Joseph Schwantner

Joseph Clyde Schwantner (born March 22, 1943 in Chicago, Illinois) is a Pulitzer Prize-winningAmerican composer, educator and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters since 2002. He was awarded the 1970 Charles Ives Prize.

Schwantner is prolific, with many works to his credit. His style is coloristic and eclectic, drawing on such diverse elements as French impressionism, African drumming, and minimalism. His orchestral work Aftertones of Infinity received the 1979 Pulitzer Prize for Music.

Schwantner began his musical study at an early age in classical guitar; this study also incorporated the genres of jazz and folk. He also played the tuba in his high school orchestra. His first compositional aspirations were noticed by his guitar teacher who consistently experienced Schwantner elaborating on pieces he would be studying. From this, Schwantner’s teacher suggested he collect these ideas and create his own musical composition. One of his earliest compositions was in the jazz idiom. The piece Offbeats won the National Band Camp Award in 1959. Remaining in Chicago, he continued his musical study in composition to the city’s American Conservatory, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1964. Here, Schwantner studied with Bernard Dieter. He was exposed to and closely explored the music of Debussy, Bartók, and Messiaen. His graduate study also occurred in Chicago, obtaining master of music and doctorate of music degrees in composition from Northwestern University in 1966 and 1968 respectively. At Northwestern, he was guided under the tutelage of Alan Stout and Anthony Donato. Building on his experiences at the American Conservatory, Schwantner was engaged by the music of Berio and Rochberg. These influences, along with those from his undergraduate study, will prove to be distinct and effective influences on his compositional output. As a student of composition, Schwantner continued to aspire with three works being recognized with BMI Student Composer Awards.

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