Theodore
Antoniou, one of the most eminent and prolific contemporary
artists, leads a distinguished career as composer, conductor, and
professor of composition at Boston University. He studied violin,
voice, and composition at the National Conservatory in Athens, with
further studies in conducting and composition at the Hochschule für
Musik in Munich, and the International Music Center in Darmstadt. After
holding teaching positions at Stanford University, the University of
Utah, and the Philadelphia Musical Academy, he became professor of
composition at Boston University in 1978.
As a conductor, Professor Antoniou has been engaged by several major
orchestras and ensembles, such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra Chamber
Players, the Radio Orchestras of Berlin and Paris, the Bavarian Radio
Orchestra, the Tonhalle Orchestra (Zurich), the National Opera of
Greece, and the Berkshire Music Center Orchestra. In 1974 he became
assistant director of contemporary activities at Tanglewood, a position
he held until 1985. An ardent proponent of new music, Professor
Antoniou has founded various contemporary music ensembles, including
ALEA II at Stanford University; ALEA III, in residence at Boston
University; the Philadelphia New Music Group; and the Hellenic Group of
Contemporary Music. He is also director of the ALEA III International
Composition Competition and since 1989 the president of the National
Greek Composers' Association and director of the Experimental Stage of
National Opera of Greece.
Many of Professor Antoniou's compositions were commissioned by major
orchestras around the world, and about two hundred of his works have
been published by Baerenreiter Verlag (Germany), G. Schirmer (USA) and
Philippos Nakas (Greece). He has received many awards and prizes,
including the National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship grants and the
Richard Strauss Prize, as well as commissions from the Fromm,
Guggenheim, and Koussevitzky Foundations, and from the city of Munich
for the 1972 Olympic Games. He has been recognized with ASCAP Awards
for several years, and in 1991 he was awarded the Metcalf Award for
Excellence in Teaching by Boston University. In December 1997 he was
presented with the Music Award from the Greek Academy of Arts and
Letters, one of the most prestigious awards and the highest academic
distinction in music; and in January 2000, the Greek National Radio
Broadcast Corporation awarded him the Dimitris Mitropoulos Award for
his lifelong contribution to music. In 2003 the Ionian University
conferred upon him an honorary doctorate. In 2004 the University of
Vienna and the Alfred Toepfer Foundation of Hamburg, Germany, awarded
him the prestigious 2004 Herder Prize, in recognition of his
contribution to mutual cultural understanding and piece among the
countries of southeastern Europe. Kodaly, Lutoslawski and Penderecki,
are among the personalities, awarded this Prize. In January 2005 the
Ionian University conferred upon him a second honorary doctorate, while
in December 2005 the CFA faculty of Boston University awarded him with
“The Distinguished Faculty Award”, an award which is presented to honor
CFA faculty members for their outstanding achievements, contributions
to the arts, and distinguished service to the community.
Theodore Antoniou's works are numerous and varied in nature, ranging
from operas and choral works to chamber music, from film and theatre
music to solo instrumental pieces – his scores for theatre and film
music alone number more than a hundred and fifty compositions. Among
his works, the opera Bacchae premiered in the Athens Festival in
Greece. His newest opera, Oedipus at Colonus, commissioned by the SWF
(Sued-West Funk), Baden-Baden, in Germany, received the prestigious
Music Award presented by the Hellenic Union of Music and Theatre
Critics. For his theatre music, he was the first to receive the
“Karolos Koun” award in 1988 and the “Dimitris Mitropoulos” award (for
2006) by the Museum and Study Centre of the Greek Theatre and the
Judging Committee for Distinguished Awards (a prize usually awarded to
stage artists), in appreciation of his prominence in the theatrical
arena. His most recent distinction is the “Commander of the Order
of Honour”, presented by the President of the Hellenic Republic (March
2007).
