Bruce Stark
Bruce Stark is an award-winning American composer for the concert stage, and as composer/pianist he has also released several solo piano albums. His music embraces influences of jazz, classical and contemporary masters.
He grew up in Lakeside, California where he began with drums and percussion, migrated to jazz piano, and while in college dropped out of the physics program and began formal studies in classical music, going on to complete a masters degree in composition at the Juilliard School. After graduation he moved to Tokyo where he resided for over 20 years making a living as arranger and jazz pianist, all the while producing a collection of works that reveal a compelling musical voice. In 2013 he returned to the U.S. and joined the music faculty of DigiPen Institute of Technology in Redmond, Washington.
I strive for beauty, lyricism, subtle shades of harmony and rhythmic layers, sometimes meditative, sometimes vibrantly energetic. I try to create music that has an organic profile, combining my diverse influences into a singular creative voice—the one that inspires and informs me, the one I hope inspires listeners.
From solo piano to chamber and orchestral works, Bruce Stark’s music has been performed on the concert stages of four continents, and recorded on numerous CDs. His Sonata for Piano was awarded Honorable Mention by the Music Teachers National Association’s Distinguished Composer of the Year competition, and he was winner of the South Texas Brass Symposium Competition for Adagio and Allegro for horn, trombone and piano. Other awards include First Prize in the Composers Guild Contest, Second Prize in the Barlow International Competition, and ASCAP composer awards.
His compositions have been featured in the National Flute Association Convention, American Piano Festival, International Trombone Festival, Canberra International Chamber Music Festival and MasterWorks Festival. Performances have included the Baton Rouge and Lansing symphonies, Hong Kong Philharmonic, Jakarta Symphony, Northwest Symphony Orchestra, Beaverton Symphony, Portland Youth Philharmonic, Rapides Symphony, numerous pianists and other musicians including trombonists Megumi Kanda and Don Lucas who have commissioned and championed multiple works.