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Alan Belkin. Composer, organist, teacher, b Montreal 5 Jul 1951; BA (Sir George Williams) 1972, M MA (McGill) 1978, DMA (Julliard) 1983. He first studied with Marvin Duchow (harmony, counterpoint, composition) and with Dom André Laberge (organ), then pursued his organ studies with Bernard Lagacé.
Belkin, Alan
From 1979 to 1983, he did a doctorate in composition at the Julliard School in New York with David Diamond and Elliott Carter. In 1983, he was a finalist at the Dublin International Organ Competition. His works, written for traditional ensembles, show a refinement of formal balance and expressive force. They have been performed in Canada, the US, Europe, Mexico, and have been broadcast on CBC. His commissioned works include A Vanished World for cello and piano (Canadian Jewish Congress 1985) and Phantoms for organ (RCCO 1985). Belkin's Symphony No. 2 was selected by the Canadian committee of the ISCM for submission to the 1986 World Music Days Festival in Hungary. His work Fern Hill for baritone solo, chamber orchestra and percussion was premiered by the SMCQ in 1987 under Gilles Auger, and his 'Adagio I,' an excerpt of Night Labyrinth (1987) was recorded on the CD Halogènes in 1990 (UMMUS UMM-101).
Belkin has taught at the UQAM, at Concordia University and at McGill University and joined the faculty of the University of Montreal in 1984. He has written articles for various publications, including the Computer Music Journal, the CUMR and Musicworks. He is an associate of the CMCenter and a member of the Canadian Electroacoustic Community. He has consulted for several music software firms including Mark of the Unicorn and Garritan Orchestral Libraries. Belkin maintains a multi-lingual website containing free material on musical form, orchestration, harmony, counterpoint, and other musical topics.
