Robert Cuckson
Encyclopedia
Robert Cuckson is an American composer and pianist. He emigrated to Australia in 1949. He studied at the NSW State Conservatorium of Music
and gained his Diploma (in piano) in 1960. Cuckson followed this with private studies in piano, composition and theory, in the UK and the US, his teachers including Ilona Kabos and Carlo Zecchi
(piano), Georg Tintner
and Peter Racine Fricker
(composition) and Allen Forte
(theory studies). In 1968 he returned to the formal study of music and worked towards a B.S. in composition at the Mannes College of Music
in New York. He followed this with three degrees in composition from Yale University
: M.M. (1971), M.M.A. (1974), and D.M.A. (1979). A resident of the United States since 1974, Robert Cuckson took US citizenship in 1983.
Cuckson has held various positions at the Mannes College The New School for Music in New York City since 1971. These have included administrative positions, such as that of Dean of the Faculties (1979–84) and Vice-President for Academic Affairs (1984–87); and teaching positions in the Techniques of Music Faculty (of which he became co-Chair in 1994), the Composition Faculty, and the Keyboard Studies Program. Since 1991 he has also taught in the Theory of Music Faculty and the Keyboard Studies Program at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia.
Robert Cuckson has completed two operas - The Blind Men and Adrian and Jusemina - based on plays by Michel de Ghelderode
(translated and adapted by the composer), and has written numerous other works for a variety of media: orchestral pieces, chamber works, piano solos and songs. His music has been performed by such ensembles as the Brisbane Symphony Orchestra, the Janáček String Quartet, the Czech Philharmonic Wind Quintet, and the Yale Collegium Orchestra. As a pianist, he has given solo recitals in London, Amsterdam, Oslo, Stockholm, Berlin, San Francisco, Pittsburgh and Sydney, and has appeared as soloist in concerto performances with the Sydney
and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra
s.
Sydney Conservatorium of Music
The Sydney Conservatorium of Music is one of the oldest and most prestigious music schools in Australia...
and gained his Diploma (in piano) in 1960. Cuckson followed this with private studies in piano, composition and theory, in the UK and the US, his teachers including Ilona Kabos and Carlo Zecchi
Carlo Zecchi
Carlo Zecchi was an Italian pianist, music teacher and conductor.Zecchi was born in Rome. He led pianistic courses in Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Rome, and in Salzburg. Highly acclaimed performer of Domenico Scarlatti, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Claude Debussy works, and of Romantic...
(piano), Georg Tintner
Georg Tintner
Georg Tintner CM was an Austrian-born conductor whose career was principally in New Zealand, Australia, and Canada....
and Peter Racine Fricker
Peter Racine Fricker
Peter Racine Fricker was an English composer who lived in the United States for the last thirty years of his life....
(composition) and Allen Forte
Allen Forte
Allen Forte is a music theorist and musicologist. He was born in Portland, Oregon and fought in the Navy at the close of World War II before moving to the East Coast. He is now Battell Professor of Music, Emeritus at Yale University...
(theory studies). In 1968 he returned to the formal study of music and worked towards a B.S. in composition at the Mannes College of Music
Mannes College of Music
Mannes College The New School for Music is The New School university's music conservatory. While the university's main campus is located in Greenwich Village, New York City, Mannes maintains its main academic building on the Upper West Side of Manhattan....
in New York. He followed this with three degrees in composition from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
: M.M. (1971), M.M.A. (1974), and D.M.A. (1979). A resident of the United States since 1974, Robert Cuckson took US citizenship in 1983.
Cuckson has held various positions at the Mannes College The New School for Music in New York City since 1971. These have included administrative positions, such as that of Dean of the Faculties (1979–84) and Vice-President for Academic Affairs (1984–87); and teaching positions in the Techniques of Music Faculty (of which he became co-Chair in 1994), the Composition Faculty, and the Keyboard Studies Program. Since 1991 he has also taught in the Theory of Music Faculty and the Keyboard Studies Program at the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia.
Robert Cuckson has completed two operas - The Blind Men and Adrian and Jusemina - based on plays by Michel de Ghelderode
Michel De Ghelderode
Michel de Ghelderode was an avant-garde Belgian dramatist, writing in French.-Career:...
(translated and adapted by the composer), and has written numerous other works for a variety of media: orchestral pieces, chamber works, piano solos and songs. His music has been performed by such ensembles as the Brisbane Symphony Orchestra, the Janáček String Quartet, the Czech Philharmonic Wind Quintet, and the Yale Collegium Orchestra. As a pianist, he has given solo recitals in London, Amsterdam, Oslo, Stockholm, Berlin, San Francisco, Pittsburgh and Sydney, and has appeared as soloist in concerto performances with the Sydney
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
The Sydney Symphony Orchestra , commonly known as the Sydney Symphony, is an Australian symphony orchestra based in Sydney...
and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra
The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra is an orchestra based in Melbourne, Australia. It has 100 permanent musicians. Melbourne has the longest continuous history of orchestral music of any Australian city and the MSO is the oldest professional orchestra in Australia...
s.