From The Archives: Dr. Jennifer Higdon, Composer

It was an honor to host Dr. Jennifer Higdon earlier this year. Since her episode, she's continued composing, and presenting. In this show she discusses life as a composer, music she finds inspiration from, and what it was like to win one of the biggest awards for musicians.

Jennifer Higdon, a Pulitzer Prize and three-time Grammy winner, is one of the most performed living American composers working today. She is the recent recipient of Northwestern University’s Nemmers Prize and the UT Austin EM King Award. Previous honors include the Guggenheim, Koussevitzky, and Pew Fellowships, as well as two awards from the American Academy of Arts & Letters. Commissions have come from a wide range of performers: from the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Chicago Symphony, to The President’s Own Marine Band; from the Tokyo String Quartet to Eighth Blackbird, as well as individual artists such as singer Thomas Hampson, violinist Hilary Hahn and pianist, Yuja Wang.  Her first opera on Charles Frazier’s book, “Cold Mountain”, was commissioned by Santa Fe Opera, Opera Philadelphia, NC Opera, and Minnesota Opera, selling out all of its runs and winning the International Opera Award. She makes her living from commissions. Her works are recorded on over 70 CDs. The recording of her “Percussion Concerto” with Colin Currie and the London Philharmonic was recently inducted into The Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry. Jennifer holds the Rock Chair in Composition at The Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.

For more information about Dr. Jennifer Higdon, visit her official website here.