Alex Shapiro

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Alex Shapiro (born January 11, 1962 in New York City) composes acoustic and electroacoustic chamber music favoring combinations of modal harmonies with chromatic ones, and often emphasizing strong pulse and rhythm. Self-published by Activist Music, her works are heard weekly in concerts and broadcasts around the world, and appear on many artists’ CDs, including those for the Cambria Master Recordings, Innova Recordings, Capstone, Crystal, Centaur, DC Records, and Oehms Classics labels, among others. Educated at The Juilliard School and Manhattan School of Music as a student of Ursula Mamlok and John Corigliano, Ms. Shapiro has received honors and awards including those from The American Music Center, ASCAP, the American Composers Forum, Mu Phi Epsilon, the California Arts Council and the MacDowell Colony.

Performance highlights include Shapiro's Sonata for Piano at the Beijing Modern Music Festival in China, For My Father from her Piano Suite No. 1: The Resonance of Childhood on the MoMA of New York series "The American Season" in Berlin, Desert Tide premiered at the Stellenbosch New Music and Art Festival in South Africa, Trio for Clarinet, Violin and Piano at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C. and At the Abyss performed at Carnegie Hall in New York. Other notable works in her catalog include Deep, a work for contrabassoon and electronics; a flute quartet, Bioplasm; and a string quintet, Current Events.

Ms. Shapiro is a very active participant in the Los Angeles art music community, and is President of the Board of Directors of The American Composers Forum of Los Angeles and Moderator of ACF-LA’s popular Composers Salon series, for which she has interviewed over 70 composers. She has served as an officer on the boards of national music organizations including NACUSA, The College Music Society, and The Society of Composers & Lyricists, and is on the Advisory Board of the Los Angeles City College Music Department. Alex greatly enjoys guest lecturing at universities and conservatories where she discusses not only music with the students, but career and business information as well. She has been a featured speaker at music events including NARAS’ "Grammy® in the Schools," the International Alliance for Women in Music's International Congress of Women in Music, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s First Nights series at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

A theme in Alex's life has been her involvement and volunteerism in issues related to music as well as those only obliquely so. She served on the Board of Directors of the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California from 1990 to 1996, including a term as the 30,000-member affiliate's Vice President. In her capacity as the Chairperson of the ACLU/SC's State and National Legislation Committee, Shapiro produced three Conferences that brought State senators, Assembly members, clergy and community leaders together for day-long seminars to openly debate current issues, often related to the same free speech and First Amendment rights upon which all artists rely. Alex is the recipient of three awards from the ACLU honoring her activism, including being named the 1993 Chapter Activist of the Year.

Alex Shapiro's website offers a comprehensive overview of her work, including current concert information, CD releases, full biography, score samples, program notes and audio excerpts of many of the pieces in her catalog. Alex resides in Malibu and Santa Barbara, California, and when she's not composing she can be found in or on the ocean, sailing, sea kayaking or exploring the tide pools.

Recent Works

“Vista” (2005) (Violin and Electronic Soundscape on CD).
“Chakra Suite” (2005) (Indian 32-string Veena, Tabla, Guitar and Electronic Soundscape on CD).
“Unhinged” (2005) (Electronics).
“Desert Tide” (2005) (Soprano Saxophone and Electronic Soundscape on CD).
“Deep” (2004) (Contrabassoon and Electronic Soundscape on CD).
“Bioplasm” (2004) (Flute Quartet: 1 piccolo, 2 C flutes, 2 Alto flutes, 2 Bass flutes).
“Elegy” (2004) (Trumpet, Cello and Piano).
“Plasma” (2004)
“Sea Song” (2004) (Solo Bb Clarinet).
“Current Events” (2003) (String Quintet: 2 violins, 2 violas, 1 cello).
“At the Abyss” (2003) (Piano, Marimba, Vibraphone, Metal percussion).
“Celebrate!” (2003) (SSA Choir and Piano).
“Desert Passage” (2002) (Violin, Tenor Saxophone and Piano).
“Water Crossing” (2002) (Bb Clarinet and Electronic Soundscape on CD).
“Celebrate!” (2002) (SATB Choir and Piano).
“Intermezzo for Violin and Harp” (2002)
“Desert Notes” (2001) (Oboe, Bassoon and Piano).
“Desert Passage” (2001) (Violin, Cello and Piano).
“Desert Waves” (2001) (5-String Electric Violin and Electronic Soundscape on CD).
“Of Air and Touch” (2001) (Oboe and Piano).
“Of Wood and Touch” (2001) (Cello and Piano).
“Re:pair” (2001) (Flute and Oboe).
“Voila!” (2001) (Solo Viola).
“Slip” (2001) (Harpsichord and Violin)
“Re:pair” (2001) (Flute and Bassoon).
“Re:pair” (2001) (Bassoon duet).
“Fanfare for Four” (2001) (Bb Trumpet, French horn, Trombone, Tuba).
“Of Bow and Touch” (2000) (Double Bass and Piano).
“Re:pair” (2000) (Flute duet).
“Introspect” (2000) (String Quartet).
“Intermezzo for Clarinet and Harp” (2000)
“Re:pair: for Two Baroque Flutes” (2000) (Baroque Flute duet).
“Music for Two Big Instruments” (2000) (Tuba and Piano).
“Transplant” (1999) (Solo Organ).
“Shiny Kiss” (1999) (Solo Flute).
“Of Breath and Touch” (1999) (Bassoon and Piano).
“Journey” (1999) (5-String Electric Violin and Electronic Soundscape on CD).
“Evensong Suite for Flute, Clarinet, Bassoon and Piano” (1999)
“Piano Trio No. 1: Elegy” (1999) (Violin, Cello and Piano).
“Trio for Clarinet, Violin and Piano” (1998)
“Intermezzo for Piano” (1998)
“Intermezzo for Clarinet and Piano” (1998)
“Sonata for Piano” (1997; re-copyrighted 1999)
“Piano Suite No. 1: The Resonance of Childhood” (1996) (Solo Piano).

Discography

Clariphonia: Music of the 20th Century on Clarinet, Cambria Master Recordings 1125. Release date: April 2001.
Trio for Clarinet, Violin and Piano; Berkeley Price, clarinet; Nancy Roth, violin; Deon Nielsen Price, piano.

New American Piano Music, Innova Recordings 552. Release date: May 2001.
Sonata for Piano; Teresa McCollough, piano.

Music for Hammers and Sticks, Innova Recordings 630. Release date: February 2005.
At the Abyss; Teresa McCollough, piano,
Thomas Burritt, marimba and vibraphone; Peggy Benkeser, percussion.

Above and Beyond, LAFQ Records 0605. Release date: August 2005.
Bioplasm; The Los Angeles Flute Quartet:
Colleen Carroll, Eileen Holt-Helwig, Lisa-Maree Amos and Peter Sheridan.

Coast to Coast, Baer Tracks Music 001. Release date: September 2005.
Music for Two Big Instruments; Alan Baer, tuba; Bradley Haag, piano.

Beck and Call, Crystal Records 834 CD. Release date: November 2005.
Deep; Carolyn Beck, contrabassoon(with electronics)
Of Breath and Touch; Carolyn Beck, bassoon; Delores Stevens, piano.

Californian Concert, Oehms Classics/WDR OC 534. Release date: February 1 2006.
For My Father, from Piano Suite No. 1: The Resonance of Childhood; Susanne Kessel, piano.

La Discordantia, DC Records. Release date: February 1 2006.
Slip; Antonio D’Andrea, violin; Maria Clotilde Sieni, harpsichord.

External Links

Sigma Alpha Iota Composers Bureau (biography)

Sounding Board (article)

New Music Box (article)

New Music Forum (interview)

Kalvos and Damian's New Music Bazaar (radio interview)