Murray Adaskin

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Murray Adaskin in 1929
Murray Adaskin in 1929

Murray Adaskin (March 26, 1906 – May 6, 2002) was a Toronto-born Canadian violinist, composer, conductor and teacher. After playing violin with a band, he studied composition and became the director of the Music department of the University of Saskatchewan. Many of his compositions were written while in Victoria after his retirement.[1]

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[edit] Life

Born in Toronto, Ontario, to Latvian immigrant parents who raised their four children to become persevering kids, Adaskin played violin in Toronto in silent film presentations. Afterwards, he was a violinist with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra from 1923 to 1936. He married his first wife, Frances James, a soprano around that time. From 1938 to 1952 he was with the Royal York Hotel trio.[1]

By 38 years of age, he studied for seven years with John Weinzweig to become a composer. Other composers he studied with include Charles Jones and Darius Milhaud. He was head of the Department of Music at the University of Saskatchewan from 1952 to 1966, including four years as conductor of the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra. He then became the Composer-in-Residence until 1972, the first position of its type ever created at a Canadian university. By 1972, he retired to Victoria, time where he started composing more than half his total of 130 compositions.[1]

Adaskin lost his first wife in 1988, to later remarry to a woman named Dorothea, who was his helping hand in recording some pieces on their own label. He died in 2002, just before the release of two CDs of a five-disc collection for his memory. He is the brother of Harry Adaskin, Leslie Adaskin and John Adaskin.[1]

In 1980, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.

[edit] Music inspiration

Igor Stravinsky was a major inspiration for Adaskin. "Stravinsky's neo-classical and rugged rhythms echo through his work."[1] Additionally, his training as a violinist affected his sense of melody. Through his works, one can feel the presence of landscapes, birdsongs and different local surrounding sounds.[1]

The melody of his compositions often seem abstract, similar to Canadian visual art from his early years. His avid interest in Canadian visual art was expressed in his work: In Praise of Canadian Painting in the Thirties.[1]

[edit] Selected works

  • 1948 Epitaph, for voice and piano
  • 1950 March No. 1 for orchestra
  • 1950 Sonata for Piano
  • 1952 Sonatine Baroque
  • 1953 March for orchestra
  • 1961 Rondino for Nine Instruments
  • 1963 Dedication
  • 1971 Daydreams, for E flat alto saxophone & piano
  • 1974 Woodwind Quintet No. 1
  • 1978 Rankin Inlet, for Piano Duet
  • 1980 Eskimo Melodies, for Piano
  • 1992 Three Piano Pieces (Savannah, Gretchen, and Etude No. 1), for Piano
  • 1995 String Quintet
  • 1998 Divertimento No.9, for string trio
  • 2000 Musica Victoria

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Everett-Green, Robert. Composer expressed joy in art's beauty, The Globe and Mail, Wednesday, May 8, 2002. R7. accessed on October 18, 2006.

[edit] External links