UI Press | Sharon Mirchandani

Marga Richter

Beyond Blackberry Vines and Winter Fruit--the life and works of an important woman composer

This is the first full-length introduction to the life and works of significant American composer Marga Richter (born 1926), who has written more than one hundred works for orchestra, chamber ensemble, dance, opera, voice, chorus, piano, organ, and harpsichord. Still actively composing in her eighties, Richter is particularly known for her large-scale works performed by ensembles such as the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and for other pieces performed by prominent artists including pianist Menahem Pressler, conductor Izler Solomon, and violinist Daniel Heifetz.

Interspersing consideration of Richter's musical works with discussion of her life, her musical style, and the origins and performances of her works, Sharon Mirchandani documents a successful composer's professional and private life throughout the twentieth century. Covering Richter's formative years, her influences, and the phases of her career from the 1950s to the present, Mirchandani closely examines Richter's many interesting, attractive musical works that draw inspiration from distinctly American, Irish/English, and Asian sources. Drawing extensively on interviews with the composer, Mirchandani also provides detailed descriptions of Richter's scores and uses reviews and other secondary sources to provide contexts for her work, including their relationship to modern dance, to other musical styles, and to 1970s feminism.

"Marga Richter has long been a highly respected contributor to classical repertoire, and this volume is significant as the first focused examination of her life and oeuvre. It will be valued by musicians and nonmusicians alike who are interested in contemporary classical music."--Ellen K. Grolman, author of Joan Tower: The Comprehensive Bio-Bibliography

Sharon Mirchandani is a professor of music history and theory at Westminster Choir College of Rider University in Princeton, New Jersey.

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