Thomas Albert (born December 14, 1948) is an American
composer and educator. He attended the public schools of
Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Lebanon () is a city in and the county seat of Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 26,814 at the 2020 census. Lebanon is located in the central part of the Lebanon Valley, east of Harrisburg and west of Reading.
...
and
Wilson, North Carolina. In 1970, he received the degree A.B. (magna cum laude) from
Atlantic Christian College (now
Barton College
Barton College is a private college in Wilson, North Carolina. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and enrolls about 1,200 students on campus.
History
Barton College was incorporated as Atlantic Christian College ...
). He received the M.Mus. (1972) and D.M.A. (1974) in composition from the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
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 Univ ...
.
He is a faculty member of Shenandoah Conservatory at
Shenandoah University
Shenandoah University is a private university in Winchester, Virginia. It has an enrollment of approximately 4,000 students across more than 200 areas of study in six schools: College of Arts & Sciences (including the Division of Education and Le ...
as a professor of music (composition and musical theatre) and Harold Herman Chair in Musical Theatre. During his tenure, he served as the conductor and music director of more than 100 musicals and revues. From 1989 to 2004 he was associate dean of the Conservatory; from 2004 to 2008, he was chair of the Theatre Division. He was a music director for Shenandoah Summer Music Theatre from 1984 to 2019. From 2015 to 2019, he was the producing artistic director of Shenandoah Summer Music Theatre. He is currently professor emeritus, Composition and Musical Theatre.
His best-known composition is ''Thirteen Ways'', commissioned by
eighth blackbird. The piece was inspired by
Wallace Stevens
Wallace Stevens (October 2, 1879 – August 2, 1955) was an American modernist poet. He was born in Reading, Pennsylvania, educated at Harvard and then New York Law School, and spent most of his life working as an executive for an insurance compa ...
’ poem, "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird", from which the ensemble derived its name,
[LeBell, June.]
Music review: Sarasota Orchestra 'Music of Our Time
'" Sarasota, Florida: YourObserver.com, September 25, 2016. It is the title work of
eighth blackbird’s first commercial recording, ''Thirteen Ways'' (
Cedille Records
Cedille Records () is the independent record label of the Chicago Classical Recording Foundation.
History
In 1989, James Ginsburg, the son of U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, founded Cedille Records as a for-profit c ...
).
References
External links
Thomas Albert's official siteThomas Albert, Shenandoah University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Albert, Thomas
1948 births
Living people
American male classical composers
American classical composers
20th-century classical composers
People from Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Barton College alumni
University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign School of Music alumni
20th-century American composers
Classical musicians from Pennsylvania
20th-century American male musicians