Priscilla McLean facts for kids
Priscilla McLean (born May 27, 1942) is an American artist who creates music, performs, makes videos, writes, and reviews music. She is known for her unique electronic music, often using sounds from nature and animals.
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Priscilla McLean's Life Story
Priscilla Taylor was born in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. Her father, Conrad Taylor, was a business manager, and her mother, Grace Taylor, was a school teacher.
Priscilla studied at Fitchburg State College and the University of Massachusetts, Lowell. She later went to Indiana University, Bloomington. There, she was greatly inspired by the music of Iannis Xenakis, a famous composer who was teaching at the university.
She has taught music at several universities, including Indiana University, St. Mary's College, the University of Hawaii, and the University of Malaysia.
The McLean Mix: A Musical Duo
In 1974, Priscilla and her husband, Barton McLean, started performing together. They called their group "The McLean Mix." By 1983, they were performing their own music full-time.
Priscilla is a talented musician. She sings using special vocal techniques and plays many instruments. These include the piano, synthesizer, violin, percussion, and Amerindian wooden flutes. She even plays instruments they created themselves!
As The McLean Mix, Priscilla and Barton have performed all over the world. They have traveled across the United States, Europe, Southeast Asia, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
The New Grove Dictionary of Music describes Priscilla's work as very diverse. It includes orchestral music and exciting electronic pieces. Since 1978, much of her music has been inspired by the idea of "wilderness." She often mixes sounds from animals and nature with her electronic music.
Awards and Recognitions
Priscilla McLean has received many important awards for her music. These awards help artists continue their work.
- National Endowment for the Arts Composer Grants
- National Endowment for the Arts Media Arts Grant
- Martha Baird Rockefeller Grant
- In 1989, her piece Voices of the Wild was chosen for the UNESCO International Composers Rostrum. This meant it was broadcast internationally for many people to hear.
Priscilla McLean's Recordings
Priscilla McLean has released many recordings of her music. These recordings let people listen to her unique sounds and compositions. Her albums often feature electronic music and sounds from nature.
Some of her recordings include:
- McLean: Electro-Symphonic Landscapes (1979)
- Electronic Music from the Outside In (1980)
- Rainforest Images (1993)
- Gods, Demons, and the Earth (1995)
- The McLean Mix & The Golden Age of Electronic Music (1997)
- Vocal Music of Priscilla McLean (1999)
- Music From the Sounds of Earth (2013)
She has also released several DVDs featuring her performances and video art.
Selected Musical Works
Priscilla McLean has composed a wide variety of musical pieces. Many of her works combine traditional instruments with electronic sounds and recordings from nature.
Some of her notable works include:
- Night Images (1973) - an electronic piece.
- Variations and Mosaics on a Theme of Stravinsky (1975) - for orchestra.
- Fire & Ice (1977) - for trombone and prepared piano.
- Beneath the Horizon I (1978) - uses processed whale songs and tuba quartet.
- Fantasies for Adults and Other Children (1980) - eight pieces for soprano, piano, and two performers.
- A Magic Dwells (1986) - for orchestra and recorded sound.
- Voices of the Wild (1989) - for symphony orchestra and recorded sound.
- Rainforest (1989) - a collaborative installation with Barton McLean, featuring sounds and visuals.
- Everything Awakening Alert and Joyful! (1992) - for narrator and orchestra.
- Rainforest Images (1993) - another electronic collaboration with Barton McLean.
- Symphony of Seasons series (starting 2001) - electronic music and video pieces inspired by different seasons.
- Caverns of Darkness, Rings of Light (2007) - for solo tuba, recorded tubas, and video.
- Cries and Echoes (2009) - for solo cello, recorded cellos, and video.
- Peter's People: Creating the Dream (2012) - a film collaboration with Barton McLean featuring interviewed artists and original music.
- Caribbean Fantasy (2019) - an electroacoustic music piece.
- Quarantined! (2022) - an electroacoustic music piece.
Books and Films by Priscilla McLean
Priscilla McLean has also shared her experiences and art through books and films.
- Hanging Off the Edge— Revelations of a Modern Troubadour (2006) - This is a memoir, which is a book about her own life and experiences.
- Peter's People— Creating the Dream (2012) - Priscilla and Barton McLean directed this film.
