Martin Jarvis Ph.D. OAM (born 17 September 1951, Ebbw Vale, Wales) is an Australian violinist and viola player, founder of the Darwin Symphony Orchestra, and associate professor and lecturer of music at Charles Darwin University.
Contents |
Jarvis was the third of five children, and the only boy, born to Dorothy and Bernard Jarvis. Bernard Jarvis was a police officer and eventually become a superintendent. Dorothy Jarvis had been an actress. He has been married three times; he and his third wife Erna have two children and he has three children from his previous marriages.
Jarvis founded the Darwin Symphony Orchestra,[1] which gave its first concert in 1989 - he continues as its artistic director. Jarvis is also an associate professor and lecturer of music at Charles Darwin University.
Jarvis was a recipient of the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in the 2007 Australia Day Honours.[1]
Jarvis has controversially postulated, using handwriting analysis heuristics, that Anna Magdalena Bach composed the Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello of her husband Johann Sebastian Bach.[2][3] Other academics such as Stephen Rose have responded that whilst Anna Magdalena may have contributed to the labours on his manuscripts, "there is not enough evidence to show that she single-handedly composed the Cello Suites."[3]
Jarvis was awarded a PhD from Charles Darwin University based on his research,[4] and presented his findings at an October 2008 meeting of the International Symposium on the Forensic Sciences in Melbourne.[5][6] Jarvis himself has acknowledged about his conclusions and about the general portrayal of Anna Magdalena Bach's role in music history, "My conclusions may not be wholly accurate, but the way in which tradition has put Anna Magdalena into this pathetic role ... is rubbish."[5]