Tremblay, George (Amedée)
Tremblay, George (Amedée)
Tremblay, George (Amedée), Canadian-born American pianist, teacher, and composer; b. Ottawa, Jan. 14, 1911; d. Tijuana, Mexico, July 14, 1982. He studied music with his father, a church organist. In 1919 he was taken to the U.S.; eventually settled in Los Angeles, where he met Schoenberg (1936) and became his ardent disciple and friend. In 1939 he became a naturalized American citizen. He adopted the method of composition with 12- tones, which he diversified considerably, expounding his theoretical ideas in a book, The Definitive Cycle of the 12-Tone Row and its Application in all Fields of Composition, including the Computer (1974). He became an esteemed teacher; among his students were André Previn, Quincy Jones, and Johnny Mandel, as well as numerous successful composers for television and films.
Works
orch: 2 unnumbered syms.: Chaparral Symphony (1938) and The Phoenix: A Dance Symphony (1982); 3 numbered syms. (1949, 1952, 1973); Prelude, Aria, Fugue and Postlude for Symphonic Band (1967). CHAMBER: 4 string quartets (1936-63); 2 wind quintets (1940, 1950); Piano Trio (1959); Quartet for Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, and Viola (1964); String Trio (1964); Duo for Viola and Piano (1966); Double Bass Sonata (1967); Wind Sextet (1968); piano pieces, including 3 sonatas.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire