Robert Turner (composer) explained

Robert Turner
Background:non_performing_personnel
Birth Date:6 June 1920
Birth Place:Montreal, Quebec
Death Place:Winnipeg, Manitoba
Occupation:Composer, educator, radio producer

Robert Comrie Turner, (June 6, 1920 – January 26, 2012) was a Canadian composer, educator, and radio producer.[1]

Biography

Born in Montreal, Turner graduated in 1943 with a bachelor's degree in music from McGill University, following studies with Douglas Clarke and Claude Champagne. While enrolled briefly at Colorado College in 1947, he met the percussionist, Sara Scott, whom he married in 1949.[2] In 1947, Turner transferred to Peabody College in Nashville, Tennessee, where he studied with Roy Harris. He graduated in 1950 with a master's degree. During this period, Turner spent summers studying with Herbert Howells and Gordon Jacob at the Royal College of Music, then at the Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood with Olivier Messiaen. Returning to McGill in 1951, he graduated with a doctorate in 1953.

From 1952-68, Turner worked as a CBC Radio producer in Vancouver, where he championed the music of Canadian composers and oversaw broadcasts of the CBC Vancouver Chamber Orchestra. He taught at the University of British Columbia (1955-57), Acadia University (1968-69), and at the University of Manitoba from 1969 until his retirement in 1985. His students included Peter Allen, Pat Carrabré, Jim Hiscott, Diana McIntosh, and Glenn Buhr.[3]

Turner's music has been described as reflecting a variety of influences including jazz, folk music and dance. The composer himself described his music as lyrical and tonal; it also has been noted that Turner could integrate "contemporary techniques with a strong command of mood and evocation, especially of place." He wrote more than 70 works including two operas: The Brideship (1967) and Vile Shadows (1983).[4]

Turner was appointed a member of the Order of Canada in 2002.[5]

The Turner portrait in the Canadian Composers Portraits series was released in 2004.[6]

He received the Western Canadian Music Alliance's Heritage Award in 2009.[7]

Robert Turner died in Winnipeg on January 26, 2012.[8]

Selected works

Stage
Orchestra
Band
Concertante
  1. Flutenanny, Encounter I, flute, string orchestra, harp
  1. Spring Greeting, Encounter II, clarinet, string orchestra, piano
  1. Shadows, Like Lost Souls, Encounter III, violin, orchestra
  1. A Great Quiet and a Still Home, Encounter IV for cello and orchestra
  1. Ebb Tide, Encounter V, voice (high or low), orchestra; words by Marjorie Pickthall
  1. The Wind's and the Wave's Riot, Encounter VI, piano, orchestra
  1. Shepherd on the Make, Encounter VII, oboe, string orchestra, percussion
  1. The Old Sea's Pride, Encounter VIII, horn, orchestra
  1. The Strong Thunder of the Full Straits, Encounter IX, trombone, orchestra
Chamber music
Keyboard
Vocal
Choral
Television scores

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Hanson . Jens . Ware . Evan . 2012-09-10 . Robert Turner . 2024-06-08 . The Canadian Encyclopedia.
  2. News: 2023-06-03 . Sara Scott Turner [obituary] ]. 2024-06-08 . Winnipeg Free Press.
  3. Web site: Robert Turner . 2024-06-08 . University of Manitoba, Faculty of Music.
  4. Ingraham . Mary I. . 2007 . Something to Sing About: A Preliminary List of Canadian Staged Dramatic Music Since 1867 . Intersections: Canadian Journal of Music . 28 . 1 . 14-77 . Erudit.
  5. Web site: 2003-10-24 . Mr. Robert Turner, Order of Canada . 2024-06-08 . Governor General of Canada.
  6. Stephen . J. Drew . 2004 . Robert Turner . CAML Review . 32 . 3 . 49-50.
  7. Web site: 2009 Western Canadian Music Award Artistic Winners . 2024-06-11 . Breakoutwest.
  8. News: 2012-01-27 . Winnipeg composer Robert Turner dead at 91 . 2024-06-08 . Winnipeg Free Press.

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