Gary Alan Kulesha (born 22 August 1954) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

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 def ...

pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...

conductor Conductor or conduction may refer to: Biology and medicine * Bone conduction, the conduction of sound to the inner ear * Conduction aphasia, a language disorder Mathematics * Conductor (ring theory) * Conductor of an abelian variety * Cond ...

, and

educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

. Since 1995, he has been Composer Advisor to the

Toronto Symphony Orchestra The Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1906, the TSO gave regular concerts at Massey Hall until 1982, and since then has performed at Roy Thomson Hall. The TSO also manages the Toron ...

. He has been Composer-in-Residence with the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony (1988–1992) and the

Canadian Opera Company The Canadian Opera Company (COC) is an opera company in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the largest opera company in Canada and one of the largest producers of opera in North America. The COC performs at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performin ...

(1993–1995). He was awarded the

National Arts Centre Orchestra The National Arts Centre Orchestra (NAC Orchestra) is a Canadian orchestra based in Ottawa, Ontario. The NAC Orchestra's primary concert venue is Southam Hall at the National Arts Centre. Since its inception, the Orchestra has commissioned more ...

Composer Award in 2002. He currently teaches on the music faculty at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

, where his notable students have included Vincent Ho, Anna Höstman, Abigail Richardson-Schulte, Bekah Simms, and Andrew Staniland. He was appointed as a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

in 2023.

Education

Born in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Kulesha received his musical training at

The Royal Conservatory of Music The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM; ), branded as The Royal Conservatory, is a non-profit music education institution and performance venue headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1886 by Edward Fisher as The Toronto C ...

where he earned an associate diploma in piano (1973), a licentiate diploma in

music theory Music theory is the study of theoretical frameworks for understanding the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory": The first is the "Elements of music, ...

(1976), and associate and fellowship diplomas in

music composition Musical composition can refer to an original piece or work of music, either vocal or instrumental, the structure of a musical piece or to the process of creating or writing a new piece of music. People who create new compositions are called ...

in 1978. At the conservatory he was a pupil of William G. Andrews and Samuel Dolin. He also studied composition in England from 1978–1981 with John McCabe and in New York City in 1982 with

John Corigliano John Paul Corigliano (born February 16, 1938) is an American composer of contemporary classical music. With over 100 compositions, he has won accolades including a Pulitzer Prize, five Grammy Awards, Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition, and a ...

Selected works

Opera

* ''Red Emma'' (1986–1995); libretto by Carol Bolt * ''The Last Duel'' (1999–2000); libretto by Michael Albano

Orchestra

* ''Divertimento'' for String Orchestra (1975) * Concerto for Brass Quintet, Strings, and Piano, after Handel (1976) * ''Essay'' for Orchestra (1977) * ''Second Essay'' for Orchestra (1984) * ''Celebration Overture'' for Orchestra (1985) * ''Nocturne'' for Chamber Orchestra (1985) * ''Serenade'' for String Orchestra (1985) * ''Dreams'' for Orchestra (1988) * ''The Midnight Road (Third Essay for Orchestra)'' (1990) * ''The Gates of Time'' (1991) * ''Concertante Dances'' for Chamber Orchestra (1993) * Sinfonia for Brass Band, Piano, and Harp (1995) * Symphony (1997); with 2 conductors; premiered 1998 * ''The True Colour of the Sky'' (1999) * ''Syllables of Unknown Meaning'' (2000) * ''The Rose'' (2002); companion piece to ''Syllables of Unknown Meaning''

Band and wind ensemble

* ''Stardrive (March in F)'' for Concert Band (1974) * ''Variations for Winds'' (1975) * ''Divertimento'' for Concert Band (1976) * ''Overture'' for Concert Band (1977, revised 1983) * ''Ensembles for Winds'' (1979) * ''March in B Flat'' for Concert Band (1979) * ''Two Pieces'' for Band (1983)

Concertante

* Concerto for Tuba and Concert Band or Orchestra (1978–1981) * ''Concertino'' for Flute and Wind Ensemble (1979) * ''First Chamber Concerto'' for Wind Quintet, Brass Quintet and Percussion (1981) * ''Second Chamber Concerto'' for Solo Trumpet, Solo Piano and Wind Ensemble (1982) * ''Third Chamber Concerto'' for Bass Clarinet concertante, 2 Oboes, 2 Clarinets, 2 Bassoons, and 2 Horns (1983) * ''Journey into Sunrise'' for Saxophone Quintet and Orchestra (1987) * ''Fourth Chamber Concerto'' for Brass and Percussion Concertante, Woodwinds, and Strings (1988–1989) * Concerto for Marimba, Bass Clarinet, and Small Orchestra (1989) * ''Fifth Chamber Concerto'' for Solo Oboe and Thirteen Players (1990–1991) * Concerto for Recorder and Small Orchestra (1991) * Concerto for Viola and Chamber Orchestra (1992) * Concerto for Accordion and Brass Band (1998) * Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (1998) * ''Partita'' for Piano and String Orchestra (1999) * Concerto for Strings, Harp, and Percussion (2001) * ''Sixth Chamber Concerto'' for Oboe, English Horn, Basson, Contrabassoon, 2 Violins, Viola, Cello, and Double Bass (2002) * Second Concerto for Violin and Chamber Orchestra (2002) * Cello Concerto (2005, written for Shauna Rolston) * Concerto for Trumpet, Horn and Trombone, with Brass Band (2007-8) * Concerto for Oboe and Orchestra (2020)

Electro-Acoustic

* ''Angels'' for Marimba and Tape (1983) * ''Complex'' for Electric Bass and Tape (1986) * ''Demons'' for Tuba and Tape (1987–1988) * ''Ghosts'' for Bass Clarinet, Piano or Vibraphone, Tape, and Live Electronics (1988) * ''Toccata'' for Solo Percussion and Tape (1989) * ''Cages'' for Solo Percussion and Tape (2004)

Chamber music

* Trio for Violin, Viola and Cello (1971) * Sonatina for Tuba and Piano (1972) * ''A Study in Time'' for Tuba and Piano (1972) * ''The Green Apple Two-Step'' for Tuba and Piano (1973) * ''Divertimento'' for Brass Quintet (1973) * ''Variations on a Theme by Paganini'' for Trumpet and Piano (1974, rev. 1982) * ''Humoreske'' for Tuba and Piano (1974) * ''Burlesque'' for Tuba and Piano * Sonata for Horn, Tuba and Piano (1975) * ''Visions'' for Tuba and Piano (1975) * ''Three Lyric Pieces'' for Recorder (or Flute) and Piano (or Organ) * ''Prelude and Fugue'' for Trumpet and Piano (1976) * ''Bohemian Dance'' for Tuba and Piano (1976) * Sonata for Tuba and Organ (1976) * ''Three Complacencies'' for Bass Clarinet and Tuba (1976) * Duo for Bass Clarinet and Piano (1977) * ''Divertimento'' for Brass Quartet (or Quintet) (1977) * Sonata for Trumpet, Tuba, and Piano (1978) * ''3 Caprices'' for Solo Violin (1977–1978) * Trio for Flute, Cello, and Piano (1979) * ''Concertante Music'' for Soprano Saxophone and Woodwind Quintet (1979) * ''Suite "The Grand Canyon"'' for Two Trumpets (1979) * ''Attitudes'' for Clarinet and Piano (1980) * ''Mysterium Coniunctionis'' for Clarinet, Bass Clarinet and Piano (1980) * ''Divertimento'' for Brass Trio (1980) * ''Two Pieces'' for Brass Quintet (1980) * ''Secrets'' for Flute and Piano (1980) * ''Song and Dance'' for Violin and Piano (1980) * ''Invocation and Ceremony'' for Solo Saxophone (1981) * ''Nocturne and Toccata'' for Piano and Percussion (1981) * ''Passacaglia Cadenzas and Finale'' for Trumpet, Tuba and Piano (1981) * ''Suite'' for Percussion Quartet (1981) * ''Encore and Reggae'' for Marimba and Tuba (1981) * ''Second Suite "Pike's Peak"'' for Two Trumpets (1981) * ''Capriccio'' for String Quartet (1982) * ''Festival Dances'' for Accordion, Viola, Cello, Double Bass and Percussion (1982) * ''Pentagram'' for 5 Trumpets (1982) * ''Canticles'' for Brass Quintet and Organ (1982) * ''6 Bagatelles "from

The Devil's Dictionary ''The Devil's Dictionary'' is a satirical dictionary written by American journalist Ambrose Bierce, consisting of common words followed by humorous and satirical definitions. The lexicon was written over three decades as a series of installments ...

"'' for Woodwind Quintet (1971–1993) * ''Piece'' for Tuba and Piano (1983) * ''Fanfare for Queen Elizabeth'' for 10 Trumpets (1984) * ''Jazz Music'' for Brass Quintet, Piano and Marimba (1984) * ''The Emperor of Ice Cream'' for Clarinet Quartet (revised 1985) * ''Soundings for Brass'' (1985) * Sonata for Cello and Piano (1986–1987) * ''Political Implications'' for Clarinet Quartet (1987) * ''"I saw how strangely the planets gathered..."'' for Flute/Alto Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Bassoon and 2 Horns (1989) * ''Fantasia Quasi Una Sonata'' for Violin and Piano (1991) * Trio for Violin, Cello, and Piano (1991) * ''A Book of Mirrors'' for Two Pianos and Percussion (1992) * ''"...and dark time flowed by her like a river..."'' for Violin or Viola or Cello and Piano (1993) * ''Masks'' for Recorder and Guitar (1994) * ''Pro et Contra'' for Violin and Cello (1995) * ''Conceits'' for Solo Recorder (1995) * ''Quintet-Sonata'' for Marimba and String Quartet (1996) * Sextet for Flute, Oboe, Vibraphone, Piano, Violin and Cello (1998) * Trio No.2 for Violin, Piano and Cello (2000–01) * ''Variations on a Theme by Benjamin Britten'' (2003) * Trio for Horn, Violin and Piano (2004) * Sonata for Trombone and Piano (2013) * Sonata for Oboe and Piano (2016)

Piano

* Sonata (1970) * 3 Sonatinas (1969–1971) * Sonata for Two Pianos (1970–1972) * ''Monument'' for Piano 4 hands (1978) * ''Aphorisms'' (1978) * ''Second Sonata'' (1980) * ''Third Sonata'' (1986) * ''Mythologies'' for Two Pianos (1987) * ''Two Pieces'' for Piano (1994) * ''Four Fantastic Landscapes'' (1996)

Choral

* ''2 Songs'' for Mixed Chorus on Texts by Emily Dickinson :# ''Within my garden rides a bird'' (1973, revised 1979) :# ''Most she touched me by her muteness'' (1979) * ''The Drift of Stars'' for Orchestra and Children's Choir (1988); text by the composer * ''Shaman Songs'' for Mixed Chorus, Clarinet, and String Quartet (1990); text by the composer * ''Wild Swans'' for Mixed Chorus, Harp, Piano, Marimba and Cello (1991); text by W.B. Yeats * ''Give Us Peace'' for Mixed Chorus (2002); text by the composer * ''Night Watch'' for Mixed Chorus and Clarinet (2003); text by Sir Charles G. D. Roberts

Vocal

* ''Love Songs'' for Voice and Piano (1980); text by the composer * ''Lifesongs'' for Alto and String Orchestra (1985); text by the composer * ''Night Music'' for Voice and Piano (1987); texts by Shakespeare, Shelley, and Byron * ''Snake'' for Bass-Baritone and Chamber Ensemble (1988); text by D. H. Lawrence * ''4 Canadian Folk Songs'' for Voice and Saxophone Quintet (1989) * ''Blue Heron on Old Mill Bridge'' for Soprano and Piano (2000); text by Raymond Souster

External links

Gary Kulesha official website

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kulesha, Gary 1954 births Canadian classical composers Canadian male classical pianists Canadian opera composers Living people Canadian male opera composers Musicians from Toronto The Royal Conservatory of Music alumni Academic staff of the University of Toronto 21st-century Canadian classical pianists 21st-century Canadian male musicians Members of the Order of Canada