Music Timeline

Bryce Dessner

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Born / died

1976

Movement

Contemporary classical

Location

Born in Cincinnati

Friends / contemporaries

Akira Kosemura, Alexandra Streliski, Alon Sariel +3 more

Bryce Dessner is a vital and rare force in music.Spotify

He has won Grammys as a classical composer and with the band The National, of which he is guitarist, arranger, and co-principal song-writer. Dessner’s collaborations include working with Philip Glass, Johnny Greenwood, Bon Iver, Steve Reich, Gustavo Dudamel, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu, Paul Simon, Bruce Springsteen, Sufjan Stevens, Taylor Swift and Thom Yorke.Spotify

Dessner is a prolific classical composer. His works range from intimate chamber pieces and scaled-down works for solo instruments to full orchestra scores and concertos. His compositions have been performed by leading orchestras around the world, including the LA and New York Philharmonics, Philharmonia and San Francisco Symphony Orchestras.Spotify

During the 2024/25 season Dessner will be Artist in Residence at the National Concert Hall, Dublin and Ars Music Festival at BOZAR, Brussels. In addition to being the creative chair of the Tonhalle Zurich last season, his many past residencies include a San Francisco Symphony Collaborative Partner, Artist-in-Residence at London’s Southbank Centre and with Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra. Dessner is much sought after as a film composer, with releases including the film Sing Sing, limited series Manhunt, and John Crowley’s We Live in Time.Spotify

He has garnered great acclaim for his work on films such as Iñárritu’s The Revenant with the late Ryuichi Sakamoto and for his music to Fernando Meirelles’s The Two Popes.Spotify

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role: composer · 90%era: Contemporarymovement: Contemporary classical1976

Movement

Contemporary classical

How this movement sounds

texture-firstextended techniqueshybrid stylessound colorspace/silencemicro-detail

Contemporary classical listening cues: sound color and texture can matter as much as melody and harmony. Sometimes the 'main theme' is a texture rather than a tune.

You may hear extended techniques (unusual ways of playing), hybrid influences (film, jazz, folk, electronics), or very sparse, spacious writing where silence and resonance carry meaning.

Because styles vary widely, try to identify the piece's 'rules': what repeats, what changes gradually, and what counts as a structural event (a new texture, a new register, a new pulse).

A useful mindset: contemporary music can be about attention, not just about singable melody. Treat tiny changes (a new bow pressure, a shifted harmony color, a new layer) as the 'plot'.

If it feels unfamiliar, focus on one layer (a repeating figure, a bass pulse, a timbre) and track its evolution. Contemporary music often rewards close listening to small changes.

How Bryce Dessner sounds

new harmonyrhythmic bitecolor & textureminimal patternsextended techniques

Modern/contemporary music varies wildly, but you will often hear experimentation with harmony, rhythm, and sound color as primary material.

Some strands emphasize rhythmic bite and sharp contrasts; others explore timbre and atmosphere; minimalism builds from repeating patterns and gradual change.

If the music feels less about singable melody and more about texture, pulse, or color, you are probably hearing a modern idiom.

Wikipedia

Bryce David Dessner (born April 23, 1976) is an American composer and guitarist based in Paris and a member of the rock band the National.Wikipedia

Dessner's twin brother, Aaron, is also a member of the group. Together, they write the music in collaboration with lead singer and lyricist Matt Berninger.Wikipedia

In addition to his work with the National, Dessner is known for his work as an independent composer. His orchestral, chamber, and vocal compositions have been commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, ensemble intercontemporain, Metropolitan Museum of Art (for the New York Philharmonic), Kronos Quartet, Carnegie Hall, BAM Next Wave Festival, Barbican Centre, Edinburgh International Festival, Sounds from a Safe Harbour Festival (Cork, Ireland), Sydney Festival, eighth blackbird, Sō Percussion, New York City Ballet, and many others. His work, Murder Ballades, was featured on eighth Blackbird's album Filament, an album he also produced and performed on, which won the 2016 Grammy Award for Best Small Ensemble Performance.Wikipedia

Dessner has collaborated with artists such as Philip Glass, Steve Reich, Paul Simon, Sufjan Stevens, Nico Muhly, Jonny Greenwood, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Alejandro González Iñárritu, Terry Riley, Justin Peck, Ragnar Kjartansson, Katia and Marielle Labèque, Nick Cave, and Taylor Swift, among others. Dessner is the founder of the MusicNOW Festival, co-founder of Copenhagen's…Wikipedia

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