Michael Edward Edgerton

Michael Edward Edgerton (born October 31, 1961 in Racine, Wisconsin) is an American composer, pedagogue^{[citation needed]} and authority on the 'extra-normal' voice produced by extended vocal techniques.^{[citation needed]}

Michael Edward Edgerton. Photo © Krista Figacz, 2007

Edgerton received his doctorate in Musical Arts (DMA) in composition from the University of Illinois at Urbana in 1994, the Masters of Music (MM) from Michigan State University in 1987 and the Bachelor of Arts (BA) from the University of Wisconsin–Parkside in 1984. From 1996 to 1999, Michael was a Postdoctoral Fellow with the National Center for Voice and Speech, where he conducted research on voice science for his book, The 21st Century Voice. ^[1] He has studied composition with William Brooks, Morgan Powell, Jere Hutcheson and August Wegner.

His concert music is focused on systematic explorations of instruments and voices, less so with electronics. In addition to concert music, he previously had interest in bringing music together with other mediums, such as theater, movement and visual art, often in collaboration with artists from these disciplines. Since the mid-90s, his work increasingly leans toward complexity and acoustical exploration, such as the virtuosic Tempo Mental Rap, for which he won the Kompositionspreis der Landeshauptstadt Stuttgart.^[2] in 2007.

His compositions have also received prizes or recognition in the

• 2007 Composition Contest of the Netherlands Radio Choir – Semifinalist (Kalevi Matus, #58)
• 2003 5th Dutilleaux International Composition Compétition – Selection (1 sonata, #70)
• 2001 31 Festival Synthese Bourges - Sélection (The Elements of Risk in Creation, #59)
• 1999 Sal Martirano composition competition – Finalist (Regret of a Noiseless Sundering, #22)
• 1995 MacDowell Club Award for composition – First Prize (Unspoken Crime, #9)
• 1993 Friends and Enemies of New Music – reading (Net/Byrinth, #15)
• 1988 Midwest Composers Symposium - selection (A Penny for the Young Guy, #3 )
• 1987 National Federation of Music Clubs Composition Competition – Third Prize (Ai, #5)
• 1987 National Federation of Music Clubs Composition Competition – Honorable Mention (Dwellers of the Southwest, #2)
• 1986 Michigan State University Orchestral Composition Competition – First Prize (The Final Diary of a Branch, #1)

On March 3, 2008, his composition, A Marriage of Shadows, received its world premiere during the AV Fest08 in Middlesbrough, England, as the result of a commission by the Institute for Digital Innovation at the University of Teesside. The premiere was performed by the ensemble Ars Nova (Sweden) and singer Angela Rademacher (Germany).

Work

Compositions

• 2008_#79_The Oak at Mambre (11’04) for doublebass
• 2008_#78_Pajduska_Geamparaua_Hijaz (5’11) for 4 blockflöte (tenor, bass F, grossbass C, Subbass F)
• 2008_#77_A Marriage of Shadows (19’21) for flute (alt), Alto (ten) sax, percussion, 6 & 10 string guitar, voice
• 2007_#76_DRAFT 1/25/2002 (13’29) for solo voice and two female speaking voices
• 2007_#75_fragmenta Scotia (58’35) for voice, flute, clarinet, trombone, percussion, guitar, violin, viola, violoncello and double bass.
• 2006_#74_illusions for English horn, clarinet, bassoon, horn, trumpet, piano, viola
• 2006_#73_adjusting to beams falling for flute and violoncello
• 2005_#72_Tempo Mental Rap for guitar
• 2005_#71_Art from the Edge of the World (8’25) for oboe
• 2004_#70_1 sonata for piano
• 2003_#69_A Little Watter, man (59”) an electronic composition
• 2002_#68_prāna (8’27) for 4 solo voices and non-stable drone
• 2002_#67_Kut (7’54)__version a: for sheng (or accordion or oboe), female voice, violin; version b: for voice and electronics
• 2002_#66_overture (9’05) for seven violins
• 2002_#65_Tractatus I for oboe
• 2002_#64_String Quartet #1 (60’00) for string quartet
• 2001_#63_Koli (2’00) for string quartet and bass voice
• 2001_#62_Anaphora (25’39) for voice
• 2001_#61_Divergence (7’43) for two voices and electronics
• 2001_#60_Cantor's Dust (11’21) for solo voice and electronics
• 2001_#59_The Elements of Risk in Creation (5’51) an electronic composition with optional voice<
• 2000_#58_Kalevi Matus (12’00) for choir
• 2000_#57_Samsara (17’00) for twenty strings
• 2000_#56_le Criterion for wind septet
• 2000_#55_Mamre (11’04) for solo violin
• 1999_#54_Friedrich's Comma (1’35) for two voices
• 1999_#53_Wassermann (10’59) an electronic composition
• 1999_#52_Pakji Studies (5’00) for wind, brass and percussion
• 1999_#51_Twelve Miniatures (3’00) for wind, brass and piano
• 1999_#50_Pakji (8’00) for wind ensemble
• 1998_#49_KOSMOS, volume two on reinforced harmonics multiple pieces for one to four voices
• 1998_#48_KOSMOS, volume one on articulation multiple pieces for one to four voices
• 1998_#47_Schreistimme (25’47) for bayan (accordion)
• 1998_#46_Azure Suite (4’30) for soprano and overtone singer
• 1998_#45_Taffy Twisters (6’05) for voice and percussion
• 1998_#44_Agwara-Nanga-Wolof (20’05) for steel pans, African drums, brass and saxophone
• 1998_#43_Sirens (8’21) for four to forty voices
• 1998_#42_Pyramid of Unas (revision needed) for orchestra and six voices
• 1997_#41_Lingua-Palatal #1 (3’28) for two voices
• 1997_#40_24 October 1667 (7’55) for marine trumpet and voice
• 1997_#39_A Holy Person Falls into the Nile as a Pelican (7’13) for clarinet and horn
• 1997_#38_Circles et Articulation (5’57) for trumpet and piano
• 1997_#37_l'histoire du petit Heure (10’00) for percussion ensemble
• 1997_#36_Mit Unulgn Tri-Ien Psiiii iii (8’25) for five voices
• 1996_#35_Apposte Messe (21’15) for mechanical organ
• 1996_#34_Worcester Fragments (3’00) for four to six voices
• 1996_#33_No!!! (11’57) for two voices, rope climbers and drummers
• 1996_#32_Giants (2’30) for solo violin
• 1996_#31_On Music (12’00) for flute and viola
• 1996_#30_ "...by the way, your name makes music..." (3’00) for xylophone
• 1995_#29_Syale #1 (4’34) an electronic composition
• 1995_#28_Lincoln Shrine (12’07) for marimba and violin
• 1995_#27_Mountain Songs (4’01) for solo voice
• 1995_#26_David, not too Syl (i) (3’00) for vibraphone
• 1995_#25_Songs of Vent (6’00) for multi-percussion solo
• 1995_#24_Pedagogy Piece (18’26) for six voices
• 1995_#23_XHAIN (19’00) for piano duo
• 1995_#22_Regret of a Noiseless Sundering (ca. 20’00) for saxophone quartet
• 1994_#21_A Broken Collaboration (30’00) for solo actor, 3 voices, electric guitar and cello
• 1994_#20_The Night of Brahman-The Dance of Fire (5’00) for solo violin
• 1993_#19_The 15th Century Walled Garden - Apokatastasis (30’00) for solo percussion, mosh pit, geodesic dome, car hoods, rocks, metal and other objects
• 1993_#18_The Electric Meat Factory (180’00) for soprano, chanter, guitar, percussion, wall bass, electronic tape, spatialization in a three-story house played as an instrument
• 1993_#17_Fracture Zone: Clipperton et Ragusii (120’00) an underwater music drama
• 1992_#16_Fama Fraternitatis (8’00) for solo voice, assorted instruments, dancers and tunnelers
• 1991_#15_Net/Byrinth: Rec. Study 1 (4’55) for trumpet, horn, and trombone
• 1991_#14_Michelle 8091-434 (12’16) for bass clarinet, b. sax, tuba, double bass, trap set
• 1990_#13_Whose Land? (16’13) for rock band and tape
• 1989_#12_The Hidden Thunder of Screaming Souls (17’39) for voice and viola
• 1989_#11_Hour History (60’00) (opera) for 4 principal actors, 11 male voices, 9 percussionists
• 1989_#10_In America (9’27) for electronic composition
• 1988_#9_Unspoken Crime (12’49) for violin, violoncello and piano
• 1988_#8_Expansions 1a (7’58) for flute, clarinet, bass clarinet and bassoon
• 1987_#7_My Country (3’10) for electronic composition
• 1987_#6_Current: The Eternal Mystery (12’21) for percussion ensemble
• 1987_#5_Ai (12’03) for trumpet, trombone, tuba
• 1986_#4_Expansions (7’07) for piano
• 1986_#3_A Penny for the Young Guy (13’34) for narrator, voices, winds, brass, strings
• 1986_#2_Dwellers of the Southwest for tenor and mixed ensemble
• 1985_#1_The Final Diary of a Branch (10’15) for orchestra

Scores

Many of Michael’s scores are made freely available through a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Other scores are published by:

• C. Allen Publications ^[3]
• Conners Publications/C.P. Press Publications ^[4]
• TUBA-Euphonium Press ^[5]

Book

Michael Edward Edgerton. The 21st Century Voice: Contemporary and Traditional Extra-Normal Voice. ^[6]
The text features a comprehensive discussion of extra-complex methods of vocal sound production, within an acoustic and physiologic framework. Most importantly the text and associated recordings propose methods for continued creative exploration. The book has received exceptional reviews and is now available from Scarecrow Press. Due to the comprehensive treatment of extra-complex vocal production within a scientific framework, the book has a broad appeal that extends beyond musical composition and performance to include voice science, acoustics, linguistics, computer modeling and more.

Sources

• [2] The 21st-century Voice. Contemporary and Traditional Extra-Normal Voice by Michael Edward Edgerton, reviewed by Stefaan Van Ryssen in Leonardo, December 2005.
• Chandra, A. On the construction of the passing of time in music. Thesis (D. M. A.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1989.
• LaFarga, M. Manuales Auditivo-Vocales; vol. 5 La Voz y el Canto. Cullera: Manuel LaFarga Marqués, 2003
• LaFarga, M. Manuales Auditivo-Vocales; vol. 9 Manual de Psicoacústica. Cullera: Manuel LaFarga Marqués, 2003
• MacPherson, D. Collective Consciousness. Proceedings of Qi and Complexity. Consciousness Reframed 2004, 6th International Research Conference. Beijing China, 24 - 27 November 2004.
• Slaby, Z. + Slaby, P. “Michael Edward Edgerton” in The Encyclopedia of the World of Another Music (Svìt jiné hudby), vol. 2. Prague: Volvox Globator Publishing House, p. 221 - 224.
• Tonelli, C. Michael Edward Edgerton, The 21st Century Voice: Contemporary and Traditional Extra-Normal Voice (Scarecrow Press). Review. Musicworks, 95 (summer 2006).
• Van Ryssen, S. The 21st-century Voice. Contemporary and Traditional Extra-Normal Voice. Review. Leonardo, December 2005.
• Wilson, S. Information Arts, Intersections of Art, Science, Technology. Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2002.

References

1. ^ The Scarecrow Press, Inc.: Welcome
2. ^ Stadt - Stuttgart
3. ^ C. Alan Publications | Composers you trust. Variety you need
4. ^ Conners Publications
5. ^ [1]
6. ^ Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8018-5354-X.

External links

• Personal website
• Myspace
• Documentation of single piece
• The 21st Century Voice
• New Music and Aesthetics in the 21st Century
• Free scores by Michael Edward Edgerton at the International Music Score Library Project

Persondata
Name	Edgerton, Michael
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	October 31, 1961
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death