Alex Pauk » Biography

Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 1945

• Composer
• Conductor

Alex Pauk

Alex Pauk attended the OAC student conductors’s workshop under Karel Anãerl, Ernesto Barbini, Victor Feldbrill, and Boyd Neel (1970-72). He furthered his studies in conducting at the Toho Gakuen School of Music in Tokyo (1972-73), and subsequently moved to Vancouver where, in 1975, he was named “Vancouver’s Musician of the Year” by the Sun. He also taught at the Courtenay Youth Music Centre (1973-5) and the Vancouver Community College (1974-78). With funding from the Canada Council, Pauk later studied in Europe (1978-79), prior to settling in Toronto.

As a conductor, Alex Pauk has worked with both student and professional orchestras. In the 1970s, he conducted the BC Summer Youth Orchestra (1974), the Vancouver Youth Orchestra (1974-78), and the National Youth Orchestra (1974-80). On the professional side, he has taken to the podium for performances with the CBC Vancouver Orchestra, the Hamilton Philharmonic, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, the Vancouver New Music Society and NMC. Pauk was a founding member of ARRAY, and also founded the short-lived Array West (1973-4), as well as its successor Days Months and Years to Come (Magnetic Band)—a similar group of composer-musicians which he served as music director and conductor from 1974 until 1979. In 1983 he became the founding music director and conductor of the Esprit Orchestra, premiering over 30 works in the eight years that followed. He also conducted the orchestra in its first recording (CBC SMCD-5101), issued in 1991. In 1984 he co-chaired the ISCM World Music Days held in Toronto and Montréal, and served as music director and conductor of the 1986 Satori Festival of new Canadian music held in Winnipeg.

By 1991, Pauk had written over 30 concert works, most of them on commission, in addition to film and TV scores. His experience with a wide range of contemporary music as a conductor is reflected in the eclectic style and strong feeling for unusual but effective instrumental combinations in his own music. Jazz, pop, and especially world music have all left their mark on his compositions. Mirage and Nomad use harmonies and rhythms derived from Balkan and Middle Eastern music, while Echo Spirit Isle, a re-working of the earlier Devotions, resulted from his study of gamelan music. Pauk has received commissions from James Campbell, the CBC, Courtenay Youth Music Centre, the Esprit Orchestra, Joseph Macerollo, NYO, the Quebec Symphony Orchestra, Vancouver New Music Society, and the York Winds, among others.

Pauk is married to the composer Alexina Louie. He is a member and former president (1983-89) of the CLComp, as well as an associate of the Canadian Music Centre.