John Joseph Burke (10 May 1951 – 18 January 2020) was a Canadian
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 Defi ...
and
music educator. As a composer he wrote mainly works for
chamber ensembles
Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...
, and his music displays an acute sensitivity to instrumental balance and timbre. In his early career he won the
CBC National Radio Competition for Young Composers several times, including in 1978 for both ''Six Regions for piano'' (composed 1975) and ''Spectre for tenor instruments'' (composed 1976), and in 1980 for ''Firewind'' for two
pianos (composed 1978) and ''Diffusa est gratia for a cappella choir'' (composed 1979). In 1995 he won the
Jules Léger Prize for New Chamber Music The Jules Léger Prize for New Chamber Music is a Canadian contemporary classical music award given to composers in recognition of quality new works of chamber music. Granted annually since 1978 (with the exception of 1984 and 1990 when no prize was ...
for his ''String Quartet''. Many of his compositions have been recorded, including ''Firewind'' by pianists
Bruce Mather and
Pierrette LePage
A Pierrette is, in the theatre, a female Pierrot
Pierrette may also refer to:
*Marie-Anne Pierrette Paulze (1758–1836), French chemist, and wife of Antoine Lavoisier
*Olga Bancic (1912–1944), Jewish–Romanian activist in the French Resistance ...
, ''...ascends at full moon'' by
guitarist
Michael Laucke, and ''À la source d'Hypocrène'' by the ensemble of the
Société de musique contemporaine du Québec
The Quebec Contemporary Music Society, or Société de musique contemporaine du Québec in French (SMCQ), is a contemporary classical-music organization based in Montreal, Quebec. It was founded in 1966 by Montreal composers and musicians, includin ...
among others.
Burke was born in
Toronto, and earned a
Bachelor of Music in 1974 from
McGill University, where he was a pupil of Bruce Mather and
Alcides Lanza. Immediately following he entered the graduate
music composition program at the
University of Michigan (UM) where he obtained a
Master of Music in 1976 and later a
Doctor of Music in 1983. Among his teachers at the UM were
William Albright,
Leslie Bassett,
William Bolcom, and
George Balch Wilson. A grant from the
Canada Council enabled him to pursue studies in
France in 1978–1979 with
Eugene Kurtz. In 1980 he worked at McGill University as a visiting professor in
electronic music and
music theory
Music theory is the study of 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 are needed to understand music notation (ke ...
, returning to the UM in 1981 to pursue his doctoral degree. From 1983–1985 he was a member of the music faculty at
McMaster University and in 1990 he joined the faculty at the
University of Victoria.
He died in
Marmora, Ontario.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burke, John
1951 births
2020 deaths
20th-century classical composers
21st-century classical composers
Canadian classical composers
Jules Léger Prize for New Chamber Music winners
McGill University School of Music alumni
Academic staff of McGill University
Academic staff of McMaster University
University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance alumni
Academic staff of the University of Victoria
Canadian male classical composers
20th-century Canadian composers
20th-century Canadian male musicians
21st-century Canadian male musicians