Roger Smalley facts for kids

John Roger Smalley (born July 26, 1943 – died August 18, 2015) was a talented musician from both England and Australia. He was a composer, a pianist, and a conductor. Mr. Smalley was a special researcher at the School of Music at the University of Western Australia and also at the University of Sydney.

About Roger Smalley

Roger Smalley was born in a place called Swinton, in England. He went to a famous music school in London called the Royal College of Music. There, he learned piano from Antony Hopkins and composition (how to write music) from Peter Racine Fricker and John White. He also studied with other important musicians like Alexander Goehr and even attended special courses with famous composers like Karlheinz Stockhausen and Pierre Boulez.

When he was young, Roger won a big award in 1965 called the Royal Philharmonic Society Prize for his orchestra music piece, Gloria Tibi Trinitas.

In 1967, Roger Smalley became the very first "Composer in Residence" at King's College, Cambridge. This meant he was a composer who worked and taught at the college. In 1969, he and another composer, Tim Souster, started a music group called Intermodulation. This group used electronic instruments to create live music. For six years, Intermodulation traveled a lot, playing their music in places like the UK, Germany, Poland, France, and Iran. They played their own music and also music by other modern composers. They even performed at the BBC Promenade Concerts, which are very famous concerts.

In 1974, Roger Smalley was invited to visit the University of Western Australia for three months. He liked it so much that he came back two years later to work there permanently at the music school. He decided to live in Australia and became an Australian citizen in 1990. When he stopped working in 2007, he was given the special title of Emeritus Professor at the university.

Roger Smalley received two important awards in Australia. He was given the Centenary Medal in 2001 and became a Member of the Order of Australia in 2011. These awards recognize people who have made a great contribution to Australia.

Roger Smalley passed away on August 18, 2015, when he was 72 years old. He had been ill with Parkinson's disease for a long time. He was sad that he could no longer play the piano because of his illness. He once said, "I know what I have to play, but my fingers won't let me do it."

Roger Smalley was married to Sarah Roe, and they had two children. They later divorced.

Roger Smalley's Music

Roger Smalley's music was played and heard all over the world. Many groups and organizations asked him to write music for them. This is called getting a "commission." Some of these groups included the BBC, ABC Television, the London Sinfonietta, and the Australian Chamber Orchestra. His music and performances can be found on more than 20 music CDs.

His first Piano Concerto (a big piece for piano and orchestra) was asked for by the BBC in 1985. In 1987, this piece was chosen as the best work at the UNESCO International Rostrum of Composers. This was the first time a piece from Australia won first place at this important event.

In his later music, Smalley often used small parts of music from older composers, especially those from the Romantic period. For example, he used parts of music by Chopin in his Oboe Concerto and by Schumann in his Cello Concerto. His String Quartet No. 2 and Piano Quintet also included melodies from Chopin's mazurkas, which are Polish dances.

Roger Smalley's orchestra piece called Birthday Tango (later renamed Footwork) won the APRA Classical Music Award in 2007. This award was for the "Best Composition by an Australian Composer." These awards are given out every year by music organizations in Australia.

Besides writing music, Roger Smalley was also a very good pianist. He was especially known for playing modern music, as well as music from the 1700s and 1800s. Early in his career, he won awards for his piano playing, including the Gaudeamus Competition in 1966 and the Harriet Cohen Award in 1968.

He made several recordings, including a CD of piano music by Australian composers, and music by John White and Schumann.

Roger Smalley's Compositions

Here are some of the musical pieces Roger Smalley wrote:

• Echo II for cello and digital delays (1978)
• Pulses for 5x4 players
• Symphony (1979–81)
• Piano Concerto No. 1 (1984–85)
• Variations on a Theme of Chopin for piano (1988–89)
• Piano Trio (1990–91)
• Poles Apart (1992)
• Trio for clarinet, viola and piano (1992–99)
• Oboe Concerto (1995–96)
• Crepuscule, for piano quartet (1998–99)
• String Quartet No. 2 (1999–2000)
• Horn Trio (2000–2002)
• Piano Quintet (2003)
• Piano Concerto No. 2 (2004)
• Contrabassoon Concerto
• Suite for two violins (2007)

Awards Roger Smalley Won

Don Banks Music Award

The Don Banks Music Award is a special award started in 1984. It honors a very important artist who has made a huge and lasting contribution to music in Australia. It was created by the Australia Council to remember Don Banks, who was an Australian composer and performer.

See also

• International Society for Music Education