title: Jack Vees
text: # Jack Vees
  
  Jack Vees (born 1955) is an American composer and bassist from Camden, New Jersey.
  
  ## Biography
  
  Both a performer (electric bass/guitar and electronics) and a composer, Vees has written music for his own ensemble, Chez Vees, and for groups such as Ensemble Modern, California EAR Unit, and Zeitgeist (ensemble). He has collaborated with performers Ashley Bathgate, Libby Van Cleve, Amy Knoles, Jeffrey Krieger, and Ben Verdery, as well as various choreographers and video artists. Influences include Louis Andriessen, John Cage, George Crumb, Charles Ives, Erik Satie, Joel Thome, and Captain Beefheart (Don Van Vliet).
  
  Vees holds an undergraduate degree from Glassboro State College and an M.F.A. from California Institute of the Arts. Previous composition teachers include Louis Andriessen, Vinko Globokar, Stephen L. Mosko, Bernard Rands, and Morton Subotnick.
  
  Vees currently resides in Guilford, Connecticut with his wife Libby Van Cleve. He is the operations director and instructor of the Center of Studies in Music Technology at the Yale School of Music.
  
  ## Notable compositions
  
  ### Solo (with or without electronics)
  
  National Anthem (2000) for guitar and electronics
  
  Surf Music Again (1996) for guitar and electronics
  
  Rocket Baby (1994) for electric cello and midi cellos
  
  Apocrypha (1986) for oboe and electronic tape
  
  John Henry (1984) for bass guitar
  
  ### Small ensemble
  
  Piano Trio (Hulk Smash!) (1994) for three players on two pianos
  
  Tattooed Barbie (1991) for 12-string guitar, oboe, and computer
  
  Saints Before the Vanishing Point (1990) for small ensemble
  
  Colorized Chaplin (1989) for electric guitar and harpsichord
  
  Child Bride (1988) for cello, electronics, and midi
  
  ### Theatrical works / opera / multimedia
  
  Feynman (2003-2005), chamber opera
  
  Piece for Composition (1987) for multimedia and percussion
  
  ## Discography
  
  2001: Ben Verdery – Soe-Pa. CD Baby.
  
  * Strummage
  
  2000: The Restaurant Behind the Pier. Recommended Records.
  
  * The Restaurant Behind the Pier
  * John Henry
  * Monsiur Piñata
  * Surf Music II
  
  1998: Emergency Music. Composers Recordings, Inc.
  
  * Prom Face Devotion
  
  1997: Surf Music Again. Composers Recordings, Inc.
  
  * Tattooed Barbie
  * Stigmata non Grata
  * Piano Trio
  * Rocket Baby Electric
  * Piano Trio (Hulk Smash!)
  * SPNFL
  * Surf Music Again
  
  ## Publications
  
  The Book on Bass Harmonics. Alfred Music Publishers. 1981.
  
  