Kay, Ulysses

Kay, Ulysses

▪ American composer
in full  Ulysses Simpson Kay  
born Jan. 7, 1917, Tucson, Ariz., U.S.
died May 20, 1995, Englewood, N.J.

      American composer, a prominent representative of the neoclassical school.

      A nephew of the New Orleans jazz trumpeter King Oliver (Oliver, King), Kay played jazz saxophone as a boy and later turned to piano, violin, and composition. After receiving his B.A. at the University of Arizona (1938), he studied at the Eastman School of Music (M.A., 1940), Yale University (with composer Paul Hindemith (Hindemith, Paul)), Columbia University, and the Berkshire Music Center in Tanglewood, Mass.

      After World War II Kay settled in New York and produced works for chamber ensemble (Suite for Strings, 1947), orchestra (Concerto, 1948), and film (The Quiet One, 1949). From 1968 to 1988 he was a professor of music at Lehman College of the City University of New York.

      Kay's music is characterized by melodic lyricism and tonal orientation (i.e., organized around a given tone as a focal point) supplemented by chromaticism (use of all tones of the chromatic scale, whether or not they belong to a particular key). In his later works he also used quartal harmony, or chords built of tones a fourth apart, rather than the usual third. His works include many film and television scores, among them his notable Essay on Death (1964), a tribute to President John F. Kennedy. Besides large orchestral works, including the Symphony (1967) and Southern Harmony (1975), Kay wrote chamber music, choral works such as the cantata Song of Jeremiah (1945), organ and piano music, short band pieces, and five operas: The Boor (1955), The Juggler of Our Lady (1956), The Capitoline Venus (1970), Jubilee (1976), and Frederick Douglass (1991).

Additional Reading
Constance Tibbs Hobson and Deborra A. Richardson (compilers), Ulysses Kay: A Bio-Bibliography (1994).

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Kay, Ulysses Simpson — ▪ 1996       U.S. composer (b. Jan. 7, 1917, Tucson, Ariz. d. May 20, 1995, Englewood, N.J.), produced hundreds of neoclassical works that were marked by vibrant harmonic and orchestral colouring, complex polyphony, melodic lyricism, and tonal… …   Universalium

  • Kay, Ulysses (Simpson) — born Jan. 7, 1917, Tucson, Ariz., U.S. died May 20, 1995, Englewood, N.J. U.S. composer. A nephew of jazz cornetist King Oliver, he was an all around musician from childhood. After graduating from the University of Arizona he went on to study at… …   Universalium

  • Kay, Ulysses (Simpson) — (7 ene. 1917, Tucson, Ariz., EE.UU.–20 may. 1995, Englewood, N.J.). Compositor estadounidense. Sobrino del corneta de jazz King Oliver, fue un músico completo desde su infancia. Después de egresar de la Universidad de Arizona, estudió en la… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Kay — /kay/, n. 1. Sir, Arthurian Romance. the rude, boastful foster brother and seneschal of Arthur. 2. Ulysses Simpson /simp seuhn/, born 1917, U.S. composer. 3. a female or male given name: from a Greek word meaning rejoice. * * * (as used in… …   Universalium

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  • Ulysses Kay — Ulysses Simpson Kay (* 7. Januar 1917 in Tucson/Arizona; † 20. Mai 1995 in Englewood/New Jersey) war ein US amerikanischer Komponist. Kay lernte in seiner Schulzeit auf Anregung seines Onkels, des Jazz Kornettisten Joe King Oliver, bei William A …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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  • Kay — ist: eine Variante des Vornamens Kai, siehe Kai (Vorname) ein US amerikanischer Gitarrenhersteller, siehe Kay Guitars eine andere Form des Namens für Cei fab Cynyr oder Keie, ein Ritter der Tafelrunde eine Kurzform von okay Kay ist der Name… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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