Beverly Grigsby (née Pinsky, January 11, 1928 – August 22, 2022) was an American composer, musicologist and electronic/computer music pioneer.
Early life
Beverly Pinsky was born in Chicago, Illinois, and studied music as a child. She moved to California with her family at the age of 13 and graduated from Fairfax High School.[1]
Education
Grigsby entered the University of Southern California to study pre-med, and also studied composition with Ernst Krenek at the Southern California School of Music and the Arts. She graduated with Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees in composition from California State University, Northridge, and a Doctorate of Musical Arts in composition from the University of Southern California. She later studied computer music generation at Stanford University’s Center for Artificial Intelligence and at M.I.T. in 1975-1976.[1]
Career
After completing her studies, Grigsby took a position teaching music at California State University, Northridge, and also established and directed the Computer Music Studio there. In 1984 Grigsby composed the first computerized score for an opera. Along with Jeannie G. Pool, she founded the International Institute for the Study of Women in Music in 1985.[2][3] She retired from her teaching position in 1993, but continued to teach privately and work as a composer. Her music has been performed internationally.[4]
Death
Grigsby died on August 22, 2022, at the age of 94.[5]
Honors and awards
- The National Endowment for the Arts award
- The Arts International (Rockefeller) Grant
- CSUN Distinguished Professor Award
- CSU Chancellor’s Maxi Grant
- IAWM Outstanding Music Contribution Award
- Annual ASCAP awards
- Carnegie Mellon Fellow in Technology (1987)
- Getty Museum Research Scholar (1997–98)[4]
Works
Grigsby has composed choral and chamber music, and also for film soundtracks and stage. She is noted for electroacoustic compositions. Selected works include:
- The Mask of Eleanor (1984) chamber opera with computer score
- Vision of St. Joan for soprano and computer (1987)
- Shakti II (1985) for soprano
- Trio for Violin, B-flat Clarinet and Piano (1994)
- Movements for Guitar (1982)
- Five Studies for Two Untransposed Hexachords for piano (1971)
- Spheres (1998) for Fairlight III Computer Music Instrument