Philip Corner

Philip Corner, born in 1933 in New York, now resident in Italy, is a composer, performer, writer and visual artist who has been active on the New Music scene for more than 50 years. He studied composition with Henry Cowell and Otto Luening at Columbia University, and analysis and musical philosophy with Olivier Messiaen in Paris. His interest in theory led him to the profession of teaching in several US schools and universities. Corner has been a member and co-founder of influential groups, such as Fluxus, the Judson Dance Theater, Tone Roads Chamber Ensemble, Experimental Intermedia Foundation, Sounds Out of Silent Spaces, and the ensemble Gamelan Son of Lion. Close to John Cage and the so-called New York School, he took a part in all of the New York’s avant-garde festivals. A lifelong interest in both spirit and body has led to meditative and action-oriented improvisations, typically using extra-musical sounds, including body and breath, but favouring the deep concentrations of gongs and other resonant metals. An intimate connection with the visual arts results in an intense involvement with the cross-over forms such as performance art, happenings, events, mixed media, intermedia, etc. His musical scores evolve into pure graphics, verbal instructions turning into poetry.

As of November 2022