Kevin
J. Waters has composed
two operas, four works for orchestra, a number of pieces
for small ensemble, as well as several choral settings
in large form. The Seattle Symphony, Kronos Quartet,
Emerald City Brass Quintet, and Colorado State University
Orchestra have performed some of these works and others
have been premiered in San Francisco, Guadalajara and
Rome. His opera Dear Ignatius, Dear Isabel, commissioned
by Loyola College of Maryland and produced in Baltimore
for the school's one hundred and twenty fifth anniversary,
was later produced in Seattle and New Orleans. KSPS-TV,
Spokane, telecast the opera in 1989 during its fourth
production.
Another
opera, Edith Stein, is currently under consideration
for performances in Poland by Krakow Opera. Psalm 150,
for Symphonic Band and Choir, was commissioned in 1990 by
The University of Scranton under the sponsorship of Northeastern
Bank, Scranton, Pennsylvania. In dulci jubilo, a
set of variations for concert band, received its premiere
by Gonzaga University's Wind Ensemble and has been published
by Pocono Mountain Music Publishing. Pocono also publishes Under
a Soft Rain, a fantasy for Brass Quintet. During the
late nineties Clare Symphony; Cataldo Trio for Flute,
Cello and Piano; and The Lord is Near: Improvisations
for Organ on Advent Plainchants all received premieres.
His organ concerto, Waumandee Township, was premiered
by Joseph Adam, soloist, and Robert Spittal conducting members
of the Spokane Symphony during the Regional Convention of
the American Guild of Organists in July, 1999. Since then,
World Library Publications, GIA, and Cantica Nova have published
several of his liturgical compositions.
In
2003, Nevsky Quartet of St. Petersburg, Russia, made a CD
recording of his String Quartet (1969): The Florentine. Several
years earlier, the Kronos Quartet presented the work's premiere
in Seattle.
His
music publishers include: McLaughlin & Reilly; Gregorian
Institute of America; North American Liturgy Resources; Pocono
Mountain Music Publishing; Walton; MorningStar; World Library
Publishers; Cantica NOVA Publications.
He
served as a panelist for the Music Division of the National
Endowment for the Arts, Director of the Jesuit Institute
for the Arts, and chaired Seattle University's Department
of Fine Arts for many years. He also served for some time
as West Coast music critic for the New York journal, America.
Kevin
Waters has been a member of the Oregon Province of the Society
of Jesus (Jesuits) since August, 1951. He began his teaching
career at Yakima's Marquette High School in 1958.
Choral
music by Kevin J. Waters
Organ
music by Kevin J. Waters
