Mary Oliver (violinist)
Mary Oliver | |
|---|---|
| Genres | New Music, free improvisation, and avant-garde jazz |
| Instruments | |
Mary Oliver (born in La Jolla, California) is an American performer on violin, viola, and Hardanger fiddle, in the areas of New Music, free improvisation, and avant-garde jazz.[1][2][3][4]
She currently lives in Amsterdam, where she is professor at the Hogeschool voor Kunst and musical director of the Magpie Music Dance Company. She also performs and releases albums with the Instant Composers Pool.[1][4]
Education[edit]
Oliver studied for her Master of Fine Arts in violin and viola at San Francisco State University and at Mills College.[4] In 1993 she obtained a doctorate from the University of California, San Diego in Theory and Practice of Improvisation (Constellations in Play: A Model of Improvisation), which substantially informed her methods as a performer.[1][2][4]
Career[edit]
As a soloist she performs as much composed as improvised music, giving first performances of works by, for example, Richard Barrett, John Cage, Chaya Czernowin, Morton Feldman, Brian Ferneyhough, Liza Lim, George E. Lewis and Richard Teitelbaum.[1][4] Oliver is a member of the Nieuw Ensemble, SONOR and KIVA, as well as the ICP-Orchestra.[4][5]
She has performed with, among others, Ab Baars, Sean Bergin, Tobias Delius, Scott Fields, Ig Henneman, Tristan Honsinger, Achim Kaufmann, Joëlle Léandre, Thomas Lehn, George E. Lewis, Misha Mengelberg, Phil Minton, Michael Moore and Evan Parker.[2][4] She has received invitations to perform at festivals all over the world, such as the North American New Music Festival, Xenakis Festival in Buffalo, New York, Darmstadt Summer Course, Donaueschingen Festival and Ars Electronica (Linz).[2][4]
Critical acclaim[edit]
Mary Oliver is referred to as an internationally acclaimed Amsterdam violinist.[2] To quote the Austin Music Co-op website, "Her premieres of new works by John Cage, Richard Barrett, Brian Ferneyhough, and Iannis Xenakis speak to the level of virtuosity she has achieved. Her equally brilliant work as an improviser is a rarity in the ranks of first-rate classical interpreters."[2]
Partial discography[edit]
- Witchfiddle ICP 038[3]
- ICP-Orchestra, Oh, My Dog! ICP 040[5]
- ICP-Orchestra, Aan en Uit ICP 042[5]
- Ig Henneman Strijkkwartet, Pes Wig 05[6]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d elison.org.au Archived 2008-07-20 at the Wayback Machine, Mary Oliver biography at the Ellison Ensemble website, Retrieved 09-30-2008
- ^ a b c d e f newmusiccop.org, "AUSTIN NEW MUSIC CO-OP PRESENTS VIOLINIST MARY OLIVER (NETHERLANDS) PERFORMING SOLO AND IN ENSEMBLE WITH LOCAL IMPROVISERS, Retrieved 09-30-2008
- ^ a b by Professor George E. Lewis, subdist.com Archived 2008-11-18 at the Wayback Machine, Review of Mary Oliver's Witchfiddle, Retrieved 09-30-2008
- ^ a b c d e f g h oliverhegen.com Archived 2010-06-15 at the Wayback Machine, "About Mary Oliver", Retrieved 09-30-2008
- ^ a b c allaboutjazz.com, "ICP Orchestra in Seattle, WA", Retrieved 09-30-2008
- ^ sticchtingwig.com, WIG CD Catalogue, "IG HENNEMAN TENTET", Retrieved 09-30-2008
External links[edit]
- bbc.co.uk, "Hear And Now", Mary Oliver at London Jazz Festival
- o-art.org, Barbara Golden presents two separate performances of "Music for strings and voice"
- frankvanbomme1.nl, Mary Oliver with the Frank van Bommel Ensemble
- rateyourmusic.com, "Mary Oliver, Thomas Lehn & Han Bennink"
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
- American jazz violists
- American jazz violinists
- American women violinists
- Free improvisation
- Living people
- San Francisco State University alumni
- Mills College alumni
- University of California, San Diego alumni
- 21st-century American classical violinists
- People from La Jolla, San Diego
- Musicians from San Diego
- American classical violists
- 20th-century classical musicians
- 21st-century classical musicians
- 20th-century American women musicians
- Jazz musicians from California
- 21st-century American women musicians
- Classical musicians from California
- ICP Orchestra members
- 20th-century American classical violinists
- 20th-century violists
- 21st-century violists