Jan Williams

Jan Williams (born Jan Gardner Williams, July 17, 1939 in Utica, New York) is a percussionist, arts administrator, teacher, conductor, and composer who has championed avant-garde and progressive music in the United States. He is recognized as an important proponent of percussion performance and its literature.^[1]

Biography

Williams' first studied drums in elementary school in Utica, NY under George Claesgens. After experience playing snare drum in marching and concert bands, he began to study timpani while in high school. At Clarkson University (Potsdam, New York), then called Clarkson College, he elected an Electrical Engineering major because his teachers discouraged music as a career. Within a year, he was out of school, and the following fall he entered the Eastman School of Music to study with William Street, who advised Williams to study the keyboard percussion instruments seriously. Sometime during that year at Eastman, Williams read a magazine article that praised the work of Paul Price, a percussion teacher at the Manhattan School of Music who was performing new music for percussion ensemble. In the Fall of 1959, Williams moved to New York City to study with Price at the Manhattan School of Music. He spent five years at the Manhattan School, earning a bachelor's degree (1963) and master's degree (1964) in music performance.^[2] From 1962 to 1964, he was a member of the American Symphony Orchestra under conductor Leopold Stokowski. In 1964, Williams was selected as one of the first Creative Associates at the Center of the Creative and Performing Arts at the University at Buffalo, which was founded by Lukas Foss. He remained at UB, where he created the Percussion Ensemble, with fellow Creative Associate percussionist, John Bergamo, continued an active performance career specializing in contemporary music and served as chair of the Music Department from 1981 to 1984. He retired in 1996 as Professor Emeritus. Williams also served as Artistic Director of the Center of the Creative and Performing Arts from 1974 to 1979 and as its resident conductor from 1976 to 1980. He co-directed, with Yvar Mikhashoff, the North American New Music Festival from 1983 to 1991.^[3]

Williams was a solo percussionist with orchestras in Paris, Berlin, Israel, Detroit, New York, Los Angeles and Copenhagen and appeared internationally as percussionist, conductor, and instructor. Noted composers John Cage, Elliott Carter, Joel Chadabe, Luis De Pablo, Gustavo Matamoros, Frederic Rzewski, Iannis Xenakis, Morton Feldman, Orlando Garcia, Nils Vigeland, and Lukas Foss have written works for him. His playing and conducting have been captured on commercial recordings and archival recordings.^[3][4]

In 2014 the Burchfield Penney Art Center celebrated Williams' 75th birthday with a special tribute concert. Williams conducted former students in a performance of Edgard Varèse's iconic percussion composition, Ionization.^[5]

Williams' daughter Amy Williams is a composer and pianist (Bugallo Williams Piano Duo) who performs new music for piano.^[6]

Performance

Williams has appeared professionally as a percussionist and conductor.

Percussionist

• Music of Charles Boone
• Member of Creative Associates with John Bergamo, George Crumb, and founder Lukas Foss
• Premiered Another Felicitude for violin, piano, percussion, and bass by Michael McCandless, 1986^[7]
• Premiered Dancer from the Dance for violin, piano, and percussion by Michael McCandless, 1984^[7]
• Member of the Feldman Soloists with pianist Nils Vigeland and flutist Eberhard Blum
• Premiered Why Patterns?, Crippled Symmetry, and For Philip Guston by Morton Feldman and presented the music in Europe, the Middle East and the United States^[8]
• Curriculum Vitae by Lukas Foss^[9]
• Pieces by Roman Haubenstock-Ramati with Eberhard Blum and Iven Hausmann^[10]
• Pieces by Earle Brown, Morton Feldman, John Cage, and Christian Wolff with Eberhard Blum and Art Lange^[11]
• Exercises by Christian Wolff^[12]
• Ryoanji by John Cage^[13]
• Pieces by Morton Feldman Eberhard Blum and Nils Vigeland^[14]

Williams has recorded for Columbia, Vox/Turnabout, Desto, Lovely Music, Spectrum, Wergo, DGG, Orion, Hat-Art, OO, New World, Deep Listening, EMF Media, and Mode Records.^[15] The University of Buffalo has curated and archived 219 of his annotated scores.^[16]

Conductor

• SONOR Ensemble, 1988-89
• Center of the Creative and Performing Arts, 1976-1980
• Maelstrom Percussion Ensemble performance of Imaginary Landscapes by John Cage^[17]
• Maelstrom Percussion Ensemble performance of Labyrinth by Lou Harrison^[18]

Compositions

• Variations for Solo Kettledrums^[19]
• Dream Lesson, 1970

Teaching

• Professor, University at Buffalo, (1964-1996), where he founded and directed the percussion program
• University of North Texas College of Music, Division of Composition Studies, 1990^[20]
• Composer in Residence, The Ohio State University New Music Collective and Percussion Studio, 2010^[21]
• Guest lecturer, Oberlin College, 2013^[22]

Administrator

• Trustee and member of Artistic Committee, Yvar Mikhashoff Trust for New Music^[23]
• Artistic director, Center of the Creative and Performing Arts, 1974-1979
• Co-director, North American New Music Festival, 1983-1991
• Founder, New Percussion Quintet, 1966-1971^[2]

References

1. "Nils Vigeland Writes About Jan Williams > Blog > General > Burchfield Penney Art Center". burchfieldpenney.org.
2. "Jan Williams". jonathan-hepfer.com.
3. SUNY Buffalo State. "Performance Celebrates Legendary Percussionist Jan Williams - Music - SUNY Buffalo State". buffalostate.edu.
4. "Jan Williams Collection of Annotated Scores 1950-1999 at the State University of New York at Buffalo. Music Library" Check |url= value (help). buffalo.edu.
5. "Celebrating The 75th Birthday Of Jan Williams > Events > Burchfield Penney Art Center". burchfieldpenney.org.
6. http://artvoice.com/issues/v9n6/uncage_the_prepared_pianos
7. http://www.artistswithaids.org/artforms/music/catalogue/mccandless.html
8. "Bios". amusicalfeast.com.
9. "Amazon.com: Various Artists, Lukas Foss, n/a, Columbia String Quartet, University of Buffalo Percussion Ensemble, Guy Klucevsek, RoseMarie Freni, Robert Dick, Jan Williams, Yvar Mikhashoff: Lukas Foss: Curriculum Vitae: Music". amazon.com.
10. "Amazon.com: Roman Haubenstock-Ramati, Eberhard Blum, Iven Hausmann, Jan Williams: Graphic Music: Music". amazon.com.
11. "Amazon.com: Eberhard Blum, Art Lange, Jan Williams: New York School, Vol. 3: Music". amazon.com.
12. "Amazon.com: Eberhard Blum, Roland Dahinden, Steffen Schleiermacher, Jan Williams, Christian Wolff: Exercises (1973-1975): Music". amazon.com.
13. "Amazon.com: John Cage, Robert Black, Eberhart Blum, Iven Hausmann, Gudrun Reschke, John Patrick Thomas, Jan Williams: Cage: Ryoanji: Music". amazon.com.
14. "Amazon.com: Morton Feldman, Eberhard Blum, Nils Vigeland, Jan Williams: Feldman: Why Patterns? / Crippled Symmetry: Music". amazon.com.
15. "Jan Williams > Artists > Burchfield Penney Art Center". burchfieldpenney.org.
16. Jan Williams Collection of Annotated Scores, 1950-1999, Music Library, The State University of New York at Buffalo (http://libweb1.lib.buffalo.edu:8080/findingaids/view?docId=ead/music/ubmu0010_1.xml)
17. "Amazon.com: Jan Williams & Maelstrom: Imaginary Landscapes: Music". amazon.com.
18. "Amazon.com: Jan Williams & Maelstrom: Labyrinth-Suite-Fifth Symphony: Music". amazon.com.
19. "Williams - Variations for Solo Kettledrums". bostonconservatory.edu.
20. https://composition.music.unt.edu/content/joel-chadabe-and-jan-williams
21. "Jan Williams Residency". osu.edu.
22. "Guest Lecture: Jan Williams, percussion". Oberlin College.
23. "Yvar Mikhashoff Trust for New Music". mikhashofftrust.org.

External links

• Jan Williams Collection of Images from the University at Buffalo Libraries
• Jan Williams Photos of Morton Feldman from the University at Buffalo Libraries