Peter Pomajevich 2019 World Congress on Undergraduate Research

Peter Pomajevich

-Juried Selected Presenter-

Undergraduate Scholar: Montana State University

2nd World Congress on Undergraduate Research May 2019

A Memoir of Eric Funk: Music Influences in a Global Environment

23 – 25 May 2019

University of Oldenburg, Germany

Historically, biographies have been a central source of knowledge about composers and can inspire others to meet their challenges, accomplish their goals, and make a significant contribution to the world. Growing up in a small town in the rural state of Montana, USA, Eric Funk has made global impacts through his musical compositions. Funk has composed a total of 149 major works, won numerous awards nationally and internationally, and his music has been performed around the world for over 40 years. This research will be the first comprehensive documentation of the musical innovations of this composer, conductor, performer, presenter, and teacher. Throughout his career Funk has been interviewed on live television, podcasts, and radio shows sharing stories from, and aspects of, his life and music. Funk is most well known as an American classical contemporary composer, and host of the regional Emmy-award winning PBS television show “11th & Grant with Eric Funk”. This study recovers experiences and events of Funk’s life through interviews, analyses of recordings and the use of open sources to collect further data. Innovative technologies for the dissemination of this study will be used to reach a global audience. This research will address how music has transformed Eric Funk’s life, detailing the events and the people that have led to his comprehensive artistry, and finally how he changed the world around him with his music.