Ohana Maurice

Anglo-French composer of Sephardic Jewish origin. He originally studied architecture, but abandoned this in favour of a musical career, initially as a pianist. He studied under Alfredo Casella in Rome, returning to France in 1946. Around this time he founded the "Groupe Zodiaque", which fought against prevailing musical dogma. His mature musical style shows the influence of Mediterranean folk music, particularly the Andalusian cante jondo. Ohanas output includes the choral works, three string quartets, and two suites for ten-string guitar. He also wrote operas entitled Syllabaire pour Phèdre and La Celestina. He is also known for his extensive use of microtonality; for example, third- and quarter-tones in pieces like Le Tombeau de Debussy and Si le jour paraît. He died 13 November 1992. Link to Wikipedia biography Read less