Malcolm (Benjamin Graham Christopher) Williamson - Biography, Williamson's music

Composer, born in Sydney, New South Wales, SE Australia. He moved to England in 1953, and began his career as a solo pianist and organist. His compositions include the opera Our Man in Havana (1963), the chamber opera The Red Sea (1972), and the operatic sequence The Brilliant and the Dark (1969). He also wrote seven symphonies, concertos for piano, organ, violin, and harp, several works for television and films, a great deal of vocal, choral, organ, and piano music, and ‘cassations’ (mini-operas), which often involve the audience. The song cycle A Year of Birds appeared in 1995. He was made Master of the Queen's Musick in 1975, and was associated with several choirs and music societies.

Malcolm Benjamin Graham Christopher Williamson CBE, AO (November 21, 1931 – March 2, 2003) was an Australian composer.

Biography

Williamson was born in Sydney and studied at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music with Eugene Goossens.

Williamson was a very prolific composer at this time, receiving many commissions.

In 1975, the death of Sir Arthur Bliss left the title of Master of the Queen's Music vacant. As the pre-eminent British composer of the time, Benjamin Britten was the obvious choice to replace him, but he was very ill, and so, to the surprise of many who expected a better known composer such as Sir Michael Tippett to take the post, the title went to Williamson.

Although Williamson wrote a number of pieces connected to his royal post early in his tenure, such as Lament in Memory for Lord Mountbatten of Burma (1980), this dropped off for the last twenty years or so of his life.

Williamson's music

Some of Williamson's early works use the twelve tone technique of Arnold Schoenberg, but his greatest influence is often said to be Olivier Messiaen.

Williamson wrote seven symphonies, four piano concertos, operas including Our Man in Havana and The Violins of Saint Jacques, the ballets Sun Into Darkness and The Display, choral works, chamber music, music for solo piano, music for film and television, and others.

Williamson also wrote music for children, including the opera The Happy Prince (based on the story by Oscar Wilde) and cassations, short operas incorporating audience participation.

Williamson became much less prolific in later life, although continuing to write occasionally.

Williamson was awarded a CBE in 1976, and an AO in 1987.

Preceded by: Arthur Bliss

Master of the Queen's Music 1975–2003

Succeeded by: Peter Maxwell Davies