Tristram Cary
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Tristram Cary (born Oxford 14 May 1925, died Adelaide, Australia 24 April 2008) was a pioneering British composer.
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General information
Cary was educated at Westminster School in London, England and is the son of a pianist and the novelist, Joyce Cary, author of Mister Johnson. While working as a radar engineer for the Royal Navy during World War II, he independently developed his own conception of electronic and tape music, and is regarded as amongst the earliest pioneers of these musical forms.
Following the war he created one of the first electronic music studios, later travelling around Europe to meet the small numbers of other early pioneers of electronic music and composition.
His concert works of note include a Sonata for guitar (1959), Continuum for tape (1969), a cantata Peccata Mundi (1972), Contours and Densities at First Hill for orchestra (1972), a Nonet (1979), String Quartet No. 2 (1985) and The Dancing Girls for orchestra (1991).
Cary is also particularly well known for his film and television music. He has written music for the science fiction television series Doctor Who, as well as the score for the Ealing comedy The Ladykillers (1955). Later film scores included Quatermass and the Pit (1967) and Blood from the Mummy's Tomb (1971), both for Hammer.
Cary was one of the first British composers to work in musique concrète. In 1967 he created the first electronic music studio of the Royal College of Music.
He provided the visual design for the EMS VCS3 synthesizer, the first portable synthesizer, though not the first to be attached to a keyboard, designed by Bob Moog a year later in 1970.
Cary received the 2005 lifetime achievement award from the Adelaide Critics' Circle for his contribution to music in England and Australia.
List of works
Orchestral/Choral
- Peccata Mundi for Chorus, Orchestra, Speaking voice, Four tracks of tape (1972/76),
- Contours & Densities at First Hill - Fifteen Landscapes for Orchestra (1976)
- The Dancing Girls Four Mobiles for Orchestra (1991)
- Sevens Concertino for Yamaha Disklavier and Strings (1991)
- Inside Stories for chamber orchestra and prerecorded CD (1993)
- The Ladykillers Suite for Orchestra (1955/96)
Chamber/Solo
- Sonata for Guitar Alone (1959)
- Three Threes and One Make Ten Mixed decet (1961)
- Narcissus for Flute and two tape recorders (1968)
- Romantic Interiors for violin, cello and tape (1973)
- Family Conference for four clarinets (1981)
- Seeds Mixed Quintet (1982)
- String Quartet No.2 (1985)
- Rivers Four percussionists and two tape recorders (1986)
- Black, White & Rose Marimba and tape (1991)
- Strange Places Piano solo (1992)
- Messages Cello solo (1993)
- Through Glass Piano and electronics (1998)
Vocal
- Divertimento (1973) - for Olivetti machines, 16 singers and jazz drummer (1973) (10') Commissioned by Olivetti for the opening of a new training centre at Haslemere, England (designed by the world-famous architect James Stirling) as (a) part of a 'Venetian' concert conducted by Cary himself, and (b) the sound track of a film. Described by Cary as "friendly, undemanding music" which nevertheless he was nervous about performing, since the audience was composed of VIPs and included Yehudi Menuhin. The text of the piece consists of cardinal numbers in four languages. The performance: Premiered 21/6/1973 at Haslemere HQ of Olivetti, though the film version had already been previously recorded. Performed again in Adelaide 1974. Cary also extracted a piece from it without vocals - "Tracks from Divertimento" - in 1978. It is published on a disc - "Full Spectrum" (MOVE Records MS3027). The original Haslemere personnel were the Ambrosian Singers and Chris Karan (drums).
- Two Nativity Songs from the Piae Cantiones (arr.) (1979)
- I Am Here Soprano and Tape (1980)
- Earth Hold Songs Soprano and Piano (1993)
- Songs for Maid Marian Soprano, Piano (1959/98)
Electroacoustic
For analogue tape
- Suite - the Japanese Fishermen (1955)
- 4 5 - A Study in Limited Resources (1967)
- Birth is Life is Power is Death is God is....(1967)
- Continuum (1969)
- Suite - Leviathan '99 (1972)
- Steam Music (1978)
For computer
- Nonet (1979)
- Soft Walls (1980)
- Trellises (1984)
- The Impossible Piano (1994)
Films
- The Ladykillers, Ealing Studios (1955)
- Time Without Pity, Harlequin (1956)
- The Little Island Animated, Richard Williams (1958) (best experimental film, Venice 1958; best experimental film, British Film Academy 1959)
- Sammy Going South, Michael Balcon (1963) (Royal Command Film Performance 1963)
- EXPO 67 Montréal - All film soundtracks for Industrial Section, British Pavilion (1967)
- A la Mesure de l'Homme, Canadian Government (1967)
- Quatermass and The Pit, Hammer Films (1967)
- A Christmas Carol, ABC Films (1972) Academy Award
- The Fourth Wish, SA Film Corporation (1976)
- Katya and the Nutcracker: special arrangement of Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Ballet for a 30' children's animated film (John Cary Films / Minotaur International)
Radio
- The Children of Lir (Craig) (1959)
- La Machine Infernale (Cocteau) (1960)
- The End of Fear (Saurat) (1960)
- King Lear (Shakespeare) (1960)
- The Flight of the Wild Geese (Dillon) (1961)
- The Ballad of Peckham Rye (Spark) (1962) Italia Prize
- The Ha-Ha (Dawson) (1963)
- The Rhyme of the Flying Bomb (Peake) (1964)
Television
- Jane Eyre (Brontë) (1963)
- "The Daleks" (7-part Dr Who serial) (1963)
- Madame Bovary (Flaubert) (1964)
- Marco Polo (Dr Who serial) (1964)
- Mill on the Floss (Eliot) (1964)
- The Head Waiter (Mortimer) (1966)
- "The Daleks' Master Plan" (12 part Dr Who serial) (1966)
- The Paradise Makers (Winch) (1967)
- The Million Pound Banknote (Twain) (1968)
- Sinister Street (Mackenzie) (1969)
- The Mutants (Dr Who serial) (1972)
Theatre and Miscellaneous
- Macbeth Old Vic Theatre (1960)
- Henry IV, Pt.I Old Vic Theatre (1961)
- La Contessa (Druon, dir: Helpmann) (1965)
- Die Ballade von Peckham Rye Salzburg Festival (1965)
- Escalator Music and Centre Music EXPO 67, Montreal
- Hamlet Theatre Roundabout, (1968)
- Music for Light Olympia London (1968)
- "H" (Wood) National Theatre (1969)
- Echoes till Sunset - 3 hour open air entertainment, Adelaide Festival (1984)
Books
- Dictionary of Musical Technology (1992) (also known as the Illustrated Compendium of Musical Technology)
