North, Alex
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North was born on Dec. 4, 1910, in Chester, PA; attended the Curtis Institute, Juilliard School, and Moscow Conservatory; became music director of the German Theater Group and the Latvian State Theater, and the only American member of the Union of Soviet Composers; returned to the US in 1935; studied with Ernst Toch and Aaron Copland in NY, and composed ballet scores for Martha Graham, Hanya Holm, and Agnes de Mille; composed for the NY stage, including scores for Life and death of an American (1939), Of V we sing (1942), and Death of a salesman (1949); wrote music for some 50 documentary shorts between 1937-50; in 1939 went to Mexico as music director for the Anna Sokolow dance troupe and studied with Silvestre Revueltas; served as a captain in the US Army in World War II; his Revue for clarinet and orchestra was performed by Benny Goodman and the NY Philharmonic under Leonard Bernstein in 1946; began scoring feature films in the early 1950s, becoming a leading Hollywood composer; his musical language encompasses dissonance and lyricism, and ranges from chamber to symphonic proportions; he was nominated for 15 Academy Awards but did not win one until 1986, when the Motion Picture Academy presented him with an honorary life-achievement award; died in 1991.
From the description of Motion picture music collection, 1951-1969. (University of California, Los Angeles). WorldCat record id: 39929153
Biography
North was born on Dec. 4, 1910, in Chester, PA; attended the Curtis Institute, Juilliard School, and Moscow Conservatory; became music director of the German Theater Group and the Latvian State Theater, and the only American member of the Union of Soviet Composers; returned to the US in 1935; studied with Ernst Toch and Aaron Copland in NY, and composed ballet scores for Martha Graham, Hanya Holm, and Agnes de Mille; composed for the NY stage, including scores for Life and death of an American (1939), Of V we sing (1942), and Death of a salesman (1949); wrote music for some 50 documentary shorts between 1937-50; in 1939 went to Mexico as music director for the Anna Sokolow dance troupe and studied with Silvestre Revueltas; served as a captain in the US Army in World War II; his Revue for clarinet and orchestra was performed by Benny Goodman and the NY Philharmonic under Leonard Bernstein in 1946; began scoring feature films in the early 1950s, becoming a leading Hollywood composer; his musical language encompasses dissonance and lyricism, and ranges from chamber to symphonic proportions; he was nominated for 15 Academy Awards but did not win one until 1986, when the Motion Picture Academy presented him with an honorary life-achievement award; died in 1991.
From the guide to the Alex North Collection of Motion Picture Music, 1951-1969, (University of California, Los Angeles. Library. Performing Arts Special Collections)
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Relation | Name |
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correspondedWith | American Ballet Theatre |
associatedWith | Bettis, Valerie. |
associatedWith | Frings, Ketti. |
associatedWith | Matthews, J. B. (Joseph Brown), 1894-1966 |
associatedWith | NDWT Archives (University of Guelph) |
associatedWith | Powell, Edward B. |
correspondedWith | Slonimsky, Nicolas, 1894-1995 |
associatedWith | Stephen, Inc. |
correspondedWith | United States. Joint Army and Navy Committee on Welfare and Recreation. Sub-Committee on Music |
associatedWith | Williams, Tennessee, 1911-1983. |
Person
Birth 1910-12-04
Death 1991-09-08
Americans
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North, Alex
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