Craig Morris began his compositional studies at eleven years old. Since then he has added violin, piano and voice to his musical education and studied under Shirley Bloom, Kevin Scott and Joelle Wallach. He has been a violinist with the Bronx Symphony Orchestra for forty years and has worked professionally as a cantor. His music has been performed by the Bronx Symphony Orchestra, the CETA Orchestra of New York, the North Jersey Symphony, Fifth International Music Festival of Buenos Aires, the Orchestra Society of Philadelphia, the Chamber Music Society of Formosa, members of the Amasi Trio, the Gregg Smith Singers and the Nyack College Chorale.

His compositions include three piano sonatas and several piano suites, orchestral pieces including several suites, a clarinet concerto, a violin concerto, a cello rhapsody, a concert duet for soprano and tenor, choral compositions and a sacred service for the Sabbath (published in the Journal of Synagogue Music). Two recent choral compositions, Arise My Love and The Rubaiyat, were chosen as finalists in the 2010 Meistersingers Choral Competition and four of his choral works were recorded in 2011 by the Composer’s Choir in Hamden CT.

His music has been hailed as “extremely intelligent, complex and powerful,” “beautiful, lively and moving,” and “very individual yet totally accessible.”

Morris is a child psychiatrist and an assistant professor at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. A native New Yorker, he has lived in New City NY for many years with his wife Nancy.

Albums

Circle of Love

Release Date: September 11, 2015
Catalog Number: RR7911
21st Century
Vocal Music
Choir
Piano
From the passion of a new romance to the devotion and deep affection of parents for their children, love can take many forms. On his Ravello Records release CIRCLE OF LOVE AND OTHER CHORAL OFFERINGS, composer Craig Madden Morris presents a song cycle for chorus and piano set to traditional texts from The Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, The Book of Ruth, Malachi, and The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, as well as original verse by the composer. This CIRCLE OF LOVE portrays the blossoming and growth of love, from the initial passion to the poignancy of later years.

Vanguards 1

Release Date: July 8, 2014
Catalog Number: RR7892
20th Century
21st Century
Chamber
Solo Instrumental
Electronic
Percussion
Piano
Ravello Records is pleased to announce the first installment of its compilation series, VANGUARDS VOL. 1, presenting a deep cross-section of the label's contemporary and eclectic catalog. The album features performances by the London Symphony Orchestra, pianist Kate Boyd, the McCormick Percussion Group, the New Hudson Saxophone Quartet, pianist Amy Briggs, the Grammy-nominated Strung Out Trio, and many more in works by contemporary composers such as Alan Beeler, Stefan Poetzsch, Michael Veloso, Lisa Miles, Hubert Howe, Scott Brickman, Alan Schmitz, and others.

Dreams

Release Date: June 28, 2011
Catalog Number: RR7813
21st Century
Chamber
Cello
Piano
Violin
DREAMS is the latest release from New York-based composer Craig Madden Morris. This album features a variety of Morris’ compositional styles, including the passionate Violin Concerto, the Caribbean-flavored Tropical Dances, the intimate Piano Trio, the elegiac Cello Rhapsody and the loving, gentle Dream Songs. Known for his intelligently complex and unique-yet-accessible compositions, Morris complements his works with his knowledge of the instruments for which he composes.

Explore other albums featuring Craig Madden Morris