Jess Langston Turner (born 1983) is an American

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

, who is known primarily for his

concert band A concert band, also called a wind band, wind ensemble, wind symphony, wind orchestra, symphonic band, the symphonic winds, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of members of the woodwind, brass, and percussion famil ...

and choir music.

Biography

Jess Langston Turner was born in Greenville, South Carolina in 1983, the son of Dan and

Jamie Langston Turner Jamie Langston Turner (born 1949) is a Christian novelist. Biography Jamie Turner was born in Mississippi and taught writing and poetry at Bob Jones University. She has written eight novels: ''Suncatchers'' (1995), ''Some Wildflower in My Heart' ...

, professors at Bob Jones University. He took piano lessons at age 8, and trumpet at age 11. He attended Bob Jones University, where he took bachelor's and master's degrees in trumpet performance. He then moved on to the University of Hartford, where he earned a master's in musical composition. In 2015 he completed a doctorate in composition from Indiana University.

Awards

Jess Langston Turner's compositions have won many awards. As a college student, his ''Sonata for Trumpet and Piano'' won the

MTNA Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) is an American nonprofit professional organization for the support, growth, and development of music-teaching professionals, with more than 17,000 members in 50 states, and more than 500 affiliated loca ...

Young Artist Composition Award. His choral piece ''All This Night'' won the John Ness Beck award in 2007, finishing in first place among unpublished works. After being published in 2008, it also won the Roger Wagner International Choral Composition Contest in 2009. His band piece ''Rumpelstilzchen'' won the 2010 Walter Beeler Prize for Wind Composition. His concert band music has been well received by the band community.

Recordings

Jess Langston Turner's music has been recorded on five occasions, all by concert bands. Rumplestilzchen was recorded by the North Texas Wind Symphony and the Hartt School Wind Ensemble, the latter of which was released by Naxos; the West Chester University Wind Ensemble recorded him twice: Through the Looking Glass, on their album "Borrowed Inspirations" (2013), and Reanimations on their album "Reanimations" (2015); and the University of Louisville Wind Symphony, which also recorded Through the Looking Glass in 2017 for the American Bandmasters Association National Convention.

Compositions

Jess Langston Turner's music has been published through Hinshaw Music, Carl Fischer Music, HAFABRA, Pinner Publications, and Jantz Music.

Orchestra

*''Fantasia on "Jefferson,"'' for string orchestra and percussion *''Memorial to Silent Voices,'' for five-part mixed choir and orchestra *# Lacrimosa (attaca) *# Kyrie *# Lullaby "All Through the Night" *# Lux Aeterna

Concert band

*''The King of Love My Shepherd Is'' (2007) *''Through the Looking Glass'' (2008) *''Like a River Glorious'' (2008) for French horn solo and wind band *''Rumpelstilzchen'' (2009) *# Spinning Straw into Gold *# Night (The Maiden's Lament) *# Rumpelstilzchen's Furiant (Moto Perpetuo) *''Agua Nocturna'' (2010) *''He Who Would Valiant Be'' (2010) *''Lullaby "All Through the Night" from "Memorial to Silent Voices"'' (2010) *''Reanimations'' (2014) for two trumpets and wind band *''Nothing to Fear, Nothing to Doubt'' (2016) *''Dancefares'' (2016)

Choir

*''All This Night'' (2007) *''Three Spirituals'' (2010) *''Spirituals'' (2011) *''Oft I did Marie'' (2015) *''April is in my Misstriss' Face'' (2015) *''Final Breaths'' (2015)

Solo voice

*''Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird'' (2006), for alto and piano *''I Carry Your Heart'' (2008), for soprano,

flugelhorn The flugelhorn (), also spelled fluegelhorn, flugel horn, or flügelhorn, is a brass instrument that resembles the trumpet and cornet but has a wider, more conical bore. Like trumpets and cornets, most flugelhorns are pitched in B, though some ...

, and piano

Chamber music

*''Sonata for Trumpet and Piano'' (2005) *''And Can It Be'' (2009) *''Lacrimosa'' (2009), for five bayans (accordions) *''Last Dance of Prospero'' (2009) for horn quartet *''Paeans'' (2009) for brass quintet *''Urban Etudes'' (2009) *''Burning Music'' (2011) *''Nocturne under a Red Moon'' (2013)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Langston Turner, Jess 1983 births 21st-century American composers 21st-century classical composers American classical composers American classical musicians American male classical composers Living people 21st-century American male musicians