ROGER DAVIDSON
Composer
The music of composer Roger Davidson –
ClassicalJazzBrazilianTango and more
Expressive works of beauty and originality
About
Composer Roger Davidson has received wide acclaim for his powerfully expressive musichis mastery of form and structure and for the originality of his compositional voice.
Born in Paris in 1952 to a French mother and an American fatherDavidson moved to New York when he was one year oldstarting playing piano on his own at age fourand beginning violin lessons at age eightshowing an early love of both classical music and jazz. His formal education includes a B.A. in German and Asian Studies from St. Olaf College (1974)a M.Mus. in Composition from Boston University (1981)and a M.Mus. in Choral Conducting from Westminster Choir College (1985). He continued his graduate studies with renowned composers David Del TrediciTheodore Antoniou and others at Boston University. more
Reviews
“Vaterder du bist in Himmel is Davidson’s 1988 setting of the Lord’s Prayer. It immediately triggered my recollections of Janáček’s Otčenáš in both its reverence and its pithiness. Janáček took about 15 minutes in his version; Davidson takes just about threeand in that brief intervalcreates a time-warping piece of music—a complete universe encased in a proverbial nutshell.”
William Zagorski
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“Roger Davidson writes music to carry the universal themes of love and acceptance to people of all religious traditions. …The music is chant-based and more than a little repetitious; but then repetition is often the modus operandi of religious chanting. Most interesting are the shifting colors Davidson creates as the instruments are put to work. The solo oboe imparts a near-Eastern lilt to the liturgy. Oboe and bassoon together summon up a medieval mood … I am affected by the feelings of affirmation and acceptance in Roger Davidson’s music.”
Greenfield
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