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Daniel, Omar (b. 1960). Canadian composer of mostly orchestral, chamber and vocal works that have been performed in North America and elsewhere.
Mr. Daniel studied composition with John Beckwith at the University of Toronto, where he earned his DMus.
His honors include the Jules Léger Prize for New Chamber Music (1997, for Zwei Lieder nach Rilke) and composition awards from the CBC competition for young composers, the SOCAN competition for young composers and the Toronto International Guitar Festival. More recently, he received the K.M. Hunter Artists Award for classical music (2007, for his entire oeuvre). His music has been performed throughout Canada and in Belgium, Brazil, Estonia, Hungary, Ireland, The Netherlands, Poland, the UK, and the USA. He has received commissions from CBC, the ensemble Continuum, flautist Robert Cram, the Elora Festival/Festival of the Sound, the Esprit Orchestra, guitarist Rachel Gauk, the Gryphon Trio, the Guelph Spring Festival, the Hannaford Street Silver Band, the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, New Music Concerts, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver New Music, and the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra.
Mr. Daniel is also active in other positions. As a producer in the recording industry, he has collaborated with many notable musicians, primarily for Marquis Classics.
He has taught as Assistant Professor of Composition at the University of Western Ontario since 2000, where he also serves as director of the Composition, Electroacoustic Research and Performance Facility.
CONTACT INFORMATION
E-mail address: odaniel@uwo.ca
COMPLETE LIST OF WORKS
STAGE: Lisa (mini-opera), 2002; Via Cruxis (opera with preludium and 14 stations, text by Martin Luther), soprano, various keyboards (1 player), 2004; The Shadow (opera, libretto by Alex Poch-Goldin), 2006–07
ORCHESTRAL: Masque of the Red Death, violin obbligato, minimum 18 strings, 1989; Black Dogs, large orchestra, 1993; Glauben Sie, es wird sich aufklären?, 1993; For R., A. and P.J. (concerto), guitar, small orchestra (8 winds, 4 brass, strings), 1995; Lacrymosa, 1995; Strategies against Architecture, Book III, large orchestra, 1996; The Mechanical Advantage (concerto), percussion, brass band, 1996 (also version for percussion, orchestra, 1998); Murder Ballads (concerto), accordion, orchestra, 1996–97; Double Concerto, violin, cello, orchestra, 1997; Elegies (concerto), guitar, small orchestra, 1998; Only the Eagle Flies the Storm, guitar, minimum 13 strings, 1999 (version of work for guitar, string quartet); Concerto for Orchestra, large orchestra, 2000; Trope, 2000
CHAMBER MUSIC: Momentum, guitar, 1986; Changes, piano, percussion, 1987; Desert Heaven, guitar, tape ad libitum, live electronics ad libitum, 1989; Stone Gazes upon Stone Ghosts, flute, clarinet, French horn, guitar, violin, viola, cello, electronic organ, percussion, 1989; Three Chambers, clarinet, piano, 1991; Only the Eagle Flies the Storm, guitar, string quartet, 1991 (also version for guitar, minimum 13 strings); Dreams of the Panther, flute, clarinet, cello, 1991, revised 2002; Good Machine, piano, 4 percussion, 1992; Piangiamo quel crudel basciare, guitar, 1992; Nocturne, guitar, viola, cello, 1994; Tientos, guitar, 1994; Strategies against Architecture, Book I, 4 French horns, 3 trumpets, 2 trombones, bass trombone, tuba, timpani, 2 percussion, 1995; After the Panorama, guitar, 1995; Strategies against Architecture, Book II, 2 pianos, 2 percussion, 1994–96; Sextet, harp, double bass, 2 accordions, 2 percussion, 1998–99; Piano Trio, violin, cello, piano, 1999; Wild Honey (sonata), violin, piano, 2000–01; El corazón y el tigre, percussion, ensemble (harp, string quartet), 2001; The Flaying of Marsyas, violin, electrodes (suspended on an upside-down person in a metal cage), 2001; Quintet, string quartet, double bass, 2003; Annunciation, string quartet, live electronics, 2006
CHORAL: Love Songs (texts by Pablo Neruda, Rainer Maria Rilke, Don Carlo Gesualdo), mixed chorus, clarinet, string quartet, 1998–99
VOCAL: ...The Stars Would Have Me Weep, baritone, piano, 1987; Four Electronic Arias from Shadows of Angels, soprano, amplified flute, electric guitar, piano, 1990; My Angel (text by the composer), soprano, guitar, 1991; Zwei Lieder nach Rilke, soprano, alto flute, English horn, bass clarinet, violin, viola, cello, piano, 2 percussion, 1996; Das Buch der Bilder, soprano, flute, oboe, bass clarinet, violin, viola, cello, piano, 2 percussion, 1999; All Night I Travel You (text by Anne Michaels), soprano, bass clarinet, trumpet, piano, Hammond organ, percussion, string quartet, 2000; Jacob's Ladder, mezzo-soprano, orchestra, 2000; Love-God-Murder (texts from Southern American gospels, prison songs), mezzo-soprano, ensemble, 2001; The Growth of Music and the Invention of Storytelling (text by Michael Redhill), male speaker, violin, cello, piano, 2002
PIANO: Surfacing, 1988, revised 1991
DISCOGRAPHY
After the Panorama. Rachel Gauk, guitar (Marquis Classics: MAR 191)
Tientos; My Angel; Piangiamo quel crudel basciare; Only the Eagle Flies the Storm (original version). Monica Whicher, soprano; Rachel Gauk, guitar; Penderecki String Quartet (Marquis Classics: MAR 209)
Strategies against Architecture, Book II. Lark Popov, George Vona, pianos; Salvador Ferreras, Beverley Johnston, percussion (Novadisc: ND 0199-CDE)
The Mechanical Advantage (original version). Beverley Johnston, percussion; Bramwell Tovey/Hannaford Street Silver Band (Opening Day Recordings: ODR 9319)
(Last updated on June 30, 2006)
