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| Tyshawn Sorey | |
|---|---|
| Name | Tyshawn Sorey |
| Birth date | 1980 |
| Birth place | Newark, New Jersey, United States |
| Genres | Jazz, Contemporary Classical, Avant-garde |
| Occupations | Composer, Musician, Educator |
| Instruments | Drums, Piano, Trombone |
| Years active | 2000s–present |
Tyshawn Sorey is an American composer, multi-instrumentalist, and educator known for work spanning jazz, contemporary classical music, and improvisation. He has released recordings on independent labels, premiered works with major ensembles, and held academic posts at leading conservatories. Sorey's practice integrates composition, performance, and scholarship within institutions, festivals, and recordings.
Sorey was born in Newark, New Jersey, and raised in a musical environment influenced by local scenes associated with Newark Jazz Festival, Newark Boys Chorus School, and regional arts programs. He studied percussion and composition in programs connected to institutions like Rutgers University preparatory initiatives, later attending the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music and earning degrees that involved mentorships with figures associated with Duke University residencies and conservatory networks. His education included encounters with performers and composers linked to Sun Ra, Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane, Anthony Braxton, and pedagogues active in New York City conservatories and festivals such as Carnegie Hall presentations.
Sorey's performing career has encompassed appearances at venues and festivals including Lincoln Center, Village Vanguard, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Ravinia Festival, and European festivals associated with Montreux Jazz Festival and Nice Jazz Festival. He has recorded for labels active in avant-garde and contemporary music circuits, participating in collaborative projects alongside artists from scenes converging at Tzadik Records, ECM Records, and independent New York outfits. Sorey's trajectory links him to networks involving artists who perform at Blue Note Jazz Club, Brooklyn Academy of Music, and presenter organizations like New Music USA and Bang on a Can.
Sorey's catalog includes chamber pieces, orchestral commissions, opera projects, and improvised recordings premiered by ensembles such as the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Bang on a Can All-Stars, and contemporary ensembles associated with Juilliard and Curtis Institute of Music alumni. Works have been presented in contexts alongside programming by curators at Miller Theater, MASS MoCA, and presenters connected to American Composers Forum. His scores have been performed by soloists with ties to International Contemporary Ensemble, Kronos Quartet, and symphony orchestras at concert halls like Walt Disney Concert Hall and Symphony Hall, Boston.
Sorey's musical language synthesizes traditions from figures such as Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, Muhal Richard Abrams, George Lewis, Arnold Schoenberg, and John Cage, while engaging with contemporary practices associated with Steve Reich, Philip Glass, and Elliott Carter. He situates improv techniques derived from Paul Motian-linked drumming and compositional ideas from Anthony Davis alongside experimental directions seen in work by Matana Roberts, Roscoe Mitchell, and Henry Threadgill. Critics and programmers have compared aspects of his aesthetic to programming at institutions like MoMA and curator initiatives at Walker Art Center.
Sorey has collaborated with a broad array of artists and ensembles including Michaël Attias, Mary Halvorson, Roscoe Mitchell, Nicole Mitchell, Anthony Braxton, Kenny Wheeler, Jason Moran, and members of groups appearing on bills with Sunn O)))-adjacent curators. He has led projects featuring musicians associated with Fire Music Festival, Vision Festival, and collectives tied to Improvised Music, working in trio and large ensemble formats akin to formations heard at Small's Jazz Club and SmallsLIVE. Ensemble affiliations include chamber groups linked to ICE, contemporary big bands connected to Brooklyn Philharmonic, and ad hoc orchestras for site-specific premieres.
Sorey has received fellowships and awards including honors linked to MacArthur Fellowship-style recognition by foundations in the arts, grants from Guggenheim Foundation, commissions supported by Fromm Music Foundation, and awards administered by institutions such as American Academy of Arts and Letters and New York Foundation for the Arts. His recordings and compositions have been cited in year-end lists by publications associated with The New York Times, The New Yorker, and DownBeat, and he has been spotlighted by presenters at Carnegie Hall and conservatory prize committees related to Pulitzer Prize-adjacent contemporary music discourse.
Sorey has held faculty and visiting positions at institutions such as Columbia University, Yale School of Music, Mannes School of Music, and conservatory programs linked to Berklee College of Music and New England Conservatory. He has guest lectured in departments connected to Harvard University and delivered masterclasses at schools like Royal Conservatory of The Hague and Royal Academy of Music. His academic activities involve seminars that intersect with curricula at Manhattan School of Music and residency programs administered by organizations like Civitella Ranieri and Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity.
Category:American composers Category:American jazz musicians Category:1980 births