James Wierzbicki / curriculum vitae
Education:
Ph.D. in historical musicology, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music,
dissertation topic: "Burlesque Opera in London: 1729-1738," 1979.
M.M. in clarinet performance, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, 1971.
B.F.A. in clarinet performance, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 1970.
Writings:
scholarly publications:
"Sound as Music in the Films of Terrence Malick," chapter of Poetic Visions of America: The Cinema 
of Terrence Malick, Hannah Patterson, ed. (London: Wallflower Press), forthcoming in 2003.
"Banality Triumphant: Iconographic Use of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony in Recent Films,"
The Beethoven Forum, forthcoming in 2003.
“Raiders of the Lost Arc: Hollywood’s Appropriation of Operatic Narrative Structure,”
Interdisciplinary Humanities, forthcoming in 2003.
“Grand Illusion: Arthur Benjamin’s ‘Storm Cloud’ Music and The Man Who Knew Too Much,”
Journal of Film Music, forthcoming in 2003.
Weird Vibrations: How the Theremin Gave Musical Voice to Hollywood's Extraterrestrial 'Others,"
Journal of Popular Film and Television, Fall 2002.
Judith Milhous, Gabriella Dideriksen and Robert D. Hume: Italian Opera in Late Eighteenth-
Century London: Volume II. The Pantheon Opera and its Aftermath, 1789-1795 (book review), Opera Quarterly, vol. 18, no. 2, Spring 2002. 
"Wedding Bells for The Bride of Frankenstein: Symbols and Signifiers in the Music for a Classic
Horror Film," Philosophy and Film, special edition Summer 2001.
Articles for The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, second edition, 2001.
"Biscardi, Chester" "Kirchner, Leon" (co-author)
"Brown, Earle" (co-author) "Larsen, Libby"
"Del Tredici, David" "Paulus, Stephen"
"Feldman, Morton" (co-author) "Schwantner, Joseph"
"Kalichstein, Joseph" "Weaver, James"
"Silence as Music / Music as Silence," New Music, 2000.
Articles for The New Grove Dictionary of Opera, 1992.
"Atherton, James"
"Kurka, Robert"
"Neblett, Carol"
"The Music of Elliott Carter," 80th Birthday brochure, BMI, 1988.
Articles for The New Grove Dictionary of American Music, 1986.
"Adam, Claus" "Krainis, Bernard"
"Barrows, John" "Lane, Robert"
"Cooper, Kenneth" "Parnas, Leslie"
"Covelli, John" "Primavera String Quartet"
"Dorian Wind Quintet" "Shelton, Lucy"
"Ferden, Bruce" "Sherry, Fred"
"Fodor, Eugene" "Slenczynska, Ruth"
"Folger Consort" "Stoltzman, Richard"
"Gubrud, Irene" "Vermeer Quartet"
"Hayman, Richard" "Wilson, Richard"
"Boughton: The Immortal Hour" (record review),
Opera Quarterly, Spring 1985.
"Wang Shi-guang and Cai Ke-zing: The Hundredth Bride" (record review),
Opera Quarterly, Spring 1985.
"Stravinsky: Oedipus Rex" (record review),
Opera Quarterly, Spring 1985.
"Jacques Chailley's The Magic Flute, Masonic Opera" (book review),
Opera Quarterly, Winter 1984.
"H.C. Robbins Landon's Mozart and the Masons" (book review)
Opera Quarterly, Winter 1984.
"Michael Colgrass and Jacob Druckman: 20th Century Eclecticism,"
Recorded Anthology of American Music, 1983.
"Maddalena: Prokofiev's Adolescent Opera,"
Opera Quarterly, Spring 1983.
"Color, Music and Arnold Schoenberg's Die glückliche Hand,"
University of Cincinnati Graduate Research Journal, Fall-Winter 1975-76.
other publications:
More than 4,000 reviews, feature articles and essays on a wide range of musical topics
published in the Cincinnati Post (1974-78), the St. Louis Globe-Democrat (1978-84) and 
the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (1984-94). For examples of essays that appeared in the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch, see the writing index on this Web site.
HTML instruction manual (4 megabytes) for Solero© Music Notation Software, including a
comprehensive illustrated glossary of music notation symbols, for the Internet-based music publisher Sunhawk.com (Seattle), 1999.
More than 500 record reviews, concert reviews and reports, most of them having to do with early
music, contemporary music or non-Western music, published in 
High Fidelity/Musical America magazine, 1984-90.
More than 100 performance reviews published in Opera News magazine 1983-92.
Approximately two dozen sets of liner notes for Gasparo Records, Nonesuch Records,
and New World Records, 1983-89.
Reports and reviews, published in The Musical Newsletter, 1977-78.
Reviews and feature articles, published in University of Cincinnati News Record, 1973-74.
Reviews and feature articles, published in the Winfield Daily Courier, Winfield, Kansas, 1972-73.
academic papers, invited lectures:
"Sound Collage in the Films of Terrence Malick," presented at the annual conference of the
Society for Cinema Studies, Denver, Colorado, May, 2002.
“Weird Vibrations: The Iconography of the Theremin in 1940s and ‘50s Hollywood,” presented
on the Wednesdays@one series, University of California, Riverside, May 2002.
"Max Weber's Sociology of Music: Why an Important Text Remains Clouded in Obscurity,"
presented at the annual conference of the Pacific Sociological Association, Vancouver, B.C., April, 2002.
"Deconstructing Disney: Gender Issues in the Songs for the Animated Films," presented at 
Hollywood Musicals and Music Symposium, American Music Research Center, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, August, 2001.
"Cantata Interrupta: The 'Storm Clouds' Music in Alfred Hitchock's The Man Who Knew Too Much,"
presented to the Pacific Northwest Chapter of the College Music Society, University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho, February, 2001.
"The Interface between Musical Composition and Musical Criticism," presented to Washington
Composers' Forum, Seattle, Washington, April, 1996.
"The Role of the Wind Ensemble in Contemporary Musical Life," presented at the annual
conference of the National Association of   College Band Directors, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, March, 1995.
"Making Sense of Contemporary Music," public lecture presented at Contemporary Music
Festival, Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Indiana, November, 1994.
"Problems in Contemporary Aesthetic Theory," presented to graduate seminar in philosophy,
Southeast Missouri State University, Cape Girardeau, Missouri, October, 1992.
"Structural Links in Mishima's The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea and Hans Werner
Henze's Das verrätene Meer," presented at a symposium sponsored by the San Francisco Opera, San Francisco, California, November, 1991.
"Music Criticism in the Soviet Union: New Directions," presented at annual meeting of the Music
Critics Association of North America, Aspen, Colorado, August, 1989.
"Silence in Western Music: Frames and Open Spaces," presented at interdisciplinary faculty
seminar (topic: Silence), Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri. April, 1989.
"The Confrontation between Tradition and Experimentation in Today's Music," presented at the
Festival of New Music, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, March, 1989.
"Music Criticism in Theory and Practice," presented to graduate students in the degree program
in music criticism, Peabody Conservatory of Music, February, 1989.
"Evaluating the Ephemeral -- Criticism and Improvisation," keynote address at music critics'
institute, New Music America Festival, Miami, Florida, December, 1988.
"Northern Exposure: Contemporary Scandanavian Music in the United States," presented at
symposium sponsored by Finnish Music Center, Helsinki, Finland, January, 1988.
"The Latent Guiding Thread: The Idea of Mobilité in the Post-Modern Avant-Garde," presented at
interdisciplinary faculty seminar (topic: Mallarmé's influence on 20th-century art), Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri. April, 1987.
"For Whom Do We Write?" presented at Music Critics Association institute, University of
Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, July, 1986.
"Music Journalism and Music Criticism -- What's the Difference?" presented at Music Critics
Association institute, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, July, 1986.
"The Musical Experience -- Active Listening," public lecture presented at Contemporary Music
Festival, Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Indiana, October, 1984.
"Music Today," a series of four public lectures ( I: "New Music, Modernism and the Avant-Garde," 
II: "The Vocabulary of New Music," III: "New Aesthetics," IV: "The Mainstream of Modern Music"), presented at the St. Louis Conservatory of Music, September-October, 1983.
"Franco Alfano's Resurrection: Its Literary Background," presented at Music Critics Association
institute in opera, University of Cincinnati, August, 1983.
"Historical Issues in 20th-Century Music," presented at symposium celebrating the tenth
anniversary of the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Santa Fe, New Mexico, August, 1982.
"Prokofiev's Maddalena: Its Influences and Implications,"  presented on lecture series sponsored
by Opera Theatre of St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, June, 1982.
radio scripts:
Approximately 300 hour-long radio scripts having to do with contemporary composers, styles,
instruments, aesthetics, etc., for the weekly program "Music of Our Time" broadcast on the National Public Radio station KWMU-FM, St. Louis, Missouri, between 1982 and 1987.
Approximately 200 five-minute record reviews, illustrated with musical examples, most of them
having to do with early music, contemporary music or non-Western music, for National Public Radio's nationally syndicated program "Performance Today," between 1986 and 1991.
Approximately 50 five-minute commentaries, most of them having to do with current musical
activities in Cincinnati, for the National Public Radio station WGUC-FM, Cincinnati, Ohio, between 1976 and 1978.
in-progress, unpublished:
The Music of 'Forbidden Planet' (book, part of the "Film Score Guides" series), under contract 
with Scarecrow Press, forthcoming in 2004, in progress.
Music of the Postwar Era (book, part of the Music in American History series), under contract
with Greenwood Press, manuscript due January 2004, in progress.
“Why Film Music Gets a Bum Rap," under consideration as a chapter for Bad Music,
Chris Washburne and Maiken Derno, eds. (London: Routledge), forthcoming in 2004..
"Cultural Critique in Alban Berg's Four Pieces for Clarinet and Piano, Op. 5," in-progress.
"'Maggoty' Johnson's Hurlothrumbo: A Jab at Italian Opera in Eighteenth-Century England,"
unpublished.
"Moving Ahead by Stepping Back: The Radical Conservatism of George Rochberg,"
unpublished.
Professional Activities:
Composer of interactive MIDI scores for Microsoft Corp., Muse Ed et al. (Willow Music),
Seattle, Washington, 1995-2001.
Composer of scores for industrial films for Schorr Communications et al. (Willow Music),
Seattle, Washington, 1995-2001.
Composer/producer, "Letting Down: Music for New Mothers," an audio CD of music for flute and
synthesizers (Willow Music), St. Louis, Missouri, April, 1995.
Critic-in-residence, Contemporary Music Festival, Terre Haute, Indiana, November, 1994.
Editor/musical director, The Beggar's Opera (original performing edition), Washington University,
St. Louis, Missouri, April, 1994.
Lecturer/adjudicator, Seventeen Magazine competition for young American musicians,
Interlochen Arts Academy, Traverse City, Michigan, February, 1994.
Adjudicator, Friedheim Competition (new music for chamber ensembles), Kennedy Center for the
Performing Arts, Washington, D.C., October, 1993.
Panelist, International Symposium on Music Criticism, sponsored by the Canadian Arts Council,
Toronto, Ontario, September, 1992.
Seminar leader, Music Critics Association institute (Henze, Mishima and 20th-century opera)
San Francisco Opera, San Francisco, California, November, 1991.
Composer of theatrical music for The New Theatre, Washington University, Webster University,
the St. Louis Shakespeare Company et al. (Willow Music), St. Louis, Missouri, 1991-95.
Panelist, ("The Road to the Future"), Symposium on Music Criticism, Juilliard School of Music,
New York, New York, December, 1990.
Panelist, ("Tonality in the 20th Century"), Symposium on Bohuslav Martinu and Czech music,
Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, October, 1990.
Composer of scores for television documentaries and promotional spots for KETC-TV, KMOV-TV
et al. (Willow Music), St. Louis, Missouri, 1990-95.
Director, three-day Symposium on Music Criticism in the Soviet Union, presented in conjunction
with the annual meeting of the Music Critics Association of North America, Aspen, Colorado, August, 1989.
Panelist, ("Crises in Contemporary Music"), Festival of New Music, Florida State University,
Tallahassee, Florida, March, 1989.
Director, five-day institute in music criticism ("Avant-Garde Performance and Improvisation"),
sponsored by the Music Critics Association of North American in conjunction with the New Music America Festival, Miami, Florida, December, 1988.
Panelist, International Symposium on Contemporary Music, Sibelius Academy,
Helsinki, Finland, January, 1988.
Panelist, symposium on ''Music Criticism in America's Press,'' Kennedy Center for the Performing
Arts, Washington, D.C., March, 1987.
Seminar leader, institute in music criticism ("La belle époque"), sponsored by the Music Critics
Association in conjunction with Colorado Music Festival, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, Auguest, 1986.
Director, ten-day institute in music criticism (chamber music repertoire and performance),
sponsored by the Music Critics Association in conjunction with the Eastman School of Music, Rochester, New York, July, 1985.
Critic-in-residence, Contemporary Music Festival, Terre Haute, Indiana, October, 1984.
Lecturer/adjudicator, Seventeen Magazine competition for young American musicians,
Oberlin Conservatory of Music, Oberlin, Ohio, February, 1983.
Director, ten-day institute in music criticism ("Contemporary American Chamber Music"),
sponsored by the Music Critics Association in conjunction with the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Santa Fe, N.M., August, 1982.
Panel moderator, "Historical Issues in Contemporary Music," as part of symposium celebrating
the tenth anniversary of the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Santa Fe, New Mexico, August, 1982.
Director, ten-day institute in music criticism ("Early Music"), sponsored by the Music Critics
Association in conjunction with the Baroque Performance Institute, Oberlin Conservatory of Music, Oberlin, Ohio, August, 1981.
Adjudicator, Aliénor Competition (new music for harpsichord), Florida State University,
Tallahassee, Florida, October, 1980.
Bass clarinetist, Wichita Symphony Orchestra, Wichita, Kansas, 1972-73.
Clarinetist, Fresh Music Fare (new music festival), University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, July, 1972.
Substitute clarinetist, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1971-72.
Current Research Interests:
American film music of the 1940s and '50s
The musical sociology of Max Weber
Postmodern critical theory
The reception of Italian opera in 18th-century England
Current Teaching Interests:
Analysis and Critical Thinking
Film Music
History of Music Journalism
Introduction to Music Theory
MIDI Technology
Music Appreciation (for non-music majors)
Music History (survey -- all periods)
Music in the Theater
Music Notation Software
Music Since 1945
Musical Modernism Since the Middle Ages
Non-Western Music (survey)
Philosophies of Music
Twentieth-Century Music
Writing About Music
Honors and Awards:
Citation in the New Grove Dictionary of American Music as one of three "younger critics
whose work has attracted attention outside their immediate communities" (article on "Criticism," volume I, p. 543), 1985.
ASCAP Deems Taylor Award for Excellence in Writing about Music (for a three-part series
on 20th-century composers, published in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat), 1983.
ASCAP Deems Taylor Award for Excellence in Writing about Music (for articles 
on 18th- and 20th-century opera, published in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat), 1981.
Fellowship, institute for music critics sponsored by the Music Critics Association
in conjunction with the first annual New Music America Festival, New York, 1979.
Fellowship, institute for dance critics sponsored by the Dance Critics Association
in conjunction with the American Dance Festival, New London, Connecticut, 1978.
Fellowship, institute for music critics sponsored by the Music Critics Association
in conjunction with the University of Maryland Piano Competition, 1974.
Full tuition scholarship, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, 1973-74.
Fellowship, institute for music critics sponsored by the Music Critics Association
in conjunction with the Santa Fe Opera, 1973.
Pi Kappa Lambda National Music Honor Society, 1971.
Full tuition scholarship, University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, 1970-71.
Full tuition scholarship, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 1968-70.
Professional Service:
Member of executive board, Music Critics Association, 1987-91.
Member of advisory council, National Public Radio, 1987-88.
On-site evaluator (festivals), National Endowment for the Arts, 1986-90.
Panelist (festivals), National Endowment for the Arts, 1986.
On-site evaluator (opera, orchestras), National Endowment for the Arts, 1985-90.
Panelist (orchestras), National Endowment for the Arts, 1985-88.
Vice-president, Music Critics Association, 1983-87.
Secretary, Music Critics Association, 1981-83.
Professional Affiliations:
American Musicological Society
College Music Society
Music Critics Association of North America
Society for Cinema Studies
Society for Ethnomusicology
Recent Compositions:
Les Parents Terribles — opera in three acts (Michael Fry, lib.); in progress.
The Trumpeter of Kraków — orchestra, 2000.
Tridentine Mass — SATB chorus, 2000.
Frankenstein — opera in two acts (Ben Ohmart, lib.); 1999.
Elegy — string orchestra, 1999.
Plaint — cello and organ, 1998.
Piffle — flute and piano, 1997.
Sunbreaks — orchestra, 1997.
Chartres — SATB chorus, 1997.
The Windowes — SATB chorus, 1997.
Let There Be Light — SATB chorus, 1997.
Nuit d'Absurdité, (incidental music), Theâtre du Français, Denver, 1997.
Rise 'n' Shine (PSA spot for Women in Film), Seattle, 1997.
Various interactive pieces for MSN, Microsoft Corporation, (Redmond, Washington, 1996-97.
Various long-format industrial videos for Schorr Communications, Seattle, 1996-98.
The Sealed Room (live accompaniment for silent film), Shining Moment Productions,
Seattle, 1996.
Letting Down: Music for New Mothers (audio CD), Willow Music, St. Louis, 1995.
Four Dogs and a Bone (incidental music), The New Theatre, St. Louis, 1995.
70 Scenes of Halloween (incidental music), The New Theatre, St. Louis, 1995.
In Perpetuity Throughout the Universe (incidental music), The New Theatre, St. Louis, 1994.
Listening to St. Louis (60-minute documentary), KMOV-TV, St. Louis, 1994.
Two on the Aisle (audio logo), Double Helix Television, St. Louis, 1994.
Olympic Festival (30-minute documentary), KMOV-TV, St. Louis, 1994.
Shadow Song (independent video), Beacon Video, St. Louis, 1994.
Keepers of a Kingdom (60-minute documentary) , KMOV-TV,  St. Louis, 1994.
The Beggar's Opera (original performing edition), Washington University, St. Louis, 1994.
Various promotional 30-second spots for KMOV-TV, St. Louis, 1993-95.
Candida (incidental music), Webster University, St. Louis, 1993.
The Skin of Our Teeth (incidental music), Parkway South H.S., St. Louis, 1993.
Othello (incidental music), St. Louis Shakespeare Company, 1993.
Hedda Gabler (incidental music), Washington University, St. Louis, 1993.
St. Louis Stories (incidental music), The New Theatre, St. Louis, 1993.
The Art of Success (incidental music), Washington University, St. Louis, 1992.
Once Upon a Book (10-minute video), Illinois State Literacy Office and LIFT-Missouri, 1992.
Angel City (incidental music), The New Theatre, St. Louis, 1992.
Prelude to a Kiss (incidental music), The New Theatre, St. Louis, 1991.
Tending the Garden (60-minute documentary), KETC-TV, St. Louis), 1990.
Teaching Experience:
Lecturer in music, University of California, Irvine, 2001-present.
• "Gershwin" (upper-level history/literature class, Fall 2001)
• "Writing about Music" (practicum in critical thinking and writing skills, Winter 2002)
• "Film Music" (upper-level "special topics" class, Spring 2002)
• "Critical Studies in Music" (graduate seminar, Fall, 2002)
• "The American Avant Garde" (upper-level "special topics" class, Winter 2003)
• "Film Music" (upper-level "special topics" class, Spring 2003)
Adjunct assistant professor of music, Concordia University (Irvine, California), 2001-present.
• "Aural Skills" (ear-training, solfège, keyboard harmony, Fall 2001)
• "Experiences in Music" (introduction to music for non-music majors, Fall, 2001)
Adjunct assistant professor of music, University of Missouri-St. Louis, 1995.
• "Music of Non-Western Cultures" (one-semester survey for non-music majors)
• "Introduction to Music Theory" (one-semester class in fundamentals of music theory,
for non-music majors)
Adjunct assistant professor of music, St. Louis Conservatory of Music, 1981-88.
• "Music Since 1945" (one-semester upper-level class in history/literature/analysis,
presented in  1984, 1986 and and 1988)
• "Writing About Music" (one-semester upper-level practicum in critical thinking and
writing skills, presented in 1983, 1985 and 1987)
• "Music in the Middle Ages" (one-semester undergraduate "era" course, 1983)
• "Early Music" (one-semester undergraduate survey of medieval and
renaissance music, 1981)
Adjunct assistant professor of music, Washington University (St. Louis), 1979-80.
•  'Survey of Late 18th-Century Music" (one-semester undergraduate "era" course, 1980)
•  "18th-Century Musical Aesthetics" (one-semester graduate student seminar, 1979)
Assistant professor of music, Southwestern College (Winfield, Kansas), 1972-73.
• "Music of the Baroque Era" (one-semester undergraduate "era" course, 1973)
• "Introduction to Guitar" (one-month inter-semester workshop, 1973)
• "Music History" (two-semester survey of the entirety of Western music, 1972-73)
• "Symphonic Wind Ensemble" (two semesters, 1972-73)
•  Studio instruction in clarinet, other woodwinds (two semesters, 1972-73)
• "The Musical Experience" (one-semester course in music appreciation, 1972)
Adjunct instructor in music, St. John's College (Winfield, Kansas), 1972-73.
• "Wind Ensembles" (two semesters, 1972-73)
Instructor of music, Pio Nono High School (Milwaukee, Wisconsin), 1971-72.
• "Fundamentals of Music" (one-semester introductory theory course, 1972)
• "Band" (two semesters, 1971-72)
• "Introduction to the Humanities" (one-semester course for high school freshmen, 1971)
Adjunct instructor in music, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 1971-72.
• Studio instruction in clarinet (two semesters)
Non-Academic Professional Positions:
primary:
Music critic, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 1984-94.
Music critic, St. Louis Globe-Democrat, 1978-84.
Music critic, Cincinnati Post, 1974-78.
secondary:
Senior music editor/editorial supervisor of classical music publications
Sunhawk.com (Seattle), 1997-2000.
Composer/producer, Willow Music (a commercial project studio)
St. Louis and Seattle, 1994-2001.
Editor, news desk, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 1994-95
Contact Information
62 Harvey Court (949) 823-0159
Irvine, California jwierz@sbcglobal.net
92612 Web site