About Timothy Brown
Timothy J. Brown is a composer who writes in a variety of styles and for a variety of media. Dr. Brown writes art songs, choral works, chamber music for standard and mixed ensembles, instrumental works as well as mixed ensemble works with voice, and large scale works. He finds a particular niche in creating works which are socially conscious. Some of his works deal with peace, drawing on texts from World War I. He is comfortable setting texts in a variety of languages; his works to date include English, French, Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Hebrew, and Flemish.
One of his recent creations is a 30 minute set for Pierrot ensemble using poems by Paul Eluard. The work is intended as a companion piece for Schoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire, the 100th anniversary of which will be in 2012.
He wrote Dreams Kept, Dreams Deferred, a set of six pieces using poems by Langston Hughes, for soprano Liana Valente, DMA. The cycle was premiered in 2008 at Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge. Excerpts were also performed at the national College Music Society meeting in 2008. Drs. Brown and Valente presented this work at the Phenomenon of Singing International Voice Symposium VIII in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada, in July 2011. Tenor Gregory Wiest performed the cycle in Munich, Germany, in March 2009. This work was performed in November 2010 at the Society of Composers National Conference.
In February 2010, Bass-baritone Shawn Roy and pianist Chan Kiat Lim premiered a new song cycle, Returning, using six poems by soldiers returning home from World War I.
In 2008, he made a presentation at the Aspen Composers Conference on writing art songs.
Dr. Brown is equally comfortable with instrumental music composition. A 2010 project was the creation of Sous la ferme de la Petite Douve, a work for wind ensemble approximately 17 minutes in duration. The title of the work is a reference to an undetonated landmine from World War I in Messines, Belgium. Another was the setting of seven poems by writer Ned Balbo for contralto voice and piano.
News/Events:
Composer | Contemporary Classical
November '12
Choral ConcertAquarius Kamkerkoor
Ghent, Belgium
November 18, 2012
Siempre lloran las madres en las guerras (World premiere)
Choral Concert
de 2de Adem (The Second Wind)
Ghent, Belgium
October 2012
Cabaret Otaku performances
September 2012
Conductor, Cabaret Otaku
The Coffee Cantata, J.S. Bach
August 2012
Aspen Composers Conference
July 2012
Composition Residency
Dr. Brown will be spending two weeks in July at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. He will be primarily working on a choral piece for his set of pieces on the theme of mothers and war.
June 2012
National Symposium on Choral Music
Look for Dr. Brown at the National Symposium on Choral Music, sponsored by the American Choral Directors Association.
Choral Connections
Dr. Brown attended the joint conference of the American Composers Forum and Chorus America, meeting a lot of people and making many new friends. A wonderful event!
de 2de Adem
The Belgian Choir, de 2de Adem (The Second Wind), will be premiering a work, Lettre une mre in November 2012. Dr. Brown attended rehearsals in June 2012 in Gent, Belgium.
Spring 2012
Essentially Choral
Dr. Brown's unaccompanied work, There is sweet music here that softer falls (text by Alfred, Lord Tennyson) was one of six pieces chosen for the Essentially Choral program of the American Composers Forum and Vocal Essence.
Composers' Concert
State University of New York at Fredonia
Dreams Kept, Dreams Deferred
Friday, March 16, 2012 at 8:00 p.m.
Performed by Liana Valente and James Welch.
Mississippi Music Educators Association Dr. Brown presented research on aural skills acquisition at the annual spring conference of the Mississippi Music Educators Association. March 22-23, 2012
Friends of Chamber Music (Denver)
In March and April 2012, the Denver Friends of Chamber Music Brass Quintet performed Dr. Brown's music at elementary schools in the Denver Public Schools system.
Winter 2011
Atlanta Opera
Invited composer in the Atlanta Opera's 24-Hour Opera Project; writing an opera which will be performed the next day.
January 20-21, 2012
Those who are interested may watch the The Atlanta Opera 24-Hour Opera Project live online here on January 21st, 7pm EST.
Choral Concert
Lincoln Elementary School
Denver, Colorado
December 13, 2011
Premiere of Winter for two-part children's voices, violin, viola, and piano
Text by William Shakespeare
