Schudel, Thomas (Michael)

Schudel, Thomas (Michael), American-born Canadian composer and teacher; b. Defiance, Ohio, Sept. 8, 1937. He studied composition with Marshall Barnes and bassoon with George Wilson at Ohio State Univ. (B.S., 1959; M.A., 1961), and then composition with Leslie Bassett and Ross Lee Finney at the Univ. of Mich. (D.M.A., 1971). He was principal bassoonist in the Regina Sym. Orch. in Saskatchewan from 1964 to 1967, and again from 1968 to 1974. In 1964 he joined the faculty of the Univ. of Saskatchewan, Regina campus (later the Univ. of Regina), where he was made an asst. prof. in 1966, an assoc. prof. in 1972, and a prof. in 1977. He became a naturalized Canadian citizen in 1974. In 1972 his first Sym. won first prize in the City of Trieste Competition for symphonic composition.

Works

DRAMATIC : Oresteia, incidental music (1981); The Enchanted Cat, children’s operetta (1992; Prairie Opera, March 21, 1993). ORCH .: 2 syms.: No. 1 (1971; Trieste, Oct. 20, 1972) and No. 2 (1983; Regina, Feb. 1985); Variations (1977); Winterpiece for Chamber Orch. and Dancers (1979); Elegy and Exaltation for Concert Band (1984); Concerto for Piccolo, Strings, and Percussion (1988; Regina, Feb. 5, 1989); Concerto for Alto Trombone and Chamber Orch. (Regina, Nov. 24, 1990); A Tangled Web for Chamber Orch. (Regina, May 2, 1993); Sinfonia Concertante for Saxophone Quartet and Wind Ensemble (Winnipeg, Feb. 10, 1994). CHAMBER: Set No. 2 for Wind and Brass Quintets (1963); Violin Sonata (1966); String Quartet 1967 (1967); Chanson and Minuet for Flute and Piano (1977); Trio for 3 Percussionists (1977); Triptych for Chamber Wind Ensemble (1978); Richter 7.8 for 12 Tubas or Low Brass (1979); Etchings for Horn and Piano (1985); Incantations for Double Bass and Percussion (1986); Dialogues for Trombone and Percussion (1987); Pentagram for Saxophone Quartet and Percussion (1987); 5 Pastels for Oboe and Percussion (1990); Trigon for 2 Saxophones and Percussion (1992); 3 Dimensions for Oboe and String Quartet (1995). VOCAL : Choral : Psalm 23 (1968); A Dream Within a Dream, Ale, and Eldorado, after Poe (1985); Pick Up the Earth, Gold and Rose, and Another Love Poem, after Anne Campbell (1994). Other: Queer Cornered Cap for Mezzo-soprano, Flute, and Marimba, after Anne Campbell (1982); A.C.T.S. for Narrator, Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Double Bass, and Percussion, after Anne Campbell (1986); Edging Out for Soprano, Flute, Oboe, and Vibraphone, after Anne Campbell (1987); An Emily Dickinson Folio for Soprano, Flute, Clarinet, Viola, Vibraphone, and Piano (1991); A Christina Rossetti Folio for Soprano, Alto Saxophone, and Marimba (1999); various songs.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire