Julia Usher (born 1945) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

musician, project animateur and

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 is known for musical theater. Besides composing, she also works as a

music therapist Music therapy, an allied health profession, "is the clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship by a credentialed professional who has completed an approved music th ...

Biography

Julia Usher began music studies at

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

and

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

, and studied under

Robert Sherlaw Johnson Robert Sherlaw Johnson (21 May 1932 – 3 November 2000), was a British composer, pianist and music scholar. Sherlaw Johnson was one of that group of post-war British musicians whose work reflected wider European interests in new ideas, techni ...

. She graduated with a Master of Arts degree and afterward lived and worked in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. In 1980 Usher set up the composer-publishing firm Primavera with

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

composer

Enid Luff Enid Luff (21 February 1935 – 19 February 2022) was a Welsh musician, music educator, and composer. Biography Luff was born in Ebbw Vale, Wales, and trained as a pianist. She was educated at the University of Wales and Cambridge and graduated w ...

. Usher was a founding member of Women in Music in 1987, and she has worked with ensembles including Sounds Positive, the New London Wind Ensemble, the Nash Ensemble, E2K, Ivor Bolton and Inter Artes. In the 1980s, Usher collaborated in a series of cross-arts projects with the sound sculptor and painter

Derek Shiel Derek Shiel (April 18, 1939 – July 13, 2017) was a Dublin-born, London-based painter, sculptor, writer, and film-maker. Biography Education Shiel was educated at Fettes College, Edinburgh and the Edinburgh College of Art, where he won the An ...

. In 1999 Usher moved to

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colches ...

and since 2001 has concentrated on developing works within community arts projects in North Essex. Usher has worked as Composer in Residence with the Colchester Youth Chamber Orchestra. As part of the Lullaby Project in Colchester she recorded, transcribed, and translated songs (with the help of the contributors) to provide English versions of traditional folk songs from different cultures. Her compositions have won awards including the Wangford Festival Prize and a British Clavichord Society prize. Recordings of her work have been issued on CD/DVD, and she has conducted music therapy sessions for Nordoff-Robbins.

Works

A review in the

Evening Standard The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format. In October 2009, after be ...

described Usher's contribution to the Shiel/Usher collaboration:

"The second breakthrough came when a composer, Julia Usher, discovered she could notate the timbre and pitch of these strange objects and so compose music for them. This led to a series of collaborations, notably A Celebration of Blake's Vision at St James's Church, Piccadilly, in 1987, and Soundpaint performances where Usher plays while Shiel paints; he recently splashed out in colour for eight hours in front of a live audience."

Selected works by Julia Usher include: *1980 A Reed in the Wind (Solo Oboe) Wangford Festival Prize *1986 The Orford Merman (Music Theatre) *1989 Marak (Piano Solo) 4 short abstract pieces *1993 Sacred Conversations (mixed ensemble) *1996 Genetic Code, orchestral piece *2001 Before Light Ends (Piano Solo) *2002 Lost Icons Wind quintet *2002 Magnificat, commissioned by Women in Music for the Millennium *2004 Clavicle (Clavichord) Prize from British Clavichord Society *2005 Periodic Table lll for cl, ob, va, pf *2005 Unruly Sun ( vn, vcl, harpsichord) commissioned by Semley Festival, Dorset *2007 Malkin, Theatre Piece (chamber ensemble) Other: *Unfinished Business *Constellations (1980) flute solo suite *SoundPaint (1995–98) live improvisation performance piece *Vocalism *When I Saw the Learned Astronomer *Moths and Moonlight *The Lullaby Project *A World of Song

Discography

*''Sacred Physic: Music by Julia Usher'' (2004) - Audio CD by Julia Usher, Janet Simpson, Peter Lawson, and Lesley-Jane Rogers *''Touching the Wall'': Performance with synchronised graphic imagery of Usher's ''Clavicle'' by Andrea Gregori, DVD, 2007. *''Selected Oboe Exam Recordings'' (2006) ABRSM

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Usher, Julia 1945 births Living people 20th-century classical composers English classical composers Women classical composers 20th-century English composers 20th-century English women musicians 20th-century women composers