Description

Composer Stephen James will speak about his creative process when composing, how he researched the poems of Mary Oliver, what inspired him, and how he chose which poems to include in his song cycle for soprano and piano. He will share insights into the texts and how they influenced his writing as he composed the songs. Mary Oliver (1935 – 2019) was an American poet who won the Pulitzer Prize in 1984 and the National Book Award in 1992. She found inspiration for her work in nature and had a lifelong habit of solitary walks in the wild. Her poetry is characterized by wonderment at the natural environment, vivid imagery, and unadorned language. In 2007, she was declared the best-selling poet in the United States. Bio: Stephen James completed his doctoral degree in composition at Boston University, where he received the graduate composition prize in 1984, the Malloy Miller Composition Award in 1986, and an award for continuing musical excellence in 1987. He is a pianist as well as a composer and has performed for the Tanglewood Music Center Chamber Series, the WICN Radio concert series at Mechanics Hall (Worcester, MA), the American Repertory Theater, Alea III, the Omnibus Series at Boston University, the The Essex Chamber Music Players, and on many other concert series in New England. Dr. James was a 1985 Crofts Fellow in Composition at the Tanglewood Music Center and a member of the Center for Compositional Study at the Aspen Music Festival in 1986. Performances of his works include premieres by the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Boston and the Atlantic Brass Quintet, commissions from the Washington Music Ensemble and the Newburyport Choral Society, and performances by the Society for New Music (Syracuse, NY) and the Fellows of the Music Center at Tanglewood. He has taught piano performance, music theory and composition at Boston University, Worcester State University, the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth, Anna Maria College and Bridgewater State University. Bach’s Lunches are free and open to the public. They are made possible in part through the generosity of the Walker Fund.