Laporta, Mark: Sparky, il Piano magico (the magic Piano), for Piano

Composer(s)

Mark Laporta an independent American composer, Mark Laporta studied with Karel Husa, Steven Stucky, Ezra Laderman and Bonné Hoy. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in music composition and theory from Cornell University.

Mark’s influences range from the ballades of Guillaume de Machaut to the foxtrots of John Adams. His compositions consist mostly of works for solo piano, small and large chamber ensemble and for orchestra. Recent compositions include:

Sparky (12 character pieces for piano)
Quarter Past Eight (flute, violin, cello)
Wending Ways (3 pieces for orchestra
Awakenings (piano, violin, viola, cello)

The subtext of Mark’s music is his ongoing observation of and empathy with the human condition: what we laugh about, what we love, what we’re indifferent to and what makes us cry out. In other words, the “real world” of music.

Compositions in the planning stages include a string quartet, a piano concerto, a wind septet and a series of short dramatic scenes for voices and chamber ensemble.

In addition to composing, Mark has worked as a music journalist for Opera News and Opera magazine and has served as a consultant for the New York State Council on the Arts. He lives in New York with his wife Janet and son Alex.