Will Gay Bottje (born June 30, 1925, in Grand Rapids, Michigan) is an American composer who is known for his contributions to electronic music.
Bottje is a graduate of the Juilliard School (Bachelor of Music in flute performance and Master of Music in composition) where he studied composition with Vittorio Giannini. He went on to pursue studies at the Eastman School of Music where he was a pupil of Bernard Rogers and Howard Hanson. From Eastman he earned a Doctor of Musical Arts in Composition, the first such degree to be awarded to a student from any institution. He also studied composition privately with Nadia Boulanger in Paris, and was a pupil of Henk Badings at the University of Utrecht's electronic music studio.
From 1957–1981 Bottje taught on the music faculty at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. There he founded and directed SIU's electronic music studio. One of his notable pupils at SIU was composer Larry Lake. He currently lives in retirement in Grand Rapids.
Commentaries for Guitar & Small Orchestra (also piano reduction)Concertino for Piccolo & Orchestra (piano reduction Zalo)Concerto for 2 Flutes & Orchestra (Piano vers. J/P publication)Concerto for Horn & Orchestra (also piano reduction)Concerto for Oboe, Violin & Orchestra (small)Flavors (Community or select high school)Full CircleOpenerSinfonia for Young String OrchestraSounds From the West ShoreThe Ballad SingerVocal and Choral
A Sentence Once Begun – Soprano, Str Quartet (Ch. Fry) (piano reduction)Cantata for the 53rd Sunday ( A Prayer for Middle Age) – SATB, 3 solos, keyboard, soprano obligato instrumentCarol (from Wind In the Willows) – SATBCredo (R. Roland) – SSAATTBBDiptych (Rilke) – SSAATTBB, part 2 with keyboardExhortation of the Dawn – SATB and Brass Ensemble or keyboardIn Caverns All Alone (7 songs on mind) – Soprano or Tenor, flute, bassoon and pianoIn Praise of Music (5 songs) (Elizabethan texts) – Mezzo-Soprano and String Quartet (Rev. 1997–98)Last Minute Message for a Time Capsule – SATB, ten drQuests of Odysseus (Kazantzakis) – tenor and piano (8 songs)Radiant Musings (N. Cousins) – SATB and keyboard, 11 short settings which can be done as a whole, in part, or individuallyThrush Song – SSAATTBB, solos & fluteWayward Pilgrim (5 songs) (E. Dickinson) – Soprano or Mezzo-soprano & PianoBrief Acquaintances – Oboe, Clarinet, CelloBrief Candles – Flute and GuitarChorale and Allegro – four trumpetsConcerto for Tuba – Tuba & Piano (also in ms. orch version)Country Wife-Suite (5 dances for Wycherly play) – flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon.Dances: Real & Imagined – Guitar & String QuartetDesigns- 2 flutes, cello, pianoDiversions (Settings of Jim Thurber texts) – narrator, flute, oboe, bassoon, clarinet, horn and pianoDune Music – flute, oboe, cello and pianoDuo Sonatina – 2 Euphoniums, piano (a vers. with 14 piece ensemble, also)Fireflies – Oboe, Harpsichord & String QuartetIncidental Music for a Restoration Comedy – clarinet, viola and celloLighter Strings – Guitar & HarpsichordLitanies, Refrains & Alleluias – Trombone and pianoLittle Sonata No.1 – Flute and organLittle Sonata 5 – Clarinet and organLittle Sonata No.7 – Trumpet and organLyric Sonata (rev. 1998) – Bassoon and pianoMusic for a Joyous Occasion III – 2 flutes (or violins), and celloPrelude & Fugue – Tuba and pianoQuintet for Flute & StringsQuintet for Clarinet, bassoon, french horn, violin, and contrabassQuintet Nr. 2 For Winds – flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon and french hornReady, Set-- 3 cellos, or 3 bassoons, or 3 ClarinetsRecitative, Arioso & Finale – Trombone and pianoSerenade – Wind quintet and string quartetSextet for Strings – 2 violins, 2 violas and 2 cellosSonata for 2 CellosSonatas 1,2, and 3 – cello and pianoSonata for Flute & PianoSonata for GuitarSonata for Trumpet & PianoSonata for Violin & PianoSong and Dance (1998) – Violin and PianoSoundings – Oboe and HarpsichordSprites & Phantoms – flute, oboe, clarinet, cello and pianoString Quartets Nrs. 2, 4 & 5Symphony for Cello and Piano four-hands (rev. 1998)Three Flared Bells – trumpet, french horn and tromboneThree Miniatures – flute and pianoTides – two pianosTrio – flute, cello and pianoTrio (rev. 1998) – violin, cello and pianoTriple Play- Clarinet & PianoVariations & Fugue – 4 trombones (400)Well-Tempered Flutes – 43 Preludes & Fugues from Bach WTC, arr for 2 flutesWonders of the Night Sky – 8 piano ensemble