Taylor, Clifford
Taylor, Clifford
Taylor, Clifford, American composer and teacher; b. Avalon, Pa., Oct. 20, 1923; d. Abington, Pa., Sept. 19, 1987. He studied composition with Lopatnikoff at the Carnegie-Mellon Univ. in Pittsburgh, and with Fine, Hindemith, Piston, and Thompson at Harvard Univ. (M.A., 1950). He taught at Chatham Coll. in Pittsburgh (1950-63), and in 1963 joined the faculty of Temple Univ. in Philadelphia.
Works
dramatic: Opera: The Freak Show (1975). ORCH.: Theme and Variations (1951); Concerto Grosso for Strings (1957); 3 syms.: No. 1 (1958), No. 2 (1965; Philadelphia, Dec. 16, 1970), and No. 3 (1978); Concerto for Organ and Chamber Orch. (1963); Sinfonia Seria for Concert Band, Flute, and Baritone Horn (1965); Piano Concerto (1974). CHAMBER: Violin Sonata (1952); String Quartet for Amateurs (1959); Trio for Clarinet, Cello, and Piano (1959-60); 2 string quartets (1960, 1978); Concert Duo for Violin and Cello (1961); Duo for Saxophone and Trombone (1965); Movement for 3 for Violin, Cello, and Piano (1967); Serenade for Percussion Ensemble (1967); 5 Poems for Oboe and 5 Brasses (1971). Piano: 2 sonatas (1952, 1978); Fantasia and Fugue (1959); 30 Ideas (1972); 36 More Ideas (1976). VOCAL: Numerous a cappella choruses, including choral settings of Western Pennsylvania folk songs (1958) and A Pageant of Characters from William Shakespeare for Chorus and Soloists (1964); songs.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire