NY Phil Announces $10M Gift from Henry R. Kravis to Support Composer Residency & Prize

The New York Philharmonic will receive a $10 million gift from Henry R. Kravis in honor of his wife, Marie-Josée Kravis, to endow its new Composer-in-Residence position, a major initiative of Alan Gilbert’s tenure as Music Director, which begins this month. In addition, the Kravis gift will fund the creation of a $250,000 Marie-Josée Kravis Prize for New Music at the New York Philharmonic, to be awarded to a composer for extraordinary artistic endeavor in the field of new music, which will also include a commission from the New York Philharmonic.

The first Marie-Josée Kravis Composer-in-Residence will be Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg who will serve for two years in the post beginning September 16, 2009 with the world premiere of his composition EXPO, the opening work on Alan Gilbert’s inaugural Opening Night Concert as the Orchestra’s Music Director. The New York Philharmonic’s appointment of Lindberg reinstitutes the role of Composer-in-Residence as a fundamental part of the Philharmonic’s programs. There have been six previous Philharmonic Composers-in-Residence: David Amram (1966–67), Lester Trimble (1967–68), Fredric Myrow (1968–69), Jacob Druckman (1982–86), and David Del Tredici (1988–90). A similar role was occupied by Tania León, who was the Philharmonic’s Charles H.A. Revson Composer Fellow (1993–96) and New Music Advisor (1996–97).

The Kravis Prize is among the largest of any prize for new music and will be bestowed every two years, beginning with the 2011–12 season. Additional attributes of the award will be announced at a later date.

Marie-Josée and Henry Kravis have been instrumental in their support of new works commissioned for the New York Philharmonic over the past decade, including Peter Lieberson’s The World in Flower (premiered May 2009), Esa-Pekka Salonen’s Piano Concerto (February 2007), and Stephen Hartke’s Symphony No. 3 (September 2003). (—Condensed from the press release)