Robert Kyr

Robert Harry Kyr (born April 20, 1952) is an American composer, writer, filmmaker, and Philip H. Knight Professor of Music Composition and Theory at the University of Oregon School of Music and Dance. Kyr is one of the most prolific composers of his generation, having written 12 symphonies, three chamber symphonies, three violin concerti, numerous large works for orchestra, oratorios and other large-scale choral works, and a wide variety of chamber music. Luminous and sometimes ecstatic in effect, Kyr’s work is basically tonal, and often harmonically and rhythmically complex, its sophistication deriving from its synthesis of both modern and ancient modes, as well as Western and Asian musical traditions. An engaged activist for world peace and environmentalism, or combine music with other media, and touch upon current or historical events. The concepts and titles of Robert Kyr’s works often point to their spiritual and metaphysical dimensions: A Time For Life, On The Nature of Love (Violin Concerto No.1), Unseen Rain, Songs of The Shining Wind, White Tigers, and The Passion According to Four Evangelists. Kyr’s music has been performed widely around the world and he has been commissi