BACKGROUND TO…

Aaron Jay Kernis (b1960)

Born in Philadelphia, Kernis first showed an interest in music when, aged 12, he taught himself piano and soon took up composition. He studied under several teachers including John Adams and Charles Wuorinen, and first caught wide attention in 1983 when his orchestral work, Dream of the Morning Sky, was given a public sight-reading by the New York Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta. In 1998 he won the Pulitzer Prize for his String Quartet No. 2.