Nearly all of Navid Bargrizan’s compositions explore intonational and tuning concepts, both in acoustic and electroacoustic contexts. Since 2014, his experiments with microtonality have resulted in numerous premieres and performances of his works internationally, for instance at New York City Electroacoustic Music Festival, Toronto International Electroacoustic Symposium, Eastern Music Festival, Florida Contemporary Music Festival, Midwest Music Consortium, Conferences of the Society of Composers, Inc., Mikrotöne Symposia at Mozarteum Salzburg, and Modern Mondays Concert Series in Copenhagen, as well as at Art NOW and Pro Musica concert series in North Carolina. Virtuoso musicians and ensembles such as Laurent Estoppey, Katharina Uhde, Manfred Stahnke, Steve Stusek, Susan Fancher, Tolgahan Çoğulu, Jonas Frølund, Joseph Bognar, Boston String Quartet, Galan Trio, and Bold City Contemporary Ensemble have performed and recorded his works. He was a 2018 Composer-In-Residence of the Harn Museum of Art (Gainesville, Florida). Furthermore, for his woodwind quintet Tuning Exercise No. 1, his piece for microtonal adjustable guitar Se-Chahar-Gah, and his solo viola piece Kupferteich American Prize for Composition chose him as a finalist in its 2017, 2020, and 2023 editions. Navid's music is published under Navona, Ravello, and Neuma labels, as well as by Edition Zalzal and Mahoor Institute.
Navid's research projects examine the music-philosophical aesthetic, music-theoretical, and compositional ideas of composers Manfred Stahnke, Harry Partch, Mozart, and Roger Waters, as well as the singer and author Carla Henius. They have led to publications in the USA, Canada, Germany, Austria, and Turkey, such as in the Journal of the Society for American Music, eContact! Online Journal for Electroacoustic Practices, Systematische Musikwissenschaft: Popular Music Studies Today, and Müzik Bilim Dergisi: Journal of Musicology. His forthcoming publications include a Grove Music dictionary entry on Stahnke (Oxford University Press) and a chapter on Partch’s influence on European microtonalists in Just Writings: Perspectives on Harry Partch (ed. S. Andrew Granade, the University of Rochester Press). He has presented aspects of his research at more than 35 conferences in the North America and Europe, including the national meetings of the Society for Music Theory, American Musicological Society, German Studies Association, Society for American Music, Canadian University Music Society, and International Association of the Study of Popular Music, as well as in Berlin, Kassel, Vienna, Salzburg, Lucca, Toronto, Ottawa, and Istanbul. He has received awards such as a one-year DAAD Postdoctoral Fellowship, DAAD Short-Term and DAAD German Studies Scholarships, Tedder Fellowship of the Center for Humanities and Public Sphere of the University of Florida, UF Faculty Research Incentive Award, UF Graduate School Doctoral Research Award, and UF Best of College of the Arts Creative Research Award, as well as grants from Institut für neue Musik und Musikerziehung Darmstadt, International Ekmelik Music Society Salzburg, and International Office of the Universität Hamburg. Navid worked as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Music Composition and Theory, as well as Adjunct Lecturer of General Humanities and German Language, at the University of Florida. At this institution and Universität Hamburg, he earned degrees in Music History and Literature; Music Composition, Theory and Technology; Systematic Musicology; and Art History. Throughout his education, his most important mentors have been Hamidreza Dibazar, Mehran Rouhani, Mostafa-Kamal Pourtorab, Sharif Lotfi, Albrecht Schneider, Friedrich Geiger, Manfred Stahnke, Silvio dos Santos, Jennifer Thomas, Paul Richards, Paul Koonce, James Paul Sain, and Ralf Remshardt. He also served as an Adjunct Professor of Music (Theory and History) at Texas A&M University-Commerce and Instructor of German Language at Dallas Goethe Center. From 2021 to 2023, Navid was a Visiting Assistant Professor of Music (Composition, Musicianship, History) and the Coordinator of the Composition Area at Valparaiso University (Indiana, USA). At the same time, he directed VUNUMU (Valparaiso University New Music Ensemble) and worked as a composer-performer at ValpLork (Valparaiso University Laptop Orchestra). Currently, Navid serves as an Assistant Professor of Musicology at East Carolina University. |
Navid's CV (English)
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