Perle, George (1915–2009)

George Perle (1915–2009) was an American composer and scholar, awarded a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, a Pulitzer Prize (1986) for his Wind Quintet no. 4, and the Otto Kinkeldey Award (AMS) for his books on the operas of Alban Berg. Born in Bayonne, NJ, Perle discovered Alban Berg’s Lyric Suite when studying with Ernst Krenek in 1937 and went on to develop a compositional system called twelve-tone tonality from the implications of Berg’s score. Collaborative work with Paul Lansky expanded on the compositional possibilities of the system (1969) and led eventually to Perle’s mature style, exemplified by the two Piano Concerti (1990, 1992) and Transcendental Modulations for Orchestra (1993). Perle’s dual role as composer and scholar is reflected in his seventy-five compositions, ranging from solo to orchestral pieces, and seven books and numerous articles on analysis and theory issues related mostly to twentieth-century music.

Bolcom, Gann and other Americans

WILLIAM BOLCOM: Songs of Innocence and of Experience. Christine Brewer, Measha Brueggergosman, Hana Davidson, Linda Hohenfeld, Carmen Pelton (sops), Joan Morris (mezzo-sop), Marietta Simpson (con), Thomas Young (ten), Nmon Ford (bar), Nathan Lee Graham (speaker/vocals), Tommy Morgan (harmonica), Peter ‘Madcat’ Ruth (harmonica and vocals), Jeremy Kittel (fiddle), The University of Michigan Musical Society Choral Union, Chamber Choir, University Choir, Orpheus Singers, Michigan State University Children’s Choir, Contemporary Directions Ensemble, University Symphony Orchestra c. Leonard Slatkin. Naxos 8.559216-18.AARON COPLAND: Inscape. ROGER SESSIONS: Symphony No. 8. GEORGE PERLE: Transcendental Modulations. BERNARD RANDS: …where the murmurs die… . The American Symphony Orchestra c. Leon Botstein. New World 80631-2.KYLE GANN: Nude Rolling Down an Escalator: Studies for Disklavier. New World 80633-2.

Book Reviews

George Perle on the ‘Lyric Suite’ Catherine DaleMusical Nationalism in UK and Finland Peter PalmerHumphrey Searle on the Internet Lewis Foreman

Book Reviews

The writings of George Perle Michael GraubartPaul Griffiths's ‘Modern Music and After’ Ian PaceMichael Chanan's ‘Repeated Takes’ Julian Silverman