Moya Patricia Henderson (born 2 August 1941 in Quirindi, New South Wales) is an Australian

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 ...

. A graduate of the University of Queensland, Henderson was Resident Composer at Opera Australia during their first season at the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century architec ...

in 1973. In the mid-1970s, Henderson studied composition with Karlheinz Stockhausen and music-theatre with Mauricio Kagel at the

Cologne Musikhochschule Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 million ...

. Henderson's compositions include such pieces as the work for organ and pre-recorded tape, ''Sacred Site'' (1983), ''The Dreaming'' written for the Australian Chamber Orchestra, "Six Urban Songs: The Patrick White Song Cycle" for soprano and orchestra (1983), and an opera, '' Lindy'' (1997), with Judith Rodriguez (as co-librettist), based on the disappearance of baby Azaria Chamberlain at Uluru in 1980. The mother,

Lindy Chamberlain Alice Lynne "Lindy" Chamberlain-Creighton (née Murchison; born 4 March 1948) is a New Zealand–born Australian woman who was Miscarriage of justice, wrongfully convicted in one of Australia's most publicised murder trials. Accused of killing ...

, was tried for the murder of the child. The opera documents the travesty of justice as it was meted out to Lindy Chamberlain and her then husband, Michael. It premiered at the Sydney Opera House in 2002.

Early career

In 1973, after being appointed resident composer to the Australia Opera during inaugural season at the Sydney Opera House, Henderson was awarded a DAAD Scholarship and a travel grant to the Music Board from the Music Board of Australia Council for the Arts. There, she continued her musical education in Germany then returned to Australia towards the end of 1976 to teach composition as a part-time lecturer at the University of Sydney. In 1978, she became resident composer in the Department of Music, and in a three-year span, she worked to stimulate the interest of students in music-theatre by encouraging them to create their own music-theatre compositions.

Works

Henderson did not focus on one style of composition. Her works ranged from chamber music, instrumental music, vocal music, choral music, electronic music, and vocal ensemble music, sometimes covered in different musical versions. Some of her most recognized works are 'Sorry time: cello solo' (1999), 'The Beloved awaits: brass quintet (2008), 'Ku-ring-gai Chase: full orchestra' (1999), 'G'day USA 1: horn solo' (2003), and 'Yapu vudlandta: fate, clarinet, and piano' (2004).

Inventions

In the mid-seventies while in Germany, she received a commission from sculptor Helfried Hagenberg to compose music on a sculpture he had created from twenty-seven triangles. During the course of her commission, she developed the alemba, a keyboard percussion instrument. She is also the inventor of the Tosca Bells, a percussion instrument with hollow metal tubes that create a vibrating bell-like sound when hit. She also developed the 'noose' for stringed instruments that enables the composer to write 'natural' harmonics on virtually every note within the range of the string orchestra.

Awards

Throughout her career, Henderson has been nominated in both musical and theatrical industries. In 1974, Henderson won the Kranichsteiner Prize for best composition in a music theatre piece. For developing the alemba instrument, she was awarded one of the inaugural CSIRO Artist-in Residence Fellowships in November 1983. In 1993, Henderson was awarded the Don Banks Music award, and was made a Member of the Order of Australia in the

1996 Australia Day Honours The 1996 Australia Day Honours are appointments to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by Australian citizens. The list was announced on 26 January 1996 by the Governor General of Australia, Bill Hayden. The Australia Da ...

for her service as a composer.

Don Banks Music Award

The Don Banks Music Award was established in 1984 to publicly honour a senior artist of high distinction who has made an outstanding and sustained contribution to music in Australia. It was founded by the Australia Council in honour of Don Banks, Australian composer, performer and the first chair of its music board. , - , 1993 , Moya Henderson , Don Banks Music Award , , -

References

External links

Official Moya Henderson website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Henderson, Moya Living people 1941 births 20th-century classical composers 20th-century women composers 21st-century classical composers 21st-century women composers Australian women classical composers Australian opera composers Australian opera librettists Composers for carillon Women opera composers Members of the Order of Australia Women opera librettists