Amy Dickson (born 1982) is an Australian classical

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to p ...

player.

Early life

Dickson was born in Sydney. She began to play piano at the age of two, and saxophone at the age of six. She initially played 'some jazz' in her youth, but eventually focused her saxophone training entirely on the classical repertoire. She made her concerto debut at age 16, playing the ''Concerto pour Saxophone Alto'' by

Pierre Max Dubois Pierre Max Dubois, sometimes given as Pierre-Max Dubois (1 March 1930 – 29 August 1995) was a French composer of classical music, conductor, and music educator. He was a student of Darius Milhaud, and though not widely popular, was respected ...

, with Henryk Pisarek and the

Ku-ring-gai Philharmonic Orchestra The Ku-ring-gai Philharmonic Orchestra (abbreviation – KPO) is an amateur community orchestra located in Ku-ring-gai, New South Wales Australia. The KPO organizes the New South Wales Secondary Schools Concerto Competition, which attracts e ...

. Dickson became a recipient of the James Fairfax Australian Young Artist of the Year. She subsequently moved to London, where she took the Jane Melber Scholarship to study at the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music (RCM) is a conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the undergraduate to the doctoral level in all aspects of Western Music including pe ...

with

Kyle Horch Kyle Horch (born 1964) is a classical saxophonist. Biography Horch studied at Northwestern University in Chicago, U.S. with Frederick Hemke. He then won a BP North America Scholarship to pursue post-graduate study at the Guildhall School of Mu ...

. She also has studied at the

Conservatorium van Amsterdam The Conservatorium van Amsterdam (CvA) is a Dutch conservatoire of music located in Amsterdam. This school is the music division of the Amsterdam University of the Arts, the city's vocational university of arts. The Conservatorium van Amsterdam ...

with

Arno Bornkamp file:Arno Bornkamp en Córdoba - Argentina - 2010.jpg, Arno Bornkamp en Córdoba - Argentina - 2010. Arno Bornkamp (Amsterdam, 1959) is a Dutch Classical music, classical saxophone, saxophonist, the professor of the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, Co ...

. During this time, she became the first saxophonist to win the Gold Medal at the Royal Overseas League Competition, the ABC Symphony Australia Young Performers Awards, and the Prince's Prize. Amy's UK studies were supported by a grant from the

Tait Memorial Trust The Tait Memorial Trust (TMT) is a charitable foundation first established in the United Kingdom. The TMT was founded by Isla Baring OAM in memory of her father, Sir Frank Tait and his brothers, who played an important part in the establishment ...

Career

In 2005 and 2011, Dickson performed for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings at the Teatru Manoel in Valletta, Malta, and the Perth Concert Hall, Australia. She has also performed at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, St James' Palace in London and for former Australian Prime Minister John Howard at Parliament House, Canberra. In October 2013, Dickson won the Breakthrough Artist of the Year at the Classic Brits awards, the first saxophonist to be so honoured. Dickson has commissioned new works from such composers as

Brett Dean Brett Dean (born 23 October 1961) is an Australian composer, violist and conductor. Early life Brett Dean was born, raised, and educated in Brisbane. He attended Brisbane State High School. He started learning violin at age 8, and later stu ...

Ross Edwards (composer) Ross Edwards (born 23 December 1943) is an Australian composer of a wide variety of music including orchestral and chamber music, choral music, children's music, opera and film music. His distinctive sound world reflects his interest in deep ...

Peter Sculthorpe Peter Joshua Sculthorpe (29 April 1929 – 8 August 2014) was an Australian composer. Much of his music resulted from an interest in the music of countries neighbouring Australia as well as from the impulse to bring together aspects of Aborigi ...

Graham Fitkin Graham Fitkin (born 19 April 1963) is a British composer, pianist and conductor. His compositions fall broadly into the minimalist and postminimalist genres. Described by ''The Independent'' in 1998 as "one of the most important of our younger com ...

Steve Martland Steve Martland (10 October 1954 – 7 May 2013) was an English composer. He helped to curate the Factory Classical label of Factory Records, featuring contemporary British composers. Life and music Martland was born in Liverpool, and studied co ...

Huw Watkins Huw Thomas Watkins (born 13 July 1976) is a British composer and pianist. Born in South Wales, he studied piano and composition at Chetham's School of Music in Manchester, where he received piano lessons from Peter Lawson. He then went on to r ...

and

Matthew Hindson Matthew John Hindson AM (born 12 September 1968) is an Australian composer. Biography Matthew Hindson was born in Wollongong, New South Wales, in 1968. He studied composition at the Universities of Sydney and Melbourne with composers including ...

. She has also arranged concertante works by

Philip Glass Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimal music, minimalism, being built up fr ...

and

John Tavener Sir John Kenneth Tavener (28 January 1944 – 12 November 2013) was an English composer, known for his extensive output of choral religious music, religious works. Among his best known works are ''The Lamb (Tavener), The Lamb'' (1982), ''The ...

, originally composed for other solo instruments, for saxophone. Now resident in London, she is an ambassador of the Australian Children's Music Foundation and of The Prince's Foundation for Children and the Arts.

Discography

Albums

Awards and nominations

AIR Awards

The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as

AIR Awards The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. History The inaugural 2006 awards were held at Blacket Hot ...

) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. , - ,

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

, ''Catch Me If You Can'' , Best Independent Classical Album , , - ,

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

, ''Island Songs'' , Best Independent Classical Album , , - ,

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, ''In Circles'' , Best Independent Classical Album , , -

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions o ...

. They commenced in 1987. ! , - ,

, ''Catch Me If You Can'' (with

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra (MSO) is an Australian orchestra based in Melbourne. The MSO is resident at Hamer Hall. The MSO has its own choir, the MSO Chorus, following integration with the Melbourne Chorale in 2008. The MSO relies on fun ...

) , rowspan="3" ,

Best Classical Album The Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as t ...

, , rowspan="2" , ARIA Award previous winners. , - ,

, ''Island Songs'' (with

Sydney Symphony Orchestra The Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is an Australian symphony orchestra based in Sydney. With roots going back to 1908, the orchestra was made a permanent professional orchestra on the formation of the Australian Broadcasting Commission in 1932. ...

) , , - ,

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, ''Ross Edwards: Frog and Star Cycle / Symphonies 2 & 3''
(with

Colin Currie Colin David Currie is a multi award-winning Scottish people, Scottish virtuoso percussionist. He is the founder and leader of the Colin Currie Group, an ensemble specializing in performing and recording the music of Steve Reich. Biography Ear ...

Lothar Koenigs Lothar Koenigs (born 1965 in Aachen, Germany) is a German conductor. Biography Koenigs grew up in Aachen, in West Germany; as a young boy, he was a chorister at Aachen Cathedral, where he sang all of Anton Bruckner's masses and motets, and develop ...

Yvonne Kenny Yvonne Denise Kenny AM (born 25 November 1950) is an Australian soprano, particularly associated with Handel, Mozart and bel canto roles. Biography Born in Sydney, Kenny first studied at the University of Sydney in science, hoping to become ...

David Zinman David Zinman (born July 9, 1936, in Brooklyn, New York) is a retired American conductor and violinist. Education After violin studies at Oberlin Conservatory, Zinman studied theory and composition at the University of Minnesota, earning his M.A. ...

Markus Stenz Markus Stenz (born 28 February 1965, Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Rhineland-Palatinate) is a Germans, German conducting, conductor. He studied at the Hochschule für Musik Köln with Volker Wangenhein and at Tanglewood with Leonard Bernstein and Seij ...

) , ,

References

External links section

Official website of Amy Dickson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dickson, Amy 1982 births Living people Classical saxophonists Australian women saxophonists 21st-century Australian saxophonists People educated at Redlands, Cremorne Conservatorium van Amsterdam alumni