Introduction
Bernard Rands (born 2 March 1934) is a British-American composer of contemporary classical music.
Rands was born in Sheffield, England. He studied music and English literature at the University of Wales, Bangor, and composition with Pierre Boulez and Bruno Maderna in Darmstadt, Germany, and with Luigi Dallapiccola and Luciano Berio in Milan, Italy.
He held residencies at Princeton University, the University of Illinois, and the University of York before emigrating to the United States in 1975; he became a U.S. citizen in 1983. In 1984, Rands's Canti del Sole, premiered by Paul Sperry, Zubin Mehta, and the New York Philharmonic, won the Pulitzer Prize for Music.
He has since taught at the University of California, San Diego, the Juilliard School, Yale University, and Boston University. From 1988 to 2005 he taught at Harvard University, where he is Walter Bigelow Rosen Professor of Music Emeritus. For his notable students, See: List of music students by teacher: R to S#Bernard Rands.
Rands has received many awards for his work, and was elected and inducted into The American Academy of Arts and Letters in 2004. From 1989 to 1995 he was composer-in-residence with the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Rands's music is widely recorded. The recording of his Canti D'Amor by the men's vocal ensemble Chanticleer won a Grammy Award in 2000.
Rands is married to American composer Augusta Read Thomas.
Works
Opera
- Belladonna (1999)
- Vincent (c.1973-2010)
Orchestral
- Per Esempio (1969)
- Wildtrack 1 (1969)
- Agenda (1970)
- Metalepsis 2 (1971), for mezzo-soprano, small choir & chamber orchestra
- Mésalliance (1972), for piano solo & orchestra
- Wildtrack 2 (1973), for soprano solo & orchestra
- Aum (1974), for harp solo & chamber orchestra
- Madrigali (1977), for chamber orchestra
- Canti Lunatici (1981), for soprano solo & orchestra
- Canti del Sole (1983), for tenor solo & orchestra
- Le Tambourin: Suites 1 & 2 (1984)
- Ceremonial 2 (1986)
- Fanfare for a Festival (1986)
- Hiraeth (1987), for cello solo & orchestra
- ...body and shadow... (1988)
- London Serenade (1988)
- Bells (1989), for S.A.T.B. choir & orchestra
- Ceremonial 3 (1991)
- Canti dell'Eclisse (1992), for bass solo & orchestra
- Ceremonial (1992–93), for wind band
- Tre Canzoni senza Parole (1993)
- ...where the murmurs die... (1993)
- Canzoni (1995)
- Interludium (1995), for S.A.T.B. choir & orchestra
- Symphony (1995)
- Cello Concerto (1996)
- Fanfare (1996)
- Requiescant (1996), for soprano solo, S.A.T.B. choir & orchestra
- Triple Concerto (1997), for piano, cello & percussion soli & orchestra
- apókryphos (2002), for soprano solo, S.A.T.B. choir & orchestra
- Unending Lightning (2002), for wind band
- Chains Like the Sea (2008)
- Danza Petrificada (2009–10)
- Adieu (2010), for brass quintet & string orchestra
Chamber
- Actions for Six (1962), for flute, viola, cello, harp & two percussion
- Espressione IV. (1964), for two pianos
- Ballad 1 (1970), for mezzo-soprano solo, flute, trombone, piano, percussion & contrabass
- Tableau (1970), for flute, clarinet, piano, percussion, viola & cello
- as all get out (1972), for miscellaneous instrumental ensemble
- déjà (1972), for flute, clarinet, piano, percussion, viola & cello
- Response - Memo 1B (1973), for contrabass & tape / two contrabassi
- Cuaderno (1974), for string quartet
- étendre (1974), for solo contrabass, flute, clarinet, horn, trumpet, trombone, piano, electric organ, percussion, violin, viola & cello
- Scherzi (1974), for clarinet, piano, violin & cello
- Obbligato - Memo 2C (1980), for trombone & string quartet
- ...in the receding mist... (1988), for flute, harp, violin, viola & cello
- ...and the rain... (1992), for horn, harp, violin, viola & cello
- String Quartet No. 2 (1994)
- ...sans voix parmi les voix... (1995), for flute, harp & viola
- Concertino (1996), for oboe solo, flute, clarinet, harp, two violins, viola & cello
- Fanfare (1997), for brass quintet
- String Quartet No. 3 (2003)
- Prelude (2004), for flute, viola & harp
- ...now again... (2006), for mezzo-soprano solo, flute, clarinet, trumpet, percussion, harp, violin, viola & cello
- PRISM (Memo 6B) (2008), for saxophone quartet
- Scherzi No. 2 (2008), for clarinet, piano, violin & cello
Vocal
- Ballad 1 (1970), for mezzo-soprano solo & ensemble
- Ballad 2 (1970), for female voice & piano
- Metalepsis 2 (1971), for mezzo-soprano solo, small choir & chamber orchestra
- Ballad 3 (1973), for soprano & tape (plus bell)
- Wildtrack 2 (1973), for soprano solo & orchestra
- Canti Lunatici (1980), for soprano & ensemble/orchestra
- déjà 2 (1980), for female voice solo & ensemble
- Canti del Sole (1984), for tenor solo & ensemble/orchestra
- Canti dell'Eclisse (1992), for bass solo & ensemble/orchestra
- Walcott Songs (2004), for mezzo-soprano & cello
- ...now again... (2006), for mezzo-soprano & ensemble
Choral
- ...among the voices... (1988), for S.A.T.B. choir & harp
- Bells (1989), for S.A.T.B. choir & orchestra
- Canti d'Amor (1991), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir
- Introit (1992), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir
- Interludium (1995), for S.A.T.B. choir & orchestra
- Requiescant (1996), for soprano solo, S.A.T.B. choir & orchestra
- Melancholy Madrigal (2001), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir
- apókryphos (2002), for soprano solo, S.A.T.B. choir & orchestra
- My Child (2003), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir
- Trinity (2008), for a cappella male-voice choir
Solo Instrumental
- Tre Espressione (1960), for piano
- Formants 1 - Les Gestes (1965), for harp
- Memo 1 (1971), for contrabass
- Memo 2 (1973), for trombone
- Memo 3 (1989), for cello
- Memo 4 (1997), for flute
- Memo 5 (1975), for piano
- Memo 6 (1999), for alto saxophone
- Memo 7 (2000), for female voice
- Memo 8 (2000), for oboe
- HBDZ (2001), for piano
- Preludes (2007), for piano
- Three Piano Pieces (2010)
Music Theatre
- Ballad 2 (1970), for female voice & piano
- Ballad 3 (1973), for soprano & tape (plus bell)
- Memo 2B (1980), for trombone and female mime
- Memo 2D (1980), for trombone, string quartet and female mime
Educational
- Sound Patterns 1 (1967), for voices & hands
- Sound Patterns 2 (1967), for voices, percussion and miscellaneous instruments
- Per Esempio (1969), for youth orchestra
- Sound Patterns 3 (1969), for voices (project)
- Sound Patterns 4 (1969), for miscellaneous instrumental groups (graphic score)
- Agenda (1970), for youth orchestra
Awards
In 2014 Rands was inducted to The Lincoln Academy of Illinois as a Laureate of the Arts and was awarded the Order of Lincoln (the state’s highest honor) by the governor of Illinois.
Current Projects
Rands has most recently completed a Seattle Symphony commission, which premièred under Gerard Schwarz on 7 December 2010 at Benaroya Hall, Seattle, alongside works by Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich.