Anne Boyd facts for kids

Anne Elizabeth Boyd, born on April 10, 1946, is a famous Australian composer. She is also a retired music professor from the University of Sydney. She was given the Order of Australia award for her important work.

Early Life and Inspiration

Anne Boyd was born in Sydney, Australia. When she was three years old, her father passed away. Her mother then sent her to live with relatives on a sheep station called Maneroo. This station was near Longreach in central Queensland.

Living on the sheep station deeply influenced Anne. She loved the wide-open spaces and the amazing changes in the Australian landscape. She felt it had a special energy. This experience helped her become a composer. She started writing music at age eight, using a recorder and her voice. When she was 11, she moved to Canberra.

Anne went to high school in New South Wales. Later, she studied music at the University of Sydney. There, she was one of the first students of a famous composer named Peter Sculthorpe. His music showed her how to express her feelings about the Australian landscape. After getting her degree, she earned a PhD in composition from the University of York in England.

Career Highlights

In 1990, Anne Boyd made history. She became the first Australian and the first woman to be named a professor of music at the University of Sydney. Before this, she was the head of the Music Department at the University of Hong Kong from 1981 to 1990. She also taught at the University of Sussex from 1972 to 1977.

In 1996, Anne was honored with the Order of Australia. This award recognized her important contributions to music as both a composer and a teacher.

A documentary film called Facing the Music (2001) showed Anne's efforts to keep music courses funded at the University of Sydney. In 2005, the Music Department joined the Sydney Conservatorium at the same university.

Musical Creations

Many of Anne Boyd's musical pieces are influenced by East Asia. She often uses sounds and styles from Japan, like the wood flute and Japanese musical scales. She also uses ideas from Indonesia, such as the gamelan orchestra and Balinese musical styles.

A lot of her music has a spiritual or calm feeling. An example is her a cappella (singing without instruments) work called As I Crossed a Bridge of Dreams from 1975. She has written many types of music, including song cycles, opera, and pieces for piano, choirs, orchestras, and small groups of instruments.

Some of her well-known compositions include:

• Goldfish Through Summer Rain (1979)
• The Little Mermaid (1980)
• Black Sun (1990)
• Revelations of Divine Love (1995)
• Meditations on a Chinese Character (1996)
• A Vision: Jesus Reassures His Mother (1999)
• YuYa (2005)

In 2017, her orchestral piece Olive Pink's Garden was inspired by the Olive Pink Botanic Garden in Alice Springs. In 2022, an opera she wrote about the life of Olive Pink was performed for the first time there.

You can find her music on CDs like Meditations on a Chinese Character (1997) and Crossing a Bridge of Dreams (2000).

Athletic Achievements

Besides her musical talents, Anne Boyd is also a very good long-distance runner. She runs marathons, half marathons, and 10-kilometer races. She has won in her age group in many of these events.

Anne ran her first marathon after training for only 18 months. People have called her a "lady of musical and running talents" and an "inspiring distance runner." She often runs with her daughter and helps raise money for cancer research. She won her age group in the Sydney Striders marathon trophy.

Awards and Special Recognition

Anne Boyd has received several important awards for her work:

• She was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 1996. This was for her service as a composer and educator.
• The University of York gave her an honorary degree in 2003.
• In 2005, she received a Special Award for Distinguished Services to Australian Music. This was given at the APRA/AMC Classical Music Awards.

Sir Bernard Heinze Memorial Award

The Sir Bernard Heinze Memorial Award is given to people who have made a truly outstanding contribution to music in Australia. Anne Boyd received this award in 2014.