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Rainbow Body
Christopher Theofanidis

American composer Christopher Theofanidis was born on December 18, 1967 in Dallas, Texas and currently serves on the faculty of the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. He holds degrees from Yale, the Eastman School of Music, and the University of Houston. Theofanidis has received several distinguished prizes, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Rome Prize, the International Masterprize (Barbican Centre, London) and has had fellowships at the Tanglewood Festival in Massachusetts and from the Fulbright Foundation. His orchestral works have been performed by major orchestras around the world. From 1994-96 he was composer-in-residence with the California Symphony. According to the composer, Rainbow Body, a twelve-minute work for orchestra was composed in 2000 to fulfill a commission from the Houston Symphony and was inspired by the music of the medieval mystic, Hildegard on Bingen. It takes its title from the “Tibetan Buddhist idea of ‘Rainbow Body,’ which is that when an enlightened being dies physically, his or her body is absorbed directly back into the universe as energy, as light.” It is scored for 3 flutes (3rd doubles on piccolo), 3 oboes, 3 clarinets (2nd doubles on E-flat and 3rd doubles on bass), 3 bassoons (3rd doubles on contra), 4 horns, 3 C trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, piano, harp, timpani, percussion, and strings.


The composer has provided the following program notes for Rainbow Body:


In the past few years I have been listening to the music of medieval mystic Hildegard von Bingen a great deal, and as simple and direct as this music is, I am constantly amazed by its staying power. Hildegard's melodies have very memorable contours which set them apart from other chants of the period. They are wonderfully sensual and set up a very intimate communication with the divine. This work is based on one of her chants, 'Ave Maria, o auctrix vite' (Hail Mary, source of life).


Rainbow Body begins in an understated, mysterious manner, calling attention to some of the key intervals and motives of the piece. When the primary melody enters for the first time about a minute into the work, I present it very directly in the strings without accompaniment. In the orchestration, I try to capture a halo around this melody, creating a wet acoustic by emphasizing the lingering reverberations one might hear in an old cathedral.


Although the piece is built essentially around fragments of the melody, I also return to the tune in its entirety several times throughout the work, as a kind of plateau of stability and peace within an otherwise turbulent environment. Rainbow Body has a very different sensibility from the Hildegard chant, with a structure that is dramatic and developmental, but I hope that it conveys at least a little of my love for the beauty and grace of her work.


Rainbow Body is dedicated to Glen Rosenbaum, without whose support and encouragement I would not be composing.


Notes by David B. Levy/Christopher Theofanidis © 2009/2026

Rainbow Body
Christopher Theofanidis

American composer Christopher Theofanidis was born on December 18, 1967 in Dallas, Texas and currently serves on the faculty of the Peabody Conservatory of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. He holds degrees from Yale, the Eastman School of Music, and the University of Houston. Theofanidis has received several distinguished prizes, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Rome Prize, the International Masterprize (Barbican Centre, London) and has had fellowships at the Tanglewood Festival in Massachusetts and from the Fulbright Foundation. His orchestral works have been performed by major orchestras around the world. From 1994-96 he was composer-in-residence with the California Symphony. According to the composer, Rainbow Body, a twelve-minute work for orchestra was composed in 2000 to fulfill a commission from the Houston Symphony and was inspired by the music of the medieval mystic, Hildegard on Bingen. It takes its title from the “Tibetan Buddhist idea of ‘Rainbow Body,’ which is that when an enlightened being dies physically, his or her body is absorbed directly back into the universe as energy, as light.” It is scored for 3 flutes (3rd doubles on piccolo), 3 oboes, 3 clarinets (2nd doubles on E-flat and 3rd doubles on bass), 3 bassoons (3rd doubles on contra), 4 horns, 3 C trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, piano, harp, timpani, percussion, and strings.


The composer has provided the following program notes for Rainbow Body:


In the past few years I have been listening to the music of medieval mystic Hildegard von Bingen a great deal, and as simple and direct as this music is, I am constantly amazed by its staying power. Hildegard's melodies have very memorable contours which set them apart from other chants of the period. They are wonderfully sensual and set up a very intimate communication with the divine. This work is based on one of her chants, 'Ave Maria, o auctrix vite' (Hail Mary, source of life).


Rainbow Body begins in an understated, mysterious manner, calling attention to some of the key intervals and motives of the piece. When the primary melody enters for the first time about a minute into the work, I present it very directly in the strings without accompaniment. In the orchestration, I try to capture a halo around this melody, creating a wet acoustic by emphasizing the lingering reverberations one might hear in an old cathedral.


Although the piece is built essentially around fragments of the melody, I also return to the tune in its entirety several times throughout the work, as a kind of plateau of stability and peace within an otherwise turbulent environment. Rainbow Body has a very different sensibility from the Hildegard chant, with a structure that is dramatic and developmental, but I hope that it conveys at least a little of my love for the beauty and grace of her work.


Rainbow Body is dedicated to Glen Rosenbaum, without whose support and encouragement I would not be composing.


Notes by David B. Levy/Christopher Theofanidis © 2009/2026