Charles Corey is an American composer holding a Ph.D. in Music Composition and Theory from the University of Pittsburgh.  His approach to composition exploits and subverts the relationships that exist between different tuning systems; the results of this process range from pieces that use standard tuning systems in unique ways to works that involve multiple tuning systems working in concert.  Corey's compositions are known for their unique temporal language, unexpected, evocative harmonies, and strong dramatic arcs.  His music has been played across Europe and the Americas by performers including the Seattle Symphony, Megan Ihnen, Iktus Percussion, and Kjell Tore Innervik in venues including Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ and the Centro de Experimentación del Teatro Colón.  His music has been recognized by the Young Virtuosos Foundation, the Foundation for Modern Music, and the Sociedade Pró-Sinfônica de Limeira.

 

​Corey is Director and Curator of the Harry Partch Instrumentarium and formerly served as Affiliate Assistant Professor of Composition at the University of Washington, Seattle, and Director of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra's Merriman Family Young Composers Workshop.  He conducted and directed world premieres of Partch’s The Potion Scene, The Bewitched—a Ballet Satire, and the original score, for voice and Adapted Guitar I, of U.S. Highball.  His current research involves the microtonal compositions of György Ligeti and the works of Harry Partch.