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Appleton, Jon Howard (b. January 4, 1939, Los Angeles, California). American composer of mostly stage, chamber, piano, electroacoustic, and multimedia works that have been performed throughout the world; he is also active as a writer.
Prof. Appleton studied piano privately with Jacob Gimpel and Theodore Saidenberg in Los Angeles from 1945-55. He studied at Reed College from 1957-61, where he earned his BA in music and literature, and studied composition privately and at the University of California at Berkeley with Andrew W. Imbrie in 1961-62. He studied with Homer Keller and Robert Trotter at the University of Oregon from 1963-65, where he earned his MA in composition and music theory. He then had graduate studies in musicology with William J. Mitchell and training in electronic music with Mario Davidovsky and Vladimir Ussachevsky at Columbia University in 1965-66.
His honors include an honorary Fulbright Fellowship (1970), a Guggenheim Fellowship (1970-71), 23 annual ASCAP awards (1970-92), Second Prize in the Concours International de Musique Électroacoustique de Bourges (1973), and the National Endowment for the Arts Composers Fellowship (1976, 1980). He has also received the Notable Children's Recording Award from the American Library Association (1983), an Artist Fellowship from the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts (1986) and a fellowship from MIT (1994). Other recent honors include terms as composer-in-residence to the Montalvo Foundation (1992) and the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Study and Conference Center (1993), as well as the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Oregon (1998).
As a writer, he has written numerous articles for the Computer Music Journal, Contemporary Music Review, The Musical Quarterly, and Nutida Musik, among other publications, as well as the book Twenty-First Century Musical Instruments: Hardware and Software (1989, Institute for Studies in American Music). In addition, he served as co-editor with Ronald Perera of The Development and Practice of Electronic Music (1975, Prentice-Hall) and wrote the preface to Introduction to Electroacoustic Music by Barry Schrader (1982, Prentice-Hall).
Prof. Appleton is also active in other positions. He co-founded the International Confederation for Electroacoustic Music in 1972 and served as director of the National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Electronic Music Institute in 1972 and of the Stiftelsen Elektronmusikstudion in Stockholm in 1976. He served as a consultant to the New England Digital Corporation for Instrument Design and Educational Programs from 1977-91, as the principal investigator of the Micronesian Music Project in 1979-80 and as a member of the board of directors of the American Music Center from 1979-82. Moreover, he served as director of the National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Seminar in Music and Technology in 1980, 1984 and 1987, president of SEAMUS from 1987-89 and board member-at-large to the International Computer Music Association from 2002-06.
He briefly taught at Oakland University in Rochester Hills in 1966 and has taught at Dartmouth College since 1967, where he has been the Arthur Virgin Professor of Music since 1992, chair of the music department and director of the electroacoustic music graduate program. He also taught as a Visiting Professor at Brooklyn College in 1988 and at Keio University in Tokyo in 1995-96 and 1998.
CONTACT INFORMATION
E-mail address: Jon.H.Appleton@Dartmouth.EDU
Street address: Prof. Jon H. Appleton, 3023 Jericho St., White River Junction, VT 05001, USA
Telephone: 802 295 4974
COMPLETE LIST OF WORKS
STAGE: The Ghost Sonata (incidental music, play by Henrik Ibsen), 1969; Pilobolus (dance music), 1971; Spyrogyra (dance music), 1972; Cameo (dance music), 1972; Anaendrom (dance music), 1972; Aubade (dance music), 1973; Ciona (dance music), 1974, revised 1977; 'Otahiti (dance music, choreography by Lydia Shigekane), 1978 (version of tape work); Subject to Fits (incidental music), 1978; The Sydsing Camklang (dance music, choreography by Elisabeth Appleton), 1978 (version of tape work); Prelude (dance music, choreography by Elisabeth Appleton), 1979 (version of Synclavier work); Nukuoro (dance music, choreography by Elisabeth Appleton), 1980 (version of Synclavier work); Beginnings (dance music), 1980; The Tale of William Mariner (dance music), 1980 (version of Synclavier work); Death Takes a Holiday (incidental music), 1987; Aunt Dan and Lemon (incidental music), 1988; Stop Time, flute, tap dancer, 2000
ORCHESTRAL: After 'Nude Descending a Staircase', 1965
CHAMBER MUSIC: Two Movements, flute, oboe, clarinet, French horn, bassoon, 1963; Four Explorations, violin, piano, 1964; Six Movements, flute, oboe, clarinet, French horn, bassoon, 1964; Four Inventions, 2 flutes, 1965; Winesburg, Ohio, flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, 1972; String Quartet, 1976; Soviet-American Dances, flute, clarinet, violin, viola, cello, Synclavier, percussion, 1984; Duo for Oscar, piano, Synclavier, 1985; The Day Jesus Kissed Me, harp, 1986; The Endless Melody, clarinet, Synclavier, 1986; Fanfare for a New President, French horn, 2 trumpets, trombone, tuba, 1987; ...to the Islands, saxophone, violin, double bass, accordion, 1989; Nihon no Omoide – Six Bagatelles, violin, 1996
CHORAL: The Green Waves, mixed chorus, 1964; Ballad of the Soldier, male chorus, 1974; This is America, mixed chorus, 1976; Sonaria, mixed chorus, synthesizer, 1978; Le Dernier Voyage, speaker, children's chorus, Synclavier, 1988-89; Our Voyage to America, mixed chorus, 1992; HOPI: La naissance du désert, children's chorus, orchestra, 1992-93
VOCAL: Two Songs, voice, piano, 1964; The Dying Christian to His Soul, voice, piano, 1965; The American Songs, tenor, piano/orchestra, 1966; A Swedish Love Song, voice, Synclavier, 1985; Tres Canciones Cubanas, voice, piano, 1991; Canciones Latinas, voice, piano, 1991; Vocalise, bass, piano, 2002
PIANO: Sonata No. 2 for Gabriel Chodos, 1967; A Summer's Lullaby for Molly, 1991; The Turkina Suite, 2 pianos, 1995; Quatre regards sur le Parc du Roy d'Espagne, piano 4 hands, 1995; Eight Hands, 2 pianos 8 hands, 1996; The Turkina Sonata, 2 pianos, 1998; Julia (Nine Pieces), 2001
SYNCLAVIER: Prelude, 1978 (also dance version); Untitled, 1979; Kapingamarangi, 1979; Nukuoro, 1979 (also dance version); Vava'u, 1980; The Tale of William Mariner, 1980 (also dance version); Sashasonjon, 1981; The Snow Queen, 1981; Degitaru Ongaku, 1983; Brush Canyon, 1986; Eros ex Machina, 1987; Borrego Springs, 1988; A Summer's Lullaby, 1989; Pacific Rimbómbo, 1991
ELECTROACOUSTIC: Infantasy, tape, 1966; Georganna's Fancy, tape, 1966; Spuyten Duyvil, tape, 1967; Chef d'Oeuvre, tape, 1967; Nyckelharpen, tape, 1968; Second Scene Unobserved, tape, 1968; Newark Airport Rock, tape, 1969; Times Square Times Ten, tape, 1969; CCCP (in memoriam Anatoly Kuznetsov), tape, 1969; Boghosian's Piece, or Hommage to Orpheus, tape, 1969; Burdock Birds, tape, 1969; Hommage to GRM, tape, 1970; Apolliana, tape, 1970; Kungsgatan 8, tape, 1971; Dr. Quisling in Stockholm, tape, 1971; Nevsehir, tape, 1971; Sones de San Blas, tape, 1972; Stereopticon, tape, 1972; Ofa atu Tonga, tape, 1973; 'Otahiti, tape, 1973 (also dance version); Rodluvan, tape, 1973; Zoetrope, tape, 1974; Georganna's Farewell, tape, 1975; The Sydsing Camklang, tape, 1976 (also dance version); Mussems Song, tape, 1976; In Deserto, tape, 1977; Syntrophia, tape, 1977; In Medias Res, tape, 1978; The Sweet Dreams of Miss Pamela Beach, tape, 1981; Kamuela (Return to Waimea), tape, 1983; Boum Sha Boom, tape, 1983; Oskuldens Drøm, tape, 1985; Homenaje a Milanés, tape, 1987; Ce que signifie la déclaration des droits de l'homme et du citoyen de 1789 pour les hommes et les citoyens des Îles Marquises, tape, 1989; Sudden Death, tape, 1989; Dima Dobralsa Domoy, tape, 1993; Dva Interview, tape, 1993 (collaboration with Sergei Kossenko); 'U ha'amata 'atou 'i te himene, tape, 1996; San Francisco Airport Rock, tape, 1996; Ko To Yamanotesen, tape, 1998; JJ Pop, tape, 2000; Quiff, tape, 2001
MULTIMEDIA/PERFORMANCE: Scene Unobserved, any wind instrument, any string instrument, piano, percussion, tape, film (by the composer), 1969; The Bremen Town Musicians (concerto), toy piano, 12-toy double structure, 1971 (collaboration with Christian Wolff); The Lament of Kamuela, Hawaiian voice, Japanese classical voice, mixed chorus, rock group, tape, film, 1983; Happening USA 1968, 5 dancers, mime, tape, live electronics, 1988; Marco Polo Revisited, voice (with processing), turntables, 2000
FILM SCORES (DIRECTOR): Nobody Knows Everything, 1965 (Carol Burns); Anuszkiewicz, 1968 (Dartmouth College); Computer Graphics at 110 Baud, 1969 (Kiewitt Computation Center); Charlie Item and Double X, 1970 (Robert Drew Associates); Glory! Glory!, 1971 (Ralph Steiner); Arriflex 16SR, 1978 (Jon Fauer/Arriflex Corporation); Hay Fever, 1988 (the composer); Rasias in China, 1991; The Search for Boris Budsarovia, 1996 (Matt Bucy); Who is Alexander Kalishnikov, 1997 (Matt Bucy); Meeting with Misha Nijinsky, 1997 (Matt Bucy); Moscow Meat, 1998 (Matt Bucy)
DISCOGRAPHY
Infantasy; Georganna's Fancy; Spuyten Duyvil; Chef d'Oeuvre; Nyckelharpen; Second Scene Unobserved; Newark Airport Rock; Times Square Times Ten. (Flying Dutchman Productions: FDS 103, 1969) (LP)
A Few Thoughts for the Day (with Tom Scott). (Flying Dutchman Productions: FDS 104,1969) (LP)
Human Music (with Don Cherry). (Flying Dutchman Productions: FDS 121, 1970) (LP)
Chef d'Oeuvre; Times Square Times Ten; CCCP; Boghosian's Piece, or Hommage to Orpheus; Apolliana; Nevsehir; Sones de San Blas; Ofa atu Tonga. (Folkways/Smithsonian Records: FTS 33437, 1976) (LP)
Georganna's Farewell. (Folkways/Smithsonian Records: FTS 33442, 1977) (LP)
Zoetrope; The Sydsing Camklang; Mussems Song; In Deserto; Syntrophia. (Folkways/Smithsonian Records: FTS 33445, 1979) (LP)
Four Fantasies for Synclavier (various pieces). (Folkways/Smithsonian Records: FTS 37461, 1982) (LP)
Two Melodramas for Synclavier (various pieces). (Folkways/Smithsonian Records: FTS 38901, 1982) (LP)
Eros ex Machina. (MIT Press, 1989)
The Endless Melody. F. Gerard Errante, clarinet (Capstone: CPS-8604, 1989)
Stereopticon. (Harmonia Mundi/Cultures Électroniques: 6, 1991)
Brush Canyon; Degitaru Ongaku. (Centaur: 2052, 1992)
Homenaje a Milanés. (Centaur: 2133, 1993)
Pacific Rimbómbo. (Centaur: 2190, 1995)
Contes de la mémoire (various pieces). (empreintes DIGITALes: IMED 9635, 1996)
Infantasy; Boghosian's Piece, or Hommage to Orpheus; 'Otahiti; Homenaje a Milanés; Bremen Town Musicians; Scene Unobserved; Nyckelharpen; Dr. Quisling in Stockholm. (Phonomena, 2003)
(Last updated on June 24, 2004)
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