Larry Polansky
composer
guitar
Larry Polansky (1954–2024) was a prolific composer, theorist, performer, writer, and teacher
whose works have been performed around the world. Cold Blue has released two albums of
Polansky’s music: freeHorn and four-voice canons. As a performer (primarily guitar and mandolin), Polansky has premiered and recorded works by Christian Wolff, Barbara Monk, Feldman, James Tenney, Lou Harrison, Lois V Vierk, Ron Nagorcka, Daniel Goode, and others.
“The music of…Larry Polansky is a marvelous combination of the mathematical and the
expressive. The blend is so seamless, in fact, that it serves to point out the absurdity of
regarding those two strains as opposite or even especially different.” (Joshua Kosman, SFGate)
“Polansky has created a vast body of compositions that defy stylistic pigeonholing, from two-second canons to massive solo piano showcases. . . . In everything he does, Polansky aims to create a model for a better world, a place where hierarchies cease to be oppressive and barriers are abolished.” (Frank J. Oteri, NewMusicBox)