Biography
In 1981 Beth Anderson declared that the notion of beauty as a revolutionary force struck her as a sudden revelation, prompting her to locate within her own mind the region incapable of decoding information, performing calculations, or operating from explicit verbal ideas yet fully capable of generating melodies through pitch and rhythm, ultimately concluding that beauty alone suffices. That year she composed a work embodying these convictions under the title Revelation. Four years later Barney Childs together with the University of Redlands requested a condensed edition, retitled Revel, whose architecture rests on five distinct themes: a six-note scale that loops back upon itself until it resolves into a b-minor melody, a “dueling trumpets” sequence, a Tune in F sharp that echoes the opening material, a spanish gypsy-Ben Hur Brassy theme, and a brass chorale that gathers every preceding idea into a single statement.
Born in Kentucky, Anderson pursued her training in that state as well as in California and New York under the guidance of John Cage, Terry Riley, Robert Ashley, and Larry Austin. Her catalog includes the opera Queen Christian, the oratorio Joan, many pieces for soloists and tape, and two off-broadway productions. Commissions have arrived from the Cabrillo Music Festival, the Staten Island Symphony, and the San Francisco Conservatory, while awards and grants have been conferred by BMI, the NEA, National Public Radio, and additional organizations. Reflecting on her aesthetic, Ms. Anderson has observed, “My own mystic bent leads me to believe that musical variations, collage, reiteration and process, or evolution, are beautiful. Life is worth living and beauty is worth making.”
Revel appears on a recording by the Richmond Symphony under Jacques Houtmann and remains obtainable on vinyl through Opus One (#100) ~ Philip Krumm.
Born in Kentucky, Anderson pursued her training in that state as well as in California and New York under the guidance of John Cage, Terry Riley, Robert Ashley, and Larry Austin. Her catalog includes the opera Queen Christian, the oratorio Joan, many pieces for soloists and tape, and two off-broadway productions. Commissions have arrived from the Cabrillo Music Festival, the Staten Island Symphony, and the San Francisco Conservatory, while awards and grants have been conferred by BMI, the NEA, National Public Radio, and additional organizations. Reflecting on her aesthetic, Ms. Anderson has observed, “My own mystic bent leads me to believe that musical variations, collage, reiteration and process, or evolution, are beautiful. Life is worth living and beauty is worth making.”
Revel appears on a recording by the Richmond Symphony under Jacques Houtmann and remains obtainable on vinyl through Opus One (#100) ~ Philip Krumm.
Albums
