Charlie Williams
In addition to his teaching duties, Charlie Williams serves as
the MFA program's resident 'Logic Ninja', acquainting students with the
ins and outs of composing using the latest generation of computer
technology. A graduate of Northwestern University's piano performance
program, he has concertized around the United States and in Europe. His
performance of new music in the 2nd International Shostakovich
Competition convinced the judging panel to award him a special prize
for bringing the 20th century into a decidedly Romantic-era-leaning
competition.
Having exhausted his lifetime quota of days spent
sitting by himself in a room practicing classical piano, Williams'
current musical projects explore the possibilities inherent in the
reconnection
of "art" music and popular genres, and new ways to integrate live audio processing into the performer's experience.
His 2009 album Music for Scientists with
his group Mira Mira was praised as "a fine soundtrack for thinking" by the writer and philosopher Daniel Dennett.