Albright,William(Hugh)

Albright, William (Hugh), American pianist, organist, teacher, and composer; b. Gary, Ind., Oct. 20, 1944; d. Ann Arbor, Sept. 17, 1998. He studied with Rosetta Goodkind (piano) and Hugh Aitken (theory) at the Juilliard Preparatory Dept. in N.Y. (1959–62), and then was a student in composition of Finney and Bassett and in organ of Marilyn Mason at the Univ. of Mich. (1963–70). He also received training from Rochberg, and in Paris with Messiaen at the Cons. (1968) and privately with Max Deutsch. Albright taught at the Univ. of Mich, from 1970, where he was a prof. of music from 1982. He also served as assoc. director of its electronic music studio. In 1979 he was composer-in-residence at the American Academy in Rome, in 1993 he received the Composer of the Year Award from the American Guild of Organists, and in 1995 he won the Richard Wagner Center for Choral Studies Competition. He pursued an active career as a pianist and organist, excelling in ragtime, jazz, and contemporary works. In his compositions, he pursued quaquaversal methods of experimental music, using varied techniques according to need.