Merton Brown was a composer

Composer

A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...

 who studied with Wallingford Riegger

Wallingford Riegger

Wallingford Constantine Riegger was a prolific American music composer, well known for orchestral and modern dance music, and film scores...

 and Carl Ruggles. He often collaborated with choreographers including former Martha Graham

Martha Graham

Martha Graham was an American modern dancer and choreographer whose influence on dance has been compared with the influence Picasso had on modern visual arts, Stravinsky had on music, or Frank Lloyd Wright had on architecture.She danced and choreographed for over seventy years...

 dancer Matti Haim, José Limón

José Limón

José Arcadio Limón was a pioneer in the field of modern dance and choreography. In 1928, at age 20, he moved to New York City where he studied under Doris Humphrey and Charles Weidman. In 1946, Limón founded the José Limón Dance Company...

, and Thomas Hewitt.

Virgil Thomson

Virgil Thomson

Virgil Thomson was an American composer and critic. He was instrumental in the development of the "American Sound" in classical music...

 describes him as a "neo-contrapuntalist

Counterpoint

In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more voices that are independent in contour and rhythm and are harmonically interdependent . It has been most commonly identified in classical music, developing strongly during the Renaissance and in much of the common practice period,...

" influenced by Carl Ruggles

Carl Ruggles

Charles "Carl" Sprague Ruggles was an American composer of the American Five group. He wrote finely crafted pieces using "dissonant counterpoint", a term coined by Charles Seeger to describe Ruggles' music...

 and involved with, "rounded [ melodic ] material," but not so much with the, "personalized sentiment," involved in neoromanticism.

Work List

• Cantabile for string orchestra
• Concerto Breve for string orchestra
• Concerto Grosso for band
• Consort for Four Voices for string quartet or two pianos
• Movement for string quartet
• String Trio for violin, viola, and cello
• Chorale to Olin Stephens for string quintet or string orchestra
• Three Motets for string quartet
• Trio for flute, violin, and cello
• Arioso for piano
• Sonata in One Movement for piano
• Piano Sonata
• Toccata for piano
• Three Etudes for piano
• Three Songs (Rilke) for voice and string trio
• Two Songs for voice and piano
• Cat Duets (written for David Edgar Walther)
• Poems of James Joyce

External links

• http://thomashewittdance.org/collab.html