Laura Kaminsky (born September 28, 1956) is an American composer, producer of musical and multi-disciplinary cultural events, and educator. She was born 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 ...
, graduated from the High School of Music and Art, and studied with
Joseph Wood at
Oberlin College
Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio. It is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational liberal arts college in the United S ...
and
Mario Davidovsky
Mario Davidovsky (March 4, 1934 – August 23, 2019) was an Argentine-American composer. Born in Argentina, he emigrated in 1960 to the United States, where he lived for the remainder of his life. He is best known for his series of compositions ca ...
at
City College of New York. She graduated from City College/CUNY with a Master of Arts degree in composition in 1980.
Career
Kaminsky has maintained an active composing studio and has had her music performed internationally. She is the recipient of numerous prestigious awards an
fellowships In addition, her music has been extensively recorded. She has received national recognition for her innovative cultural programming and has held posts at a number of important institutions including New York City's 92nd Street Y, Town Hall, and Symphony Space, where she is currently artistic director. In 1984 she co-founded and remains the artistic director of the new music collective, Musicians Accord, which is in residence at City College of New York, where the ensemble members work with Professor David Del Tredici and his graduate composition students.
From 1992-93 Kaminsky lived and worked in
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
, where she taught at the National Academy of Music and produced a series of concerts, including a conference on African Music: Tradition and Innovation. From 1996-97 she served as director of the European Mozart Academy, an international post-graduate music fellowship program based in
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
that brought together talented young musicians from Western and Eastern Europe to study and perform in concerts across Eastern Europe in the aftermath of the dissolution of the Soviet Union. From 1999-2004 she served as chair of the music department at the
Cornish College of the Arts
Cornish College of the Arts (CCA) is a private art college in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1914.
History
Cornish College of the Arts was founded in 1914 as the Cornish School of Music, by Nellie Cornish (1876–1956), a teacher of pi ...
in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, and from 2004-08 was dean of the Conservatory of Music at
Purchase College State University of New York when she left to assume the post of artistic director of New York City's multi-disciplinary performing arts center, Symphony Space, succeeding its founding director, Isaiah Sheffer. In addition, she continues to teach composition and arts management at Purchase College.
Personal life
Kaminsky is the daughter of Dr. Leonard Kaminsky, a dentist, and Eva D. Kaminsky, who managed her husband's dental practice. Her mother is from
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
and her father is from
The Bronx
The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
. In 2011, Kaminsky married painter Rebecca Allan.
Works
Kaminsky has a large catalog of works, and composes mostly chamber and vocal music. Selected works include:
Operas:
* Some Light Emerges
* As One
Orchestral:
* Terra Terribilis: Concerto for Three Percussionists and Orchestra
* Piano Concerto
String Quartets:
* Transformations
* Transformations II: Music for a Changing World
* Monotypes
* American Nocturne
* Cadmium Yellow
Chamber Music:
* Vukovar Trio
* Duo for Flute and Piano
* Duo for Cello and Piano
* Wave Hill for Violin and Piano
* And Trouble Came: An African AIDS Diary
* Twilight Settings
* Proverbs of Hell
* Whence it Comes
* Inerpolations on Utopia Parkway
Solo Piano:
* Fantasy
* Music for Artur
* Calendar Music
* Triftmusik
* Danza Piccola
Other solo works:
* The Great Unconformity (cello)
* Isole (cello)
* Until a Name (flute)
Songs:
* Rise, My Love
* Whitman Songs
References
External links
Complete catalog of Works
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaminsky, Laura
1956 births
20th-century classical composers
American women classical composers
American classical composers
American music educators
American women music educators
Living people
21st-century American composers
21st-century classical composers
Musicians from New York City
Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School alumni
Oberlin College alumni
City College of New York alumni
Cornish College of the Arts faculty
State University of New York at Purchase faculty
Pupils of Mario Davidovsky
American opera composers
Women opera composers
20th-century American women musicians
20th-century American composers
21st-century American women musicians
Classical musicians from New York (state)
20th-century women composers
21st-century women composers
American women academics