Martin Bresnick

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Martin Bresnick (born 1946 in New York, New York) is a composer of contemporary classical music. As a professor at Yale, he has been a widely influential teacher of contemporary composition. In 2006, he was elected to the membership of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, an organization that bestowed their first Charles Ives Living award on him in 1998.

His compositions tend to be concise and direct in expression. Most of them are chamber music compositions, including three string quartets (1968, 1984, 1992), a piano trio (1988), *** for clarinet, viola and piano (1997), and music for diverse ensembles. Many of his works, ranging from solo piano to chamber and orchestral settings, were composed as a cycle called Opere della Musica Povera, or Works of a Poor Music.

As a composer for films, he has contributed many scores for documentary films, including Arthur and Lillie (1975) and The Day After Trinity (1980), both of which were nominated for Academy Awards.

His music has been recorded by Cantaloupe Music, Composers Recordings Incorporated, Centaur, New World Records, Artifact Music and Albany Records and is published by Carl Fischer Music (NY), Bote and Bock, Berlin and CommonMuse Music Publishers, New Haven.

Bresnick's notable students include Michael Gordon, David Lang, Julia Wolfe (co-founders of Bang on a Can), Evan Ziporyn, Kevin Puts, Marc Mellits, Christopher Theofanidis, Carlos Sanchez-Guiterrez and Michael Torke.

[edit] Recordings

2006: The Essential Martin Bresnick. Cantaloupe Records.
- Includes Martin Bresnick: String Quartet #2 "Bucephalus" (Performed by the Flux Quartet)
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Trio for piano, violin, and violoncello (Performed by the Jupiter Trio)
- Includes Martin Bresnick: The Bucket Rider (Performed by the Bang on a Can All-Stars)
- Includes Martin Bresnick: BE JUST! (Performed by the Bang on a Can All-Stars)
- Includes Martin Bresnick: For the Sexes: The Gates of Paradise (DVD: Performed by Lisa Moore)
2005: Martin Bresnick: My 20th Century. New World Records.
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Grace
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Tent of Miracles
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Songs of the Mouse People
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Fantasia on a Theme by Willie Dixon
- Includes Martin Bresnick: My Twentieth Century
2003: High Art: Chamber Music for Solo Flute. Albany Records.
- Includes Martin Bresnick: High Art
2000: Martin Bresnick: Works of a Poor Music. CRI.
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Tucket
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Follow Your Leader
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Pigs & Fishes
- Includes Martin Bresnick: New Haven
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Woodstock
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Angelus Novus
- Includes Martin Bresnick: The Bucket Rider!
- Includes Martin Bresnick: BE JUST!
- Includes Martin Bresnick: ***
- Includes Martin Bresnick: The Dream of the Lost Traveller
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Pine Eyes
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Bird as Prophet
2000: Conspirare: Chamber Music for Solo Flute. CRI.
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Conspiracies
1995: Martin Bresnick: Music for Strings. CRI.
- Includes Martin Bresnick: String Quartet No. 2 "Bucephalus"'
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Wir Weben, Wir Weben
- Includes Martin Bresnick: B.'s Garlands
- Includes Martin Bresnick: String Quartet No. 3
1995: Long Distance. CRI.
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Bag O' Tells
1994: The Monticello Trio: Bresnick, Ives and Shatin. CRI.
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Trio
1993: CDCM Computer Music Series Vol. 2. Centaur Records.
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Lady Neil's Dumpe
1992: New York Woodwind Quintet Plays Bresnick, Powell, Roseman, Shapey. New World Records.
- Includes Martin Bresnick: Just Time