Tyshawn Sorey Wins Serge Koussevitzky Music Foundation Award

Tyshawn Sorey, Presidential Assistant Professor of Music, is among seven composers chosen to receive commissions for new musical works from the Serge Koussevitzky Music Foundation in the Library of Congress. The commissions are granted jointly by the Foundation and the performing organizations that will present the world premiere of each work. Sorey’s composition will be presented by Yarn/Wire, a new music quartet dedicated to the promotion of creative, experimental new music in the U.S. and abroad.

The award is named for Serge Koussevitzky, conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra from 1924 to 1949 and a leading champion of contemporary music. He established the Koussevitzky Foundation in 1942 and passed operations to the Library of Congress in 1949.

Sorey’s work spans a multitude of musical and performance media, defying distinctions between musical genres, composition, and improvisation. An active drum set player, percussionist, trombonist, pianist, conductor, educator, and ensemble leader, Sorey has released twelve recordings that feature his work as a composer, improviser, multi-instrumentalist, and conceptualist. Sorey was named a McArthur Fellow in 2017, and a United States Artists Fellow in 2018.