b. 1912 -

CONLON NANCARROW, born October 27, 1912 in Texerkana, Arkansas, studied music at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and with Roger Sessions in Boston. In 1937, he went to Spain as a member of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade to fight against the fascist Franco government. Nancarrow returned to the United States in 1939 and the following year moved to Mexico City where he currently resides.     In the 1930s and early 40s, Nancarrow wrote pieces for solo piano, chamber groupings and orchestra. In 1949, he began writing exclusively for the player piano, punching the paper rolls on his own machine. Some of the early player piano works reflect Nancarrow's interest in jazz, blues, and Spanish music. As he further explored the possibilities of the player piano, his compositions became increasingly sophisticated and complex.In 1985, Nancarrow began again to compose for live performers, completing his "Piece No. 2 for Small Orchestra" in 1986.

Archived Compositions

O R C H E S T R A L Piece No. 1 (1942) for Small Orchestra Score + Recording Piece No. 2 (1986) for Small Orchestra Score + Recording S O L O   P I A N O Prelude and Blues (1935) Score + Recoring Tango? (1984) Score + Recording Study No. 15 (1950s) for player piano Recording Study No. 1, 27, and 36 (1950s) for player piano Recording Sonatina for Piano (1941) Recording

C H A M B E R   E N S E M B L E S Sarabande and Scherzo (1930) for oboe, bassoon, and piano Score Septet (1940) for clarinet, alto saxophone, bassoon, piano, violin, viola, double bass Score String Quartet (1945) Score + Recording String Quartet No. 3 (1988) Score Toccata: Version I (1935) for violin and piano Score Toccata: Version II (1987) for violin and tape of player piano version Score + Recording Trio (1942) for Clarinet, Bassoon and Piano Score + Recording