Gordon Kerry (born 1961) is an Australian composer, music administrator, music writer and music critic.
Career
Kerry studied composition at the
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...
under
Barry Conyngham
Barry Ernest Conyngham (born 27 August 1944) is an Australian composer and academic. He has over 70 published works and over 30 recordings featuring his compositions, and his works have been premiered or performed in Australia, Japan, North and ...
. He then worked for the
Sydney Festival
Sydney Festival is a major arts festival in Australia's largest city, Sydney, that runs for three weeks every January since it was established in 1977. The festival program features over 100 events from local and international artists and inclu ...
and resided in Sydney for the next 16 years.Robin Usher, "Hills once more alive with opera", ''
The Age
''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...
'', 6 January 2004, A3, p. 7 After the retirement of Fred Blanks, Kerry was invited to become a music critic for the ''
Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper in ...
''. In April 1997 he was appointed artistic administrator for
Musica Viva Australia
Musica Viva, also known as Musica Viva Australia, is a national organisation in Australia dedicated to chamber music.
History
Music Viva was founded in Sydney in 1945 by Romanian-born Vienna-educated violinist Richard Goldner, who had fled Naz ...
,Bernadette Cruise, "A remarkable year for a Sydney composer", ''
The Canberra Times
''The Canberra Times'' is a daily newspaper in Canberra, Australia, which is published by Australian Community Media. It was founded in 1926, and has changed ownership and format several times.
History
''The Canberra Times'' was launched in 1 ...
'', 11 April 1997, Arts & Entertainment, p. 11 a post he held for 18 months but left as he had too little time to compose. He then became the organisation's musical adviser. He also contributes pieces for ''
Limelight
Limelight (also known as Drummond light or calcium light)James R. Smith (2004). ''San Francisco's Lost Landmarks'', Quill Driver Books. is a non-electric type of stage lighting that was once used in theatres and music halls. An intense illum ...
'' and ''The Australian's Review of Books''.
''Bright Meniscus'' was inspired by J. R. Rowland's poem "Canberra in April" and was premiered by the
Canberra Symphony Orchestra
Canberra Symphony Orchestra (CSO) is the professional orchestra of the Australian Capital Territory based in Canberra, the national capital of Australia.
History
Officially formed on 14 March 1950 and registered as an amateur ensemble, the C ...
in May 1997.
In 2009, he was awarded the Ian Potter Established Composer Fellowship. His book ''New Classical Music: Composing Australia'' was published by
UNSW Press
The University of New South Wales Press Ltd. is an Australian academic book publishing company launched in 1962 and based in Randwick, a suburb of Sydney. The ACNC not-for-profit entity has three divisions: NewSouth Publishing (the publishing arm ...
in 2009.
His Clarinet Concerto was commissioned by
Symphony Australia
Symphony Services International, formerly known as Symphony Australia, is a centralised organisation formed in 1997 for six Australian symphony orchestras: Adelaide, Melbourne, Queensland, Sydney, Tasmania and Western Australia. The orchestras wer ...
and was premiered on 21 August 2002, with soloist Francesco Celata and the
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. ...
under Sir
Mark Elder
Sir Mark Philip Elder (born 2 June 1947) is a British conductor.
Life and career
Elder was born in Hexham, Northumberland, the son of a dentist. He played the bassoon when in primary school, at Bryanston School, Dorset, and in the National ...
. It includes a short quotation from Kerry's "Fioritura", a short solo piece written for Celata.
In 2012 he was Musica Viva Australia's Composer-in-Residence.
On 16 May 2012, Kerry's opera ''
Midnight Son
''Midnight Son'' is a 2011 vampire horror film written and directed by Scott Leberecht, produced by Matt Compton, and starring Zak Kilberg. A trailer was released late October 2010.
Plot
Jacob (Zak Kilberg) is a young man in Los Angeles, Californ ...
'' was premiered at the
Malthouse Theatre
Malthouse Theatre is the resident theatre company of The Malthouse building in Southbank, part of the Melbourne Arts Precinct. In the 1980s it was known as the Playbox Theatre Company and was housed in the Playbox Theatre in Melbourne's CBD ...
, Melbourne, by
Victorian Opera
Victorian Opera is an opera company based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The company was founded in 2005 by the Victorian Government as a replacement for the Victoria State Opera. It commenced operations in January 2006 with Richard Gill a ...
. Its
libretto
A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...
was by
Louis Nowra
Mark Doyle, better known by his stage name Louis Nowra, (born 12 December 1950) is an Australian writer, playwright, screenwriter and librettist.
He is best known as one of Australia's leading playwrights. His works have been performed by all o ...
, and it was directed by
Nicki Wendt Nicki is a given name, and may refer to:
Film and television
* Nicki Aycox (1975–2022), American actress best known for her roles as Syl on the series ''Dark Angel'' and Stella Vessey on the dramedy ''Ed''
* Nicki Chapman (born 1967), English t ...
. The opera was based on the 2005 murder of Maria Korp by her husband Joe Korp's lover Tania Herman, and Joe Korp's subsequent suicide (it was originally to be called ''Korp'').Karl Quinn, "Too soon? Dark opera based on Korp case ready for opening night", ''The Age'', 15 May 2012, p. 5 Principal soloists were
Antoinette Halloran
Antoinette Halloran is an Australian operatic soprano.
Education
Antoinette Halloran grew up in the Melbourne suburbs of Rosanna and Deer Park.Byron Watson. Although all the names were changed, members of the Korp family and victims of crime organisations criticised the production for lack of sensitivity.
His Violin Concerto "So Dreams Thy Sails" was commissioned by Andrew and Fiona Johnston, and scored for solo violin, harp, horns and strings. It was written as a homage to Kerry's father's 90th birthday, and was premiered on 30 October 2016, with soloist Helena Rathbone and the
Australian Chamber Orchestra
The Australian Chamber Orchestra (ACO) is an Australian orchestra focused on chamber music based in Sydney.
History
The Australian Chamber Orchestra was founded by cellist John Painter in 1975.Verghis, Sharon"Bach with more bite pays off" ''T ...
Hans Christian Andersen
Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogue (literature), travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales.
Andersen's fai ...
) was commissioned by Victorian Opera, and was premiered in
Wodonga
Wodonga (pronounced ; ) is a city on the Victorian side of the border with New South Wales, north-east of Melbourne, Australia. It is part of the twin city of Albury-Wodonga and is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of Wodonga L ...
on 3 November 2017, conducted by Richard Mills.
Since 2002 he has lived with his partner in Sandy Creek, overlooking
Lake Hume
Hume Dam, formerly the Hume Weir, is a major dam across the Murray River downstream of its junction with the Mitta River in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. The dam's purpose includes flood mitigation, hydro-power, irrigation, ...
in northern Victoria, not far from Wodonga."The Icewoman cometh", ''
Limelight
Limelight (also known as Drummond light or calcium light)James R. Smith (2004). ''San Francisco's Lost Landmarks'', Quill Driver Books. is a non-electric type of stage lighting that was once used in theatres and music halls. An intense illum ...
'', November 2017, p. 25
Selected other works
* Sinfonietta (1992, for the
Perth International Arts Festival
Perth Festival, named Perth International Arts Festival (PIAF) between 2000 and 2017, and sometimes referred to as the Festival of Perth, is Australia's longest-running cultural festival, held annually in Western Australia. The program features ...
)
* Opera ''Medea'' (1993; libretto by Justin Macdonnell); it has been staged in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Washington, Berlin, Düsseldorf
* ''Variations for Orchestra'' (1998;
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 ...
,
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 ...
Jo Litson, "Take a deep breath", ''
The Weekend Australian
''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet daily newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964. As the only Australian daily newspaper distributed nationally, its readership of bot ...
'', 27–28 March 1999, Review, p. 19
* Cello Concerto (1997–98;
Truls Mørk
Truls Olaf Otterbech Mørk (born 25 April 1961) is a Norwegian cellist.
Biography
Mørk was born in Bergen, Norway to a cellist father, John Fritjof Mørk, and a pianist mother, Turid Otterbech. His mother began teaching him the piano when he ...
,
Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra
The Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra (TSO) is a symphony orchestra based in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. It is the smallest of the six orchestras established by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
History
The Tasmanian Symphony Orchestr ...
,
Michael Halász
Michael Halász (born 21 May 1938 in Cluj) is a German-Hungarian classical conductor.
Halász began his musical career as principal bassoonist with the Philharmonia Hungarica in Vienna. After eight years in that position, he studied conducting ...
)
* ''Piano Sonata for Ian Munro'' (1997–98)
* ''Harmonie'', wind quintet (1997–98, Canberra Wind Soloists)
* Seven Improvisations for Cello and Percussion, April 1999, Sue-Ellen Paulsen and
Tom O'Kelly
Tom or TOM may refer to:
* Tom (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name.
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Tom'' (1973 film), or ''The Bad Bunch'', a blaxploitation film
* ''Tom'' (2002 film) ...
,
Tasmanian Conservatorium of Music
Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The state encompasses the main island of Tasmania, the 26th-lar ...
* Viola Concerto, SSO, 28 April 1999
* ''Such Sweet Thunder'', 30 September 1999,
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. ...
, Markus Stenz
* Piano duo, for
Michael Kieran Harvey
Michael Kieran Harvey (born 7 July 1961) is an Australian pianist and composer whose career has been notable for its diversity and wide repertoire. He is renowned for commissioning, performing and composing new music. He has especially promoted th ...
and Bernadette Harvey Balkus, 2000
* ''Breathtaking'', mezzo-soprano, piano, 4 winds, 9 May 1999,
Southern Cross Soloists
Southern may refer to:
Businesses
* China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China
* Southern Airways, defunct US airline
* Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US
* Southern Airways Express, M ...
* ''Blue Latitudes'', 29 January 2000,
Wigmore Hall
The Wigmore Hall is a concert hall at 36 Wigmore Street, in west London. It was designed by Thomas Edward Collcutt and opened in 1901 as the Bechstein Hall; it is considered to have particularly good building acoustics, acoustics. It specialis ...
, London,
Nash Ensemble
The Nash Ensemble of London is an English chamber ensemble. It was founded by Artistic Director Amelia Freedman and Rodney Slatford in 1964, while they were students at the Royal Academy of Music, and was named after the Nash Terraces around t ...
* Cantata ''Through the Fire'', commemorating the 2002/3 northern Victorian bushfires, Opera in the Alps Festival,
Beechworth
Beechworth is a town located in the north-east of Victoria, Australia, famous for its major growth during the gold rush days of the mid-1850s. At the , Beechworth had a population of 3,290.
Beechworth's many historical buildings are well pr ...
, 24 January 2004
* In iubilo, Concert Overture (2010) - Commissioned for the
Bendigo Symphony Orchestra
The Bendigo Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is a regional Australian semi-professional orchestra based in Bendigo, Victoria.
History
The orchestra was formed in 1981 as a result of the Music 81 Project of the Victoria State Government
The Vict ...
* Opera ''Snow White and Other Grimm Tales'' (2015; libretto by John Kinsella)
* Clarinet Quintet (2019, for clarinetist David Rowden and Omega Ensemble)
* ''Splendera''
* Completion of
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...
's ''
Requiem
A Requiem (Latin: ''rest'') or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead () or Mass of the dead (), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the souls of the deceased, using a particular form of the Roman Missal. It is ...
'', commissioned by the
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...
The APRA Awards are presented annually from 1982 by the
Australasian Performing Right Association
APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwri ...
(APRA). They include the Art Music Awards, which are distributed by APRA AMCOS and the
Australian Music Centre
The Australian Music Centre (AMC), founded as Australia Music Centre in 1974 and known as Sounds Australian in the 1990s, is a national organisation promoting and supporting art music in Australia. It operates mainly as a service organisation, a ...
(AMC).
!
, -
,
2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
, , "String Quintet No. 2" (Gordon Kerry) for
Australian String Quartet
The Australian String Quartet (ASQ) is a chamber music group founded in 1985 and based at the University of Adelaide, South Australia. It delivers an artistic program of performances, workshops, commissions, digital content and education projects ...
and Pieter Wispelwey , , Work of the Year – Instrumental , , , ,
, -
,
2021
Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...
, , ''Clarinet Quartet'' (Kerry) for Omega Ensemble , , Work of the Year: Chamber Music , , , ,