William Duckworth (composer)

William Duckworth (composer)

William Duckworth (January 13, 1943 – September 13, 2012) was an American composer who also was an author, educator and Internet pioneer. He wrote more than 200 pieces of music and is credited with the composition of the first postminimal piece of music, The Time Curve Preludes (1977-1978), for piano. His other notable compositions include Thirty-One Days (1987), for alto saxophone, and Southern Harmony (1980-1981), a choral work which uses certain features of shape note singing. Duckworth was a Professor of Music at Bucknell University. Nora Farrell, his wife, runs Monroe Street Music, which publishes many of his pieces. In recent years, Duckworth concentrated on releasing music at his Cathedral Web site and has shifted much of his attention from music composed for traditional acoustic instruments to electronic music which utilizes world music influences and invites active participation from the listener.