Mason Bates

Mason W. Bates (born January 23, 1977)^[1] is an American composer of symphonic music and DJ of electronic dance music. Distinguished by his innovations in orchestration and large-scale form,^[2] Bates is best known for his expansion of the orchestra to include electronics. The second-most performed living composer in the United States,^[3] he has worked closely with the San Francisco Symphony and recently ended a three-year term as composer-in-residence with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Earlier this year (January), he was named composer-in-residence of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (their first ever composer-in-residence appointment), starting this fall and through the 2017-18 season.

Life

Bates was raised in Richmond, Virginia, where he attended St. Christopher's School. He graduated from the Columbia University-Juilliard School Exchange Program, with a BA in music composition and English literature, where he studied with John Corigliano, David Del Tredici, and Samuel Adler. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a PhD in composition in 2008,^[4] where he studied with Edmund Campion.^[5] He was a DJ and techno artist, in Oakland, California.^[6]

Notable works include Alternative Energy, an energy symphony premiered by Riccardo Muti and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Liquid Interface, a water symphony commissioned by the National Symphony Orchestra; and The B-Sides, a symphony commissioned by the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. In 2010 Bates was commissioned to write for the YouTube Symphony Orchestra 2011, an ensemble composed of musicians from around the world. His piece Mothership was performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and went on YouTube a year earlier; it is a mixture of acoustic and electronic elements and features sections for improvisation. In 2014 Bates wrote the filmscore for Gus Van Sant's 2015 The Sea of Trees, starring Matthew McConaughey, Naomi Watts and Ken Watanabe.^[7]

Awards

• 2015 Kennedy Center Composer-in-Residence^[8]
• 2012 Arts and Humanities Heinz Award^[9]
• 2010-15 Chicago Symphony's Mead composer in residence.^[10]
• 2007-2010 Young American Composer-in-Residence for the California Symphony^[11]
• 2008 Guggenheim Fellowship^[12]
• 2008 Van Cliburn American Composer Invitational First Prize
• 2004 Rome Prize
• 2005 American Academy in Berlin Prize^[13]
• Charles Ives scholarship
• American Academy of Arts and Letters fellowship
• Jacob Druckman Memorial Prize from Aspen Music Festival
• Tanglewood Music Center Fellowship

Compositions

Symphonic works

• Auditorium, for orchestra (2016)
• Anthology of Fantastic Zoology, for orchestra (2015)^[14]
• Cello Concerto, for cello and orchestra (2014)^[15]
• Devil's Radio, for orchestra (2014)
• Garages of the Valley, for orchestra (2014)
• The Rise of Exotic Computing, for sinfonietta and laptop (2013)
• Attack Decay Sustain Release, fanfare for orchestra (2013)
• Violin Concerto, for orchestra and violin (2012)^[16]
• Afterlife, for mezzo and orchestra (2012)
• Alternative Energy, for orchestra and electronica (2011)^[17]
• Mothership, for orchestra and electronica (2011)^[18]
• Desert Transport, for orchestra (2010)
• Sea-Blue Circuitry, for orchestra or band (2010)
• Mainframe Tropics, for orchestra (2010)
• The B-Sides, for orchestra and electronica (2009)^[19]
• Music from Underground Spaces, for orchestra and electronica (2008)
• Liquid Interface (2007)^[20][21][22]
• Rusty Air in Carolina, for orchestra and electronica (2006)^[23]
• White Lies for Lomax (2009)^[24]
• Omnivorous Furniture, for sinfonietta and electronica (2004)
• Ode, prelude to the Beethoven 9th for orchestra (2001)
• Icarian Rhapsody, for string orchestra (1999)

Chamber and vocal works

• Carbide and Carbon, for cello ensemble (2013)
• Difficult Bamboo, for Pierrot ensemble and percussion (2013)
• Mass Transmission, for organ, electronics, and chorus (2012)^[25]
• Bagatelles, for string quartet and electronica (2012)
• Stereo is King, for three percussionists and tape (2011)
• Observer in a Magellanic Cloud, for chorus (2009)
• Sirens, for 12-part a capella chorus (2009)
• The Life of Birds, for flute, clarinet, violin, and cello (2008)
• White Lies for Lomax, for piano solo (2007)
• Red River, for violin, clarinet, cello, piano, and electronics (2007)
• Digital Loom, for organ and electronics (2005)
• From Amber Frozen, for string quartet (2004)
• String Band, for piano trio (2002)
• Mercury Soul, for clarinet and piano (2002)

Film Scores

• The Sea of Trees - Dir. Gus Van Sant (2016)

Discography

• American Masters - Violin Concerto (Entertainment One Music, 2014)
• Riccardo Muti Conducts Mason Bates and Anna Clyne - Alternative Energy (CSO Resound, 2014)
• Stereo is King (Innova Recordings, 2014)
• Digital Loom (MSR Classics, 2009)
• Scrapyard Exotica (Sono Luminus DSL-92193) by Del Sol String Quartet (2015)
• Works for Orchestra (San Francisco Symphony) by San Francisco Symphony (2016)
• Anthology of Fantastic Zoology (CSO Resound) by Chicago Symphony Orchestra (2016)

References

External links

• Official website
• Mason Bates at the Internet Movie Database
• “Rusty Air in Carolina” for orchestra and electronica (2006; 1.25 mb)

Mason Bates
Symphony	Liquid Interface (2007) The B-Sides (2009) Alternative Energy (2011) Anthology of Fantastic Zoology (2015)
Concerto	Violin Concerto (2012) Cello Concerto (2014)
Other compositions	Icarian Rhapsody (1999) Rusty Air in Carolina (2006) Desert Transport (2010) Mothership (2011) The Rise of Exotic Computing (2013) Garages of the Valley (2014) Auditorium (2016)
Category:Compositions by Mason Bates