| Ricky Ian Gordon
Born in Oceanside, New York in 1956, Ricky Ian Gordon has become one of America’s leading composers of opera and vocal music. His songs have been performed and/ or recorded by such internationally renowned and diverse singers as Renee Fleming, Dawn Upshaw, Audra MacDonald, Betty Buckley, Frederica Von Stade and Kristin Chenoweth.
After studying composition at Carnegie Mellon, he settled in New York City and quickly became a favorite composer for serious singers of various backgrounds, from opera to Broadway and cabaret. His most recent work, “Rappahannock County,” for example, was conducted by the celebrated Rob Fisher, founding director of the illustrious “Encore” series in New York. In 2010 his opera, “The Grapes of Wrath,” in a two-act concert version was performed at Carnegie Hall by Nathan Gunn, Christine Ebersole and Elizabeth Futral with the American Symphony Orchestra conducted by Ted Sperling. He is currently working on commissions for the Metropolitan Opera and a new opera for the 50th anniversary of the Minnesota Opera. He has garnered many prestigious honors including the Stephen Sondheim Award and many awards from ASCAP, of which he is a member, The National Endowment of the Arts, and The American Music Center.
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