Gordon Arthur Delamont (27 October 1918 – 16 January 1981) was a Canadian

music educator Music education is a field of practice in which educators are trained for careers as elementary or secondary music teachers, school or music conservatory ensemble directors. Music education is also a research area in which scholars do origina ...

author In legal discourse, an author is the creator of an original work that has been published, whether that work exists in written, graphic, visual, or recorded form. The act of creating such a work is referred to as authorship. Therefore, a sculpt ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

, and

trumpeter The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...

. He is best remembered for his work as an educator, having helped shape the talents of dozens of notable musicians in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

. He also published several books on

musical theory Music theory is the study of theoretical frameworks for understanding the practices and possibilities of music. '' The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory": The first is the "rudiments", that a ...

topics which have been used widely by schools in North America. As a writer he also contributed articles to '' Saturday Night'', '' The Canadian Music Journal'', and several jazz magazines and newspapers in Canada. As a composer ''

The Canadian Encyclopedia ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' (TCE; ) is the national encyclopedia of Canada, published online by the Toronto-based historical organization Historica Canada, with financial support by the federal Department of Canadian Heritage and Society of Com ...

'' describes him as "a guiding figure in Canada in the third-stream movement" His best-known work, ''Three Entertainments for Saxophone Quartet'' (premiered 1969, published by Kendor 1970), was recorded by the New York Saxophone Quartet and has been performed widely throughout North America and Europe.

Life

Born in

Moose Jaw Moose Jaw is the List of cities in Saskatchewan, fourth largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada. Lying on the Moose Jaw River in the south-central part of the province, it is situated on the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Regina, Saskatchewan, Re ...

, Delamont was the son of

bandmaster A bandmaster is the leader and conductor of a band, usually a concert band, military band, brass band or a marching band. British Armed Forces In the British Army, bandmasters of the Royal Corps of Army Music now hold the rank of staff ...

and

cornetist The cornet (, ) is a brass instrument similar to the trumpet but distinguished from it by its conical bore, more compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. There is also a soprano cor ...

Arthur Delamont. He grew up in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

where he was a soloist with a boys' band that his father directed. His father provided him with his earliest musical training. In 1939 he moved to Toronto at the age of 20 where he became principal trumpet of

CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...

's orchestra in that city and played lead trumpet in local

dance bands (; "dance band"), or in Norwegian and Danish, is a Swedish term for a band that plays (; "dance band music"). ' is often danced to in pairs. Jitterbug and foxtrot music are often included in this category. The music is primarily inspired ...

. From 1945 to 1949 he led a dance band that was based at the Club Top Hat in Toronto. In 1949 Delamont went to New York City to study arranging, composition, and pedagogy with Maury Deutsch. He returned later that year to open his own private teaching studio in Toronto where he offered instruction in

harmony In music, harmony is the concept of combining different sounds in order to create new, distinct musical ideas. Theories of harmony seek to describe or explain the effects created by distinct pitches or tones coinciding with one another; harm ...

counterpoint In music theory, counterpoint is the relationship of two or more simultaneous musical lines (also called voices) that are harmonically dependent on each other, yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. The term originates from the Latin ...

, composition, and

music theory Music theory is the study of theoretical frameworks for understanding the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory": The first is the "Elements of music, ...

. He taught up until his death more than 30 years later. His notable pupils include

Peter Appleyard Peter Appleyard, (26 August 1928 – 17 July 2013) was a British–Canadian jazz vibraphonist, percussionist, and composer. He spent most of his life in the city of Toronto, where for many years he was a popular performer in nightclubs and ho ...

Gustav Ciamaga Gustav Ciamaga (April 10, 1930 – June 11, 2011) was a Canadian composer, music educator, and writer. An associate of the Canadian Music Centre and a member of the Canadian League of Composers, he was best known for his compositions of electron ...

Ron Collier Ron Collier, (July 3, 1930 – October 22, 2003) was a Canadian jazz trombonist, composer, and arranger. He performed in and led a number of jazz groups, and created orchestrations for and recorded with Duke Ellington. Early life and educati ...

Jimmy Dale Jimmy may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Jimmy'' (2008 film), a 2008 Hindi thriller directed by Raj N. Sippy * ''Jimmy'' (1979 film), a 1979 Indian Malayalam film directed by Melattoor Ravi Varma * ''Jimmy'' (2013 f ...

Hagood Hardy Hugh Hagood Hardy, (February 26, 1937 – January 1, 1997) was a Canadian composer, pianist, and vibraphonist. He played mainly jazz and easy listening music. He is best known for the 1975 single, "The Homecoming" from his album of the same ...

, Herbie Helbig,

Paul Hoffert Paul Matthew Hoffert, LLD, CM (born 22 September 1943, in Brooklyn, New York) is a recording artist, performer, media music composer, author, academic, and corporate executive. He studied mathematics and physics at the University of Toronto. ...

Moe Koffman Morris "Moe" Koffman, OC (28 December 1928 – 28 March 2001) was a Canadian jazz saxophonist and flautist, as well as composer and arranger. During a career spanning from the 1950s into the 2000s, Koffman was one of Canada's most prolific musici ...

Rob McConnell Robert Murray Gordon McConnell (14 February 1935 – 1 May 2010) was a Canadian jazz trombonist, composer, and arranger.Jeff Sultanof. Experiencing Big Band Jazz: A Listener's Companion'. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers; 8 November 2017. . p ...

Ben McPeek Benjamin Dewey McPeek (28 August 1934 – 14 January 1981) was a Canadians, Canadian composer, arranger,Jeanette Leech. Seasons They Change: The Story of Acid and Psychedelic Folk'. Jawbone Press; 2010. . p. 80–. conducting, conductor, an ...

, Bernie Piltch, Paul Read,

Fred Stone Fred Andrew Stone (August 19, 1873 – March 6, 1959) was an American actor. Stone began his career as a performer in circuses and minstrel shows, went on to act in vaudeville, and became a star on Broadway and in feature films, which earned hi ...

, Norman Symonds, Rick Wilkins, Maribeth Solomon, Paul Benton, among others. Another student, Whitney Smith, produced a 90-minute radio documentary for CBC in 1979 entitled, "Gordon Delamont: Taking the Notes Where They Want to Go".''Globe and Mail'', 23 Feb. 1979, Mark Miller, "'Mystery' musician featured on radio", p. 33.

Books

*''Modern Arranging Techniques'' (Delavan, NY 1965) *''Modern Harmonic Techniques'', 2 vols (Delavan, NY 1965) *''Modern Contrapuntal Techniques'' (Delavan, NY 1969) *''Modern Twelve-Tone Techniques'' (Delavan, NY 1973) *''Modern Melodic Techniques'' (Delavan, NY 1976)

References

External links

Archival papers
a
University of Toronto Music Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Delamont, Gordon 1918 births 1981 deaths Canadian male composers Canadian writers about music Canadian male trumpeters 20th-century Canadian composers 20th-century Canadian trumpeters 20th-century Canadian male musicians Canadian expatriates in the United States