1.
Qualifications:
Bachelor
of Music (Auckland, N.Z.)
Diploma in Teaching (Aust. & N.Z.)
Fellow of Trinity College of Music (London)
Licentiate in Music of Trinity College (London)
2.
Career Summary:
I
was born in 1952 in New Zealand, where I completed my ATCL,
LTCL and L.Mus.TCL diplomas in piano and composition. I
am a Fellow of Trinity College, London (FTCL). In
1975 I graduated to the degree of Bachelor of Music (B.Mus.)
at the Auckland University Conservatorium of Music, winning
the Professor Hollinrake Memorial Scholarship and the Senior
Scholarship for best student before going on to lecture
and examine there. While a student at the Conservatorium,
I toured the world as a chorister with the Auckland University
Festival Choir conducted by Professor PETER GODFREY, O.B.E.,
which performed in the International Choral Festival at
the Kennedy Centre and in the White House,Washington DC,
and at the Lincoln Centre, New York as guests of the United
States Government, and then at Kings College, Cambridge
and Westminster Abbey, London before touring through Europe.
In
1974, I founded and directed the New Zealand School of Music
under the patronage of Lord Mayor of Auckland, SIR DOVE-MYER
ROBINSON and with the conductor of the Symphonia of Auckland,
JUAN MATTEUCCI, O.B.E. I established the first non-university
tertiary level qualification for conductors of music in
the Southern Hemisphere. I also completed my NZ Education
Department Diploma in Teaching.
While
school teaching from 1979, I was a musical director and
keyboard player for various theatrical productions including
OKLAHOMA, TWELFTH NIGHT, EARTHFIRE, JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR
and GODSPELL and worked professionally for Progeni Systems
Ltd as a computer programmer of educational software for
New Zealand schools. For a while I was employed as
a keyboards player and arranger by SIR HOWARD MORRISON.
In
1981 I was approved as musical director, orchestrator and
conductor for the world première production and cast album
of the musical ALOHA by the authors SIR ROBERT HELPMANN
and EATON MAGOON Jr from Hawaii. Since then I have
worked in Honolulu as arranger, computer programmer and
production adviser for Magoon's Broadway musical THIRTEEN
DAUGHTERS and more recently, LEOPARD'S LEAP in California
USA.
After
musically directing and orchestrating a second, professional
New Zealand production of ALOHA for Broadway Director JOE
LAYTON, I immigrated to Australia in 1985 and began work
as musical director for Australia's Wonderland, keyboards
player for the musical CATS and orchestrator for the Australian
Singing Competition. I was later employed as chorus
master and keyboards player for the musical RASPUTIN and
musical director for Sydney Theatre Restaurants Ltd and
was musical director for Peter Williams production of CINDERELLA.
I
have continued to work as a teacher, and as an HSC examiner
and advisor for the NSW Board of Studies. I have been
a freelance keyboards player for theatre productions such
as NUNSENSE. I have played keyboards in television
performances with KATE CEBERANO, WENDY MATTHEWS, as well
as DEBBIE NEWSOME and GRACE KNIGHT, for both of whom I also
acted as musical director and arranger. I was choral
arranger and pianist for TORVILL & DEAN's album HERE WE
STAND.
After
orchestrating the Australian Bicentennial musical HISTORY
OF AUSTRALIA in 1988, I began working with record producer
and film composer Martin Armiger as variously arranger,
orchestrator, composer, keyboardist and conductor on many
films, records and television series, which have included:
THE LAST RESORT, RAINBOW WARRIOR, BODYSURFER, THE WONDERFUL
WORLD OF DOGS, THE CROSSING starring RUSSELL CROWE, COME
IN SPINNER (Platinum album sales), FLASHBACKS, RING OF SCORPIO,
POLICE RESCUE, CHILDREN OF THE DRAGON, THE OTHER SIDE OF
PARADISE, THANK GOD HE FOUND LIZZIE, HARD KNOX starring
LEE MAJORS, HILDEGARDE, the ABC's SEVEN DEADLY SINS album
featuring RENÉE GEYER and the GRAHAM MURPHY ballet FORNICON.
I
composed music for IN GRAVE DANGER OF FALLING FOOD, several
commercial advertisements, a number of ATN Channel 7 ID's
including "LET'S CELEBRATE '88" and Broadcom's commercial
video production, ARTHUR YOUNG, AUSTRALIA. Other orchestration
credits include the New Zealand film CRUSH, the ABC film
EMPIRE and documentaries BLACK SWAN for composer Anthony
Partos and WIDOWS for Roi and Megan Huberman; BLINKY BILL
and the feature films FRAUDS starring PHIL COLLINS and featuring
MARCIA HINES as well as PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT and
the ABC Cable Television News Service themes for film composer
Guy Gross. I was a casual keyboards player for CATS
Sydney return season, as well as PHANTOM OF THE OPERA.
Again using computer scoring software, I programmed piano
transcriptions for the Sydney Dance Company's BERLIN (Max
Lambert & Iva Davies) performed at the Sydney Opera House.
I programmed Peter Casey's orchestrations for the Korean
musical WINTER WANDERER, and in 1996 was orchestrator and
musical director for Crook & Carroll's new musical LULU.
In 1998 I arranged, scored, performed, recorded and mastered to CD the entire
5 volume book for the Dance Assessment Programme for Australian
Dance Vision using digital scoring and hard disk recording
and mastering software. I was also appointed
producer, arranger orchestrator and conductor for the FRANK
BENNETT album CASH LANDING by EMI Music Australia, which
received a nomination for an ARIA Award. In 1999 I
programmed scores for the SPLIT ENZ song book for Mushroom
Music.
I
have been commissioned at various times by the NSW Department
of School Education to write original music and arrangements
for the Performing Arts Unit for outstanding performers
from the NSW secondary education system. On one occasion
I wrote a large scale work combining the forces of big band,
full orchestra and choir for a combined high schools concert
to be held in the Sydney Opera House. In 1998 I wrote
arrangements for the DSE All Stars Big Band's acclaimed
tour of Europe. In 2004, I composed, performed and
recorded all music for Levels 1-8 of Glenn Wood Tap - The
Syllabus. From 1995 to 2006, I was resident pianist at Araluen
Wedding Receptions in Epping. In 2005, I worked as
arranger and performer for the Sydney Opera House production
End Of The Rainbow for CAROLINE O'CONNOR, and in 2007 scored
an arrangement for 650 voice choir and orchestra for her
performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London, UK.
I
have been extensively employed as a conductor of orchestral
recording sessions, and as a freelance conductor have at
various times conducted:
The Victorian Philharmonic Orchestra (Melbourne Symphony
Orchestra), The Hunter Orchestra, The Peter Seymour Orchestra,
The NSW Education Department Combined High Schools Orchestra,
The Ku-Ring-Gai Philharmonic Orchestra, the Sydney Gay &
Lesbian Mardi Gras Big Band and the Waverley-Randwick Philharmonic
Orchestra and Choir.
Since
1986, I have operated my own recording studio in which I have scored all the above credits, and recorded
and mastered demos and CDs for performing artists.
During that time, I have run Music Technology courses, and
since 1997 I have run authorised Steinberg Training Centres
at my studio, Sydney Community College and Randwick Boys
High School where I taught full time from 1986 to 2006.
Since 2006, I have been a full-time PhD music student, conductor and postgraduate student representative as well as employed on the staff as a part time lecturer and tutor at The University of Edinburgh Scotland, UK. While at Edinburgh, I have also performed variously as keyboardist and musical director for Scottish singer and big band leader FRANK HOLDEN and in 2008 have been répétiteur and offstage chorus conductor for Edinburgh Grand Opera's production of FAUST. For the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2008, I was répétiteur for OPERA SHORTS, the world première of four short operas by recent graduates of the University of Edinburgh.
