Joyce Solomon Moorman facts for kids
Joyce Solomon Moorman (born May 11, 1946) is an American composer and educator. She creates music and teaches others about it.
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About Joyce Solomon Moorman
Joyce Solomon Moorman was born in Tuskegee, Alabama, on May 11, 1946. She grew up in Columbia, South Carolina. When she was a student, she attended public schools that were separated by race.
She studied at several universities. She earned a bachelor's degree from Vassar College in 1968. Later, she received a masters of arts from Rutgers University in 1971. In 1975, she earned a masters of fine arts from Sarah Lawrence College. She completed her education with a doctorate from Columbia University in 1982.
Teaching Career
Ms. Moorman has taught music at many schools and colleges. From 1982 to 1993, she taught at the Brooklyn Music School. She also taught at places like the Borough of Manhattan Community College, St. John's University, York College, LaGuardia Community College, and Brooklyn College.
Awards and Recognition
Joyce Solomon Moorman has received special honors for her work. In 1976, she earned a grant to study jazz music from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). In 1998, she won a big competition called the Vienna Modern Masters Millennium Commission Competition.
Joyce Moorman's Music
Joyce Moorman has composed many different pieces of music. Her works have been performed by major orchestras.
Famous Compositions
- "The Soul of Nature": This piece was first played by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1990.
- "Race Riot": This work is based on an art piece by Andy Warhol with the same name. It was first performed in 2000 at the Pennsylvania Academy.
- "Cape Coast Castle": This music describes a historical place in Ghana. It tells the story of The Door of No Return, which was a place where enslaved people were forced to leave Africa. The Richmond County Orchestra played this piece for the first time in 2016.
Her Opera
Joyce Moorman also wrote an opera called Elegies for the Fallen. An opera is a play where the words are sung. This opera is based on poems by Rashidah Ismaili. It remembers the Soweto Massacre, a sad event where many young people in South Africa protested for their rights.
