Bruce Crossman : Represented Artist
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Random Audio Sample: Gentleness-suddenness : for mezzo-soprano, violin, percussion and piano by Bruce Crossman, from the CD Living colours |
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Photo: Tod Clarke
Artist website: http://brucecrossman.com
Bruce Crossman's sound world embraces Asian traditional musics, free form improvisation and European influenced interval-colour sonority towards a personal Pacific identity. Peter Sculthorpe, Chou Wen-chung and Chinary Ung have influenced Crossman's Pacific-based aesthetic.
His music explores Asian-Pacific influences such as Japanese, Korean, Chinese and Filipino gongs and chant resonances with harmonic colour sonority emphasis in Gentleness-Suddenness (2012), Double Resonances (2008) and Daragang Magayon Cantata (2001). Crossman's aesthetic is influenced by cross-disciplinary ideas from Chinese esthetics, Japanese aesthetics and architecture, Filipino-Australian poetry and abstract art.
Crossman's music has been featured throughout the Asia-Pacific region including at the ISCM World Music Days (Sydney), Tongyeong International Music Festival (Korea), Asian Music Week (Japan), Tunugan (Philippines) and Pacific Rim Music Festival (USA). He has won a number of awards including the Queensland Philharmonic's Corbould Prize and a Finalist Nomination for 'Vocal or Choral Work of the Year' at the 2007 Australian Classical Music Awards. Filigree Films have published a DVD of the music-theatre work Gentleness-Suddenness (2014). Wirripang have released several discs of his music including an album of compositions, Double Resonances (2008), and one of piano improvisations with multi-instrumentalist Michael Atherton, Resophonica (2009).
Crossman was born in Auckland in 1961. He studied composition with Ross Edwards, David Blake and Jack Speirs. His qualifications include a Doctor of Creative Arts from Wollongong University, Master of Philosophy from York University and Master of Music (Distinction) from Otago University. He holds the position of Associate Professor and Coordinator of Composition in the School of Humanities and Communication Arts at Western Sydney University.
Crossman writes: 'I see the spiritual essence in my own work as an expression of a Christian faith whereby composition becomes a deep-felt emotion and spiritual sensibility linking heaven and earth. The aim of my creativity is to generate spiritual presence through stillness with colour-energy that speaks of the Asia-Pacific.'
Bruce Crossman — current to December 2015
Selected Commissions
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Garden of Fire : for mezzo-soprano, percussion and piano (2017) | Written for Anna Fraser (mezzo-soprano), Claire Edwardes (percussion) and Linda Yim (piano) |
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Rushing Spirit Breath : for taegŭm and percussion (2017) | Composed as part of the Creativity Unlimited Music Festival, 10-11 August 2017, at Western Sydney University with support from the School of Humanities and Communication Arts |
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Blooms late when spring is gone... : for solo erhu (2016) | Written in celebration of the birth of the new research centre at Western Sydney University; Australia-China Institute for Arts and Culture. |
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Emergence from darkness : for harp (2015) | Commissioned by Akira Kobayashi. |
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Emergence from autumn darkness to spring : for jiari-shakuhachi and jinashi-shakuhachi (2015) | Commissioned for performance at the Japan Federation of Composers concert in Tokyo on the 24th February 2016 |
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Dying of the light : Pacific resonance for Peter, for soprano saxophone (2014) | Commissioned by Katia Beaugeais. |