices of Children (1970), for mezzo-soprano, boy soprano, and mixed instruments
- Apparition (1979), for soprano and amplified piano
Madrigals Series
- Madrigals, Book I (1965), for soprano, vibraphone, and double bass
- Madrigals, Book II (1965), for soprano, flute, and percussion
- Madrigals, Book III (1969), for soprano, harp, and percussion
- Madrigals, Book IV (1969), for soprano, flute, harp, double bass, and percussion
American Songbook Series
- American Songbook I: The River of Life (2003)
- American Songbook II: A Journey Beyond Time (2003)
- American Songbook III: Unto the Hills (2001)
- American Songbook IV: Winds of Destiny (2004)
- American Songbook V: Voices from a Forgotten World (2007)
- American Songbook VI: Voices from the Morning of the Earth (2008)
- American Songbook VII: Voices from the Heartland (2010)
Spanish Songbook Series
- Spanish Songbook I: The Ghosts of Alhambra (2008)
- Spanish Songbook II: Sun and Shadow (2009)
- Spanish Songbook III: The Yellow Moon of Andalusia (2012)
Awards and Special Recognitions
George Crumb received many awards for his music.
- He won a Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1968 for Echoes of Time and the River.
- He won a Grammy Award in 2001 for Star-Child.
- In 1995, he was given the Edward MacDowell Medal.
Notable Students
Many composers studied with George Crumb. Some of his well-known students include Jennifer Higdon, Christopher Rouse, and Melinda Wagner.
See also
In Spanish: George Crumb para niños
