American modern composer Lois V. Vierk has been based mostly out of NYC, where she has collaborated with artists including choreographer Anita Feldman. Born outside of Chicago in 1951, Vierk went to California for college, studying under Morton Subotnick and Leonard Stein, among others. Her music studies then turned to gagaku (Japanese court music) for a dozen years, first in L.A. then in Tokyo where she studied with Sukeyasu Shiba, a lead flutist of the Imperial Court Orchestra. The gradual build in Vierk's compositions are one manifestation of gagaku's influence upon her own music. She also composed the gagaku work "Silversword" (1996), which was commissioned for performance by an ensemble led by former teacher Shiba; the premiere occurred at New York's Lincoln Center. Vierk's work first became prominent in the '80s, and since then she has received commissions from musicians including pianists Aki Takahashi and Frederic Rzewski, and accordionist Guy Klucevsek. Her compositions have been performed by a number of esteemed ensembles such as Kronos Quartet, Ensemble Modern, and Relâche, and at music festivals in Europe and North America. Vierk's music has been recorded for CRI, O.O. Discs, Tzadik, XI, and Sony. ~ Joslyn Layne