Tyshawn Sorey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tyshawn Sorey
Sorey in 2023
Background information
Born	(1980-07-08) July 8, 1980 (age 44) Newark, New Jersey, U.S.
Genres	Experimental music, classical, avant-garde jazz
Occupation(s)	Composer, musician, professor
Instruments	Percussion, drum set, piano, trombone
Years active	2000–present
Labels	Pi, Firehouse 12, 482 Music
Associated acts	Vijay Iyer, Roscoe Mitchell, George E. Lewis, Claire Chase, Anthony Braxton, Myra Melford

Tyshawn Sorey (born July 8, 1980) is an American composer, musician who plays many instruments, and a professor of modern music.

Tyshawn is famous for his music. He creates everything from solo drum performances to full operas. His work often appears on "best of" lists for both classical and jazz music. The New Yorker magazine listed him among their "Notable Performances and Recordings" for several years. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a New York Times critic even called him the "composer of the year" because he created so much new music.

In 2024, Tyshawn won the Pulitzer Prize for Music for his piece Adagio (for Wadada Leo Smith). He also received a special award called a MacArthur Fellowship in 2017. In 2019, his song cycle about Josephine Baker, called Perle Noire: Meditations for Josephine, was performed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Many famous publications like The New York Times and The New Yorker have written about his life and music.

Tyshawn has played or recorded with many other talented musicians. Some of these include Vijay Iyer, Anthony Braxton, and John Zorn. In 2020, he became a music professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

Early Life and Music Journey

Tyshawn grew up in Newark, New Jersey. He went to Newark Arts High School. As a teenager, he joined a jazz program. This program helped him get a scholarship for college.

In 2004, Tyshawn finished his music studies at William Paterson University. He first studied classical trombone. Then he switched to jazz drumming.

After playing with other artists for several years, Tyshawn released his first album as a band leader in 2007. It was called That/Not. This album had many different kinds of music. Tyshawn mainly played drums on it, but he also played piano.

His second album, Koan, came out in 2009. It was praised by music critics. NPR even called it one of the top jazz records of that year.

In 2009, Tyshawn went to Wesleyan University to study composition. He then continued his studies at Columbia University. During this time, he released another popular album called Oblique – I.

While studying for his doctorate, Tyshawn worked with famous composers like George E. Lewis. He also recorded three albums with his trio. One of these, The Inner Spectrum of Variables, was called "one of the year's most arresting and ambitious recordings" by the Chicago Reader. Another album, Verisimilitude, was listed among the best jazz albums of 2017 by The New York Times.

In 2017, Tyshawn earned his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Columbia. His main project was a song cycle called Perle Noire: Meditations for Josephine. This piece was performed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2019.

After getting his degree, Tyshawn became a professor at Wesleyan University. He started a new music group there. In 2017, he received the MacArthur Fellowship for his amazing work in music.

In 2018, Tyshawn's piece Cycles of My Being was performed. This song cycle explores what it means to be a Black man in America today. It was later made into a film. He also released the album Pillars. The next year, he became a Composer in Residence for the Seattle Symphony and Opera Philadelphia.

In 2020, Tyshawn released his sextet's album Unfiltered. That same year, he became a professor at the University of Pennsylvania.

Starting in 2019, Tyshawn began working with the group Alarm Will Sound. He wrote a piece for them called For George Lewis. He also created "autoschediasms," which are spontaneous compositions. These were even recorded remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2022, Tyshawn's composition Monochromatic Light (Afterlife) was performed. It was created for the 50th anniversary of the Rothko Chapel.

His Unique Musical Style

Tyshawn Sorey's music is very experimental. He uses many different ideas and traditions in his work. He believes that music should not be put into strict genres like "jazz" or "classical."

He also thinks that improvisation (making music up on the spot) and composition (writing music down) are not completely separate. He likes to move freely between different musical styles. He says his goal is "the freedom to move between different models from moment to moment."

Awards and Achievements

Tyshawn Sorey has received many important awards and honors:

• 2008: Van Lier Fellowship
• 2012: Other Minds Composer Residency
• 2015: Doris Duke Impact Award
• 2017: MacArthur Fellowship
• 2018: United States Artists Fellowship
• 2019: Seattle Symphony Composer in Residence
• 2019: Opera Philadelphia Composer in Residence
• 2024: Pulitzer Prize for Music

Discography

Tyshawn Sorey has released many albums. Here are some of them.

As Leader or Composer

These are albums where Tyshawn was the main artist or wrote the music.

As Co-Leader or Composer

These albums were created with other main artists.

As Sideman or Composer

Tyshawn has also played on or composed for many albums by other artists. Here are a few examples:

• With Alarm Will Sound: For George Lewis / Autoschediasms (2021)
• With Anthony Braxton: Trillium E (2011)
• With Steve Coleman: Harvesting Semblances and Affinities (2010)
• With Vijay Iyer: Far From Over (2017)
• With Steve Lehman: Travail, Transformation and Flow (2009)
• With Roscoe Mitchell: Bells for the South Side (2017)
• With John Zorn: In the Hall of Mirrors (2014)