Russell Peck

Russell Peck (1945-2009)
Russell Peck's orchestral compositions have received thousands of performances by hundreds of orchestras in the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Africa. These include the major American orchestras of Boston, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Milwaukee, etc., Britain's London Symphony and Royal Philharmonic, and orchestral performances at Lincoln Center and Kennedy Center, and in Berlin, Warsaw, Barcelona, Kiev, Montreal, Hong Kong, Singapore, Cairo, Caracas, and other world cities.

An Albany Records compact disk of four of the composer's orchestral works (TROY 040) features recordings by the London Symphony. Other recordings are on Koch International and Channel Crossings (Netherlands). His Peace Overture was among the first serious contemporary American orchestral works played in the People's Republic of China (Shanghai Symphony), and one of the very few to be played in Africa (Cairo Symphony).

In 2000-2001 a consortium of 39 American orchestras commissioned Mr. Peck's Timpani Concerto Harmonic Rhythm. The premiere performances began with the Louisville Orchestra and proceeded with orchestras throughout the United States, including the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra.

Other best known works by Mr. Peck include his triple percussion concerto, The Glory and the Grandeur; Signs of Life for string orchestra; and The Thrill of the Orchestra, a narrated orchestral instrument demonstration piece which was recorded for the Discovery series by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of London, and has been translated into French, German, Spanish, Hebrew, Portuguese, Korean and Cantonese.

Russell Peck (born Detroit, 1945) was an honors graduate of the University of Michigan, where he also received Master and Doctoral degrees in composition. His composition teachers included Clark Eastham, Leslie Bassett, Ross Lee Finney, Gunther Schuller, and George Rochberg.