Germany in 1969, is of Kurdish descent but has never
lived in his
ethnic homeland or in the town where he
was born.
Educated in Nordrhein-Westfalen, Austria, Poland
and the United
States, Prof. Gawlick holds degrees from the
University of
California Santa Barbara, the University of Texas
at Austin and
the New England Conservatory of Music.
Similarly, his
music travels far afield by drawing inspiration
from and
engaging with literary, visual and musical
landscapes both
in time and place. This dialogue across centuries
and among the
arts informs much of his solo, chamber, orchestral, film and vocal
music. Performed throughout the United States and Europe and broadcast
on American National Public Radio, his works have received numerous
accolades including awards and fellowships
from the
International Society of Contemporary Music (ISCM), the Massachusetts
Cultural Council, ASCAP as well as support and sponsorship from the
German Consulate General and the German Embassy (Washington DC). His
music is available through Brazinmusikanta Publications
and the American Music Center and released on Capstone Records and
Musica Omnia. Ralf Yusuf Gawlick teaches at Boston College and lives in
Newton, MA, with his wife Basia and their two children.