Born in Detroit, Michigan, Frank Retzel recieved graduate degrees from Wayne State University and the University of Chicago where he studied with Ralph Shapey. He has been awarded Fellowships from the NEA, the Fulbright Commission, the Mellon Foundation, a prize from the ISCM and was nominated for a Pulitzer Award in 1988 for his organ set, Horae. Retzel’s compositions have been comm-issioned by numerous ensembles and solo artists and performed all over the world. He was commissioned in 1995 to compose the main opening and closing for the Mass with Pope John Paul II in New York. His compositions include innovative and dramatic works as well as works of lyrical simplicity and charm. Dr. Retzel is presently Professor of Music at Fordham University, Organist and Director of Music at the Church of Mary’s Nativity in Queens.
DUETS is a 2002 work for soprano and piano using two poems from Seamus Heaney’s 1996 collection The Spirit Level (texts used with permission). In “The Swing” (see example) youthful abandon is nostalgically viewed through the jaded prism of adulthood. “St. Kevin and the Blackbird” is a whimsical fantasy of the legendary Irish saint. Sound and word join in these settings providing a display of image, metaphor and allegory.
TAMARIND of 1997 is a symphonic work that has, as its root, a fantasy of the exotic tree of the same name. The 20 minute work for full orchestra is cast in three movements: I – “Velvet Pavane” II – “From the Ground Up” III – “Emerald Green Gigue.” The design of TAMARIND features a combination of lush harmony and melody in the first movement. A Chaconne forms the second, sounding first as a rhythmic ostinato which leads into additive harmony and sectional variations. The Finale is a stunning display of dance rhythmsand melodic gesture building to an exuberant conclusion.
