Nobre, Marlos

Nobre, Marlos, notable Brazilian composer, pianist, and conductor; b. Recife, Feb. 18, 1939. He studied piano and theory at the Pernambuco Cons, of Music (1948–59). Following studies in composition with Koellreutter and Guarnieri (1960–62), he held a Rockefeller Foundation scholarship to pursue training with Ginastera, Messiaen, Copland, and Dallapiccola at the Latin American Center in Buenos Aires (1963–64). In 1969 he worked with Goehr and Schuller at the Berkshire Music Center in Tanglewood and studied at the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center in N.Y. From 1971 to 1976 he was music director of Radio MEC and the National Sym. Orch. in Rio de Janeiro, and then was the first director of the National Inst. of Music (1976–79). In 1982–83 he was in Berlin under the sponsorship of the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst. He held a Guggenheim fellowship in 1985–86. In 1986–87 he was president of the international Music Council of UNESCO. In 1992 he was a visiting prof. at Yale Univ. As a pianist and conductor, he appeared in South America and Europe. In 1988 he was made an Officer of the Order of Merit of Brasilia, in 1989 an Officer of the Rio Branco Order of Brazil, and in 1994 an Officier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France. Nobre has developed a strong, individual style in which various contemporary techniques are effectively complemented by his inventive handling of native musical elements.

Works

dramatic: ballet:Football (1980); Saga Marista (1992; Recife, April 2, 1998). orch.: Concertino for Piano and Strings (Rio de Janeiro, Nov. 23, 1959); Divertimento for Piano and Orch. (1963; Rio de Janeiro, Nov. 10, 1965); Convergências (Rio de Janeiro, June 11, 1968; rev. version, Maracaibo, Nov. 20, 1977); Desafio I for Viola and Strings (1968; Rio de Janeiro, Oct. 30, 1974; also for Viola and Piano), II for Cello and Strings (1968; Porto Alegre, Nov. 17, 1978; also for Cello and Piano), III for Violin and Strings (1968; Recife, May 11, 1978; also for Violin and Piano), IV for Double Bass and Strings (1968; also for Double Bass and Piano), VI for Strings (1968–79), VII for Piano and Strings (1968–80; Fribourg, May 26, 1980), VIII for Alto Saxophone and Strings (1982; also for Saxophone and Piano), IX for Flute and Strings (1983; also for Flute and Piano), X for Oboe and Strings (1986; also for Oboe and Piano), XI for Clarinet and Strings (1985; also for Clarinet and Piano), XII for Bassoon and Strings (1986; also for Bassoon and Piano), XIII for Horn and Strings (1987; also for Horn and Piano), XIV for Trumpet and Strings (1988; also for Trumpet and Piano); XV for Trombone and Strings (1989; also for Trombone and Piano), XVI for Tuba and Strings (1990; also for Tuba and Piano), and XVII for Bass Clarinet and Strings (1992; also for Bass Clarinet and Piano); Concerto breve for Piano and Orch. (Rio de Janeiro, May 27, 1969); Ludus instrumentails for Chamber Orch. (Tanglewood, Aug. 18, 1969); Biosfera for Strings (1970; Lisbon, Jan. 27, 1971); Mosaico (Rio de Janeiro, May 12, 1970); In memoriam (1973–76; Rio de Janeiro, Sept. 18, 1976); Concerto I (1976) and II (Bloomington, Ind., Aug. 6, 1981) for Strings; Guitar Concerto (1980); Elegia for Strings (Recife, Dec. 21, 1981); Abertura festiva (Rio de Janeiro, Oct. 10, 1982); Concerto for Piano and Strings (Nice, July 24, 1984); 4 Latin American Dances for Chamber or Full Orch. (1989); Concerto for Trumpet and Strings (1989); Concertante do imaginário for Piano and Strings (Rio de Janeiro, Dec. 15, 1989); Xingú (1989); Double Concerto for 2 Guitars and Orch. (1995; São Paulo, Sept. 10, 1998); Passacaglia (Recife, Oct. 20, 1997); Amazonia for Winds, Brass, Piano, Guitar, Double Basses, and Percussion (Belém, June 6, 1998); Chacona Amazonica for Winds, Brass, Percussion, Double Basses, and Piano (São Paulo, July 15, 1999). chamber: Trio for Violin, Cello, and Piano (Rio de Janeiro, Nov. 28, 1960); Musicamera for Chamber Ensemble (1962; N.Y., April 29, 1981); Sonata for Solo Viola (1963; Rio de Janeiro, Dec. 16, 1968); Variações rítmicas for Piano and Percussion (Buenos Aires, Nov. 25, 1963); 2 string quartets: No. 1 (Madrid, Oct. 23, 1967) and No. 2 (1985); Canticum instrumentale for Flute, Harp, Piano, and Timpani (1967); Wind Quintet (1968); Tropicale for Piccolo, Clarinet, Piano, and Percussion (Rio de Janeiro, March 15, 1968); Sonâncias I for Piano and Percussion (Munich, Aug. 4, 1972), Í7 for Flute, Guitar, Piano, and Percussion (1980), and III for 2 Pianos and Percussion (Geneva, Oct. 27, 1980); Solo I for Flute (Rio de Janeiro, May 23, 1984), 77 for Bass Clarinet (1994), and 777 for Vibraphone (1994); Círculos mágicos for Bass Clarinet and Percussion (1989); Duo for Guitar and Percussion (1989); Sonante I for Marimba (Oviedo, April 19, 1994), 77 for Mallet Percussion (1995), and 777 for Flute, Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Violin, Cello, Piano, and Guitar (1995); also numerous guitar pieces, including Momentos I-VII (1974–84), Homenagem a Villa-Lobos (1977; N.Y., April 17, 1978), Fandango for Guitar Ensemble (1985), Reminiscências (1990; London, Sept. 8, 1991), Relembrando (1990), and Re-memórias (1993). piano:Nazarethiana (1960); 16 Variations on a Theme by Frutuoso Vianna (1962; Brasilia, Aug. 7, 1970); 2 sonatas: No. 1, Sonata breve (1966), and No. 2 (on a theme by Bartók; 1977); Tango (Toronto, Sept. 25, 1984). vocal:Ukrin-makrinkrin for Soprano, Piccolo, Oboe, Horn, and Piano (Buenos Aires, Nov. 20, 1964); O canto multiplicado for Voice and String Orch. (Rio de Janeiro, Aug. 5, 1972; also for Voice and Piano); Yanománi for Tenor, Chorus, and Guitar (1980; Fribourg, Feb. 6, 1981); Cantata do Chimborazo for Soloists, Chorus, and Orch. (1982; Maracaibo, Oct. 24, 1983); Columbus, cantata for Soloists, Chorus, and Orch. (1990); Amazonia (Desafio XVIII) for Voice and Guitar (1993; N.Y., April 4, 1994); Canto a Garcia Lorca for Voice and Cello Octet (1998; Amsterdam, Sept. 13, 1999); Beiramar for Voice and Cello Octet (Amsterdam, Sept. 13, 1999); Tres Cauciones Negras for Voice and Cello Octet (Assen, Oct. 10, 1999); other choral pieces; songs.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis Mclntire