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Johnston, Ben
(b. March 15, 1926, Macon, Georgia). Esteemed American composer of mostly
chamber, choral and vocal works that have been performed throughout the world.
Prof. Johnston earned his BFA at
William and Mary College in 1949 and his MMus at the University of Cincinnati
College-Conservatory of Music in 1950 and then studied and worked with Harry
Partch in California. He also studied with Darius Milhaud at Mills College,
where he earned his MFA in 1952 and privately with John Cage in 1959-60.
He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship (1959) and he has been commissioned by numerous ensembles and institutions, including the American Music Center, the Concord String Quartet, the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, the Festival of Contemporary Arts (University of Illinois), the Fromm Foundation, and ISCM. The Kronos Quartet, the New Century Saxophone Quartet, vocalist Dora Ohrenstein, Polish Radio, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, guitarist John Schneider, pianist Roger Shields, and the Smithsonian Institution have also commissioned works from him.
He taught at the University of Illinois from 1951-83, where he was a professor from 1967 and retired as professor emeritus. At the university, he served as chairman of the Music Planning Committee of the Festival of Contemporary Arts from 1962-65.
Smith Publications publishes his
music.
CONTACT INFORMATION
E-mail
address: BenBetJo@aol.com
Website
(publisher): www.smith-publications.com
SELECT LIST OF WORKS
STAGE: The Wooden Bird (incidental music, play by Wilford Leach), 1950
(collaboration with Harry Partch); Fire
(incidental music, play by A. Gregor), 1952; The Zodiac of Memphis Street (incidental music, play by Wilford
Leach), 1954; Ring round the Moon (incidental music, play
by Jean Anouilh), 1954; St. Joan (ballet), piano, 1955 (also version
of Passacaglia and Epilogue for
orchestra, 1960); Gertrude, or Would She Be Pleased to Receive it?
(2 act chamber opera, libretto by Wilford Leach), 1956; Gambit (ballet, choreography by Merce Cunningham), 1959; The Taming of the Shrew (incidental
music, play by William Shakespeare), 1961; Carmilla
(chamber opera, libretto by Wilford Leach), 1970; Five Do-it-Yourself Pieces (theatre work), any
player(s), 1969-81; Calamity Jane to Her
Daughter, soprano, violin, synthesizer, drumkit, 1989
ORCHESTRAL: Ivesburg Revisited, jazz orchestra, 1960; Passacaglia and Epilogue, 1960 (version of section of ballet); Quintet for Groups, 1966; Diversion, small orchestra (11 players),
1979; Symphony in A, 1988; Chamber Symphony, small orchestra, 1990
CHAMBER MUSIC: Concerto for Brass, 1951; Septet,
flute (+ piccolo), oboe (+ English horn), clarinet (+ bass clarinet), French
horn, bassoon, cello, double bass, 1956-58; Diversions
for Four, double bass, piano, vibraphone, percussion, 1959; String Quartet No. 1, Nine Variations,
1959; Duo, flute, double bass, 1963; Motet, 3 recorders, 1963; Non pi๙, 3 recorders, 1963; String Quartet No. 2, 1964; String Quartet No.
3, Vergings, 1966; One Man,
trombone (+ percussion), 1967; String
Quartet No. 4, Ascent or Amazing Grace, 1973; Duo,
2 violins, 1978; Twelve Partials,
flute, microtonal piano, 1978; String
Quartet No. 5, 1979; String Quartet No. 6, 1980; Trio, clarinet,
violin, cello, 1981; String Quartet No.
7, 1984; Toccata, cello, 1984; The
Demon Lovers Doubles, trumpet,
microtonal piano, 1985; String Quartet No.
8, 1984-86; Palindromes, snare drum, 1987; String
Quartet No. 9, 1987-88; Ponder Nothing, clarinet/alto saxophone,
1989; Sextet, flute, string quartet,
double bass, 1990; Pursuit, bassoon,
tuba, 1992; Progression, double bass,
1993; Sleep and Waking, percussion
ensemble, 1994 (collaboration with Ron George); String Quartet No. 10,
1995; Alap, double bass, 1996; Nightreach, 4 saxophones, 1998-99; O Waly, Waly Variations, 4 saxophones, 1998-99; Octet, flute, clarinet, bassoon, string quartet, double bass,
1999-2000
CHORAL: Night (cantata, text by Robinson Jeffers), tenor, female chorus,
small orchestra, 1955; Prayer, female
chorus, 1966; Ci-G๎t Satie, mixed chorus, double bass, drumkit, 1966; Rose (text by Sibyl Johnston), mixed
chorus, 1971; Mass, mixed chorus, 8
trombones, percussion, 1972; Im Goin Away (text from an Appalachian folksong), mixed chorus, 1973; Visions and Spels (texts from Amerindian
sources [translated by Jerome Rothenberg]), 6 improvisational voices, 1976; Sonnets of Desolation (text by Gerard
Manley Hopkins), 8 amplified mixed voices, 1980; Journeys, alto, mixed chorus, orchestra, 1986; On Love (text from the Bible), mixed chorus, 1986; Mantram and Raga, mixed chorus, 1993; Secret (text by Robert Bly), mixed
chorus, 1994
VOCAL: Somewhere I have never traveled (text by E.E. Cummings), tenor,
piano, 1949; Le go๛t de n้ant (text
by Charles Baudelaire), baritone, piano, 1950; A Nocturnal upon St. Lucies Day
(text by John Donne), baritone, piano, 1951; Three Chinese Lyrics (text by Rihaku [translated by Ezra Pound]),
soprano, 2 violins, 1955; Five Fragments
(text after Henry David Thoreau), alto, oboe, bassoon, cello, 1960; A Sea Dirge (text by William
Shakespeare), mezzo-soprano, flute, oboe, violin, 1962; Songs of Innocence (text by William Blake), soprano, ensemble,
1975; Two Sonnets of Shakespeare,
countertenor/bass-baritone, flute, oboe, clarinet, trumpet, trombone, tuba,
viola, double bass, 1978; Songs of Loss
(text by John Donne), tenor, string quartet, double bass, 1986; Ma Mie
qui danse (texts by Mie Cecile Inouye, Emily Dickinson, adapted by the
composer), soprano, microtonal piano, 1990; Legacy,
soprano, violin, 1991; A man and a woman
sit near each other (text by Robert Bly), baritone, clarinet, French horn,
1993; Quietness (text by Jalal ad-Din
ar-Rumi [translated by Coleman Barks]), speaker-baritone, string quartet, 1996;
Invocation (text by Farid al-Din Attar
[translated by C.S. Nott]), soprano, string orchestra, 1997; The Tavern (text by Jalal ad-Din ar-Rumi
[translated by Coleman Barks]), voice, microtonal guitar, 1999
PIANO: Celebration, 1953; Knocking
Piece, piano (2 players), 1962; Sonata
for Microtonal Piano, 1960-64; Suite
for Microtonal Piano, 1978
ELECTROACOUSTIC: Kindergartenlieder, 2-track tape, 1969 (collaboration with Jaap
Spek); Knocking Piece Collage, tape,
1969; Strata, tape, 1978
(collaboration with Bohdan Mazurek)
MULTIMEDIA: Museum Piece, tape, 1968 (collaboration with Jaap Spek); Auto Mobile (exhibition music), tape,
1968-69 (collaboration with Jaap Spek)
ARRANGEMENTS: Barstow (Harry Partch), voice, string quartet, 1994; Two Studies on Ancient Greek Scales
(Harry Partch), string quartet, 1994; U.S. Highball
(Harry Partch), voice, string quartet, 1997; various pieces (G.I.
Gurdjieff-Thomas De Hartmann), 4 saxophones, 1998-99
(Last updated on January 17, 2003)
