The score for the 1961 film Something Wild was rejected by director Jack Garfein, who famously questioned why Morton Feldman provided celesta music for a scene depicting sexual assault. This event marked a tense intersection between the composer’s experimental approach to sound and the conventional expectations of the film industry during his mid-career.
Early Development and Influences
Born in 1926 in New York City, Feldman initially studied piano under Vera Maurina Press, who emphasized emotional musicality over technical discipline. His formal education included stints at Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School and New York University in 1944. Later, his compositional foundation was shaped by teachers Wallingford Riegger and Stefan Wolpe. A pivotal encounter with John Cage in 1950, following a performance of Webern’s Symphony, moved Feldman toward the New York School, distancing him from traditional tonal harmony and serialism.
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Feldman began experimenting with nonstandard musical notation, employing grids to dictate the timing of notes while leaving specific pitches to the performer. This approach to indeterminacy influenced his peers, including Cage. Throughout these years, he balanced his artistic output with employment as a factory worker and dry cleaner, only transitioning to full-time academia later in life. His work during this period reflected a dialogue with the abstract expressionist painters of the era, such as Philip Guston and Jackson Pollock.
The Buffalo Years and Mature Minimalism
In 1970, Feldman’s compositional style shifted toward rhythmic precision. By 1973, he accepted a professorship at the University at Buffalo, where he remained until 1987. During his final decade, he produced works defined by extreme duration and quiet dynamic ranges. Compositions like String Quartet II, which exceeds six hours, and For Philip Guston, lasting four hours, exemplify his preoccupation with sustained, slowly evolving sounds. He viewed these hushed tones as a means to cleanse the musical palette.
Fast facts
- Born: 1926, New York City
- Died: 1987, Buffalo
- Occupations: Composer, university teacher, factory worker, dry cleaner
- Education: New York University, Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School
- Key Award: Guggenheim Fellowship (1966)
- Academic Post: University at Buffalo (1972-1987)
- Movement: New York School
Questions readers ask
What characterized Feldman's later musical style?
His later works are noted for their extreme length, very slow developmental pace, and a consistently quiet dynamic range.
How did he support himself before his academic career?
Until 1973, Feldman earned his living working in his family's textile business in Manhattan's Garment District.
Achievements
- Notable work: Something Wild in the City
- Notable work: Jackson Pollock
- Notable work: For Samuel Beckett
- Notable work: Piano and String Quartet
- Affiliated with University at Buffalo
- Educated at Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School and New York University
- Worked as composer, university teacher and factory worker
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