# 21st Century Composers



## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

For those who are kept up to date with the latest composers, who are your favorites?


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

Nico Muhly, David Lang, Julia Wolfe, Tristan Murail, Ikue Mori, Zeena Parkins, Takashi Yoshimatsu, Wolfgang Rihm (he's been around for a while though, not sure if considered 21st century.)

I'll mention Daniel Ott too. There is not yet any commercial recording of his work available. He's just a composer I have met before in various venues (he grew up in my area) and I think his music is really awesome.

http://www.fordham.edu/academics/pr...musi/faculty__staff/dr_daniel_p_ott_79861.asp

You can hear some of his music here, but not his best stuff in my opinion.
http://www.danielottmusic.com/contents.htm


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## Guest (Feb 8, 2012)

Simon Steen-Anderson. There were four 2011 releases with his music on them, one of them a solo album.

Mark André. (aka Marc André but increasingly not) Too few discs of his. Very interesting explorations of intstrumental sonics.

Ludger Brümmer. Computer music using granular synthesis. Some of the richest electroacoustic music out there.

Michèle Bokanowski. Nine years older than either Rihm or I, but much of her work has been done in the last 11 years.

Andrea Neumann. Exquisite inner piano improvisation. Usually in collaborations but some solo stuff as well.

eRikm. Very nice turntable mayhem. (And there's lots of competition. Just think of Martin Tétreault and Otomo Yoshihide for starters.)

Martin Tétreault. For starters.

Otomo Yoshihide. Does everything, including turntables.

Sachiko M. She's often in collaboration with people like Keith Rowe and Otomo Yoshihide. She does sine waves and stuff.

Francisco Meirino. (No longer known as Phroq.) Has been recently interested in failing audio equipment. That stuff makes nice noises.

Francisco López. One of the more productive sound artists. Like Merzbow in that regard. Uses silence often and well.

Just a few faves. (A very few. Most of my current listening is from the past decade or so. Plus Monteverdi and Bach and Berlioz and Dvorak and Bartok and Cage and well, you know.... Music is fun.)


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## HarpsichordConcerto (Jan 1, 2010)

Member _some guy_, do you like listening to Merzbow's work? What do you think of his work?


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

I think Merzbow would resent being called a composer, as would most others in the noise field.


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## HarpsichordConcerto (Jan 1, 2010)

neoshredder said:


> For those who are kept up to date with the latest composers, who are your favorites?


There is a vast, vast soundscape indeed when it comes to 21st century composers. I'm no expert by any means.

I'm looking forward to Carl Vine's second piano concerto to be premiered later this year here in Sydney. Vine (born 1954) is an Australian composer who writes modern contemporary Australian music.


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## HarpsichordConcerto (Jan 1, 2010)

Crudblud said:


> I think Merzbow would resent being called a composer, as would most others in the noise field.


Interesting. What would be an appropriate term(s) for Merzbow? Or it doesn't matter what you call him, which wouldn't surprise me at all considering the type of stuff he "produces".


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

HarpsichordConcerto said:


> Member _some guy_, do you like listening to Merzbow's work? What do you think of his work?


What I have heard of Merzbow, it wasn't the most interesting thing I've heard really.


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

Just "Merzbow" would do, I suppose. For a general term for people like Merzbow, Masonna, C.C.C.C. etc. "noise artists" is probably the way to go.


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## HarpsichordConcerto (Jan 1, 2010)

violadude said:


> What I have heard of Merzbow, it wasn't the most interesting thing I've heard really.


Can you be more specific with "it wasn't the most interesting thing"? 

_Friendly Health Warning: Do Not Turn Up Your Volume Too Loud_


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

HarpsichordConcerto said:


> Can you be more specific with "it wasn't the most interesting thing"?
> 
> _Friendly Health Warning: Do Not Turn Up Your Volume Too Loud_


Yes, personally, with these type of pure sound pieces, I like when a wide variety of sounds are explored, and maybe developed a little bit more in an interesting way. Most of Merzbow's pieces that I have heard have one basic wall of sound that doesn't change or develop a great deal throughout the piece.


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

Have you heard much of his 90s material? It's a different bag to the stuff he's been doing since 2000. Also recommending the early record "I'm Proud by Rank of the Workers" which was from back when Merzbow was a band and not just Masami Akita solo.


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## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

Fyi, most listens of the composers mentioned on last.fm estimated. 
1. Merzbow 918,000 Noise 
2. Nico Muhly 520,000 Minimalism
3. Ikue Mori 93,000 Avant-Garde
4. Zeena Perkins 70,000 Avant-Garde
5. Wolfgang Rihm 40,000 Expressionist


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

neoshredder said:


> Fyi, most listens of the composers mentioned on last.fm estimated.
> 1. Merzbow 918,000 Noise
> 2. Nico Muhly 520,000 Minimalism
> 3. Ikue Mori 93,000 Avant-Garde
> ...


That sounds about right.


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## HarpsichordConcerto (Jan 1, 2010)

violadude said:


> That sounds about right.


What? Merzbow? :lol:


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

Neoshredder, are you looking for 21st century music that you might enjoy?


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## mmsbls (Mar 6, 2011)

I especially like:

Carl Vine (mentioned above) -
Piano Concerto
Symphonies

Eric Ewazen - 
Violin Concerto
Sinfonia for Strings
Down a River of Time


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## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

@violadude. Of course. I haven't listened to those composers yet though. I'll get to it.


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## HarpsichordConcerto (Jan 1, 2010)

some guy said:


> Otomo Yoshihide. Does everything, including turntables.


You meant this piece?


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

I'm surprised John Zorn hasn't been mentioned yet. With the large volume of material he puts out he is quite hit and miss, but from the 90s through to the present he's released a good chunk of good/great stuff with plenty of variety.


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

Ok,Neoshredder, Ill recommend you a few very accessible "21st century" composers that you might like.

David Lang writes very accessible music. He is most known and acclaimed for his piece "Little Match Girl Passion" which is beautiful. Here is an excerpt.






You might like Nico Muhly's music too. It is modern sounding, but definitely tonal and accessible.
















David H. Johnson is a not-so-famous but pretty good 21st century composer that composes in the vein of Shostakovich or something like that.











Takashi Yoshimatsu's music is very colorful and pretty. Very accessible. And actually, like yourself, he comes from a rock background.
















Peteris Vasks is pretty accessible most of the time.











Jennifer Higdon as well.






I know you aren't into electronic music, which is what Ikue Mori is primarily known for, but do try this one. It's not too bad.






Anyway, thats for starters. let me what you think. Kinda hard for me to judge what you would like, because what sounds super dissonant to you probably doesn't sound too bad to me. But I did my best.


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

Crudblud said:


> I'm surprised John Zorn hasn't been mentioned yet. With the large volume of material he puts out he is quite hit and miss, but from the 90s through to the present he's released a good chunk of good/great stuff with plenty of variety.


John Zorn never gets mentioned on this forum. But I like him a lot.


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## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

Thanks for the list. I like melodic stuff but not too interested in vocal music. Yeah that Takashi Yoshimatsu has a good sound. I'll have to check out the rest of the videos tomorrow.


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## HarpsichordConcerto (Jan 1, 2010)

Carl Vine, Piano Concerto #1 (1997)


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## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

I'm not really very knowledgeable on the topic, though I hope to be more, but two that I've heard live that were pretty good, Peteris Vasks(Latvian) and Thomas Ades(English). Thomas Ades was the first 21st century composition I ever heard for orchestra that wasn't a movie score. It was a violin concerto, Concentric Paths, which I found pretty cool. Some say "it wanders" too much, but a lot of conservative listeners have trouble with things that seem to them to "wander," with some very standard composers like Bruckner being too difficult for them. I'd have to listen again to determine what I thought of this piece.





Curiously, the Vasks was also a Violin concerto(string orchestra), though I didn't think it was as cool, not at wild and blander. It certainly has some crazy solo violin effects though





I actually heard the world premiere of a Nico Muhly piece that was pretty good. The work was "So Far So Good" and is not likely to be available on youtube.

Edit, I see violadude beat me to the Vasks.


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

I am now kicking myself for forgetting Thomas Ades....


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## clavichorder (May 2, 2011)

HarpsichordConcerto said:


> Carl Vine, Piano Concerto #1 (1997)


This sounds really old fashioned!


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## quack (Oct 13, 2011)

I quite like what I have heard from Kaija Saariaho, Esa-Pekka Salonen & Helena Tulve.


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## Noak (Jul 18, 2009)

Michael Pisaro. I think he was active in the 90's too, though. But he released a bunch of records last year that are great.





Ondrej Adamek


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## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

How about what is the best cd release the last 12 months?


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## Guest (Mar 20, 2012)

HarpsichordConcerto said:


> You meant this piece?


Among others, yes.


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## Guest (Mar 20, 2012)

neoshredder said:


> How about what is the best cd release the last 12 months?


The world is too big and too various. What about the best dozen? The best hundred?


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## neoshredder (Nov 7, 2011)

some guy said:


> The world is too big and too various. What about the best dozen? The best hundred?


Ok rather than having to strain yourself to pick a favorite, pick the first one that comes to your mind.


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## Guest (Mar 20, 2012)

Simon Steen-Andersen, _Pretty Sound._


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## PetrB (Feb 28, 2012)

Crudblud said:


> I think Merzbow would resent being called a composer, as would most others in the noise field.


Since they're all alive, you might want to let them speak for themselves


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## Iforgotmypassword (May 16, 2011)

I'm going to enjoy going through this thread when I have time. I'm not incredibly good with remembering names of composers... but I just met Jazon Eckardt a couple of days ago. He's a pretty cool guy, pleasant and put up with my ramblings for a good while (I tend to get overly excited when I get the opportunity to talk to someone who knows the names of the bands/composers that I listen to).

Here's a sample of his stuff:


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## Guest (Mar 22, 2012)

OK, neo, so I answered your question.

Don't I get a treat? 

Flipper wants his treat. Flipper gets angry if he doesn't get his treat. Flipper bites hand off of trainer next time Flipper flips out of the water.


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## Guest (Mar 22, 2012)

Hahaha!! Thanks neo! (neoshredder just "liked" my post naming a highly esteemed 2011 release.)

Flipper likes treats!!!


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## mistry (Aug 2, 2012)

i have "so far so good" in my itunes! you're very lucky to be able to see that! was it with winnipeg or with seattle?


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## BurningDesire (Jul 15, 2012)

Crudblud said:


> I think Merzbow would resent being called a composer, as would most others in the noise field.


Why? o3o They're organizing sounds, so they're composers X3.


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## BurningDesire (Jul 15, 2012)

Damon Albarn comes to mind, with his operas "Monkey: Journey to the West" and "Dr. Dee" which are both awesome.


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

BurningDesire said:


> Why? o3o They're organizing sounds, so they're composers X3.





PetrB said:


> Since they're all alive, you might want to let them speak for themselves


They are speaking for themselves. That is the noise ethos; they don't consider themselves to be musicians or composers, and I doubt the attitude among noise artists has changed much in such a short period of time.


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## BurningDesire (Jul 15, 2012)

Crudblud said:


> They are speaking for themselves. That is the noise ethos; they don't consider themselves to be musicians or composers, and I doubt the attitude among noise artists has changed much in such a short period of time.


To me, its just pointless misplacing of terms. Its like Muslims saying that sung Muslim chants aren't music (because music is something lesser, in their opinions). Its just silly to me. Music is just art made of sounds, and "noise" is sounds, as are sung prayers.


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## LordBlackudder (Nov 13, 2010)

nobuo uematsu
yoko shimomura
howard goodall
mark mancina
hitoshi sakimoto
takeharu ishimoto
bob and barn
norihiko hibino
masashi hamauzu
taro iwashiro
kumi tanioka


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

BurningDesire said:


> To me, its just pointless misplacing of terms. Its like Muslims saying that sung Muslim chants aren't music (because music is something lesser, in their opinions). Its just silly to me. Music is just art made of sounds, and "noise" is sounds, as are sung prayers.


Well, don't shoot the messenger.


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## violadude (May 2, 2011)

violadude said:


> Nico Muhly, David Lang, Julia Wolfe, Tristan Murail, Ikue Mori, Zeena Parkins, Takashi Yoshimatsu, Wolfgang Rihm (he's been around for a while though, not sure if considered 21st century.)
> 
> I'll mention Daniel Ott too. There is not yet any commercial recording of his work available. He's just a composer I have met before in various venues (he grew up in my area) and I think his music is really awesome.
> 
> ...


Yay! My friend Daniel Ott updated his page to include some of his best stuff.

http://www.danielottmusic.com/music/

Here's the new page.


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## SottoVoce (Jul 29, 2011)

BurningDesire said:


> To me, its just pointless misplacing of terms. Its like Muslims saying that sung Muslim chants aren't music (because music is something lesser, in their opinions). Its just silly to me. Music is just art made of sounds, and "noise" is sounds, as are sung prayers.


Are you talking about the Azan? I'm Muslim, and while enjoyable to the ears, I don't think any Muslim says that the Azan (which is the only prayer that could be musical) is music. It does have some aspects of music, but it's not music itself; while you may think it is, I'm pretty Muslims can decide for themselves whether or not the things that they made is music, not someone who knows not really as much about the culture and religion.


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## BurningDesire (Jul 15, 2012)

SottoVoce said:


> Are you talking about the Azan? I'm Muslim, and while enjoyable to the ears, I don't think any Muslim says that the Azan (which is the only prayer that could be musical) is music. It does have some aspects of music, but it's not music itself; while you may think it is, I'm pretty Muslims can decide for themselves whether or not the things that they made is music, not someone who knows not really as much about the culture and religion.


With respect, why isn't it music? If its not music because Muslims say so, alright, but say I write a piano piece. Then I say that it isn't a piece of music, its a "keyboard sonic sculpture", definitely not music. Does that make it not music? I don't understand why something that fits the definition of music is called something different, or just simply denied that classification.


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## SottoVoce (Jul 29, 2011)

BurningDesire said:


> With respect, why isn't it music? If its not music because Muslims say so, alright, but say I write a piano piece. Then I say that it isn't a piece of music, its a "keyboard sonic sculpture", definitely not music. Does that make it not music? I don't understand why something that fits the definition of music is called something different, or just simply denied that classification.


If you write a piece of music that is obviously music, then it would be considered music. The Azan is not used for the purpose of music. It never has been. It has musical elements, but it's a call to prayer. People have different definitions of music than you, some more legitimate on specific topics for others. A person that lives with the call to prayer their whole life is going to have a better idea what the Muslim people use the Azan for than you do. You can't just assume it's because of their "anti-music" bias. It's just not music. Having musical properties doesn't mean it's music; the reason why they read the Qu'ran that way is because the Qu'ran is written in a rhythmic, singsong way in order to make it easier to memorize so they would be able to memorize it better (most didn't know how to read at that time and voice was the best way for things to spread). No one "composes" the Azan.


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## BurningDesire (Jul 15, 2012)

SottoVoce said:


> If you write a piece of music that is obviously music, then it would be considered music. The Azan is not used for the purpose of music. It never has been. It has musical elements, but it's a call to prayer. People have different definitions of music than you, some more legitimate on specific topics for others. A person that lives with the call to prayer their whole life is going to have a better idea what the Muslim people use the Azan for than you do. You can't just assume it's because of their "anti-music" bias. It's just not music. Having musical properties doesn't mean it's music; the reason why they read the Qu'ran that way is because the Qu'ran is written in a rhythmic, singsong way in order to make it easier to memorize so they would be able to memorize it better (most didn't know how to read at that time and voice was the best way for things to spread). No one "composes" the Azan.


Music has a variety of purposes. There's things like Christian plainchant. Thats generally considered music, and its basically the same sort of thing as what you're talking about (as in the same function as a sung prayer). I'm sorry if I was wrong in thinking that Muslim's said it wasn't music because of "anti-music bias" but thats what I was told, that they consider music to be beneath their prayer, and thus to call the prayer music (even though its musical) is wrong and disrespectful. If the tune that is sung with the prayer is something that is passed down through tradition with the text of the prayer, somebody composed that melody (even if it was never notated). If everybody just sings it their own way, they are composing.


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## SottoVoce (Jul 29, 2011)

BurningDesire said:


> Music has a variety of purposes. There's things like Christian plainchant. Thats generally considered music, and its basically the same sort of thing as what you're talking about (as in the same function as a sung prayer). I'm sorry if I was wrong in thinking that Muslim's said it wasn't music because of "anti-music bias" but thats what I was told, that they consider music to be beneath their prayer, and thus to call the prayer music (even though its musical) is wrong and disrespectful. If the tune that is sung with the prayer is something that is passed down through tradition with the text of the prayer, somebody composed that melody (even if it was never notated). If everybody just sings it their own way, they are composing.


I'm not gonna debate this longer because it's rather off-topic, but it's not singing, my friend. It's reciting. The Thai Language is based off pitch, and so it tends to be very melodical. Some Indian and African Languages are highly dependent on the context of rhythm. They have many musical qualities to them. Does it make them music? Probably not.


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## BurningDesire (Jul 15, 2012)

SottoVoce said:


> I'm not gonna debate this longer because it's rather off-topic, but it's not singing, my friend. It's reciting. The Thai Language is based off pitch, and so it tends to be very melodical. Some Indian and African Languages are highly dependent on the context of rhythm. They have many musical qualities to them. Does it make them music? Probably not.


Well if we think of music like Cage did, all speaking is music :3


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