The Music of Frank Stemper has been heard on the fringe of the music world for over 30 years. "...vital stuff,...expressive, personal,, and original."  His scores for orchestra, chamber ensemble, voice and computer have somehow found their way from his home in rural mid-America, to much of the planet – over a dozen countries, in venues such as Teatro de Los Heroes (Mexico), Antiel Roman (Romania), Pannonalma Budapest (Hungary), Kulturhaus Dornbirn (Austria), Cowell Theatre at Fort Mason (San Francisco), Uihlein Hall (Milwaukee); Symphony Center (Chicago), Symphony Space, St. Ignatius of Antioch, Weill and Carnegie Halls (NYC), and The Kennedy Center (Washington DC), and hundreds more.  He has also maintained a presence on the new music scene, often serving as Guest Composer and/or performer at many international music festivals, such as Incontri Europei Con La Musica – Bergamo and Festival Spaziomusica – Cagliari, Italy; The Happening: New Music – Calgary, Canada;  International De Musica Contemporanea – Alicante, Spain; Vancouver Contemporary Music Festival; Saptamina Internationala A Muzicii Noi, Zilele Muzicii Contemporane and the George Enescu International Festival of Contemporary Music – Bucharest, Romania, the Bregenzer Festspiele – Austria; etc., and his music has been aired – and often performed for live broadcast – on the National Radio stations of Mexico, Hungary, Cyprus, Romania, Radio France, and the BBC. 

He has received to date 32 commissions for new work, and his music has received many awards, including the George Ladd Prix de Paris, a Pulitzer nomination, and, most recently, the New York Virtuoso Singers Competition.  His work has been supported by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), ASCAP, Meet the Composer, The American Music Center, The Rockefeller Fund for Music, and from the State Arts Councils of Illinois, California and New York, to name a few.  He has been in residence with many national and international ensembles and has received multiple "Guest Composer" invitations by the governments of Romania, Mexico, Austria, Spain and The Netherlands.  He is Co-Producer of the annual OUTSIDE THE BOX new music festival, founder and director of The Center for Experimental Music, at Southern Illinois University, where he is Composer In Residence (Professor) and often serves as pianist with the Altgeld Chamber Players.

R E C O R D I N G S

Available Commercially

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Toot tooT (2002) on an Albany Records CD by David Gier, trombone
with David Greenhoe , trumpet and Shari Rhoads, piano.

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So It Goes (1999) on Centaur Records CD by PASTICHE
Dave Scott, trumpet, Jan Fillmore Scott, clarinet, Fred Sahlmann, piano, Dave Walton, percussion.

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Panic 2000 (2000) solo percussion & computer geneerated sounds performed by Kevin Lucas

on Reception Records' "Carpe Noctem" by the "Dead Musicans' Society.

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Clarinet Piece (1985) for solo clarinet, performed by Eric Mandat on Advance Records' "The Extended Clarinet."

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Chameleon (1984) for clarinet, string trio and piano, performed by The Almont Ensemble, with the late Charlotte Zelkaon on Opus One Records, Inc.
This recording also includes
Two Pieces for Baby (1980) for solo 'cello, performed by Tom Flaherty.

ALSO

Hope (1998) for viola and 'cello, recored by CELLIOLA.

Three Pieces for Clarinet and Piano (12006 for clarinet and piano, recored by The Altgeld Chamber Players.