Wendy Mae Chambers facts for kids
Wendy Mae Chambers, born on January 24, 1953, is an American composer. She lives in Harvey Cedars, New Jersey. She studied music at Barnard College and Stony Brook University.
Wendy Mae Chambers is famous for her unique music. She creates large-scale musical events. These events are often held outside traditional concert halls. She wants her music to reach many different people. Her ideas were inspired by artists like Christo and Andy Warhol. She also knew the famous composer John Cage. Her piece 12 squared for twelve percussionists was written in his memory.
Chambers is also known for playing and writing music for the toy piano. In 1994, The New York Times newspaper called her "possibly the world's foremost virtuoso on the toy piano." This means she is one of the best toy piano players.
Amazing Musical Creations
Wendy Mae Chambers has created many interesting and unusual musical pieces. She often uses everyday objects or large groups of instruments. Here are some of her most famous works:
Big Music Events
These are some of her large-scale works and where they first played:
- REAL MUSIC – for 9 cars (1978)
- STREET MUSIC – for 30 musicians and a radio show (1978)
- THE KITCHEN – for 9 people playing pots and pans (1978)
- MUSIC FOR CHOREOGRAPHED ROWBOATS – for 24 musicians in rowboats in Central Park, NYC (1979)
- BUSY BOX QUARTET – for 4 crib toys (1980)
- CLEAN SWEEP – for 9 vacuum cleaners (1980)
- PRIME TIME – for 9 televisions (1980)
- THE VILLAGE GREEN – for 3 marching bands, a town siren, and guns (1980)
- ONE WORLD OF PERCUSSION – for 50 percussionists and a solo Tibetan horn (1981)
- TEN GRAND – for 10 grand pianos at Lincoln Center Fountain Plaza, NYC (1983)
- THE GRAND HARP EVENT – PLUCK – for 30 harps at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine (1984)
- SOLAR DIPTYCH – for 30 trumpets (1985)
- MARIMBA – for 26 marimbas (1985)
- LIBERTY OVERTURE – at New York Harbor, NYC (1986)
- QUILL – for 6 harpsichords and bird call recordings (1987)
- SYMPHONY OF THE UNIVERSE – at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, NYC (1989)
- A MASS FOR TROMBONES – for 77 trombones at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, NYC (1993)
- TWELVE SQUARED – for 12 percussionists (1994)
- NIGHT OF THE SHOOTING STARS – for 16 percussionists (2005)
- ORBIT – for 16 percussionists with a click track and 2 conductors (2008)
- KUN – for 64 toy pianos at Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, Miami, Florida (2009)
Smaller Pieces
Wendy Mae Chambers also writes music for smaller groups of instruments or solo players. Here are a few examples:
- POPCORN – for a percussion quartet (1977)
- SUITE FOR TOY PIANO (1983)
- MANDALA – for toy piano (1997)
- ANTARCTICA SUITE – for solo piano (1999)
Commissioned Works
Sometimes, an organization or group asks a composer to create a new piece of music. This is called a commission. Wendy Mae Chambers has received several commissions:
- MARIMBA! – for 26 marimbas, commissioned by the Percussive Arts Society for the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. (1986).
- SOLAR DIPTYCH – for 30 trumpets, commissioned by the New Wilderness Foundation for Central Park, NYC (1985).
