CARL SCHIMMEL COMPOSER

About

Praised by The New York Times as "vivid and dramatic," the music of Carl Schimmel (b. 1975) is dense with literary and musical references, often humorous, and combines intensity of expression with a structural rigor which is influenced in part by his mathematics background. In weaving his musical narratives from poetry, art, and even unusual words, he strives to construct emotional and culturally complex sound worlds that excite the listener's imagination.

Recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship, Columbia University’s Joseph Bearns Prize, the Lee Ettelson Award, commissions from the Fromm and Barlow Foundations, and the Goddard Lieberson Fellowship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, Schimmel has received honors and awards from many organizations, including New Music USA, ASCAP, SCI, the New York Youth Symphony, and the National Federation of Music Clubs. His works have been performed in Carnegie Hall's Weill Hall, Merkin Hall in New York, Severance Hall in Cleveland, the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, St. Martin-in-the-Fields in London, Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis, and at other venues throughout North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia, and he has been granted residencies at MacDowell Colony, Yaddo, Copland House, and the Bogliasco Foundation. He has received performances and commissions from the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, the Illinois Symphony Orchestra, the American Composers Orchestra, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, California EAR Unit, the Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, Alarm Will Sound, North/South Consonance, Quintet Attacca, the Mexico City Woodwind Quintet, the Da Capo Chamber Players, counter)induction, and many others. Recordings of his music are available on the Albany Records, New Focus Recordings, Arizona University Recordings, Navona Records, Blue Griffin, and Crescent Phase labels. A graduate of Duke University (Ph.D.), the Yale School of Music (M.M.), and Case Western Reserve University (B.A. Mathematics and Music), he is Professor of Music Theory and Composition at Illinois State University in Normal, IL. He was born in Pensacola, FL, and raised in Wakefield, RI; he currently lives in Grinnell, Iowa, with his wife Mariko and their two children, Otto and Thora.

If your browser has Flash, why not EXPLORE HIS MUSICAL BRAIN? You can also explore HIS OLD WEBSITE, which is fun but sadly incompatible with modern browsers.

If you don't have Flash, you can still learn about his composer friends, musician friends, teachers, and some of the institutions which have been important in his life as a composer.

Complete bios of various lengths, CVs, and headshots can be downloaded HERE.