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Bernard Rands Celebrates 80!

Feb. 28, 2014

Bernard Rands Celebrates 80!

We offer our heartfelt congratulations to our own Bernard Rands on the occasion of his 80th birthday this month. Long established as a major figure in contemporary music, Rands’s output is as distinctive as it is prolific, noted both for its “plangent lyricism” and “dramatic intensity.” With a catalogue that varies in works from solo and chamber music to pieces for orchestra and opera, Rands’s music has maintained a distinct and singular voice throughout his career. This year, Rands receives the 2014 Order of Lincoln, an award bestowed to individuals whose contributions to the betterment of humanity have brought honor to his home state of Illinois.

Many concerts are scheduled worldwide in honor of the composer's 80th birthday year, most notably the world premiere of his Concerto for Piano and Orchestra on April 3 with pianist Jonathan Biss and Robert Spano leading the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Additional performances take place April 4 and 5 at Boston’s Symphony Hall. The German premiere follows on May 3 in Leipzig, performed by Biss and the Gewandhausorchester conducted by Andrew Davis.

From June 16 through 18, the Royal Northern College of Music and the BBC Philharmonic host Rands as Composer-in-Residence for a festival featuring several performances of his music, including new works written for the occasion. Rands also sees the world premiere of a new work for voice and chamber ensemble, Folk Songs, commissioned by the Tanglewood Music Center, on July 20. The performance takes place at Ozawa Hall in Lenox, Massachusetts as part of the 2014 Tanglewood Festival of Contemporary Music.

To coincide with his anniversary year, an extraordinary new recording, Piano Music (1960-2010), is now available from Bridge Records, featuring definitive performances of his Tre Espressioni, Espressione IV, Memo V, Preludes, and Impromptu by pianists Robert Levin and Ursula Oppens. Several new editions of Rands’s chamber music are also newly available, including String Quartet No. 3,“…in the receding mist…” for chamber ensemble, Three Pieces for Piano, and Prélude and "…sans voix parmi les voix…" for flute, viola and harp. 

For more information on Bernard Rands, including a complete list of works and performances, please visit www.schott-music.com.

Bernard Rands
Concerto for Piano and Orchestra (2013)
for solo piano and orchestra
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25’

Prélude and "…sans voix parmi les voix…" (2004)
for flute, viola, harp
12' 

…in the receding mist… (1988)
for flute, harp, violin, viola, cello
10’

String Quartet No. 3 (2004)
17’

Three Pieces for Piano (2010)
17’ 

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