Vladimir Simosko

Simosko, Vladimir

Vladimir Simosko. Music librarian, clarinetist, saxophonist, flutist, percussionist, composer, b Pittsburgh 15 Nov 1943; BA (Rutgers) 1966, MLS (Rutgers) 1968. While a librarian 1967-74 in Princeton, NJ, he served 1968-71 as curator of the Institute of Jazz Studies at Rutgers U. He moved to the music library at the University of Manitoba in 1974 (becoming library head in 1982) and taught courses at the university 1976-83 in jazz and other musical topics. Having played 'free jazz' 1964-74 in New York as a clarinetist, saxophonist, and flutist, he established in Winnipeg in 1983 the Experimental Creative Music Workshop, a collective of musicians committed to cross-cultural experimentation, aleatory composition, and interaction with dancers, poets, film makers, and other artists. The group, in which Simosko plays both reed and percussion instruments (vibraphone, marimba, etc), has performed in many Winnipeg venues and has been heard on CBC radio and on eight self-produced cassette recordings.

Simosko's compositions include Prairie (1984, for flute, synthesizer, percussion, narrator, and dancer), Bismallah (1985, for flute and piano, commissioned by the Manitoba Arts Festivals) and Yantra (1990, for shenai, darabaka, oud, nay, and voices). His manuscripts are deposited at the University of Manitoba Archives. He is a contributor to EMC.