By Mark Taylor

The American Academy of Arts and Letters has announced 18 winners of this year’s awards in music, and one of them is a notable member of the SFCM faculty. Composer Michael Gilbertson received the $15,000 Goddard Lieberson Fellowship in music. Gilbertson has taught Music Theory, Musicianship, and Music History at SFCM since 2017.

Candidates for the award are anonymously nominated by members of the Academy. For Gilbertson, winning came as a surprise, “I knew I was being considered since the awards committee requested copies of my work. I had no idea if I would receive any award, and I certainly was not expecting to receive the Lieberson Fellowship,” Gilbertson said.

Originally formed in 1898, the Academy is an honor society of the country's 300 leading architects, artists, composers, and writers. In a statement, the organization describes Gilbertson as a highly expressive lyrical composer with a unique harmonic vocabulary. Calling his work in Graffiti: Concerto for Chamber Orchestra a piece that is both theatrical and intellectually stimulating. In addition, the organization cites his work The Beautiful & The Good, a companion piece to Beethoven’s Symphony No.6, as showing his ability to absorb the past into his own musical identity. 

For Gilbertson, being recognized in this way is a special and humbling experience, “Musicians have had a difficult few years, so their decision to acknowledge my work at this time is truly meaningful. It's especially gratifying to be honored by a committee that includes luminaries like Chen Yi, John Corigliano, Stephen Hartke, George Lewis, Augusta Read Thomas, Chinary Ung, and Julia Wolfe, all composers I deeply admire,” he said. 

Gilbertson’s other work has earned a Copland House Residency Award, five Morton Gould Awards from ASCAP, and a BMI Student Composer Award. Gilbertson was also one of three finalists for the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for Music, making him one of the youngest finalists in the history of the award.

The American Academy of Arts and Letters Music Award winners will be presented at the organization’s ceremony on May 18, 2022.

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