Peter Westergaard

Biography

Peter Westergaard was the William Shubael Conant Professor of Music, Emeritus, at Princeton University. A composer and music theorist, he was a student of Milton Babbitt. He has composed numerous operas from Charivari (1953) to Alice and Wonderland (2006). He is also the author of "An Introduction to Tonal Theory (W.W. Norton, 1975).

Amongst former pupils of Babbitt, Westergaard stands out for his contributions to serial theory, as well as for his compositions, which are characterized by a delight in symmetry and mirror relationships, together with a concern for the systematic and integrated use of all the parameters of music, producing multileveled, clear, beautiful, and audible patterns (Paul Griffiths, Modern Music, 1981).

Westergaard was born in 1931 in Champaign, Illinois. He pursued undergraduate studies at Harvard University, graduating in 1953, and in 1956 obtained an M.F.A. degree from Princeton University. He studied with Roger Sessions, Walter Piston, Darius Milhaud, Edward Cone, Milton Babbitt and Wolfgang Fortner in Freiburg.  He passed away June, 2019 in New Jersey.

 

ACE Publications

31 title(s)
Composer Title SCORING/INSTRUMENTATION Year
Peter Westergaard ALICE IN WONDERLAND, AN ENSEMBLE OPERA FOR SEVEN SINGERS Alice (Sorpano) plus 6 singers in multiple roles, hand percussion
Peter Westergaard ALL 4s perc quartet
Peter Westergaard ALWAYS PRESENT PRESENT
Peter Westergaard ANYONE LIVED IN A PRETTY HOW TOWN
chamber chorus (SATB)
Peter Westergaard ARIEL MUSIC
fl/picc, ob, cl/bcl, tpt, celesta/pf, perc, str qt
Peter Westergaard CANTATA V - Byzantium for Baritone and Percussion Quartet
baritone, perc quartet
Peter Westergaard DIALOGUE OF A SHEPERD AND A NYMPH
chorus (SATB)
Peter Westergaard EPITHALAMIUM
chorus (SATB)
Peter Westergaard MAKE ME A WILLOW CABIN
Mezzo soprano or Soprano, alto flute, Eng hn, mandolin, guitar, violin, cello
Peter Westergaard MOBY DICK, SCENES FROM AN IMAGINARY OPERA - piano-vocal score voices, piano
Peter Westergaard MOBY DICK, SCENES FROM AN IMAGINARY OPERA - full score in 2 vols 1121 2100 hp, 1 perc, str
chamber chorus, small orchestra
Peter Westergaard Moto Perpetuo flute, oboe, clarinet, trumpet, horn, and bassoon
Peter Westergaard ODE
sop, fl, cl, vn, va, hp
Peter Westergaard PALINDROME FOR A SUMMER EVENING
fl, vn, va, vc
Peter Westergaard RINGING CHANGES 2222 4220
orchestra, hp; 4 perc; str
Peter Westergaard SPRING AND FALL: TO A YOUNG CHILD Voice and Piano
Peter Westergaard TEMPEST
14 singers, chorus; 1, 1, 1, bcl, 1; 2, 1, 1; hp, 2 perc, str (min 6, 6, 4, 4, 2)

Additional Works