How did David Del Tredici get to be 85 years-old?!

It seems only yesterday that Del Tredici was one of America’s brightest young composers.

Del Tredici, whose birthday it is today, achieved considerable recognition for his cycle of works inspired by the writings of Lewis Carroll. “Child Alice,” in particular, was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Music in 1980. The work was inspired by two prefatory poems from Carroll’s “Through the Looking Glass, and What Alice Found There” and “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.” If Carroll and Gustav Mahler had had a love-child, it would probably have come out sounding something like this.

Here’s an excerpt from Part One, “In Memory of a Summer Day,” conducted Gil Rose. If you like what you hear, I highly recommend his recording of “Child Alice,” with Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP) (BMOP).

“Child Alice” was performed for the first time complete – the work spanning over two hours – at Carnegie Hall in 1986. BMOP played the first revival in 2016, with soprano Courtenay Budd. The orchestra’s recorded performances of American music, including a number of underexposed operas, are issued on their house label, BMOP Sound. Anything they touch is invariably worthwhile. Frequently, it turns out to be a great deal more than that.

One day, back in 1990, when I was in my early 20s and living in a cramped efficiency in Philadelphia, I opened my apartment door, and who happened to be standing there in the hall, but Del Tredeci. This was just a few years after Bernstein recorded his orchestral work, “Tattoo,” for release on Deutsche Grammophon. What a surreal experience that was. It turns out he was an acquaintance of my landlord, who lived upstairs. It’s sobering to think, at the time, Del Tredici was younger than I am now.

Lewis Carroll, of course, was the pen name of Charles Dodgson. A distant cousin of his was the composer Stephen Dodgson, whose music I discovered fairly late in his life. I was introduced to him by the flutist Robert Stallman (who also lived in Philly). I tried to interview Dodgson once for “The Lost Chord” in 2012, but unfortunately by then he was having issues with his memory at the age of 88. A very good-natured person, but I couldn’t get anything of value out of him. However, it didn’t prevent me from putting together a show of his music. Happily, when it came to his own compositions, the clouds parted long enough for him to be able to assist me in selecting some of his favorite works.

Dodgson composed some worthwhile Essays for Orchestra, and his guitar music was championed by Julian Bream and John Williams, among others. For Stallman, he wrote a number of pieces for flute. His song cycle, “Last of the Leaves,” may be one of his best works.

Dodgson was born on March 17, St. Patrick’s Day, in 1924. So Del Tredici’s and Dodgson’s birthday anniversaries are only a day apart. Life is full of little coincidences.

Dodgson’s Concerto for Flute and Strings

Essay No. 5

John Williams (the guitarist) plays Dodgson’s “Fantasy Divisions”

The Stephen Dodgson Charitable Trust has been active in promoting his music. You can learn more at their Facebook page, Stephen Dodgson – composer, or at stephendodgson.com.