Eric Nathan
They may not command the media coverage that benefits Beyonce, or rack up the royalties that help justify Justin Timberlake’s concert fees, but the world of “serious” music is peopled with performers of color and character, and composers who supply them with scores. Case in point: Eric Nathan.
“Walls Of Light,” a chamber piece Eric wrote several years ago, just won the League Of Composers award. It’s an interesting piece, which you can listen to on his website. Currently living in Ithaca, NY, where he’s pursuing a doctorate degree in composition at Cornell University, the 27 year old Nathan spoke with me about his art, his use of technology, and his early background.
“I grew up in Larchmont, NY. My earliest musical memories are watching the Wynton Marsalis and the Empire Brass Quintet episodes on the Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood program. When I was three years old, I told my parents I wanted to hear the Empire Brass and they took me to Tanglewood to hear the quintet play. While in high school I attended Juilliard’s Pre-College Division for two years as a trumpet student and also studied composition there. My first piece was for trumpet and piano which I wrote to perform myself. I soon realized that I could write music all day. I went to Yale, majored in music, studied composition there, then went to Indiana University for a masters in composition, and am now working on a DMA at Cornell.
“I really didn’t listen to pop music as a kid- leaned towards Copland, Mahler and Bernstein on the classical side, and anything else that featured the trumpet. I have always had an ear for jazz, and even though I don’t write jazz pieces, the jazz sensibility has definitely found its way into my work.”
“While it may be true that back in Mozart’s day there was a strong, clear link between popular and concert music- based largely on the dance forms that influenced both genres-I don’t think it’s accurate to say that the two worlds are divergent at this time. Look at what the now well established Bang On The Can festival in New York has done to bring together the classical, indie, and jazz worlds.
“Composers have always had a hard time. There are many roads...you can be a professional teacher, work for organizations, or follow the Charles Ives model and have another job and write music after hours. The important thing is to keep writing and sharing your music with others.”
“My teachers have been enormously influential. Claude Baker at Indiana University taught me how important it is to pay attention to details in marking up a score. In Beethoven and Mozart’s day composers were writing in a common style, so they didn’t need to add a diminuendo at the end of a phrase. These things were understood-it was in the performance practice at the time. Today, every composer is, in a sense, defining his or her own style, and as a result it’s critical that all of the details are clearly laid out for the player. Most performers don’t know what my style is, so I need to show it in the phrasing. Those markings are what make a piece come to life.”
“Technology definitely plays a role in my work. I wrote a piece while at Indiana University entitled Cantus for Trumpet and Electronics using Digital Performer as a sequencer. It was fascinating and liberating to experience the different way that time unfolds within the electronic medium. I work with Garage Band sometimes to test out ideas for my acoustic pieces. I also use my iPhone to record ideas I play on piano. I prepare my scores with Finale and use its play back feature while I’m composing. Listening to a score while I’m composing helps me test out the pacing and form of a piece.”
Eric Nathan...keep that name in mind, and do yourself a favor and visit his website when you have a few minutes.
8/3/2011
