Martha Hill Duncan

Martha Hill Duncan was a member of the first graduating class of the Houston High School for Performing and Visual Arts and earned a Bachelor of Music degree in Composition from the University of Texas at Austin. She furthered her musical studies in Ithaca, NY with pianist Trudy Borden and in Toronto with composer Dr. Sam Dolin.

Specializing in piano, vocal and choral writing, Martha has won awards in The Diana Barnhart American Song Competition (2005), Ruth Watson Henderson Choral Composition Competition (2005) and The NATS Calgary 2009 Art Song Competition. In 2014, her youth opera, Searching the Painted Sky, with librettist Janet Windeler Ryan, was premiered at the National Opera Association Convention in New York City. In 2020, Martha was named as a finalist for the Louis Applebaum Award.

As artistic director of the women’s choir She Sings!, Martha has created many new treble choir works. Her ongoing collaborations with performers, poets and visual artists have led to many new works, including piano and vocal solos which appear in music educational syllabi and/or publications.
Martha is also a founding member of Red Leaf Pianoworks, an international self-publishing composers’ collective. She lives in Kingston, Ontario with her husband Martin and has two grown children and two granddaughters.

For more information please visit www.marthahillduncan.com.


Compositions by Martha Hill Duncan

A Child's Prayer at Evening

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 2, piano, less than 3 min.

A Child's Song of Christmas

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, low voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 2, piano, less than 3 min.

A Season of Sensations (high voice)

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, Difficulty : 3, piano, 5-10 min.

A Season of Sensations (medium voice)

Martha Hill Duncan medium voice, Difficulty : 3, piano, 5-10 min.

Be Quiet, Wind

Martha Hill Duncan 2+ voices, treble choir, Difficulty : 3, piano, less than 3 min.

Daisy Time

Martha Hill Duncan medium voice, Difficulty : 2, piano, less than 3 min.

Grey Rocks and Greyer Seas

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 3, piano, less than 3 min.

Lady Icicle

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 3, piano, 3-5 min.

Life

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 2, piano, less than 3 min.

Quiet

Martha Hill Duncan low voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 2, piano, less than 3 min.

Rainfall

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 3, piano, less than 3 min.

Roadside Flowers

Martha Hill Duncan 2+ voices, Difficulty : 3, piano, 3-5 min., less than 3 min.

Severance

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 3, piano, less than 3 min.

She Marries a Violinist

Martha Hill Duncan treble choir, Difficulty : 3, a cappella, 3-5 min.

Singing in the Northland, Volume 1

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, low voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 2, piano, 10+ min.

Singing in the Northland, Volume 2

Martha Hill Duncan 2+ voices, high voice, low voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 3, piano, 10+ min.

Songs of Tekahionwake

Martha Hill Duncan treble choir, Difficulty : 3, percussion, piano, 5-10 min.

Step to the Fiddle

Martha Hill Duncan treble choir, Difficulty : 2, piano, 3-5 min.

The Brook in February

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 2, piano, less than 3 min.

The Dustman

Martha Hill Duncan 2+ voices, Difficulty : 2, piano, 3-5 min.

The Star

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 2, piano, less than 3 min.

Where Leaps the Ste. Marie

Martha Hill Duncan high voice, medium voice, Difficulty : 3, piano, less than 3 min.

1: (Easy) No divisi in voice parts, accompaniment doubles or supports vocal parts, diatonic, symmetrical phrases, textures mostly homophonic, simple rhythms, stepwise voice leading (conjunct), moderate ranges, no extended techniques, and limited sustained singing.

2: (Medium Easy) Limited divisi, voices somewhat independent from accompaniment, some chromatics, phrases may be longer or more fragmented, mostly homophonic, moderate rhythmic complexity, some difficult intervals (disjunct motion), moderate ranges, extended techniques are simple, limited sustained singing.

3. (Medium) Limited divisi, unaccompanied, or with independent accompaniment (voice parts not doubled), many chromatics, phrases of varying lengths, more contrapuntal textures, moderately complex rhythms, some difficult intervals (disjunct motion), moderately difficult/challenging ranges, extended techniques are potentially challenging, and some sustained singing.

4. (Medium Difficult) Abundant divisi, unaccompanied, or accompanying instruments are fully independent from voice parts, many chromatics and/or key changes, long and/or broken phrases, potentially little homophony, complex rhythms, many difficult intervals (disjunct motion), difficult/challenging ranges, potentially difficult extended techniques, and a demand for sustained singing.

5. (Difficult) Adundant divis, unaccompanied, or accompanying instruments are fully independent from voice parts, many chromatics and/or key changes, long and/or broken phrases, potentially little homophony, complex rhythms, extreme ranges, use of challenging or unusual extended vocal techniques, abundant sustained singing.