(b. 4 March 1928, Mannheim).
American composer, born in Germany, of mostly orchestral, chamber, choral, vocal, piano, and organ works that have been performed throughout the world; he is also active as a conductor and scholar.
Prof. Adler is the son of the cantor and composer Hugo Chaim Adler (b. 1894 – d. 1955). He studied violin with Albert Levy as a child and later studied composition with Herbert Fromm and Hugo Norden at Boston University, where he earned his BMus in 1948. He then studied with Aaron Copland, Paul Hindemith, Paul Pisk, Walter Piston, and Randall Thompson at Harvard University, where he earned his MA in 1950, and also studied conducting with Serge Koussevitzky at the Tanglewood Music Festival in Massachusetts in 1949. He received honorary doctorates from the Community Music School of Webster University in Missouri, Saint Mary's College in Indiana, Southern Methodist University, and Wake Forest University from 1968–79.
Among his honours are the Medal of Honor from the United States Army (1953, for his organisation of the Seventh Army Symphony Orchestra), the Charles Ives Living Prize (1961), the Lillian Fairchild Award (1974), and the Deems Taylor Award (1983, for The Study of Orchestration). Other honours include the Composer of the Year Award from MTNA (1988–89), the Award of the American Academy of Arts and Letters (1990) and the Special Citation from the American Foundation of Music Clubs (2001). In addition, he has received grants from the Rockefeller Foundation (1965) and the Ford Foundation (1966–71), as well as five fellowships to the MacDowell Colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire (1954–55, 1957, 1959, 1964) and the Guggenheim Fellowship (1975–76). He has been a member of the Academia Chilena de Bellas Artes since 1993, the Freie Akademie der Künste Rhein-Neckar in Mannheim since 1999 and the American Academy of Arts and Letters since 2001.
As a conductor, he has led orchestras throughout the USA and conducted the Seventh Army Symphony Orchestra in Europe from 1950–52. He served as music director at Temple Emanu-El in Dallas from 1953–66 and of the Dallas Chorale and Dallas Lyric Theater from 1954–58.
As a scholar, he has written the books Anthology for the Teaching of Choral Conducting (1971, Holt, Rinehart & Winston; second edition, 1985, Schirmer Books), Sight Singing (1979, second edition, 1997, W. W. Norton & Company) and The Study of Orchestration (1982, second edition, 1989, third edition, 2001, W. W. Norton & Company).
He taught fine arts at the Hockaday School in Dallas from 1955–66 and taught as a professor of composition at University of North Texas in Denton from 1957–66. He then taught at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York from 1966–95, where he served as chair of the department of composition from 1974–95 and retired as professor emeritus. He has taught at the Juilliard School in New York, New York since 1997. He has given lectures throughout the Americas and in Asia and Europe. He served as the Honorary Professorial Fellow at Cardiff University in 1984–85.
He has lived in the USA since 1939.
In addition to the works listed below, he has made numerous arrangements and has written didactic music.
COMPLETE LIST OF WORKS (dates unavailable for some works)
STAGE:
The Outcast of Poker Flat (opera in 1 act, libretto by Judah Stampfer), soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor, baritone, bass, male chorus, orchestra, 1959
The Wrestler (opera in 1 act, libretto by Judah Stampfer), soprano, mezzo-soprano, 3 tenors, 3 baritones, children's chorus, female chorus, male chorus, orchestra, 1971
The Lodge of Shadows (music drama, text by Jarold Ramsey), baritone, dance troupe, small orchestra, 1973
The Disappointment (reconstruction of a ballad opera from the USA, libretto by Andrew Barton), soprano, mezzo-soprano, 2 tenors, 4 baritones, 2 flutes, oboe, harpsichord, string quartet, double bass, 1974
The Waking (ballet, scenario by the composer, after Countee Cullen, Georgia Douglas Johnson, Theodore Roethke, James Stephens), children's chorus, mixed chorus, orchestra, 1978
ORCHESTRAL:
Concert Piece, brass, 1946
Praeludium, brass, 1947
Divertimento, brass, 1948
Symphony No. 1, 1953
Toccata, large orchestra, 1954
Concertino No. 1, string orchestra, 1955
The Feast of Lights, 1955
Summer Stock, 1955
Symphony No. 2, 1957
Jubilee, large orchestra, 1958
Southwestern Sketches, symphonic band, 1960
Symphony No. 3, 'Diptych', symphonic band, 1960, revised 1980–81
Rhapsody, violin, orchestra, 1961
Song and Dance, viola, orchestra, 1961
Elegy, string orchestra, 1962
Four Early American Folksongs, string orchestra, 1962
Requiescat in pace (in memoriam John F. Kennedy), 1963
Festive Prelude, symphonic band, 1965
Symphony No. 4, 'Geometrics', 1967
City by the Lake, 1968
Concerto, symphonic band, 1968
Five Vignettes, 12 trombones, 1968
Brass Fragments, brass, 1970
Concerto, organ, orchestra, 1970
Concerto for Orchestra, 1971
Histrionics, symphonic band, 1971
Sinfonietta, 1971
Concertino No. 2, string orchestra, 1976
A Little Bit of..., string orchestra, 1976
A Little Night and Day Music, symphonic band, 1976
Concerto, flute, orchestra, 1977
The Force of Credulity, symphonic band, 1977
An American Duo, symphonic band, 1981
Joi, Amor, Cortezia, small orchestra, 1982
Merrymakers, symphonic band, 1982
Concerto No. 1, piano, orchestra, 1983
In Just Spring, large orchestra, 1984
Concerto, 4 saxophones, orchestra, 1985
Symphony No. 6, 1985
Double Visions, symphonic band, 1987
Beyond the Land (symphony), 1988
The Fixed Desire of the Human Heart, 1988
Shadow Dances, large orchestra, 1990
Ultralight, symphonic band, 1990
Shir Hamaalot (concerto), flute, oboe, clarinet, French horn, bassoon, orchestra, 1991
To Celebrate a Miracle, 1991 (also version for symphonic band, 1999)
Centennial, 1993
Concertino No. 3, string orchestra, 1993
Concerto, guitar, orchestra, 1994
Concerto, cello, orchestra, 1995
Art Creates Artists, large orchestra, 1996
Concerto No. 2, piano, orchestra, 1996
Lux Perpetua (concerto), organ, large orchestra, 1997
Serenata concertante, flute, oboe, clarinet, alto saxophone, bassoon, symphonic band, 1997
Solemn March, symphonic band, 1997
American Airs and Dances, symphonic band, 1998
Dawn to Glory, symphonic band, 1998
Concerto, viola, orchestra, 1999
Concerto, French horn, orchestra, 2001
Show an Affirming Flame, 2001
Beyond the Pale, clarinet, string orchestra, 2002
CHAMBER MUSIC:
Sonata, French horn, piano, 1948
String Quartet No. 3, 1953, revised 1964
Sonata No. 2, violin, piano, 1956
Five Movements, French horn, 2 trumpets, trombone, tuba, 1963
String Quartet No. 4, 1963
Introduction and Capriccio, harp, 1964
Music for Eleven, 2 flutes, oboe, clarinet, bass clarinet, bassoon, 5 percussion, 1964
Piano Trio No. 1, violin, cello, piano, 1964
Four Studies, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, 1965 (its four sections may be performed separately: Flaunting, flute; Oboration, oboe; Clarinon, clarinet; Bassoonery, bassoon)
Sonata No. 3, violin, piano, 1965
Sonata, cello, 1965
Seven Epigrams, piccolo, flute, oboe, clarinet, bass clarinet, bassoon, 1966
Intrada, flute, oboe, clarinet, French horn, bassoon, 1967
Quintalogues, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, percussion, 1968
String Quartet No. 5, 1969
Canto I, trumpet, 1970
Canto II, bass trombone, 1970
Canto VI, double bass, 1971 (also version as Canto VIA, double bass, 2000)
Xenia, organ, percussion, 1971
Canto VII, tuba, 1972
A Dozen for Two, 2 violins, 1974
Four Dialogues, euphonium, marimba, 1974
Canto IV, alto saxophone, 1975
Déjà vu, 6 recorders, 1975
L'Olam vaed, cello, piano, 1975
Canto III, violin, 1976
Canto IX, timpani (+ rototoms), 1976
Aeolus, King of the Winds, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, 1977
Harobed, flute/clarinet, 1977
Line Drawings, 4 saxophones, 1978
Piano Trio No. 2, violin, cello, piano, 1978
Canto X, cello, 1979
Trumpet Triptych, 7 trumpets, 1979
Tubetudes, tuba, 1980
Sonata, flute, 1981
String Quartet No. 7, 1981
Gottschalkiana, French horn, 2 trumpets, trombone, tuba, 1982
Introit and Toccatina, 2 trumpets, organ, 1982
Trumpetry, 2 trumpets, 1983
Canto XI, French horn, 1984
Sonata, viola, piano, 1984
Acrostics, flute, oboe, clarinet, violin, cello, harpsichord, 1985
Double Portrait, violin, piano, 1985
Sonata, guitar, 1985
Sonata, oboe, piano, 1985
Madrigals, 6 flutes, 1986
Pasiphae, piano, percussion, 1987
Meadowmountetudes, violin, 1988
Canto XII, bassoon, 1989
Close Encounters, violin, cello, 1989
Sonata, clarinet, piano, 1989
Sonata No. 4, violin, piano, 1989
Sounding, alto saxophone, piano, 1989
Triolet, flute, harp, viola, 1989
String Quartet No. 8, 1990
Ports of Call, guitar, 2 violins, 1992
Into the Radiant Boundaries of Light, guitar, viola, 1993
Canto XIII, piccolo, 1994
Porgy and Bess' Rondo, marimba, 1994
Clarion Calls, trumpet, organ, 1995
Diary of a Journey, flute, bassoon, cello, 1995
Brahmsiana, 8 French horns, 1997
Canto XIV, clarinet, 1997
Canto XV, English horn, 1997
Pensive Soliloquy, alto saxophone, piano, 1997
Contrasting Inventions, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, 1998
Be Not Afraid: The Isle is Full of Noises, French horn, 2 trumpets, trombone, tuba, 1999
Divertissement, violin, marimba, 1999
Canto XVI, double bass, 2000
Piano Quintet, piano, string quartet, 2000
Romp, string quartet, 2000
Scherzo Schmerzo, French horn, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, tuba, percussion, 2000
CHORAL:
Five Choral Poems, mixed chorus, 1954
Three Encore Songs, mixed chorus, 1955
Three Madrigals, mixed chorus, 1955
In Nature's Ebb and Flow (texts by Lizette Woodworth Reese, Edwin Arlington Robinson, Wolfe+585, Emily Dickinson, Edna St. Vincent Millay), female chorus, piano, 1960
Shir chadash (service), baritone, mixed chorus, organ, 1960
Five American Folksongs, mixed chorus, 1961
The Vision of Isaiah (text from the Bible), baritone, mixed chorus, orchestra, 1962
B'Shaaray tefilah (service), baritone, mixed chorus, organ/orchestra, 1963
Contrasts, mixed chorus, 1964
Five Choral Pictures, mixed chorus, 1964
Shiru ladonay (service), mixed chorus/unison chorus, organ, 1965
Behold Your God (cantata, text from the Bible), mixed chorus, French horn, 2 trumpets, trombone, tuba, 1966 (also version for mixed chorus, organ, 1966)
The Binding (oratorio, text by Albert Friedlander, after the Bible), boy soprano, soprano, alto, tenor, bass, mixed chorus, orchestra, 1967
From out of Bondage (text from the Bible), soprano, alto, tenor, bass, mixed chorus, French horn, 2 trumpets, trombone, tuba, organ, percussion, 1968
Begin My Muse (song-cycle), male chorus, 5 percussion, 1969
Hinay yom hadin – Behold the Day of Judgment, tenor, 4 mixed choruses, 1969
Two Views of Love, male chorus, 1969
A Whole Bunch of Fun (cantata, texts by Gaius Valerius Catullus, Finjan, Thomas Moore, Ogden Nash, Theodore Roethke, Dr. Seuss), soprano, baritone, 3 mixed choruses, orchestra, 1969
Division, mixed chorus, 1971
Serenade (text by William Blake), mixed chorus, harp, symphonic band, 1971
Some Laughter, Some Tears, mixed chorus, 1971
Three Responses, mixed chorus, 1973
V'Shamru, mixed chorus, 1973
Listen to My Word, Lord, mixed chorus, organ, 1974
Seek Thy Servant, mixed chorus, 1974
We Believe: A Hymn of Faith (ecumenical mass), soprano, alto, tenor, bass, mixed chorus, flute, clarinet, alto saxophone, bassoon, violin, cello, amplified harpsichord, percussion, 1974
Blow the Wind Southerly, female chorus, 1975
Jubellied, mixed chorus, 1975
Leisure (madrigal), mixed chorus, 1976
Three Poems from the Chinese, mixed chorus, 1976
A Falling of Saints (text by Samuel Rosenbaum), tenor, bass, mixed chorus, orchestra, 1977
It Is to God I Shall Sing (text from the Book of Psalms), mixed chorus, organ, 1977
Azi v'zimrat ya, mixed chorus, 1978
Eli Tziyon, mixed chorus, 1978
N'Ilah Fragment, soprano, mixed chorus, 1979
Sayings of the Father, mixed chorus, piano, 1979
Sing Praises (text from Psalm 100), mixed chorus, 1979
Two Nonsense Songs, mixed chorus, piano, 1979
Two Shelley Songs (text by Percy Bysshe Shelley), mixed chorus, 1980 (each song may be performed separately: To–; The Fugitives)
Hashkivenu, baritone, mixed chorus, 1981
Jacob's Ladder, mixed chorus, organ, 1981
The Twenty-Third Psalm, tenor, mixed chorus, 1981
The Flames of Freedom, mixed chorus, piano, 1982
I Think Continually of Those (text by Sir Stephen Spender), mixed chorus, 1983
My Boy Willie, female chorus, piano, 1983
Never Was a Child So Lovely, female chorus, piano, 1983
The Way They Are, mixed chorus, 1983
Havdalah Service, mixed chorus, piano/organ, 1984
L'Cha dodi, mixed chorus, flute, piano/organ, 1984
Praise Thy Saving Power, male chorus, piano, 1984
To Freedom, mixed chorus, piano/organ, 1984
Psalm 146, mixed chorus, 1985
Rededication, male chorus, French horn, 2 trumpets, trombone, tuba, 1985
Twelve Songs of Praise, mixed chorus, organ, 1985
Choose Life (oratorio), mezzo-soprano, tenor, mixed chorus, orchestra, 1986
High Flight, mixed chorus, small orchestra, 1986
A Prayer for Peace, mixed chorus, piano, string orchestra, 1986
'Round the Globe (texts from folksongs), children's chorus/female chorus, piano, 1986
Shir Hamaalot, children's chorus/female chorus, piano, 1986
Farmer's Curst Wife, mixed chorus, 1987
Let Us Rejoice, mixed chorus, handbells, 1987
Ma tovu, cantor, mixed chorus, organ, 1987
To Remember: To Be Remembered (texts by Lionel Johnson, William Shakespeare), mixed chorus, 1987
Stars in the Dust (cantata), soloists, mixed chorus, orchestra, 1988
Any Human to Another (cantata, text by Theodore Roethke), mixed chorus, piano, string orchestra, 1989
Verses from Isaiah, mixed chorus, brass, organ, handbells, 1989
Yamim naraim I–II, mixed chorus, 1990–91
Ever since Babylon (cantata), soloists, mixed chorus, orchestra, 1991
A Prophecy of Peace, mixed chorus, 1992
A Prolific Source of Sorrow, mixed chorus, flute, 1994
Call to Worship, cantor, mixed chorus, organ, 1995
Family Portraits (text by Jimmy Carter), mixed chorus, symphonic band, 1995
Rogues and Lovers (texts from folksongs), mixed chorus, symphonic band, 1995
Five Sephardic Choruses, mixed chorus, piano, 1998
Psalm Trilogy, mixed chorus, 1998
Transfiguration (ecumenical mass), soprano, alto, mixed chorus, French horn, 2 trumpets, trombone, tuba, organ, 2000
Awake, Do Not Cast Us off, mixed chorus
The Feast of Lights, mixed chorus, piano/orchestra
The Hanukkah Story, female chorus, piano
How Long, O Lord?, 8 mixed voices, French horn, 2 trumpets, trombone, tuba, organ, 3 percussion
How Precious Is Thy Loving Kindness, soprano, mixed chorus
How Sweet the Sound, mixed chorus, piano/organ
A Hymn of Praise, tenor, mixed chorus
I Will Give Thanks unto the Lord, mixed chorus
Judah's Song of Praise, mixed chorus, piano/orchestra
O Lord, Awesome Is Your Name, mixed chorus, 2 trumpets, 2 trombones, organ
Praise the Lord, female chorus, piano
Praised by the Lord by Day, mixed chorus
Proclaim God's Greatness, mixed chorus, organ
Psalm 24, mixed chorus, brass
Psalm 40, mixed chorus
Psalm 67, mixed chorus
Psalm 96, mixed chorus
Psalm 100, mixed chorus
A Psalm of Praise, mixed chorus
Set Me as a Seal upon Thy Heart (text from the Song of Solomon), mezzo-soprano, mixed chorus
Song of Exultation, mixed chorus
A Song of Hanukkah, mixed chorus, piano/orchestra
A Song of Welcome, mixed chorus, piano
Spin Dreidel Spin, female chorus, piano
The Steps to Wisdom, 4 equal voices
Two Psalm Motets, mixed chorus
Two Songs of Hope, male chorus
Who Can Retell?, female chorus, piano
Wisdom Cometh with the Years, mixed chorus, orchestra
Yism'chu, mixed chorus
Yom Hashabbat, mixed chorus, flute, cello
VOCAL:
Three Songs about Nature (text by James Stephens), soprano, piano, 1950
Three Songs about Love (text from sources in Old English), high voice, piano, 1953
Three Songs about the Times of Man, medium voice, piano, 1954
In Thine Own Image (text by Fania Kruger), medium voice, piano, 1955
Miscellany (serenade), mezzo-soprano, English horn, string quartet, 1956
Two Songs from the Portuguese, mezzo-soprano, piano, 1956
Two Sacred Songs: A Woman of Valor, soprano/mezzo-soprano, organ, 1962
Two Songs for Three Years (texts by Ruth Whitman, Ogden Nash), baritone, piano, 1964
I Will Betroth Thee unto Me, soprano, organ, 1965
Wish for a Young Wife (song-cycle, text by Theodore Roethke), tenor, piano, 1966
Canto V (text by Hyam Plutzik), soprano, flute, cello, 3 percussion, 1968
Cupid Is (text by Delmore Schwartz), bass-baritone, piano, 1968
Lament, baritone, small orchestra, 1968
Songs with Winds, soprano, flute, oboe, clarinet, French horn, bassoon, 1969
Dabair eylai attah – Speak Thou to Me (text by Yehuda Amichai), soprano, piano/organ, 1970
Thou, mezzo-soprano, flute, 1972
Bar Mitzvah, medium voice, organ, 1974
My God, I Believe in You So Much, medium voice, organ, 1974
The Passionate Sword (texts by Jean Starr Untermeyer, Louis Untermeyer), baritone, flute, clarinet, violin, cello, percussion, 1974
Nuptial Scene (text from a 15th-century poem on marriage in Catalan–Hebrew), mezzo-soprano, flute, oboe, bass clarinet, violin, viola, cello, celesta, percussion, 1975
String Quartet No. 6 (text by Walt Whitman), mezzo-soprano/baritone, string quartet, 1975
Symphony No. 5, 'We Are the Echoes' (texts by Cyrus Adler, A. J. Heschel, J. Robert Oppenheimer, Muriel Rukeyser, Karl Wolfskehl), mezzo-soprano, large orchestra, 1975
Of Saints and Sinners (texts by Irving Feldman, the Bible, Walter Kaufmann, Robert Mezey, Charles Reznikoff), medium voice, piano, 1976
Of Musique, Poetrie, Nature, and Love (text by Robert Herrick), mezzo-soprano, flute, piano, 1978
Ask Me, mezzo-soprano, ensemble, 1979
Snow Tracks (texts by poets from the USA), high voice, symphonic band, 1981
The Rocking Horse Winner, soprano, oboe, cello, piano, 1984
Many Times, high voice, piano, 1984
Unholy Sonnets (text by John Donne), tenor, piano, 1985
Two Traditional Japanese Songs, soprano, piano, 1985
Three Psalms, medium voice, organ, 1987
Just So, high voice, piano, 1988
Love Song (text by Rainer Maria Rilke), soprano, oboe, 1989
Domestic Tranquillity, soprano, oboe, piano, 1992
Reconciliation, soprano, flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, 1992
Primavera amarilla (text by Juan Ramón Jiménez), mezzo-soprano, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, 1993
Time in Tempest Everywhere (text by W. H. Auden), soprano, oboe, piano, small orchestra, 1993
May and Moritz, speaker, orchestra, 1997
Those Were the Days (text by Donald Justice), soprano, piano, 2000
The Challenge of the Muse (text by Yehuda Alharizi), soprano, tenor, orchestra, 2003
PIANO:
Capriccio, 1954
Sonata breve, 1963
Canto VIII, 1973
Gradus, Books I–III, 1979
Sonatina, 1979
Thy Song Expands My Spirit, 1980
The Sense of Touch, 1981
Duo Sonata, 2 pianos, 1983
The Road to Terpsichore: A Suite of Dances, 1988
Rushing Waters (toccata), 1999
Four Portraits, 2002
ORGAN:
Two Meditations, 1955, revised 1964
Toccata, Recitation and Postlude, 1959
The Feast of Weeks, 1962
The Lord of All, 1962
Welcoming the Sabbath, 1963
Reflection, 1979
Fantasia on the Name Craighead, 1980
Wind Songs, 1982
Hymnset, 1983
Epistrophe (sonata), 1990
Festive Proclamations, 1995
HARPSICHORD:
Sonata, 1982
Bridges to Span Diversity, 1989