13 Facts About Paul Chihara

Paul Seiko Chihara was born on July 9,1938 and is an American composer.

Paul Chihara received a DMA in 1965 from Cornell, studying with Robert Palmer.

Paul Chihara studied composition with Nadia Boulanger in Paris, Ernst Pepping in West Berlin, and Gunther Schuller in Tanglewood.

Paul Chihara was the first composer-in-residence of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Neville Marriner, and was most recently part of the music faculty of UCLA, where he was the head of the Visual Media Program.

Paul Chihara's prize-winning concert works, which include symphonies, concertos, chamber music, choral compositions, and ballets, have been performed to great acclaim both nationally and internationally.

Paul Chihara's works are concerned with the evolution and expression of highly contrasting colors, textures, and emotional levels, which are often dramatically juxtaposed with one another.

Paul Chihara's works have been commissioned by the Guggenheim Foundation, the Roger Wagner Chorale, the Naumberg Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Paul Chihara has received commissions from the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the London Symphony, as well as the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Cleveland Orchestra.

Paul Chihara was Composer-in-Residence with the San Francisco Ballet for ten years.

Paul Chihara's music reflects interest in a variety of musical styles, and often shows influence from Asian music and culture.

Paul Chihara has composed music in a variety of forms, including ballets, musicals, symphonies, choral and chamber music.

Paul Chihara has worked with directors Sidney Lumet, Louis Malle, Michael Ritchie, and Arthur Penn.

Paul Chihara composed the score for Shogun: The Musical, based on James Clavell's novel.