Full Biography
(download English pdf at the bottom, other languages to the left)
Z. Randall Stroope is an American composer and conductor. He formed and conducts The New American Voices, a recording ensemble that toured the Baltics in 2022. Randall had recent guest conducting engagements in Hong Kong, Rome, Barcelona, Singapore, Canterbury Cathedral (England), Berliner Dom (Germany), Salzburger Dom (Austria), St. John (Canada), Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (Washington, D.C.), Carnegie Hall (New York), and performed music for mass at the Vatican on 11 different occasions. He is also the Artistic Director for two summer music festivals in Europe and taught composition for FENIARCO (Italy choral conductors) in 2017 and 2018. Randall’s composition teachers were Cecil Effinger and Normand Lockwood, both students of the famous French teacher/composer, Nadia Boulanger.
Randall has written commissions for orchestras, soloists, choral ensembles, and works for combined forces. Recent commissions include works for Raffles Singers (Singapore), Michigan Choral Conductors Consortium, Arlington Master Chorale, West Point Military Academy, Müller Chamber Choir (Taiwan), among others. Some of his works also published by Oxford University Press, Alliance Music Publications (Houston), Carl Fischer, Santa Barbara Music Press (California), Walton Music and others. His shorter choral works — best known of which are Conversion of Saul, Lamentations of Jeremiah, Amor de mi alma, Christi Mutter, We Behold Once Again the Stars, Go Lovely Rose, The Pasture, Revelation, Homeland, I Am Not Yours, Caritas et Amor, Song to the Moon, Inscription of Hope and In Paradisum — have sold four million copies. His choral cycle — Four Sonnets of Garcilaso (which contains Amor de mi alma) is also one of his most performed works. Extended works include HODIE! (2nd ed.) for mixed chorus, brass/organ/percussion, Carmina Pax (a 30′ work premiered in 2018), for mixed chorus, orchestra, boy soloist, and baritone, American Rhapsody American Rhapsody for mixed chorus and brass quintet or strings, and his solo song cycle, Love’s Waning Seasons Love’s Waning Seasons. He has published many instrumental works, including Fanfare (brass/percussion/organ) and Amor de mi alma (wind ensemble). Randall is particularly drawn to the poetry of Sara Teasdale, George Herbert, Rainer Maria Rilke, James Agee and Robert Frost. Recordings of his works can be heard through Spotify, YouTube and his website (www.zrstroope.com).
Randall was a Professor of Music at three different universities (an endowed professor at two of them) – and has conducted 25 international choral tours and performed twice at the ACDA National Convention. He now guest conducts and composes full time from his home/studios in Florida and New Mexico.
Randall completed a Master of Music (Voice Performance) degree at the University of Colorado Boulder, and Doctor of Musical Arts (Choral Conducting) degree at Arizona State University. He did post graduate work with Margaret Hillis, Chorus Master of the Chicago Symphony. As a recipient of the Australian-American Fulbright, he has also done work in western Australia. He and his wife, Cheryl, love to travel and spend time with family.