Laura Clayton
Laura Clayton is an American pianist and composer. She was born in Lexington, Kentucky, and studied at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore and at Columbia University, New York, with Mario Davidovsky. She began studying composition with Darius Milhaud at the Aspen Music School and graduated with a Master of Music in Composition from the New England Conservatory in Boston. She lived for a while in Brazil and then continued her studies at the University of Michigan, graduating with a Doctorate of Musical Arts.
After completing her education, she worked as a composer. In 1980, her work was chosen to represent the United States at the International Rostrum of Composers.Honors and awards
- Charles Ives Prize from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, 1980
- Walter B. Hinrichsen Award
- NEA awards
- Jerome Foundation grant
- University of Michigan grant
- Alice M. Ditson Fund grant
- Guggenheim Foundation grant, 1984
- MacDowell Fellow
Works
Selected works include:
- Five Nocturnes for orchestra
- Panels for chamber ensemble, 1983
- Sagarama for piano and orchestra, 1984
- Cree Songs to the Newborn for soprano and chamber orchestra, 1987
- Implosure for two dancers, slide and tape, 1977
- Chiara's Sea for women's voices, 1988
- Terra Lucida for orchestra, 1988
- Simichai-ya, sax, echoplex, tape, 1987
