Vladimir Ussachevsky
Vladimir Kirilovitch Ussachevsky (
Hailar,
Manchuria,
November 3,
1911 –
New York,
New York,
January 2,
1990) was a composer particularly known for his work in
electronic music.
Born to
Russian parents in Manchuria (now
Inner Mongolia,
China), Ussachevsky emigrated to the
United States in
1931 and studied music at
Pomona College in
Claremont,
California (B.A.,
1935), as well as at the
Eastman School of Music in
Rochester,
New York (M.M.,
1936, Ph.D.,
1939). His early, neo-Romantic works, are composed for traditional instruments, but in
1951 began composing electronic music.
In
1947, following a stint with the
U.S. Army Intelligence division in
World War II, he joined the faculty of
Columbia University, teaching there until his retirement in
1980. Together with
Otto Luening, Ussachevsky founded, in 1959, the
Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center in
New York City. Ussachevsky also taught and was composer-in-residence at the
University of Utah. He served as president of the
American Composers Alliance from
1968 to
1970 and was an advisory member of the CRI record label, which released recordings of a number of his compositions.
His notable students include
Charles Wuorinen,
Alice Shields,
Ingram Marshall, and
Richard Einhorn.
Recordings of his music have also been released on the Capstone, d'Note, and New World labels.
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Art of the States: Vladimir Ussachevsky
