Peter Sculthorpe
Encyclopedia
Peter Joshua Sculthorpe AO
OBE
(born 29 April 1929) is an Australian composer. Much of his music has resulted from an interest in the music of Australia's neighbours as well as from the impulse to bring together aspects of native Australian music with that of the heritage of the West. He is known primarily for his orchestra
l and chamber music
, such as Kakadu (1988) and Earth Cry (1986), which evoke the sounds and feeling of the Australian bushland and outback
. He has also written 17 string quartet
s, using unusual timbral
effects, works for piano, and two operas. He has stated that he wants his music to make people feel better and happier for having listened to it. He has typically avoided the dense, atonal techniques of many of his contemporary composers. His work has often been distinguished by its distinctive use of percussion.
, Tasmania. His mother (Edna) was passionate about English literature and his father (Joshua) loved fishing and nature.
He began writing music at age seven. As a young composer, he independently discovered the whole-tone scale, and was disappointed when he learned that others, such as Debussy
, had already used it. By the age of 13, he had decided to make a career of music, despite many (especially his father) encouraging him to enter different fields, because he felt the music he wrote was the only thing that was his own. He studied at the Melbourne Conservatorium from 1946 to 1950, then returned to Tasmania. Unable to make any money as a composer, he went into business, running a hunting, shooting and fishing store in Launceston (Sculthorpe's) with his brother Roger. His Piano Sonatina was performed at the ISCM
Festival in Baden-Baden
in 1955 (the piece had been rejected for an ABC
competition because it was "too modern"). He won a scholarship to study at Oxford University, studying under Egon Wellesz
, but left before completing his doctorate because his father was gravely ill. He wrote his first mature composition, Irkanda IV, in his father's memory.
, and has remained there more or less ever since, where he is now an emeritus
professor
. In the mid 1960s he was composer-in-residence at Yale University
. In 1965 he wrote Sun Music I for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra
's first overseas tour, on a commission from Sir Bernard Heinze
, who asked for "something without rhythm, harmony or melody". Neville Cardus
, after the premiere of Sun Music I, wrote that Sculthorpe was set to "lay the foundations of an original and characteristic Australian music". In 1968 the Sun Music series was used for the ballet Sun Music, choreographed by Sir Robert Helpmann
, which gained wide international attention. In the late 1960s, Sculthorpe worked with Patrick White
on an opera about Eliza Fraser
, but White chose to terminate the artistic relationship. Sculthorpe subsequently wrote an opera (music theatre), Rites of Passage
(1972-73), to his own libretto, using texts in Latin
and the Australian indigenous language Arrernte. Another opera Quiros followed in 1982. The orchestral work Kakadu was written in 1988.
In 2003, the SBS Radio and Television Youth Orchestra gave the premiere of Sydney Singing, a composition by Sculthorpe for clarinet solo (Joanne Sharp), harp solo (Tamara Spigelman), percussion solo (Peter Hayward) and string orchestra. This performance was released on SBS DVD in July 2005.
His Requiem
is possibly his most serious, substantial work to date. It was premiered in March 2004 in Adelaide by the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra
and Adelaide Chamber Singers conducted by Richard Mills
, with didgeridoo
soloist William Barton
, to critical acclaim.
Sculthorpe is a represented composer of the Australian Music Centre
and is published by Faber Music Ltd
. He was only the second composer to be contracted by Faber, after Benjamin Britten
.
Sculthorpe says he is political in his work – and that his work has also always been about "the preservation of the environment and more recently, climate change". In the early 1970s Sculthorpe was engaged to Anne Boyd
but he has never married. In 1982 a painting of Sculthorpe by artist Eric Smith
won the Archibald Prize
.
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 29 April 1929) is an Australian composer. Much of his music has resulted from an interest in the music of Australia's neighbours as well as from the impulse to bring together aspects of native Australian music with that of the heritage of the West. He is known primarily for his orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
l and chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
, such as Kakadu (1988) and Earth Cry (1986), which evoke the sounds and feeling of the Australian bushland and outback
Outback
The Outback is the vast, remote, arid area of Australia, term colloquially can refer to any lands outside the main urban areas. The term "the outback" is generally used to refer to locations that are comparatively more remote than those areas named "the bush".-Overview:The outback is home to a...
. He has also written 17 string quartet
String quartet
A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
s, using unusual timbral
Timbre
In music, timbre is the quality of a musical note or sound or tone that distinguishes different types of sound production, such as voices and musical instruments, such as string instruments, wind instruments, and percussion instruments. The physical characteristics of sound that determine the...
effects, works for piano, and two operas. He has stated that he wants his music to make people feel better and happier for having listened to it. He has typically avoided the dense, atonal techniques of many of his contemporary composers. His work has often been distinguished by its distinctive use of percussion.
Early life
Sculthorpe was born and grew up in LauncestonLaunceston, Tasmania
Launceston is a city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia at the junction of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River. Launceston is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart...
, Tasmania. His mother (Edna) was passionate about English literature and his father (Joshua) loved fishing and nature.
He began writing music at age seven. As a young composer, he independently discovered the whole-tone scale, and was disappointed when he learned that others, such as Debussy
Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
, had already used it. By the age of 13, he had decided to make a career of music, despite many (especially his father) encouraging him to enter different fields, because he felt the music he wrote was the only thing that was his own. He studied at the Melbourne Conservatorium from 1946 to 1950, then returned to Tasmania. Unable to make any money as a composer, he went into business, running a hunting, shooting and fishing store in Launceston (Sculthorpe's) with his brother Roger. His Piano Sonatina was performed at the ISCM
International Society for Contemporary Music
The International Society for Contemporary Music is a music organization that promotes contemporary classical music.ISCM was established in 1922, in Salzburg. Its core activity is the World Music Days Festival, held every year at a different location. The festival includes cutting edge productions...
Festival in Baden-Baden
Baden-Baden
Baden-Baden is a spa town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located on the western foothills of the Black Forest, on the banks of the Oos River, in the region of Karlsruhe...
in 1955 (the piece had been rejected for an ABC
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
competition because it was "too modern"). He won a scholarship to study at Oxford University, studying under Egon Wellesz
Egon Wellesz
Egon Joseph Wellesz was an Austrian-born British composer, teacher and musicologist, notable particularly in the field of Byzantine music.- Life :...
, but left before completing his doctorate because his father was gravely ill. He wrote his first mature composition, Irkanda IV, in his father's memory.
Musical career
In 1963 he became a lecturer at the University of SydneyUniversity of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
, and has remained there more or less ever since, where he is now an emeritus
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...
professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
. In the mid 1960s he was composer-in-residence at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
. In 1965 he wrote Sun Music I for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
The Sydney Symphony Orchestra , commonly known as the Sydney Symphony, is an Australian symphony orchestra based in Sydney...
's first overseas tour, on a commission from Sir Bernard Heinze
Bernard Heinze
Sir Bernard Thomas Heinze, AC was an Australian Professor of Music, conductor, and Director of the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music....
, who asked for "something without rhythm, harmony or melody". Neville Cardus
Neville Cardus
Sir John Frederick Neville Cardus CBE was an English writer and critic, best known for his writing on music and cricket. For many years, he wrote for The Manchester Guardian. He was untrained in music, and his style of criticism was subjective, romantic and personal, in contrast with his critical...
, after the premiere of Sun Music I, wrote that Sculthorpe was set to "lay the foundations of an original and characteristic Australian music". In 1968 the Sun Music series was used for the ballet Sun Music, choreographed by Sir Robert Helpmann
Robert Helpmann
Sir Robert Helpmann CBE was an Australian dancer, actor, theatre director and choreographer.-Early years:He was born Robert Murray Helpman in Mount Gambier, South Australia and also boarded at Prince Alfred College in Adelaide. From childhood, Helpman had a strong desire to be a dancer...
, which gained wide international attention. In the late 1960s, Sculthorpe worked with Patrick White
Patrick White
Patrick Victor Martindale White , an Australian author, is widely regarded as an important English-language novelist of the 20th century. From 1935 until his death, he published 12 novels, two short-story collections and eight plays.White's fiction employs humour, florid prose, shifting narrative...
on an opera about Eliza Fraser
Eliza Fraser
Eliza Fraser was a Scottish woman whose ship was shipwrecked on the coast of Queensland, Australia, on 22 May 1836, and who was captured by Aborigines. Fraser Island is named after her....
, but White chose to terminate the artistic relationship. Sculthorpe subsequently wrote an opera (music theatre), Rites of Passage
Rites of Passage (Sculthorpe)
Rites of Passage is a music theatre work written by the Australian composer Peter Sculthorpe in 1972-73. It is often categorised as an opera, but it does not conform to the traditional concept of opera...
(1972-73), to his own libretto, using texts in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and the Australian indigenous language Arrernte. Another opera Quiros followed in 1982. The orchestral work Kakadu was written in 1988.
In 2003, the SBS Radio and Television Youth Orchestra gave the premiere of Sydney Singing, a composition by Sculthorpe for clarinet solo (Joanne Sharp), harp solo (Tamara Spigelman), percussion solo (Peter Hayward) and string orchestra. This performance was released on SBS DVD in July 2005.
His Requiem
Requiem
A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead or Mass of the dead , is a Mass celebrated for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, using a particular form of the Roman Missal...
is possibly his most serious, substantial work to date. It was premiered in March 2004 in Adelaide by the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra
Adelaide Symphony Orchestra
The Adelaide Symphony Orchestra was founded as a 17 player radio ensemble in 1936, in Adelaide, South Australia. The orchestra reformed in 1949 as the 55 member South Australian Symphony Orchestra. It reverted to its original and present title, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, in late 1974, and...
and Adelaide Chamber Singers conducted by Richard Mills
Richard Mills
Richard John Mills AM, DMus BA Qld, is an Australian conductor and composer. He currently works as Artistic Director of the West Australian Opera and Artistic Consultant with Orchestra Victoria...
, with didgeridoo
Didgeridoo
The didgeridoo is a wind instrument developed by Indigenous Australians of northern Australia around 1,500 years ago and still in widespread usage today both in Australia and around the world. It is sometimes described as a natural wooden trumpet or "drone pipe"...
soloist William Barton
William Barton (musician)
William Barton is an Australian Aboriginal didgeridoo player. He was born in Mount Isa, Queensland on 4 June 1981. and learned to play from his uncle, an elder of the Wannyi, Lardil and Kalkadunga tribes of Western Queensland...
, to critical acclaim.
Sculthorpe is a represented composer of the Australian Music Centre
Australian Music Centre
The Australian Music Centre fosters the development of an Australian music community by providing specialist support to its membership of performers, composers, sound artists, educators, students, and music specialists across Australia and throughout the world.The AMC is the Australian national...
and is published by Faber Music Ltd
Faber Music
Faber Music is a British sheet music publisher best known for contemporary classical music. It also publishes music tutor books, and in 2005 acquired popular music publisher International Music Publications....
. He was only the second composer to be contracted by Faber, after Benjamin Britten
Benjamin Britten
Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten, OM CH was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He showed talent from an early age, and first came to public attention with the a cappella choral work A Boy Was Born in 1934. With the premiere of his opera Peter Grimes in 1945, he leapt to...
.
Style and themes
Much of Sculthorpe's early work demonstrates the influence of Asian music, but he says that these influences dwindled through the 1970s as indigenous music became more important. He says that he had been interested in indigenous culture since his teens, mainly because of his father "who told me many stories of past wrongs in Tasmania. I think he was quite extraordinary for that time, as was my mother". However, it was only with the advent of recordings and books on the subject around the 1970s that he started to incorporate indigenous motifs in his work.Sculthorpe says he is political in his work – and that his work has also always been about "the preservation of the environment and more recently, climate change". In the early 1970s Sculthorpe was engaged to Anne Boyd
Anne Boyd
Anne Elizabeth Boyd AM is an Australian composer and Professor of Music at the University of Sydney.-Early life:Anne Boyd was born in Sydney to James Boyd and Annie Freda Deason Boyd ....
but he has never married. In 1982 a painting of Sculthorpe by artist Eric Smith
Eric Smith (artist)
Eric John Smith is an award-winning Australian artist. Smith has won many of Australia's major art prizes multiple times including the Archibald Prize for portraiture three times; the Wynne Prize twice; the Sulman Prize three times; and the Blake Prize for Religious Art six times.-Life and...
won the Archibald Prize
Archibald Prize
The Archibald Prize is regarded as the most important portraiture prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after a bequest from J. F. Archibald, the editor of The Bulletin who died in 1919...
.
Honours
- 1970: Queen's Birthday Honours List: named a Member of the Order of the British EmpireOrder of the British EmpireThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(MBE). - 1977: MBE upgraded to Officer status (OBE).
- 1990: Australia Day Honours: appointed an Officer of the Order of AustraliaOrder of AustraliaThe Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...
(AO). - 1999: made one of Australia's 45 Icons
- He is an Australian Living TreasureAustralian Living TreasuresAustralian Living Treasures are people who have been nominated by the National Trust of Australia. The first list of 100 Living Treasures was published in 1997....
. - He holds four honorary doctorates.
Orchestral
- The Fifth Continent for speaker and orchestra (1963)
- Sun Music I (1965)
- Sun Music II (1969)
- Sun Music III (1967)
- Sun Music IV (1967)
- Love 200 (a collaboration with TullyTully (band)Tully was an Australian progressive rock group of the late 1960s and early 1970s which had a close association with the Sydney-based film/lightshow collective Ubu.-Formation:...
) (1970) - Music for Japan (1970)
- Small Town for solo oboe, two trumpets, timpani and strings (1976)
- Port Essington for string trio and string orchestra (1978)
- Mangrove (1979)
- Earth Cry (1986)
- Kakadu (1988)
- Memento Mori (1993)
- From Oceania (2003)
- Beethoven Variations (2006)
- Songs of Sea and Sky- also arranged for different instruments such as flute and clarinet.
- Mangrove, for orchestra
- My Country Childhood
- Shining Island (2011), for strings (remembering Henryk GóreckiHenryk GóreckiHenryk Mikołaj Górecki was a composer of contemporary classical music. He studied at the State Higher School of Music in Katowice between 1955 and 1960. In 1968, he joined the faculty and rose to provost before resigning in 1979. Górecki became a leading figure of the Polish avant-garde during...
)
Concertante
- Piano Concerto (1983)
- Earth Cry, for didgeridoo and orchestra (1986)
- Nourlangie, for solo guitar, strings and percussion (1989)
- Sydney Singing, for clarinet, harp, percussion, and strings (2003)
- Elegy, for solo viola and strings (2006)
Opera
- Rites of PassageRites of Passage (Sculthorpe)Rites of Passage is a music theatre work written by the Australian composer Peter Sculthorpe in 1972-73. It is often categorised as an opera, but it does not conform to the traditional concept of opera...
(music theatre; 1972-73) - Quiros (1982)
Chamber/Instrumental
- Sonata for Viola and Percussion (1960)
- Requiem for cello alone (1979)
- From Kakadu for solo guitar (1993)
- Into the Dreaming for solo guitar (1994)
- 17 string quartets
Piano
- Between Five Bells
- Rose Bay Quadrilles
- Piano Sonatina
- Nocturnal
- Djilile
- Mountains
- Song for a Penny
- Night Pieces [Snow, Moon, Flowers, Night, Stars]
- Thoughts from Home – Composed to form part of the Gallipoli Symphony for Anzac Day 2015
- Simori
External links
- Biography of Peter Sculthorpe – maintained by the Australian Music CentreAustralian Music CentreThe Australian Music Centre fosters the development of an Australian music community by providing specialist support to its membership of performers, composers, sound artists, educators, students, and music specialists across Australia and throughout the world.The AMC is the Australian national...
- Biography of Peter Sculthorpe – maintained by the Tasmanian Composers CollectiveTasmanian Composers CollectiveThe Tasmanian Composers Collective is the representative body for Composers born or living in Tasmania, Australia. It was founded in 2005 by Tasmanian composer and singer Matthew Dewey with the funding support of the Foundation for Young Australians...
- Profile of Peter Sculthorpe – maintained by Move RecordsMove RecordsMove Records is an Australian record label that was started in 1968 by Martin Wright. It concentrates primarily in classical and jazz music, particularly Australian, and most frequently Melbourne-based musicians and composers....
- Big Idea – Interview with Peter Sculthorpe (ABC Radio NationalRadio NationalABC Radio National is an Australia-wide non-commercial radio network run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.Radio National broadcasts national programming in areas that include news and current affairs, the arts, social issues, science, drama and comedy...
) - Interview with Peter Sculthorpe by Bruce Duffie, 17 February 1994
- Guide to the papers of Peter Sculthorpe – held by the National Library of Australia
- Peter Sculthorpe Art Collection held by Pictures Branch, National Library of Australia, Canberra
- Opera Glass
- Listen to an excerpt of 'Irkanda IV' on australianscreen online
- 'Irkanda IV' was added to the National Film and Sound Archive's Sounds of Australia Registry in 2008