John Addison (cellist)

John Addison
Born 1966
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Residence Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Occupation Cellist
Website
http://www.johnaddison.eu

John Addison (born 1966) is an Australian cellist with an international reputation as a soloist and performer of chamber music, and especially as an interpreter of contemporary music.

Contents

Early life and education

Born in Brisbane in 1966, Addison began his music studies as a chorister at St John's Anglican Cathedral under the direction of Organist and Master of Choristers, Dr Robert Boughen. He sang in the choir for six years, was appointed as Deputy Head Boy in 1980 and as Head Boy in the following year. As with all the Cathedral's choristers, he received a scholarship to the Anglican Church Grammar School and continued his education there to matriculation.

Addison's first instrument was the flute which he studied from the age of 10, and went on to win the Queensland Flute Eisteddfod (now known as the Queensland Flute Challenge[1]), senior division, in 1983. Following a chance encounter with British cellist Imogen Rex, then teaching at his school, he commenced studies of that instrument with her in 1978.

In 1986, Addison began his degree program at the Tasmanian Conservatorium of Music where his instrument teacher was the cellist, Christian Wojtowicz.[2] He graduated with honours in 1990 and continued private studies with Sue-Ellen Paulsen, Principal Cellist of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra.[3]

Professional involvement

Having received grants from Arts Tasmania[4] and the Queen Elizabeth II Trust for Young Australians, Addison moved to The Netherlands in 1991, based himself in Amsterdam, and for several years was a member of the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra[5] and the Belgian ensemble I Fiamminghi.[6]

By the late 1990s, Addison decided to focus on chamber music and solo playing. He then joined the Palmós Ensemble,[7] was a founding member of both the Zephyr Kwartet[8] and the Telesto Trio,[9] and gave many solo recitals.

Over that whole period in The Netherlands, he attracted wide attention from the public and the critics, and in response received numerous engagements with groups such as Amsterdam's Nieuw Ensemble and the Orkest de Volharding,[10] and the Insomnio Ensemble based in Utrecht.[11] He also made a large number of recordings covering solo, chamber and ensemble repertoire.[12]

The performance of contemporary music is one of Addison's special interests. As he explains in his website:

"Culture should reflect, as in the biological definition, a living organism. If we, as artists, remain reverentially entrenched in the 18th and 19th century repertoire then we condemn art to stagnate and die."[13]

In response, he has built up a substantial repertoire of 20th and 21st century works among which Dutch and Australian composers are well represented. Over thirty works have been written especially for him by composers from around the world. (See 3.1 Contemporary below) He has particular rapport with the compositions of Cage, Crumb, Donatoni, Francesconi, Murat, Jeths, Scelsi, Sciarrino, Rădulescu and Gubaidulina. On many occasions, he has collaborated with composers while preparing to perform their music. In the case of Sofia Gubaidulina, he has established an international reputation as an interpreter of her works and has received written endorsement from the composer herself which included the following remark:

"My encounter with the cellist John Addison was a very significant and meaningful event for me. Evidently, this interpreter has almost all my cello works in his repertoire and he performs them with a profound understanding of their meaning and form. His playing is overwhelming in its impact; characterised by a multitude of tonal colours, subtle phrasing, a very beautiful and powerful sound, a strongly convincing conception of form, and perfection in solving every problem."[14]

Addison has now performed extensively throughout The Netherlands and other European countries including the United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland, Belgium, France, Germany, Spain, Portugal, the Czech Republic, Italy, Albania, Slovenia and Greece, has received a number of engagements in Indonesia, China, Thailand and Japan, and returned to China in 2010. Regular engagements in Australia have included the 2006 Melbourne International Arts Festival,[15] the 2008 Adelaide Festival of Contemporary Music and the 2009 Soundstream: Adelaide New Music Festival.[16] He has been invited to perform at the 2010 Soundstream: Adelaide New Music Festival.

In more recent times, a major interest for Addison has been the development of a methodology for the performance of contemporary cello repertoire. He was drawn to this by his observation that changes in music composition since about the beginning of the 20th century have placed new demands on cellists' techniques, a need that has not been met in the teaching of the instrument which is still based largely on the technical requirements of music from the 19th century and earlier.[17]

Addison is in the process of writing the first of three books on this subject. Volume 1, to be published in the near future by Donemus,[18] will deal entirely with his new techniques for the production of natural harmonics. He hopes his books will be influential not only in the teaching of practical performing skills, but that, before writing for the instrument, composers will use them to expand their knowledge of the cello's technical capabilities.

In 2010, Addison decided to return to Australia, believing that it is part of his responsibility to share in his own country the wealth of knowledge and experience he has accrued while overseas. He has based himself in Brisbane, one of Australia's most rapidly expanding cities, with an active music life. From there, he will have easy access to the rest of the country, as well as Asia, the Americas, Africa, the Middle East and Europe. His involvements will include performing, teaching, writing, preparing a range of activities to increase public interest in music, and undertaking doctoral level studies.

Repertoire

Contemporary

(α = Addison engaged in World Premiere)
(ω = Addison engaged in Australian Premiere)
(β = Written for Addison)

Twentieth century

Romantic

Classical

Baroque

Discography

For information, see http://www.johnaddison.eu/discography.htm.

References

  1. ^ Queensland Flute Challenge is organized by the Queensland Flute Guild, see http://www.qldfluteguild.com.au/.
  2. ^ For information about Christian Wojtowicz see http://fcms.its.utas.edu.au/arts/music/pagedetails.asp?lpersonId=1567
  3. ^ For information about the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, see http://www.tso.com.au/.
  4. ^ The name of the Tasmanian Government's arts department. See http://www.arts.tas.gov.au/
  5. ^ See their own website http://www.orkest.nl/
  6. ^ I Fiamminghi means, literally, "The Flemish", although members of the ensemble are drawn from around the world. Founded in 1984 by Belgian violinist Rudolph Werthen, the orchestra performs music from the Classical period onwards and also creates opportunities for the performance of new works. It has recorded on several labels and currently has an exclusive contract with the American label Telarc (http://www.telarc.com/). The orchestra also operates Academia Fiamminghi, a school for talented young musicians. For more information see http://www.answers.com/topic/the-orchestra-of-flanders-i-fiamminghi
  7. ^ For information about the Palmós Ensemble, see http://www.palmos-music.com/.
  8. ^ For information about the Zephyr Kwartet, see http://www.zephyrkwartet.dds.nl/. This group is not to be confused with Australia's Zephyr Quartet (See http://www.zephyrquartet.com/) which has no connection with the Dutch quartet of the same name.
  9. ^ For information on the Telesto Trio, see http://www.camenae.eu/telestotrio.html
  10. ^ In addition to their Wikipedia entry, see http://www.volharding.com/
  11. ^ Insomnio Ensemble was established in 1997 and focuses on performing major repertoire from the 20th and 21st centuries while also providing public exposure for promising new composers. For more information see http://www.insomnio.nl/
  12. ^ A selective listing of recordings is shown on http://www.johnaddison.eu/discography.htm
  13. ^ http://www.johnaddison.eu/biography.htm
  14. ^ This quote is taken from a letter dated 10 February 2008. For the complete text, see http://www.johnaddison.eu/reviews.htm.
  15. ^ For information about the Festival's activities, see http://www.melbournefestival.com.au/
  16. ^ For information about the Adelaide New Music Festival, see http://soundstream.org.au/
  17. ^ For more information about the physics of bowed string instruments, see http://www.phys.unsw.edu.au/jw/Bows.html.
  18. ^ Donemus is a Dutch company involved in the publishing of music scores, books on music and CDs. See http://www.donemus.nl/
  19. ^ Jan-Bas Bollen, Dutch violinist, composer, sound designer and performance artist. See http://www.donemus.nl/componist.php?id=142&lang=EN.
  20. ^ José Ignacio Fernández Bollo, Chilean-born composer now resident in The Netherlands.
  21. ^ Paul Bruinen, Dutch composer. See http://www.paulbruinen.nl/.
  22. ^ Romano Crivici, Australian composer. See http://www.australianmusiccentre.com.au/artist/crivici-romano
  23. ^ Born in Australia, Jacob Plooij is a violinist and composer now resident in The Netherlands.
  24. ^ Cynthie van Eijden, Dutch composer. See http://www.donemus.nl/componist.php?id=456.
  25. ^ Luca Francesconi, Italian composer and music academic. See http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luca_Francesconi.
  26. ^ Ada Gentile, Italian pianist, lecturer and composer. See http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ada_Gentile.
  27. ^ Rocco Havelaar, Dutch composer and violist. See http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocco_HavelaarSee http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocco_Havelaar.
  28. ^ Julius Hijman, Dutch-born US composer, pianist and musicologist.
  29. ^ Alison Isadora, New Zealand-born Dutch composer of stage, chamber, vocal, electroacoustic, and multimedia works. See http://www.composers21.com/compdocs/isadoraa.htm.
  30. ^ Willem Jeths, Dutch composer. See http://www.willemjeths.com/.
  31. ^ See also Penderecki - Capriccio per Siegfried Palm.
  32. ^ Dominik Karski, Polish-born Australian composer. See http://www.australianmusiccentre.com.au/artist/karski-dominik.
  33. ^ For information about Mihály András see http://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mih%C3%A1ly_Andr%C3%A1s
  34. ^ A microlude is a tiny prelude which Kurtág wrote in sets of twelve, one for each semitone of the scale in sequence, in the same way that Bach wrote his 48 Preludes and Fugues, BWV 846–893. Kurtág wrote four sets of microludes: the work listed here, some movements of his piano work Jákétok (1973- ), and some in his set of piano pieces for children. Unlike Bach, whose intention was to explore in depth the characteristics of each tonality, Kurtág set out to express a momentary relationship to each individual pitch. By-and-large, Kurtág's microludes are very brief, one of them, the First Microlude from the Second Set of Jákétok, Book II, being one bar in length. For more information, see McLay, M: "György Kurtág's Microludes" in Tempo, New Series, 151(1984):17-23.
  35. ^ Yannis Kyriakidis, Cypriot-born Dutch composer and sound artist. See http://www.kyriakides.com/.
  36. ^ Roderik de Man, Indonesian-born Dutch composer and sound designer. See http://www.roderikdeman.com/.
  37. ^ The saying in Greek, "Miden Agan", also transliterated as "Meden Agan", was inscribed on the Temple of Apollo at Delphi. It means, literally, "Nothing in excess", and advocates moderation in all things as an essential principle in the approach to life.
  38. ^ Phillip Neil Martin, British composer. See http://www.bmic.co.uk/composers/nv_details3.asp?ComposerID=2766.
  39. ^ Valerio Murat, Italian composer. See http://www.visionaria.eu/autori.php?idautore=1366&nomeautore=Valerio_Murat.
  40. ^ Mayke Nas, Dutch pianist. See http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayke_Nas.
  41. ^ Robert Nasveld, Dutch composer and pianist. See http://www.robertnasveld.com/.
  42. ^ Royé is a Dutch composer.
  43. ^ Stephen Stanfield, Australian composer and music educator. See http://www.australianmusiccentre.com.au/artist/stanfield-stephen.
  44. ^ Paul Swoger-Ruston, Canadian composer, guitarist and lecturer.
  45. ^ Jorrit Tamminga, Dutch composer and teacher of electronic composition. See http://nl.linkedin.com/in/jorrittamminga.
  46. ^ Paul Termos, Dutch composer and saxophonist. See http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Termos.
  47. ^ Calliope Tsoupaki, Greek composer. See http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calliope_Tsoupaki.
  48. ^ Jacob ter Veldhuis, Dutch avant-pop composer, also known for his earlier career as a rock musician carried out under the pseudonym JacobTV. See http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacob_ter_Veldhuis.
  49. ^ Martijn Voorvelt, Dutch composer, vocalist and guitarist. See http://www.martijnvoorvelt.com/.
  50. ^ Samuel Vriezen, Dutch composer and pianist. See http://kalvos.org/vriezen.html.
  51. ^ Juan Felipe Waller-Vigil, Mexican-born composer now based in The Netherlands.
  52. ^ Kees Wieringa, Dutch pianist and composer. See http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kees_Wieringa.
  53. ^ Barbara Woof, Australian composer. See http://www.australianmusiccentre.com.au/artist/woof-barbara.
  54. ^ Sinta Wullur, Indonesian-born Dutch composer and musician. See http://www.xs4all.nl/~swjr/flashEng/index3e.html.
  55. ^ According to Greek mythology, Kottos (see also Kottus, Cottos or Cottus) was one of the three brothers known as Hecatonchires ("Hundred-handed Ones"), children of Gaia (Earth) and Uranus (Heavens), giants who conquered the Titans.
  56. ^ Hans van Zijp, Dutch composer.
  57. ^ Rudolf Escher, Dutch composer and music theoretician. See http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolf_Escher.
  58. ^ Elisabeth Kuyper (1877–1953) was a Dutch composer and conductor, and the first woman to teach theory and composition at the Berlin Hochschule für Musik.[1]

External links