Richter, Marga

Richter, Marga , American composer; b. Reedsburg, Wise., Oct. 21, 1926. She was prepared for a musical career by her mother, Inez Chandler-Richter, a soprano. She studied at the MacPhail School of Music in Minneapolis, and in 1943 entered the Juilliard School of Music in N.Y., where she studied piano with Tureck and composition with Persichetti and Bergsma, graduating in 1949 (M.S., 1951). She received 30 annual ASCAP awards (1966–95) and 2 grants from the NEA (1977, 1979). Her compositions reflect a pragmatic modern trend without rigid adherence to any particular doctrine or technique; the overriding concern is aural.

Works

DRAMATIC: Ballet : Abyss (1964; Cannes, Feb. 5, 1965); Bird of Yearning (1967; as Der Türm, Cologne, Oct. 30, 1969; version for Piano, 1976). ORCH. : 2 piano concertos: No. 1 (1955) and No. 2, Landscapes of the Mind I (1968–74; Tucson, March 19, 1976, Masselos soloist); Lament for Strings (1956); Aria and Toccata for Viola and String Orch. (1956–57); Variations on a Sarabande (1959); 8 Pieces (1961; originally for Piano); Fragments (1976); Country Auction for School Band (1976); Blackberry Vines and Winter Fruit (North Bennington, Vt., Oct. 17, 1976); Music for 3 Quintets and Orch. (1978–80); Düsseldorf Concerto for Solo Flute, Solo Viola, Harp, Percussion, and String Ensemble (1981–82; Salzburg, May 20, 1982); Out of Shadows and Solitude (1985; Chicago, Dec. 9, 1988); Quantum Quirks of a Quick Quaint Quark (1991; Brookville, N.Y., April 25, 1992); …beside the still waters: Variations and Interludes, concerto for Piano, Violin, Cello, and Orch. (1992; Greensboro, N.C., July 3, 1993). CHAMBER : 1 for 2 and 2 for 3 for Trombone Duet and Trio (1947; rev. 1974); Clarinet Sonata (1948); 2 string quartets (1950, withdrawn; 1958); Ricercare for Brass Quartet (1958); Darkening of the Light for Viola (1961; version for Cello, 1976); Suite for Violin and Piano (1964); Landscapes of the Mind II for Violin and Piano (1971) and III for Piano Trio (1979); Pastorale for 2 Oboes (1975); Sonora for 2 Clarinets and Piano (1981); Seacliff Variations for Piano, Violin, Viola, and Cello (1984); Qhanri (Snow Mountain), Tibetan variations for Cello and Piano (1988); Obsessions for Trombone (1990). KEYBOARD: Piano : Sonata (1954–55); Melodrama for 2 Pianos (1958); Variations on a Theme by Latimer for Piano, 4-Hands (1964); Remembrances (1971); Requiem (1976); Exequy (1980); Quantum Quirks of a Quick Quaint Quark No. 3 (1993). Organ : Quantum Quirks of a Quick Quaint Quark No. 2 (1992). VOCAL : Do Not Press My Hands for Vocal Sextet (1981); Into My Heart, 7 poems for Chorus, Oboe, Violin, Brass Sextet, and Percussion (1990); choruses; songs.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire