Steven R. Gerber
Steven R. Gerber was born on September 28, 1948, in Washington, D.C. He studied at Haverford College and Princeton University, where he received a four-year fellowship. His principal composition teachers included Robert Parris, J. K. Randall, Earl Kim, and Milton Babbitt.
Gerber’s early works were written in a free atonal style, incorporating both serial and non–twelve-tone techniques into a distinctive and highly personal musical language. Beginning in the early 1980s, he largely moved away from atonality, and his music became more tonal while retaining the expressive intensity of his earlier style.
His music gained international recognition through a number of recordings featuring major orchestral works and concertos. Notable releases on the Chandos label include Symphony No. 1: Dirge and Awakening, the Viola Concerto, and Triple Overture, recorded by the Russian Philharmonic Orchestra under Thomas Sanderling, with violist Lars Anders Tomter and the Bekova Sisters Trio. Koch International Classics released recordings of his Violin Concerto, Cello Concerto, and Serenade for String Orchestra, performed by the National Chamber Orchestra under Piotr Gajewski, with soloists Kurt Nikkanen (violin) and Carter Brey (cello).
In 2007, Arabesque Records released a recording of Spirituals for String Orchestra, Clarinet Concerto, and Serenade Concertante, performed by the St. Petersburg State Academic Symphony under Vladimir Lande, with clarinetist Jon Manasse. In 2005, conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy commissioned Gerber to compose an orchestral work; the resulting six-movement suite, Music in Dark Times, was premiered by the San Francisco Symphony on March 25–28, 2009.
Gerber’s catalog also includes numerous song cycles, choral works, and compositions for solo instruments. His chamber music is widely recorded, including the Naxos release Steven R. Gerber: Chamber Music, featuring works performed by violinists Kurt Nikkanen and Cho-Liang Lin, cellists Cyrus Beroukhim and Brinton Smith, and pianist Sara Davis Buechner. Additional recordings include (Mostly) Piano Music on Albany Records, as well as multiple albums by the Amernet String Quartet featuring his complete string quartets and Spirituals for string quartet.
Other recordings of his music have been released by Composers Recordings, Inc. and Opus One. His work has been reviewed in The New York Times and The Washington Post, and has been performed extensively in the former Soviet Union.
Steven R. Gerber died in New York City on May 28, 2015, at the age of 66. His music is published by Mobart Music Publications / Boelke-Bomart, Inc., and Lauren Keiser Music. More information, including a complete catalog of works and discography, is available at www.stevengerber.com.
