Stephen Dankner Collection of Musical Works and Papers

Collection — Multiple Containers

Identifier: Collection 27

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Stephen Dankner Collection of Musical Works and Papers documents the life and work of award-winning contemporary composer Stephen Dankner. The documents in this collection range from Dankner’s early college years to his last years in New Orleans. The majority of the items in this collection are original holograph scores and parts by Dankner as well as sketches (rough-draft pencil outlines for pieces, usually incomplete), printed scores, and research notes. Correspondence includes letters to and from copyright agencies, friends, performers, publishing companies, record labels, recording studios, and teachers. The collection also contains concert programs, newspaper and electronic reviews, press releases, and photos. A large portion of the collection is dedicated to the creation and premiere by the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra of Symphony No. 5: Odyssey of Faith (2001).

Dates

Created: 1962-2004
Other: Majority of material found in 1980-2004
Other: Date acquired: 08/11/2000

Creator

Dankner, Stephen (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research use. No known restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Physical rights are retained by the J. Edgar & Louise S. Monroe Library, Loyola University New Orleans. Copyright is retained in accordance with U.S. copyright laws.

Biographical or Historical Information

Stephen Dankner was born in Brooklyn, New York on November 5, 1944. He received a Bachelor of Music from New York University in 1966, a Master of Arts from Queens College in 1968, and a Doctor of Musical Arts from The Juilliard School in 1971. He taught for several years at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts before moving to New Orleans in 1979. In New Orleans, Dankner taught for the New Orleans public school system Talented in the Arts Program, the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA) where he served as chair, and Loyola University New Orleans. In 2006 he moved from the New Orleans area to Williamstown, Massachusetts where he was a Research Associate at Williams College. Commissioned orchestral works have been performed by orchestras including the National Symphony Orchestra, Albany Symphony Orchestra, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Nashville Symphony, Kansas City Symphony, Longwood Symphony, and Laredo Philharmonic. In 2006 Dankner was commissioned by the Nürnberg Symphoniker to compose a work for their 60th anniversary season. From 2004-2007 he served as composer-in-residence with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra. He has released seven CD recordings on the Albany, Centaur, Gasparo, and Romeo labels. Dankner has been the recipient of numerous awards, fellowships, and residencies throughout his career. Dankner’s primary teachers were Roger Sessions, Paul Creston, and Vincent Persichetti. In New Orleans he worked closely with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra’s conductor Klauspeter Seibel. Although his training and earlier music were influenced by twentieth-century atonality, Dankner’s later works exhibit a more tonal late-Romantic tradition. Dankner mixes chromaticism and folk music, tempered with lush orchestration and lyrical melodies, to create pieces that are masterfully written and emotionally complex. There have been four PhD dissertations written about Dankner’s works.

Note written by Kelly, Elizabeth Joan

Extent

48.00 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Award-winning American composer Stephen Dankner (b. 1944) has written works that includes orchestral, vocal, chamber, and electronic music. He has released numerous published scores and CD recordings, and his pieces have been performed across the United States as well as abroad. As an educator Dankner has taught extensively at the university and high-school levels, and he taught various music classes at Loyola University New Orleans across a nearly thirty year span.

Arrangement Note

This collection is arranged into six series: I. Compositions; II. Oversized Scores; III. Correspondence; IV.Programs and Other Printed Materials; V. Contracts, Applications, Copyright Documents and Photos; VI. Bound Scores. Series I, II, & III are arranged chronologically. Series IV & V are arranged by item type. Series VI is arranged alphabetically.