Barry Gray
Encyclopedia
Barry Gray was a British
musician
and composer
who is best known for his work for Gerry Anderson
.
and at Blackburn Cathedral
. He studied composition under the Hungarian teacher, Matyas Seiber
.
Gray's first professional job was in London
for B.Feldman & Co., where he gained valuable experience in scoring for theatre and variety orchestras. From there, he joined Radio Normandy as a composer-arranger. After serving six years with the RAF
during World War II
he returned to the music industry to work with such worthies as Vera Lynn
and Hoagy Carmichael
.
In 1956 he joined Gerry Anderson
's AP Films
, where he first scored the puppet show, The Adventures of Twizzle
. This was followed by Torchy The Battery Boy
and then the famed Four Feather Falls
, a puppet Western based on a concept suggested by Gray.
Gray's association with Gerry Anderson lasted well in to the 1970s. Perhaps most famous for his score to Thunderbirds
and its theme "March of the Thunderbirds", Gray composed the themes to the other Supermarionation
shows such as Stingray
, Fireball XL5
, Joe 90
, and Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
. Additionally, Gray is also known as the composer for the Anderson live-action shows, such as UFO
and Space: 1999
, as well as the Thunderbirds films and the live action feature Doppelgänger
(aka Journey to The Far Side Of The Sun, 1969). Gray's professional association with Anderson ended after the first season of Space: 1999 when Anderson decided to replace Gray's original theme with one by another composer
.
and percussion sections, and made extensive use of leitmotif
s, for example themes for the individual machines in Thunderbirds or the eponymous title character in Joe 90
, who was accompanied onscreen by a wordless representation of the character's name. The ensembles required for Gray's scoring in series such as Thunderbirds and Stingray dwarfed those of most contemporary television shows; even the orchestra employed for the first supermarionation series, Supercar
, comprised some forty instrumentalists.
In addition to composing and conducting orchestral scores, he also became interested in the Ondes Martenot
, an early electronic instrument that had been developed by Maurice Martenot
, and used it to produce unconventional musical sounds as well as electronic sound effects in several of his scores, particularly Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
and the feature film Journey to the Far Side of the Sun. His expertise and recognition in the field led to his providing electronic music and sound effects for such films as Dr. Who and the Daleks
and Daleks' Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D., and uncredited work on Fahrenheit 451
.
The Gerry Anderson Appreciation Society, Fanderson
, has recently gained access to all of Gray's original studio tapes and is undertaking a major reissue project, compiling the themes and incidental music from Gray's various Anderson projects on a series of remastered CDs.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
who is best known for his work for Gerry Anderson
Gerry Anderson
Gerry Anderson MBE is a British publisher, producer, director and writer, famous for his futuristic television programmes, particularly those involving specially modified marionettes, a process called "Supermarionation"....
.
Life
He was born into a musical family and was greatly encouraged to pursue a musical career from a very early age. Starting at the age of five - with piano lessons - he studied diligently and became a student at the Manchester Royal College of MusicRoyal Northern College of Music
The Royal Northern College of Music is a music school in Manchester, England. It is located on Oxford Road in Chorlton on Medlock, at the western edge of the campus of the University of Manchester and is one of four conservatories associated with the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music...
and at Blackburn Cathedral
Blackburn Cathedral
Blackburn Cathedral, officially known as the Cathedral Church of Blackburn Saint Mary the Virgin, is a cathedral situated in the heart of Blackburn town centre, in Lancashire, England...
. He studied composition under the Hungarian teacher, Matyas Seiber
Mátyás Seiber
Mátyás György Seiber was a Hungarian-born composer who lived and worked in England from 1935 onward.-Career:Seiber was born in Budapest, and studied there with Zoltán Kodály, with whom he toured Hungary collecting folk songs. In 1928, he became director of the jazz department at the Hoch...
.
Gray's first professional job was in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
for B.Feldman & Co., where he gained valuable experience in scoring for theatre and variety orchestras. From there, he joined Radio Normandy as a composer-arranger. After serving six years with the RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he returned to the music industry to work with such worthies as Vera Lynn
Vera Lynn
Dame Vera Lynn, DBE is an English singer-songwriter and actress whose musical recordings and performances were enormously popular during World War II. During the war she toured Egypt, India and Burma, giving outdoor concerts for the troops...
and Hoagy Carmichael
Hoagy Carmichael
Howard Hoagland "Hoagy" Carmichael was an American composer, pianist, singer, actor, and bandleader. He is best known for writing "Stardust", "Georgia On My Mind", "The Nearness of You", and "Heart and Soul", four of the most-recorded American songs of all time.Alec Wilder, in his study of the...
.
In 1956 he joined Gerry Anderson
Gerry Anderson
Gerry Anderson MBE is a British publisher, producer, director and writer, famous for his futuristic television programmes, particularly those involving specially modified marionettes, a process called "Supermarionation"....
's AP Films
AP Films
AP Films or APF, later becoming Century 21 Productions, was a British independent film production company of the 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s...
, where he first scored the puppet show, The Adventures of Twizzle
The Adventures of Twizzle
The Adventures of Twizzle is the very first television show produced by AP Films and specifically Gerry Anderson, after being approached by author Roberta Leigh and her colleague Suzanne Warner. Sources vary as to who directed the series...
. This was followed by Torchy The Battery Boy
Torchy the Battery Boy
Torchy the Battery Boy was the second television series produced by AP Films and Gerry Anderson, running from 1958–1959. It was another collaboration with author Roberta Leigh and was directed by Anderson, with music scored by Barry Gray, art direction from Reg Hill and special effects by...
and then the famed Four Feather Falls
Four Feather Falls
Four Feather Falls was the third puppet TV show produced by Gerry Anderson for Granada Television, from an idea by Barry Gray.-Production:The show was made on a tight budget and could not afford sophisticated special effects...
, a puppet Western based on a concept suggested by Gray.
Gray's association with Gerry Anderson lasted well in to the 1970s. Perhaps most famous for his score to Thunderbirds
Thunderbirds (TV series)
Thunderbirds is a British mid-1960s science fiction television show devised by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and made by AP Films using a form of marionette puppetry dubbed "Supermarionation"...
and its theme "March of the Thunderbirds", Gray composed the themes to the other Supermarionation
Supermarionation
Supermarionation is a puppetry technique devised in the 1960s by British production company AP Films. It was used extensively in the company's numerous Gerry and Sylvia Anderson-produced action-adventure series, the most famous of which was Thunderbirds...
shows such as Stingray
Stingray (TV series)
Stingray is a children's marionette television show, created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and produced by AP Films for ATV and ITC Entertainment from 1964–65. Its 39 half-hour episodes were originally screened on ITV in the UK and in syndication in the USA. The scriptwriters included Gerry and...
, Fireball XL5
Fireball XL5
Fireball XL5 is a science fiction-themed children's television show following the missions of spaceship Fireball XL5, commanded by Colonel Steve Zodiac of the World Space Patrol...
, Joe 90
Joe 90
Joe 90 is a late-1960s British science-fiction television series documenting the exploits of a nine-year-old boy, Joe McClaine, who embarks on a double life as a schoolboy turned spy when his scientist father invents a pioneering machine capable of duplicating and transferring expert knowledge and...
, and Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, often referred to as Captain Scarlet, is a 1960s British science-fiction television series produced by the Century 21 Productions company of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, John Read and Reg Hill...
. Additionally, Gray is also known as the composer for the Anderson live-action shows, such as UFO
UFO (TV series)
UFO is a 1970-1971 British television science fiction series about an alien invasion of Earth, created by Gerry Anderson and Sylvia Anderson with Reg Hill, and produced by the Andersons and Lew Grade's Century 21 Productions for Grade's ITC Entertainment company.UFO first aired in the UK and Canada...
and Space: 1999
Space: 1999
Space: 1999 is a British science-fiction television series that ran for two seasons and originally aired from 1975 to 1977. In the opening episode, nuclear waste from Earth stored on the Moon's far side explodes in a catastrophic accident on 13 September 1999, knocking the Moon out of orbit and...
, as well as the Thunderbirds films and the live action feature Doppelgänger
Doppelgänger (1969 film)
Doppelgänger is a 1969 British science-fiction film directed by Robert Parrish and starring Roy Thinnes, Ian Hendry, Lynn Loring and Patrick Wymark. Outside Europe, it is known as Journey to the Far Side of the Sun, which is now the more popular title...
(aka Journey to The Far Side Of The Sun, 1969). Gray's professional association with Anderson ended after the first season of Space: 1999 when Anderson decided to replace Gray's original theme with one by another composer
Derek Wadsworth
Derek Wadsworth was a British jazz trombonist, session musician, composer and arranger....
.
Composing style
Gray's music is characterised by the use of brassBrass instrument
A brass instrument is a musical instrument whose sound is produced by sympathetic vibration of air in a tubular resonator in sympathy with the vibration of the player's lips...
and percussion sections, and made extensive use of leitmotif
Leitmotif
A leitmotif , sometimes written leit-motif, is a musical term , referring to a recurring theme, associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical idea of idée fixe...
s, for example themes for the individual machines in Thunderbirds or the eponymous title character in Joe 90
Joe 90
Joe 90 is a late-1960s British science-fiction television series documenting the exploits of a nine-year-old boy, Joe McClaine, who embarks on a double life as a schoolboy turned spy when his scientist father invents a pioneering machine capable of duplicating and transferring expert knowledge and...
, who was accompanied onscreen by a wordless representation of the character's name. The ensembles required for Gray's scoring in series such as Thunderbirds and Stingray dwarfed those of most contemporary television shows; even the orchestra employed for the first supermarionation series, Supercar
Supercar (TV series)
Supercar was a children's TV show produced by Gerry Anderson and Arthur Provis's AP Films for ATV and ITC Entertainment. 39 episodes were produced between 1961 and 1962, and it was Anderson's first half-hour series. In the UK it was seen on ITV and in the US in syndication...
, comprised some forty instrumentalists.
In addition to composing and conducting orchestral scores, he also became interested in the Ondes Martenot
Ondes Martenot
The ondes Martenot , also known as the ondium Martenot, Martenot and ondes musicales, is an early electronic musical instrument invented in 1928 by Maurice Martenot. The original design was similar in sound to the theremin...
, an early electronic instrument that had been developed by Maurice Martenot
Maurice Martenot
Maurice Martenot was a French cellist, a radio telegrapher during the first World War, and an inventor.Born in Paris, he is best known for his invention of the ondes Martenot, an instrument he first realized in 1928 and spent decades improving. He unveiled a microtonal model in 1938...
, and used it to produce unconventional musical sounds as well as electronic sound effects in several of his scores, particularly Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons
Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, often referred to as Captain Scarlet, is a 1960s British science-fiction television series produced by the Century 21 Productions company of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, John Read and Reg Hill...
and the feature film Journey to the Far Side of the Sun. His expertise and recognition in the field led to his providing electronic music and sound effects for such films as Dr. Who and the Daleks
Dr. Who and the Daleks
Dr. Who and the Daleks was the first of two Doctor Who films made in the 1960s. It was followed by Daleks' Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D....
and Daleks' Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D., and uncredited work on Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451 (1966 film)
Fahrenheit 451 is a 1966 film directed by François Truffaut, in his first colour film as well as his only English-language film. It is based on the novel of the same name by Ray Bradbury....
.
The Gerry Anderson Appreciation Society, Fanderson
Fanderson
Fanderson is the official appreciation society for the works of Gerry Anderson. It is a not-for-profit organisation endorsed by Anderson Entertainment Ltd, Gerry Anderson Productions plc and ITC Entertainment Group Ltd...
, has recently gained access to all of Gray's original studio tapes and is undertaking a major reissue project, compiling the themes and incidental music from Gray's various Anderson projects on a series of remastered CDs.
The Barry Gray Centenary Concert
Saturday 8 November 2008, an evening event at The Royal Festival Hall, The South Bank, London. Ralph Titterton, restorer of the Barry Gray archive, co-producer of the Barry Gray original soundtrack CDs, and Cathy Ford, Barry Gray librarian, researcher and biographer, have joined with film composer, conductor and arranger François Evans to produce a concert to celebrate the centenary of Barry Gray’s birth. In aid of the The Cinema and Television Benevolent Fund charity no. 1099660.Discography
- Space Age Nursery Rhymes (mini-EP, Century 21, Comical updates of nursery rhymes, sung by Ken Barrie and Eula Parker, "Three refined mice" sung by Gray)
- Themes from Thunderbirds (mini-EP, Century 21, record with incidental music)
- Themes from Captain Scarlet (mini-EP, Century 21, record with songs and instrumentals of the series and some cover versions of non-Anderson series)
- No Strings Attached (maxi-single. A release of all the commercial recordings of theme music, near-originals. The CD release also includes "March of the Oysters")
- Thunderbirds Are GoThunderbirds Are GOThunderbirds Are Go is a 1966 British science-fiction film based on Thunderbirds, a 1960s television series starring marionette puppets and featuring scale model effects in a filming process dubbed "Supermarionation"...
! (LP, United Artists, film soundtrack with pieces from the TV series; not the original film recording. The EMI CD release also include The Shadows tracks of the feature film) - Thunderbird 6Thunderbird 6Thunderbird 6 is a 1968 British science-fiction and adventure film written by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, directed by David Lane and produced by Century 21 Cinema...
(CD MGM, film soundtrack, released posthumously) - Thunderbirds (CD, Silva Screen, TV soundtrack, released posthumously)
- Captain Scarlet (CD, Silva Screen, TV soundtrack, released posthumously)
- Space: 1999 (CD, Silva Screen, TV soundtrack, released posthumously)
- Joe 90 (CD, Silva Screen, TV soundtrack, released posthumously)
- Supercar/Fireball XL5 (CD, Fanderson, original incidental music from the series, released posthumously)
- UFO (2CD, Fanderson, original incidental music from the series, released posthumously)
- Space:1999 Year 1 (2CD, Fanderson, original incidental music from the series, released posthumously)
- Sleeping Astronauts (CD, membership gift Fanderson 2005, original incidental music from various Gerry Anderson series. Also includes some tracks not by Barry Gray)
- International Concerto (CD, membership gift Fanderson 2006, original incidental music from various Gerry Anderson series. Also includes tracks not by Barry Gray)
- Stand By For Adverts (CD, Trunk Records, released 2011, a compilation of Gray's advertising jingles and incidental music for television commercials that he recorded in the late 1950s and 1960s)