Steven Stucky

Steven Stucky, (Steven Edward Stucky), American composer (born Nov. 7, 1949, Hutchinson, Kan.—died Feb. 14, 2016, Ithaca, N.Y.), wrote engaging and well-crafted music that was admired for its craftsmanship and command of colour; much of his creative output was commissioned by major orchestras. His Second Concerto for Orchestra (2004) won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for music. Stucky studied composition at Baylor University, from which he graduated in 1971, and at Cornell University, where he earned (1978) a doctorate. He taught (1980–2014) at Cornell and headed (1992–97) its music department. His popular 1986 work Dreamwaltzes brought him to the attention of André Previn, musical director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Stucky was in 1988 appointed the orchestra’s composer in residence, a post he held for more than 20 years. Notable works among his extensive output include the orchestra pieces Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary, After Purcell (1992), the tone poem Silent Spring (2011), the four-part Symphony (2012), and Nell’ombra, nella luce (2000) for string quartet. A recording of his 1997 work Cradle Songs was included on a 1999 album by the vocal group Chanticleer that won a Grammy Award, and his piano piece Album Leaves (2002) was part of a recording by Gloria Cheng that garnered a 2008 Grammy. Stucky’s later works include the oratorio August 4, 1964, the choral work Take Him, Earth, and Winter Stars, for a mixed a cappella chorus, as well as the comic opera The Classical Style: An Opera (of Sorts) (2014, based on a book of criticism). In addition, Stucky’s 1981 book Lutoslawski and His Music received the ASCAP Deems Taylor Award for excellence in writing about music. Stucky was a member of both the American Academy of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.