John Harbison

John Harris Harbison (born December 20, 1938) is an American composer and academic.

Life
John Harris Harbison was born on December 20, 1938, in Orange, New Jersey, to the historian Elmore
Harris Harbison and Janet German Harbison. The Harbisons were a musical family; Elmore had studied
composition in his youth and Janet wrote songs.[1] Harbison's sisters Helen and Margaret were musicians
as well. He won the prestigious BMI Foundation's Student Composer Awards for composition at the age
of 16 in 1954. He studied music at Harvard University (BA 1960), where he sang with the Harvard Glee
Club, and later at the Berlin Musikhochschule and at Princeton (MFA 1963). He is an Institute Professor
of music at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is a former student of Walter Piston and Roger
Sessions. His works include several symphonies, string quartets, and concerti for violin, viola, and double
bass.

Harbison won the Pulitzer Prize for music in 1987 for The Flight into Egypt, and in 1989 he received a
$305,000 MacArthur Fellowship.[2] In 1998, he received the 4th annual Heinz Award in the Arts and
Humanities.[3] He was awarded the Harvard Arts Medal in 2000.[4] In 2006, a recording of his Mottetti di
Montale was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Small Ensemble Performance category.

The Metropolitan Opera commissioned Harbison's The Great Gatsby to celebrate James Levine's 25th
anniversary with the company. The opera premiered on December 20, 1999, conducted by Levine, with
Jerry Hadley, Dawn Upshaw, Susan Graham, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, Mark Baker, Dwayne Croft, and
Richard Paul Fink among the cast.[5]

In 1991, Harbison was the music director of the Ojai Music Festival in conjunction with Peter Maxwell
Davies. He has served as principal guest conductor for Emmanuel Music in Boston.[6] After founding
director Craig Smith's death in 2007, Harbison was named acting artistic director. Harbison and his wife,
Rose Mary Harbison, a violinist, ran the Token Creek Chamber Music Festival from 1989 to 2022.[7]

Partial discography
Mirabai Songs / Variations (1987). Northeastern Records NR 230-CD. Performed by Janice
Felty, mezzo-soprano, Collage New Music Ensemble, conducted by John Harbison — Rose
Mary Harbison, violin; David Satz, clarinet; Ursula Oppens, piano. Tracks 1-6: Mirabai
Songs, text from Mirabai Versions by Robert Bly. Tracks 7-10: Variations, for violin, clarinet,
and piano. Track listing:
1. I. It's True, I Went to the Market
2. II. All I Was Doing Was Breathing
3. III. Why Mira Can't Go Back to Her Old House
4. IV. Where Did You Go?
 5. V. The Clouds
6. VI. Don't Go, Don't Go
7. Variations i–v
8. Variations vi–x
9. Variations xi–xv
10. Finale and Epilogue
The Flight into Egypt and other works by John Harbison (1990). New World Records 80395-
2. Performed by The Cantata Singers and Ensemble, The Los Angeles Philharmonic New
Music Group, and The Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra. Conducted by David Hoose,
John Harbison, and André Previn. Tracks:
1. The Flight into Egypt, text from the King James translation of the story of the Flight into
Egypt in the Gospel of Matthew
2. The Natural World: Prelude
3. Where We Must Look for Help, text from Robert Bly
4. On the Road Home, text from Wallace Stevens
5. Milkweed, text from James Wright
6. Concerto for Double Brass Choir and Orchestra: I. Invention on a Motif: Tempo giusto
7. II. Invention on a Chord: Cantabile
8. III. Invention on a Cadence: Molto allegro

At First Light (1998). Archetype Records 60106. Performed by Lorraine Hunt, mezzo-
soprano, Dawn Upshaw, soprano, Greenleaf Chamber Players, and Metamorphosen
Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Scott Yoo. Tracks:

1. Due Libri dei Mottetti di Montale

2. Snow Country
3. Chorale Cantata
4. Concerto for Oboe, Clarinet, and Strings

John Harbison: Ulysses' Bow / Samuel Chapter (2004). First Edition ASIN: B0002RQ35C.
Tracks:

1. Ulysses' Bow ballet performed by Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and conducted by André
Previn
2. Samuel Chapter performed by Susan Larson (soprano) and conducted by John Harbison
The Reawakening, String Quartet No. 3, Fantasia on a Ground, Thanks Victor (2001).
Musica Omnia om0110. Lydian String Quartet, Dominique Labelle, soprano.
World Premiere Recordings: Violin Concerto, Recordare, Seven Motets (1997). Koch 3-
7310-2-H1. Emmanuel Music, Craig Smith, conductor, Rose-Mary Harbison, violin.
Sessions: Symphony No. 2; Harbison: Symphony No. 2, Oboe Concerto (1994). London
443 376-2. San Francisco Symphony, Herbert Blomstedt, conductor, William Bennet, oboe.
String Quartet No.1/String Quartet No. 2/November 19, 1828 (1992). Lydian String Quartet,
Yehudi Wyner, piano.
Simple Daylight/Words from Patterson/Piano Quintet, (1999). Electra Nonesuch 79189-2.
Boston Symphony Chamber Players, Gilbert Kalish, piano, Sanford Sylvan, baritone, Dawn
Upshaw, soprano.
Four Psalms/Emerson (2004). New World Records 80613-2. Cantata Singers and
Ensemble, David Hoose, conductor.
 Mottetti di Montale (2005). Koch KIC-CD-7545. Collage New Music; David Hoose, music
director; Janice Felty and Margaret Lattimore, mezzo-sopranos.[8]
Four Songs of Solitude/Variations/Twilight Music (2003) Naxos. Daniel Blumenthal, Jannine
Jansen, Lars Wouters van der Oudenweijer, Bernhard Krug, Spectrum Concerts Berlin.

Works

Operas
Full Moon in March (1977) – chamber opera
Winter's Tale (1979) – based on the play by William Shakespeare
The Great Gatsby (1999) – based on the 1925 novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, commissioned
by the Metropolitan Opera

Ballet
Ulysses (1983)

Orchestral
Incidental Music from The Merchant of Venice (1971), for string orchestra
Elegiac Songs (1974), for mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra

commissioned by the Fromm Music Foundation

Diotima (1976)[9]

commissioned by the Koussevitzky Music Foundation in the Library of Congress

Piano Concerto (1978), for piano and chamber orchestra

commissioned by the American Composers Orchestra for Robert Miller

Snow Country (1979), for oboe and string orchestra

commissioned by Dr. Maurice Pechet, New England arts patron

Violin Concerto (1978–80), for violin and chamber orchestra

External videos
written for Rose Mary Harbison John Harbison (on his
Symphony No. 1) (http://bosto
Symphony No. 1 (1981)
nlocaltv.org/catalog/V_16JCX2
commissioned by the Boston Symphony Orchestra N2320DW8T), March 22,
1984, 4:20, Boston TV Digital
Concerto for Oboe, Clarinet and String Orchestra (1985) Archive[10]

commissioned by the National Endowment of the Arts

for the Toledo Symphony Orchestra, the International Chamber Soloists, the Wall
 Street Chamber Players, the Philadelphia College of Performing Arts, the Carnegie-
Mellon University and the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.

Remembering Gatsby (1985)

commissioned by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

Symphony No. 2 (1987)

commissioned by the San Francisco Symphony in celebration of the orchestra's

seventy-fifth anniversary season

Concerto for Double Brass Choir and Orchestra (1988), for twelve brass soli and chamber
orchestra

commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic

Viola Concerto (1988), for viola and orchestra

commissioned by the New Jersey Symphony

Symphony No. 3 (1990)[11]

commissioned by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra

David's Fascinating Rhythm Method (1991), for chamber orchestra

commissioned by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra

Three City Blocks (1991), for concert band

commissioned by the concert bands of the New England Conservatory, University of

Cincinnati, Florida State University, U.S. Air Force, Ohio State University, University of
Michigan and University of Southern California.

Oboe Concerto (1991), for oboe and orchestra

commissioned by the San Francisco Symphony

Cello Concerto (1993), for cello and orchestra

commissioned by Yo-Yo Ma and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra

The Most Often Used Chords (1993), for chamber orchestra

commissioned by the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra

Flute Concerto (1994), for flute and orchestra

commissioned by Ransom Wilson and the American Composers Orchestra

Olympic Dances (1996), for concert band

commissioned by the College Band Directors National Association

Partita (2001)

commissioned by the Minnesota Orchestra

Symphony No. 4 (2003)

commissioned by the Seattle Symphony

Crane Sightings (2004), for violin and string orchestra

written for Rose Mary Harbison, the composer's wife

Darkbloom: Overture for an Imagined Opera (2004)[12]

commissioned by the Boston Symphony Orchestra

Canonical American Songbook (2005)

commissioned by the Albany Symphony Orchestra

Concerto for Bass Viol (2005), for double bass and chamber orchestra

commissioned by the International Society of Bassists

Milosz Songs (2006), for soprano and orchestra[13]

commissioned by the New York Philharmonic for Dawn Upshaw

Rubies (after Thelonius Monk's "Ruby, My Dear") (2006)

commissioned by Gerard Schwarz and the Seattle Symphony

The Great Gatsby – Suite (2007)

commissioned by the Aspen Music Festival and School

Symphony No. 5 (2007), for mezzo-soprano, baritone soli and orchestra[14]

commissioned by the Boston Symphony Orchestra

Mary Lou (Four Symphonic Memories of Mary Lou Williams) (2008)

commissioned by the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony

Double Concerto for Violin and Cello (2009), for violin, cello and orchestra

commissioned by the Friends of the Dresden Music Foundation for the Boston
Symphony Orchestra

Closer to My Own Life (2011), for mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra

Symphony No. 6 (2011), for mezzo-soprano and orchestra[15]

commissioned by James Levine and the Boston Symphony Orchestra

 Crossroads (2012), for soprano/mezzo-soprano, oboe and string orchestra or oboe, two
violins, viola, cello and double bass
Koussevitzky Said (2012), for S.A.T.B. choir and orchestra
What Do We Make of Bach? (2018), for organ obbligato and orchestra

commissioned by Minnesota Orchestra, Seattle Symphony and Northrop at the

University of Minnesota

Choral
In Spiritu: Prayer (1955), for a cappella male-voice choir
Ave Maria (1959), for a cappella S.S.A.A. choir
He Shall Not Cry (1959), for S.A. choir and organ
Five Songs of Experience (1971), for S.A.T.B. choir, two percussion and string quartet

commissioned by the Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Boston for the Cantata Singers

Music When Soft Voices Die (1966), for S.A.T.B. choir and harpsichord or organ

commissioned by the Cantata Singers

Nunc Dimittis (1975), for T.B. choir and piano

commissioned by the Harvard Glee Club

The Flower-Fed Buffaloes (1976), for baritone solo, S.S.A.T.B.B. choir and instrumental
ensemble

commissioned by the New York State Bar Association

The Flight into Egypt (1986), for soprano, baritone soli, S.A.T.B. choir and chamber
orchestra

commissioned by the Cantata Singers

Two Emmanuel Motets (1990), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir

commissioned by the Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Boston

Ave Verum Corpus (1991), for a cappella S.S.A.T.B. choir

commissioned by the Emmanuel Choir, Boston and the Ojai Festival

O Magnum Mysterium (1991/92), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir

commissioned by Saturday Evening Brass

Veni Creator Spiritus (1992), for a cappella T.B. choir

commissioned by the Rosalind Denny Lewis Music Library at the Massachusetts

Institute of Technology
Communion Words (1994), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir
Concerning Them Which Are Asleep (1994), for a cappella S.S.A.T.B.B. choir
Emerson (1995), a cappella S.A.T.B. double choir

commissioned by the University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Music for their 100th

anniversary (1995)

Juste Judex (1995), for mezzo-soprano, baritone soli, S.A.T.B. choir and orchestra

commissioned as part of the Requiem of Reconciliation

Evening (Der Abend) (1997), for a cappella S.A.T.B. double choir

Four Psalms (1998), for S.A.T.B. soli, S.A.T.B. choir and orchestra

commissioned by the Israeli Consulate for the Chicago Symphony

Psalm 137 (1998), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir

Requiem (1985–2002), for S.A.T.B. soli, S.A.T.B. choir and orchestra[16]

commissioned by the Boston Symphony Orchestra

We do not live to ourselves (2002), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir

Abraham (2004), for double S.A.T.B. choir and two large brass choirs[17]

commissioned for the Papal Concert of Reconciliation in Rome for the Ankara
Polyphonic Choir, London Philharmonic Choir, Krakow Philharmonic Choir and
musicians from the Pittsburgh Symphony

Charity Never Faileth (2004), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir

Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled (2004), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir
My Little Children, Let Us Not Love in Word (2004), for a cappella S.A.T.B. choir

commissioned by the Cantata Singers

But Mary Stood (2005), for soprano solo, choir and string orchestra

commissioned by the Cantata Singers

Umbrian Landscape with Saint (2005), for optional choir and chamber ensemble

commissioned by the Chicago Chamber Musicians

A Clear Midnight (2007), for T.T.B.B. choir and five strings

commissioned by the Georgina Joshi Foundation for Indiana University and the Pro
Arte Singers

Madrigal (2007), for a cappella S.A.T.B.B. choir

commissioned by the New York Virtuoso Singers

The Pool (2010), for S.A.T.B. choir and piano

 Koussevitzky Said: Choral Scherzo with Orchestra (2012), for S.A.T.B. choir and orchestra:
commissioned by the Boston Symphony Orchestra in Celebration of the 75th Anniversary of
the Tanglewood Music Festival
The Supper at Emmaus (2013), for S.A.T.B. choir, two oboes, bassoon, organ and string
orchestra
Never Time (2015), for jazz choir and jazz band
Psalm 116 (2016), for a cappella S.S.S.A.A.A.T.T.T.B.B.B. choir

commissioned by Chanticleer

Chamber
Andante con moto (1955), for cello and piano
Duo (1961), for flute and piano
Canzonetta (1962), for bassoon quartet
Confinement (1965), for twelve players

written for the Contemporary Chamber Ensemble and Arthur Weisberg

Four Preludes from "December Music" (1967), for flexible instrumentation: 3 instruments –
flute, violin, oboe, clarinet
Serenade (1968), for flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, violin, viola and cello
Piano Trio (1969), for violin, cello and piano
Bermuda Triangle (1970), for tenor saxophone, electric organ and amplified cello

commissioned by the New York Camerata

Die Kurze (1970), for flute, clarinet, piano, violin and cello

commissioned by the New York Composer's Forum

Snow Country (1979), for oboe and string quintet

commissioned by Dr. Maurice Pechet

Wind Quintet (1979), for flute, oboe, clarinet, horn and bassoon

commissioned by the Naumburg Foundation

Due Libri (1980), for mezzo-soprano and nine players

commissioned by the New York Philomusica and Robert Levin

Mottetti di Montale (1980), for mezzo-soprano and nine players or piano

commissioned by New York Philomusica, the University of Oregon and Collage

Organum for Paul Fromm (1981), for glockenspiel, marimba, vibraphone, harpsichord and
piano

commissioned by the University of Chicago

Piano Quintet (1981), for two violins, viola, cello and piano

commissioned by the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival

Exequien for Calvin Simmons (1982), for seven players

Overture: Michael Kohlhaas (1982), for twelve brass
Variations (1982), for clarinet, violin and piano

commissioned by Frank Taplin for the Token Creek Festival, Wisconsin

String Quartet No. 1 (1985), for two violins, viola and cello

commissioned by the Cleveland Quartet

Twilight Music (1985), for horn, violin and piano

commissioned by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center

Fanfare for Foley's (1986), for twelve brass and two percussion
Music for Eighteen Winds (1986)

commissioned by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

String Quartet No. 2 (1987), for two violins, viola and cello
Two Chorale Preludes for Advent (from "Christmas Vespers") (1987), for brass quintet
Fantasy-Duo (1988), for violin and piano

commissioned by the McKim Fund in the Library of Congress for David Abel and Julie
Steinberg

Little Fantasy on "The Twelve Days of Christmas" (1988), for brass quintet
November 19, 1828 (1988), for violin, viola, cello and piano

commissioned by the National Endowment for the Arts for the Atlanta Chamber
Players, the Da Capo Chamber Players and Voices of Change

Fanfares and Reflection (1990), for two violins

commissioned by Token Creek Festival

Fourteen Fabled Folksongs (1992), for violin and marimba

Prelude (1993), for cello and piano
String Quartet No. 3 (1993), for two violins, viola and cello[18]
San Antonio (1994), for alto saxophone and piano
Thanks Victor (1994), for string quartet

commissioned by the Lydian Quartet

Trio Sonata (1994), for three clarinets or three saxophones or oboe, cor Anglais and
bassoon or string trio
Fanfare for a Free Man (1997), for three oboes and three bassoons
La Primavera di Sottoripa (1998), for mezzo-soprano and nine players
 commissioned by the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival

North and South (2000), for soprano/mezzo-soprano and seven players[19]

written for Lorraine Hunt Lieberson

Six American Painters (2000), for flute/oboe, violin, viola and cello

commissioned by the radio station WGUC Cincinnati

Chaconne (2001), for flute, clarinet, violin, cello and piano

String Quartet No. 4 (2002), for two violins, viola and cello

commissioned by the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival

Cucaraccia and Fugue (2003), for four violas

commissioned by the Token Creek Festival

Trio II. (2003), for violin, cello and piano

commissioned by the Harris Foundation, Chamber Music America and Meet the
Composer for the Amelia Trio

Songs America Loves to Sing (2004), for flute, clarinet, piano, violin and cello

commissioned by the Atlanta Chamber Players and the Da Capo Chamber Players

Abu Ghraib (2006), for cello and piano

commissioned by the Rockport Festival for Rhonda Rider and David Deveau

Deep Dances (2006), for cello and double bass

commissioned by the Bank of America Celebrity Series for Rebecca Rice

French Horn Suite (2006), for four French horns

commissioned by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Cortège: in memoriam Donald Sur (2008), for percussion sextet

commissioned by the New England Conservatory Percussion Ensemble

Diamond Watch (2010), for two pianos

commissioned by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Priscilla Myrick

Diamond for Peter Diamond and pianist Robert Levin

Finale, Presto (2011), for two violins, viola and cello

Sonata No. 1 (2011), for violin and piano[20]
String Quartet No. 5 (2011), for two violins, viola and cello
 written in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Pro Arte Quartet

Crossroads (2012), for soprano or mezzo-soprano, oboe, two violins, viola, cello and double
bass or oboe and string orchestra
Invention on a Theme of William Shakespeare (2012), for solo cello, two violins, viola and
double bass
The Right to Pleasure (2013), for mezzo-soprano, two violins, viola, cello and double bass
or piano
String Trio (2013), for violin, viola and cello

commissioned by Camerata Pacifica audience members

The Cross of Snow (2015), for countertenor and four violas da gamba or two violins, viola
and cello

commissioned by William John Wartmann in memory of Joyce Frances Wartmann

Presences (2015), for cello solo, two violins, viola, cello and double bass

commissioned by Charles Felsenthal in memory of David Anderson

Mark the Date (2016), for flute and piano

commissioned by Asadour Santourian

The Nine Rasas (2016), for clarinet, viola and piano

String Quartet No. 6 (2016), for two violins, viola and cello

commissioned by the Lark Quartet, Telegraph Quartet and Tanglewood Music Center

IF (monodrama for soprano and ensemble) (2017), for soprano and eight players[21]

commissioned by Boston Musica Viva for the 50th anniversary of Boston Musica Viva,
the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln
Center

Sonata for Viola and Piano (2018), for viola and piano

commissioned anonymously in honor of John Harbison's 80th birthday

Vocal
Autumnal (1964), for alto and piano
Cantata III (1968), for soprano, two violins, viola and cello
Moments of Vision (1975), for soprano and tenor doubling handbells, alto
recorder/sopranino recorder/bass recorder/alto krumhorn, lute/hurdy-gurdy/dulcimer and
gamba
Samuel Chapter (1978), for high voice (woman or boy) and six players
Due Libri (1980), for mezzo-soprano and nine players

commissioned by the New York Philomusica and Robert Levin

 Mottetti di Montale (1980), for mezzo-soprano and nine players or piano

commissioned by New York Philomusica, the University of Oregon and Collage

Mirabai Songs (1982), for soprano/mezzo-soprano and eight players or piano

The Rewaking (1991), for soprano and string quartet (text of William Carlos Williams)[22]
December 1 (1995), for mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra
La Primavera di Sottoripa (1998), for mezzo-soprano and nine players

commissioned by the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival

Il Saliscendi Bianco (1999), for mezzo-soprano and nine players

commissioned by Collage

North and South (2000), for soprano/mezzo-soprano and seven players

written for Lorraine Hunt Lieberson

Ain't Goin' to Study War No More (2003), for baritone, two trumpets, snare drum and string
orchestra
Milosz Songs (2006), for soprano and orchestra
Closer to My Own Life (2011), for mezzo-soprano and chamber orchestra
Crossroads (2012), for soprano or mezzo-soprano, oboe, two violins, viola, cello and double
bass or oboe and string orchestra

commissioned by the New York Philharmonic for Dawn Upshaw

Seven Poems of Lorine Niedecker (2015), for soprano and piano

composed in honor of the Tanglewood Music Center's 75th anniversary

IF (monodrama for soprano and ensemble) (2017), for soprano and eight players

commissioned by Boston Musica Viva in honor of the 50th Anniversary of Boston

Musica Viva, the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, and the Chamber Music Society
of Lincoln Center

Solo
Sonata for Viola Alone (1961)
Amazing Grace (1972), for oboe

commissioned by oboist Philip West

Four Occasional Pieces (1978), for piano

written for André Previn, the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival and in memory of John
Boros, respectively

Parody-Fantasia (1980), for piano

 adapted from December Music

Four Songs of Solitude (1985), for violin[19]

written for the composer's wife, Rose Mary Harbison

Four More Occasional Pieces (1987), for piano

written for Joan Tower, Harriet Thiele, Rose Mary Harbison and Milo Feinberg,
respectively

Sonata No. 1 – In Memoriam Roger Sessions (1987), for piano

commissioned by the National Endowment for the Arts for Robert Shannon, Ursula
Oppens and Alan Feinberg

Suite (1993), for cello

Trio Sonata (1994), for piano or harpsichord or fortepiano or electric keyboard

commissioned by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Gatsby Etudes (1999), for piano[19]

A Violist's Notebook, Book 1 (1998–2000), for viola
Sonata No. 2 (2001), for piano

commissioned by G. Schirmer Associated Music for Robert Levin, to whom the work is
dedicated

A Violist's Notebook, Book 2 (2002), for viola

Montale Sketches (2002), for piano

after three poems by Eugenio Montale

Ten Micro-Waltzes (2004), for piano

Leonard Stein Anagrams (2009)

written for Leonard Stein

For Violin Alone (2014), for violin[23]

commissioned by 92nd Street Y

Painting the Flowers Blue (2015), for violin

A Bag of Tails (2016), for piano
Nocturne (2018), for piano

commissioned in honor of Linda Reichert’s tenure as Artistic Director of Network for

New Music

Passage (2019), for piano

Suite for Solo Violin, on soggetti cavati (2019), for violin
References
1. "Janet G. H. Penfield" (https://web.archive.org/web/20160304194616/http://www.towntopics.
com/jan2804/obits.html#obit5). Obituaries. Town Topics. Vol. LVII, no. 4. Princeton. January
28, 2004. Archived from the original (http://www.towntopics.com/jan2804/obits.html#obit5)
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2. "John Harbison, Composer and Conductor: Class of 1989" (https://www.macfound.org/fellow
s/class-of-1989/john-harbison). MacArthur Foundation. 1989-08-01. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
3. The Heinz Awards, John Harbison profile (http://www.heinzawards.net/recipients/john-harbis
on)
4. "History of the Harvard Arts Medal" (https://ofa.fas.harvard.edu/harvard-arts-medal). Harvard
University Office for the Arts. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
5. Bernard Holland (1999-12-22). "Opera Review: Music Catering To the Words Of Fitzgerald"
(https://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/22/arts/opera-review-music-catering-to-the-words-of-fitzg
erald.html). The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
6. Tom Jacobs (2022-08-08). "John Harbison: From Child Prodigy to Elder Statesman" (https://
www.sfcv.org/articles/artist-spotlight/john-harbison-child-prodigy-elder-statesman). San
Francisco Classical Voice. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
7. Jeromey Hodsdon (2022-08-27). "Harbisons host final year of Token Creek Chamber Music
Festival" (https://www.hngnews.com/sun_prairie_star/community/harbisons-host-final-year-o
f-token-creek-chamber-music-festival/article_18c0a960-2496-11ed-a892-2728fe2b4c09.htm
l). Sun Prairie Star. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
8. Anthony Tommasini (2005-11-06). "Astringent Modernism Below a Romantic Surface" (http
s://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/06/arts/music/astringent-modernism-below-a-romantic-surfac
e.html). The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
9. Peter Dizikes (2021-11-18). "Q&A: John Harbison on his new album, 'Diotima' " (https://new
s.mit.edu/2021/john-harbison-diotima-1118). MIT News. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
10. "Ten O'Clock News; John Harbison" (http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip_15-br8m
c8rk4z), 1984-03-22, 4:20, WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (WGBH and
the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed September 23, 2016.
11. John Rockwell (1991-03-10). "Review/Music; John Harbison Premiere" (https://www.nytime
s.com/1991/03/10/arts/review-music-john-harbison-premiere.html). The New York Times.
Retrieved 2024-04-05.
12. Daniel J. Wakin (2005-03-24). "Wrestling With a 'Lolita' Opera and Losing" (https://www.nyti
mes.com/2005/03/24/arts/music/wrestling-with-a-lolita-opera-and-losing.html). The New
York Times. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
13. Anthony Tommasini (2006-02-25). "When Lyrics Are Fragmentary and Melodies Elusive" (htt
ps://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/25/arts/music/when-lyrics-are-fragmentary-and-melodies-elu
sive.html). The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
14. "Harbison's 'Symphony No. 5' to premiere April 17-18" (https://news.mit.edu/2008/harbisons-
symphony-no-5-premiere-april-17-18). MIT News. 2008-04-15. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
15. Peter Dizikes (2012-01-13). "3 Questions: John Harbison on his sixth symphony" (https://ne
ws.mit.edu/2012/3q-john-harbison-0113). MIT News. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
16. Bernard Holland (2003-03-11). "Music Review: A Requiem Conscious Of Its Debt To the
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ebt-to-the-past.html). The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
17. "Professor brings papal music to Wind Ensemble" (https://news.mit.edu/2005/arts-harbison-
0427). MIT News. 2005-04-27. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
18. James R. Oestreich (1998-02-05). "Music Review: Portrait of a Composer As Man and
Musician" (https://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/05/arts/music-review-portrait-of-a-composer-a
s-man-and-musician.html). The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
19. Allan Kozinn (2001-01-15). "Music Review: Talk Is Not Cheap When It Comes to New
Music" (https://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/15/arts/music-review-talk-is-not-cheap-when-it-co
mes-to-new-music.html). The New York Times. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
20. Allan Kozinn (2012-04-27). "Inserting the Brand-New Alongside the Old Familiar" (https://ww
w.nytimes.com/2012/04/28/arts/music/a-john-harbison-sonata-at-alice-tully-hall.html). The
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Further reading
Harbison, John. "Six Tanglewood Talks (1, 2, 3)." Perspectives of New Music, 23, no. 2
(Spring–Summer 1985): 12–22.
Harbison, John. "Six Tanglewood Talks (4, 5, 6)." Perspectives of New Music, 24, no. 1
(Autumn–Winter 1985): 46–60.
Harbison, John. "Symmetries and the New Tonality." Contemporary Music Review, 6, no. 2
(1992): 71–79.

External links
Profile (https://www.wisemusicclassical.com/composer/627/John-Harbison/), Wise Music
Classical
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) page on John Harbison (https://mta.mit.edu/per
son/john-harbison)
John Harbison (https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8635679/) at IMDb
Infinite MIT video interview with John Harbison (https://infinite.mit.edu/video/john-harbison)
Art of the States: Exploded View #1 (https://web.archive.org/web/20080502195804/http://art
ofthestates.org/cgi-bin/piece.pl?pid=47) podcast of John Harbison discussing his String
Quartet No. 3 (1993)
Del Sol Quartet: Tear (https://web.archive.org/web/20060811193247/http://www.delsolquarte
t.com/sampletear.html) includes Harbison's Fantasia from Quartet No. 2 performed by Del
Sol Quartet
Bruce Duffie, interview with John Harbison, June 13, 1991 (http://www.bruceduffie.com/harbi
son.html)

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