Joseph Schwantner studied in his native Chicago and at Northwestern University. He has held teaching positions at Yale, Eastman and the Juilliard School. His music has been influenced by George Crumb, Messiaen and Debussy.

Music
Schwantner’s varied compositions show the development of his own distinctive musical language. His instrumental compositions include the quasi piano concerto Distant Runes and Incantations, structured on a poem. Sparrows for soprano and eight instruments is based on a series of haikus from the Japanese poet Kobayashi Issa’s The Autumn Wind.