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Howard J. Buss (born January 6, 1951 in
Allentown, Pennsylvania Allentown ( Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Allenschteddel'', ''Allenschtadt'', or ''Ellsdaun'') is a city in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. The city has a population of 125,845 as of the 2020 census. It is the fastest-growing major city in Pennsylvania ...
) is an American composer of
contemporary classical music Contemporary classical music is classical music composed close to the present day. At the beginning of the 21st century, it commonly referred to the post-1945 Modernism (music), modern forms of Post-tonal music theory, post-tonal music after th ...
. Buss’ works include instrumental solos,
chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small nu ...
, symphonic, choral, and band works. His music has received awards, including from the 2011 Lieksa Brass Week Composition Competition in
Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bot ...
, the 2015 American Trombone Workshop National Composition Competition, the National Flute Association’s Newly-Published Music Competition, the Erik Satie Mostly Tonal Award, State of Florida Fellowships,
ASCAP The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) () is an American not-for-profit performance-rights organization (PRO) that collectively licenses the public performance rights of its members' musical works to venues, broadca ...
Plus Awards., and The American Prize.


Early life

Howard J. Buss was the eldest of eight children and was raised in
Emmaus, Pennsylvania Emmaus ( ) is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 U.S. census, it had a population of 11,652. Emmaus is located in the Lehigh Valley, the third largest metropolitan area in Pennsylvania and 68th largest metropolitan area in t ...
, where he attended
Emmaus High School Emmaus High School is a large public high school located in Emmaus, Pennsylvania. The school serves grades nine through 12 in Pennsylvania's East Penn School District in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. Emmaus High School is loca ...
. At age 14, he began his professional performing career as a member of a
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
band in Allentown and joined the
American Federation of Musicians The American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada (AFM/AFofM) is a 501(c)(5) labor union representing professional instrumental musicians in the United States and Canada. The AFM, which has its headquarters in New York City, ...
. Soon thereafter, Buss became a member of the
Marine Band of Allentown The Marine Band of Allentown is a civilian concert band based in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Founded 1903, the band played over 130 engagements during its first year. Despite its name, the Marine Band has no affiliation to the military or the Unite ...
and occasionally soloed with the group.
Nb:Lakeland Public Library Special Collections: Howard J. Buss Papers, Box 1, Folder 1 (1988)
As he neared high school graduation, Buss was recruited as a Trombone, trombonist by the nationally known group, the ''Tijuana Brats.'' In the three years he performed with the band he appeared numerous times on national television programs, including ''
The Tonight Show ''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. The show has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2009 and 201 ...
'', ''
The Mike Douglas Show ''The Mike Douglas Show'' was an American daytime television talk show that was hosted by Mike Douglas. It began as a local program in Cleveland before being carried on other stations owned by Westinghouse Broadcasting. The show went into natio ...
'' (multiple times), and ''
The Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon The ''MDA Labor Day Telethon'' was an annual telethon held on (starting the night before and throughout) Labor Day in the United States to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA). The Muscular Dystrophy Association was founded ...
''. He recorded with
RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and toured extensively.


College

In college, Buss shifted his focus from
popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fu ...
and jazz to
classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" al ...
. In 1972, he received his
Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
in applied music performance from West Chester State College (now West Chester University), where he studied music composition. Shortly thereafter, he moved to
East Lansing, Michigan East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County with a smaller portion extending north into Clinton County. At the 2020 Census the population was 47,741. Located directly east of the state capital ...
, where in 1974 he was awarded a Master of Music in trombone performance from
Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It ...
and studied with composer H. Owen Reed and was inspired to change his primary musical thrust from performance to composition. In 1975, he received a Master of Music in composition from Michigan State University and he married Judy (Epstein), a
woodwind Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and re ...
specialist. They moved to the
Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area The Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, also known as Champaign–Urbana and Urbana–Champaign as well as Chambana (colloquially), is a metropolitan area in east-central Illinois. As defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), t ...
to attend the
University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Uni ...
, where Howard received a
Doctor of Musical Arts The Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) is a doctoral academic degree in music. The DMA combines advanced studies in an applied area of specialization (usually music performance, music composition, or conducting) with graduate-level academic study in su ...
in composition in 1977. His music composition teachers at the University of Illinois included
Salvatore Martirano Salvatore Giovanni Martirano (January 12, 1927 – November 17, 1995) was an American composer of contemporary classical music. Born in Yonkers, New York, he taught for many years at the University of Illinois. He also worked in electronic music an ...
. While there, his works began being published and noticed by the wider public. After receiving his doctorate, Buss moved with his wife, Judy, to
Lakeland, Florida Lakeland is the most populous city in Polk County, Florida, part of the Tampa Bay area, Tampa Bay Area, located along Interstate 4 east of Tampa, Florida, Tampa. According to the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau release, the city had a population of 112,6 ...
, where they continue to reside. In 1985, he established Brixton Publications (ASCAP) and Howard J. Buss Publications (BMI). The catalogs expanded to accommodate his compositions and those of other American composers. The companies were sold to Cimarron Music Press of New London, Connecticut in October 2021. Buss continues to accept commissions to compose new compositions.


Works

The following is a partial chronological list of Buss' works: * ''Coexistence'' for clarinet and 4 percussion, 1983 * ''Trombone Concerto'' version for trombone and piano, 1985 and version for trombone and band, 1986 * ''Sonic Fables: “Lessons from Aesop”'' for brass quintet and one percussion, 1992 * ''Modern Times'' for narrator, flute, and four percussion, duration: 30’, 1995 * ''Millennium Visions'' for clarinet and string quartet, 2000 * ''The Heavens Awaken'' for bassoon and string quartet, 2009 * ''Cosmic Portraits'' in 2 versions: for flute, clarinet, alto sax, and tenor sax; and flute, oboe, clarinet, and bassoon, 2010 * ''Brom Bones'' in versions for trombone octet, 2005; and 10-part brass choir, 2010 * ''Three Euphonics'' for solo euphonium, 2011 * ''Jazzical #4'' for horn, trombone, tuba, and piano, 2012 * ''Crossroads'' for trombone choir and percussion ensemble, 2012 * ''St. Francis and the Animals'' for flute, clarinet, and harp, 2013 * ''Energico'' for band, 2014 * ''Reflective Journey" for horn and 4 percussion, 2015 * ''Alien Loop de Loops'' for trombone and electronic recording, 2015 * ''Constellations'' for flute, piano, and percussion, 2015 * ''The Enchanted Garden'' for bassoon and string trio, 2016 * ''Interstellar'' for horn, tuba, and electronic recording, 2016 * ''Zephyrs of the Dawn'' for flute choir, 2017 * ''Serendipity Suite'' for trumpet, trombone, and piano, 2017 * ''Another World Stood Here'' for flute choir, 2018 * ''Concerto for Marimba and Percussion Ensemble'' 2018 * ''Into the Hall of Valor'' for horn and band, 2018 * ''Brass Miniatures'' for brass quintet, 7'33", 2019 * ''Concertante'' in 2 versions: for euphonium, tuba, and piano; and euphonium, tuba, and orchestra 9', 2019 * ''Reflections on the "Last Post"'' in 2 versions: for tuba and piano; and tuba and band 8', 2019 * ''Totally Tubular'' for oboe/English horn and trumpet/flugelhorn, 8'05", 2019 * ''Bassoonisms'' for 4 bassoons, 8', 2019 * ''Reflections on the "Last Post'' in 2 versions: for clarinet and piano; and clarinet and band, 8'05", 2019 * ''Skylines'' for flute, oboe, English horn, clarinet, bass clarinet, and bassoon, 10'30", 2019 * ''Aquarius'' for saxophone trio (alto, tenor & baritone) 7', 2020 * ''Sonic Tapestries'' for violin, alto sax, and piano, 11'15", 2020 * ''Visitations from the Dark'' for alto sax, bass clarinet, and piano, 11'30", 2020 * ''Color'tudes'' for bass clarinet and piano, 2021 * ''Divergences'' for clarinet and viola, 2021 * ''Gemtones'' for two clarinets and bassoon (or bass clarinet), 2021 * ''On the Stroke of Midnight'' for solo horn, 2021 * ''Tribute to Stephen Foster'' for brass quintet, 2021 * ''La Sonata modello'' for solo piano, 2021 * ''Toccata and Retro-Invention'' for solo piano, 2021 * ''Trigon'' for trumpet, trombone, and tuba, 2021


Discography

* ''Alien Loop de Loops'' for horn and electronic recording on ALIEN LOOP DE LOOPS, performed by Erika Loke, available on Spotify, Amazon, and Apple Music. * ''Alpine Spring'' for flute and harp on the CD "Flauto e arpa" from Bottega Discantica Records of Milan, Italy. Performed by Elena Cecconi, flute; and Paola Devoti, harp. "Flauto e arpa” BDI 188. * ''Atmospheres'' for trumpet and one percussion is recorded on 3 different CDs - PL Productions DT002 - ATMOSPHERES, performed by Sheryl Linch, trumpet, and Don N. Parker, percussion; and on IBS Classical Records (Spain) - SPANISH MEMOIRS, performed by Diego Arias, trumpet and Yu-Jung Chung, percussion - INCANTATION by the Samodai-Szives Duo of Budpest, Hungary. * ''Awakening'' for solo harp on the CD, JEWISH MEMORIES, performed by harpist Paola Devoti on La Bottega Discantica Records (Milan, Italy) BDI 248. * ''Ballad'' for bass trombone and piano MOVING ON featuring Jonathan Warburton on bass trombone. * ''Currents'' for four percussion - Capstone Records CPS-8735 - HOWARD J. BUSS: MODERN TIMES. * ''Dances and Interludes'' for solo guitar - NIGHT DANCES - 4-Tay Records CD4061, performed by Robert Phillips. * ''Dragon Flight'' for flute and piano - FLUTE AND PIANO - La Bottega Discantica Records (Milan, Italy) BDI 237, performed by Elena Cecconi, flauto and Federico Brunello, piano. * ''Fantasie'' for flute and piano - DUX Recording Producers, Warszawa, POLAND - on the CD FANTAISIE, performed by Agata Igras-Sawicka,flute, and Mariusz Rutkowski, piano - DUX 0658. * ''Four Miniatures'' for two bassoons - DUETTINO - Soundview Multimedia CD. Performed by Arnold Irchai and Tama Kott. * ''Hurricane!'' for solo flute - FLAUTOSOLO from Bottega Discantica Records of Milan, Italy. Performed by Elena Cecconi. "FlautoSolo" BDI 187. * ''Incantation'' for trumpet and percussion - recorded on four different CDs: on PL Productions DT001 - DOUBLE TAKE featuring Sheryl Linch, trumpet, and Don N. Parker, percussion; on Equilibrium Records EQ58 OLD NEWS: New Music for Trumpet and Percussion, performed by Steven Dunn and John Pennington; on IBS Classical (Spain) Records SPANISH MEMOIRS, performed by Diego Arias, trumpet, and Yu-Jung Chung, percussion and on INCANTATION by the Samodai-Szives Duo of Budpest, Hungary. * ''Modern Times'' for flute, narrator and 4 percussion - Capstone Records CPS-8735 - HOWARD J. BUSS: MODERN TIMES. * ''Moon Glow'' for flute and piano - on the CD "SOGNANDO LO SPAZIO - Performed by Elena Cecconi and Tim Carey- Urania Records (Italy) * ''Mysterious Exit'' for solo flute and percussion quartet - C. Alan Publications Label PREMIERS, VOL. 1, performed by Kim McCormick, flute, with the University of South Florida Percussion Ensemble. * ''Night Flight'' for piccolo, clarinet, and piano - Crystal Records CD713 - TAKE WING, performed by Lois Bliss Herbine, piccolo; Allison Herz, clarinet; and Charles Abramovic, piano. * ''Night Tide'' for trombone and marimba - IBS Classical Records (Spain) SPANISH MEMOIRS, performed by Manuel Quesada Benitez, trombone, and Yu-Jung Chung, marimba. * ''Overture for Percussion'' (4 percussion) - Capstone Records CPS-8735 - HOWARD J. BUSS: MODERN TIMES. * ''Pipe Dream'' for solo flute - Capstone Records CPS-8721 - TWILIGHT REMEMBERED: The McCormick Duo, Kim McCormick, flute. * ''Rite of Passage'' for solo marimba - IBS Classical Records (Spain) - SPANISH MEMOIRS, performed by Yu-Jung Chung, marimba. * ''Scenes from the Holy Land'' (flute and percussion) - Capstone Records CPS-8735 - HOWARD J. BUSS: MODERN TIMES. * ''Seaside Reflections'' for flute and harp - Albany Records - ALLUME, performed by Brian Luce, flute, and Carrol McLaughlin, harp. * ''Sonic Fables: Lessons from Aesop'' - Granada Brass B-12180-2021 - 20, performed by the Granada Brass with Ana Hernandez Sanchiz, narrator and Yolanda Chung, percussion. * ''Spanish Memoirs'' on IBS Classical Records (Spain) - SPANISH MEMOIRS, performed by Diego Arias, trumpet and percussionists Yu-Jung Chung, Antonio Jose Herrera Molina, Daniel Jesus Martin, and Jorge Cano Rodriguez. * ''Stellar Visions'' for flute and marimba - Ravello Records (PARMA) RR-7814 - MCDUO, performed by the McCormick Duo. * ''Three Character Sketches'' for solo viola -THREE CHARACTER SKETCHES- performed by Emanuel Oliveri, available on Spotify. * ''Venetian Memoirs'' for solo flute, the third movement "The Train Ride Home" - De Ferrari Publications (Genoa, Italy) - ARABESCHI E GEOMETRIE performed by Elena Cecconi. * ''Wave Train'' for flute and marimba - HoneyRock RM01 - PREMIERS PLUS ONE The McCormick Flute and Percussion Duo.


References


External links

*
The Subito StoreVideo Collection of Music by Howard J. Buss
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buss, Howard J. 1951 births Living people 21st-century American composers 21st-century American male musicians American male composers Contemporary classical music performers Emmaus High School alumni Michigan State University alumni Musicians from Allentown, Pennsylvania West Chester University alumni University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign School of Music alumni