Arthur Levering (born March 6, 1953) is an American composer of contemporary classical music. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. Levering has received commissions from the

Boston Modern Orchestra Project The Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP) is a professional orchestra in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1996 by artistic director Gil Rose, its mission is to explore the connections between contemporary music and contemporary s ...

Boston Musica Viva Boston Musica Viva is a Boston, Massachusetts-based music ensemble founded by its Music Director, Richard Pittman, in 1969 and dedicated to contemporary music. Composers and compositions In its 44-year history, Boston Musica Viva has performed m ...

, the

Dinosaur Annex Music Ensemble Dinosaur Annex Music Ensemble is a contemporary chamber music ensemble based in Boston, Massachusetts. The group was founded in 1975 by composers Scott Wheeler, Rodney Lister, and Ezra Sims as the concert giving “annex” of New England Dinosaur ...

, the

New Juilliard Ensemble The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...

, the Rascher Saxophone Quartet, and Sequitur, among others.

Early life

Levering was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He holds a B.A. from

Colby College Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine. It was founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, then renamed Waterville College after the city where it resides. The donations of Christian philant ...

(1976); an M.M. in performance from

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

(1979), having studied classical guitar with

Eliot Fisk Eliot Hamilton Fisk (born August 10, 1954) is an American classical guitarist. Music career Education and teaching Fisk was born into a Quaker family in Philadelphia. He finished high school in DeWitt, New York, and then studied music at Yale Un ...

; and an M.M. in composition from

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with ...

(1988), having studied primarily with

Bernard Rands Bernard Rands (born 2 March 1934 in Sheffield, England) is a British-American contemporary classical music composer. He studied music and English literature at the University of Wales, Bangor, and composition with Pierre Boulez and Bruno Maderna ...

Awards

*2010 Fromm Music Foundation at Harvard commission *2002 Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship *1997

Rome Prize The Rome Prize is awarded by the American Academy in Rome, in Rome, Italy. Approximately thirty scholars and artists are selected each year to receive a study fellowship at the academy. Prizes have been awarded annually since 1921, with a hiatus ...

in music composition (FAAR) *1997 Heckscher Foundation Composition Prize *1996 Barlow Endowment commission *1994

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

commission *1992 Lee Ettelson Composer's Award (Composers Inc.) *1990 Composer's Guild prize *

MacDowell Colony MacDowell is an artist's residency program in Peterborough, New Hampshire, United States, founded in 1907 by composer Edward MacDowell and his wife, pianist and philanthropist Marian MacDowell. Prior to July 2020, it was known as the MacDowel ...

fellow (six times) *

Yaddo Yaddo is an artists' community located on a estate in Saratoga Springs, New York. Its mission is "to nurture the creative process by providing an opportunity for artists to work without interruption in a supportive environment.". On March ...

residency

Major Compositions, selected performances

His virtuosic 3 movement piano work, ''School of Velocity'', was commissioned and performed by Donald Berman on a League of Composers/ISCM concert at

Merkin Hall Merkin Hall is a 449-seat concert hall in Manhattan, New York City. The hall, named in honor of Hermann and Ursula Merkin, is part of the Kaufman Music Center, a complex that includes the Lucy Moses School, a community arts school, and the Speci ...

, New York on March 23, 1999. ''Echoi'' (violin and piano) was premiered by Nicholas Kitchen and Donald Berman in Boston on Oct. 20, 2003. ''Clarion/Shadowing'' (clarinet, violin, piano) was performed by the 21st Century Consort at the

Hirshhorn Museum The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is an art museum beside the National Mall, in Washington, D.C., the United States. The museum was initially endowed during the 1960s with the permanent art collection of Joseph H. Hirshhorn. It was desi ...

in Washington, DC on March 13, 2004. ''Twenty Ways Upon the Bells'' (7 players) was premiered by Dinosaur Annex in Boston on Oct. 30, 1994. ''Cloches II'' (8 players) was performed by the

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS) is an American organization dedicated to the performance and promotion of chamber music in New York City. It is the largest organization of its kind in the country for chamber music. CMS's home is ...

on Feb. 15, 2001. ''Furies'' (11 players) was premiered by Sequitur at Merkin Hall in New York on Jan. 30, 2008. ''Catena'' (piano and 16 players) was premiered by Donald Berman and the Dinosaur Annex Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Scott Wheeler at

Jordan Hall Jordan Hall is a 1,051-seat concert hall in Boston, Massachusetts, the principal performance space of the New England Conservatory. It is one block from Boston's Symphony Hall. It is the only conservatory building in the United States to be de ...

, Boston on Sept. 16, 2000. ''Parallel Universe'' (string orchestra) was performed and recorded by the

at Jordan Hall, Boston on May 25, 2007. ''Il Mare Dentro'' (orchestra) was commissioned and premiered by the

at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston on September 21, 2008.

Recordings

*''School of Velocity'' (CRI 812, 1999, NWCR812, 2007) includes: ''Twenty Ways Upon the Bells'', ''Clarion/Shadowing'', ''School of Velocity'', ''Roulade'', ''Uncle Inferno'', ''Cloches II''. *''Still Raining, Still Dreaming'' (New World 80662-2, 2008) includes: ''Still Raining Still Dreaming'', ''Echoi'', ''Sppooo'', ''Tesserae'', ''Catena''. *''Americans in Rome'', ''Music by Fellows of the

American Academy in Rome The American Academy in Rome is a research and arts institution located on the Gianicolo (Janiculum Hill) in Rome. The academy is a member of the Council of American Overseas Research Centers. History In 1893, a group of American architects, ...

'' (Bridge 9271 A/D, 2008) includes: ''Tesserae''. *''Parallel Universe'' (New World 80750, 2014) includes: ''Furies'', ''Il Mare Dentro'', ''Drinking Songs'', ''Partite sopra Ciaccona'', ''Parallel Universe''.

Sources

*Carl, Rober
"Arthur Levering"
Liner notes to ''Arthur Levering: Still Raining, Still Dreaming''. New World Records. *Wheeler, Scot
"Arthur Levering"
Liner notes to ''Arthur Levering: School of Velocity''. New World/CRI.

External links

*Official Website: http://www.arthurlevering.com
'Podcast 37: Arthur Levering - composer'
Interview by Tigran Arakelyan {{DEFAULTSORT:Levering, Arthur 20th-century classical composers 21st-century classical composers American male classical composers American classical composers Colby College alumni Yale School of Music alumni 1953 births Musicians from Baltimore Musicians from Cambridge, Massachusetts Living people 21st-century American composers 20th-century American composers Classical musicians from Massachusetts 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians