Dorothy Ker (born 1965) is a
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
-born composer of instrumental and vocal music who has lived in the UK since 1992. She is known for her inter-disciplinary collaborations and experimentation with live electronic music performances.
Early life
Ker was born in
Carterton, in the North Island of New Zealand in 1965.
Education
Ker completed B.Mus and M.Mus degrees at the
University of Auckland
, mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work
, established = 1883; years ago
, endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021)
, budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021)
, chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant
, vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...
, where she studied composition and electronic music with
John Rimmer. She emigrated to the UK in 1992, and completed a Ph.D in composition at the
University of York
, mottoeng = On the threshold of wisdom
, established =
, type = Public research university
, endowment = £8.0 million
, budget = £403.6 million
, chancellor = Heather Melville
, vice_chancellor = Charlie Jeffery
, students ...
in 1998.
Career
Following her graduation, Ker took up a position at the
University of Reading
The University of Reading is a public university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as University College, Reading, a University of Oxford extension college. The institution received the power to grant its own degrees in 192 ...
. She later moved to the position of Research Fellow at the
University of Sheffield
, mottoeng = To discover the causes of things
, established = – University of SheffieldPredecessor institutions:
– Sheffield Medical School – Firth College – Sheffield Technical School – University College of Sheffield
, type = Pu ...
, before becoming a lecturer in Composition there, and most recently, a Senior Lecturer in Music.
In 2008, a collaboration with the mathematician
Marcus du Sautoy
Marcus Peter Francis du Sautoy (; born 26 August 1965) is a British mathematician, Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science at the University of Oxford, Fellow of New College, Oxford and author of popular mathematics and popu ...
resulted in the creation and performance of a piece of experimental music, ''The 19th Step.'' The research with du Sautoy was later the basis for a mixed-media theatre piece produced in collaboration with the sculptor Kate Allen in 2010.
In July 2013, Ker began a year-long position in
Wellington
Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...
, New Zealand, as a Research Teaching Associate at the New Zealand School of Music.
In 2015, Ker received the 2015
Composers Association of New Zealand
The Composers Association of New Zealand (CANZ), established in 1974, after an initial meeting of composers was organised by David Farquhar. Farquhar was the association's first president. It is a body that lobbies for the interests of New Zealand ...
Trust Fund Award for her contribution to music composition.
Ker's music has been heard at international festivals in Auckland, Belfast, Darmstadt, Huddersfield, Perth, Taipei, Seoul, at the
International Society for Contemporary Music
The International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM) is a music organization that promotes contemporary classical music.
The organization was established in Salzburg in 1922 as Internationale Gesellschaft für Neue Musik (IGNM) following the ...
, in London and on
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...
and
Radio New Zealand
Radio New Zealand ( mi, Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa), commonly known as Radio NZ or simply RNZ, is a New Zealand public-service radio broadcaster and Crown entity that was established under the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. It operates news and c ...
.
Works
* ''Movement for String Orchestra''
* ''The Structure of Memory'' (mixed chamber ensemble of 10 players)
* ''diffracted terrains: duo i'' (bass clarinet and double bass)
* ''diffracted terrains: duo ii'' (vioin, French horn and piano)
* ''diffracted terrains: quintet'' (alto/bass flute, clarinet in A/bass clarinet, violin, viola and cello)
* ''solo for cello''
* ''water mountain'' (violin, B flat clarinet and cello)
* ''
..and...1' (clarinet)
* ''
..and...11' (for 12 players)
* ''Clepsydra'' (oboe)
* ''On the Bridge'' (solo soprano)
* ''Le kaleidoscope de l’obscurite'' (clarinet, bass clarinet, cello, double bass)
* ''The Third Dream'' (orchestra)
* ''Rare Earth'' (cello)
* ''face'' (flute)
* ''fantasia'' (solo flute and orchestra)
* ''the history of rock'' (piano)
* ''Sonatine'' (violin and piano)
* ''a gentle infinity'' (orchestra)
* ''The Rock, Whatipu'' (solo soprano)
* ''Close-Up of a Daisy'' (a cappella choir)
* ''Arise, Shine!'' (choir and organ)
* ''If all the world were paper''
* ''Koru'' (choir and piano)
* ''City'' (female voices and piano)
* ''Darkness and Light'' (orchestra)
* ''from States of Zero'' (solo violin)
* ''Dances After the Haiku'' (soprano, viola, clarinet, cello and piano)
* ''these children singing in stone a'' (a cappella choir)
* ''Behind the Apple Cases at Mapua'' (a cappella choir and solo soprano)
* ''Dreams from Stone Landscapes'' (soprano with flute/piccolo, oboe, clarinet)
* ''Winter Dusk'' (unaccompanied choir)
* ''and the rain ...'' (choir)
* ''six pieces locating the body'' (B flat clarinet and bass clarinet)
* ''The Truth of Fire'' (vocal ensemble (12 voices) and unseen narrator)
Recordings
* ''The Structure of Memory'' on New Zealand Women Composers (2003)
* Diffracted Terrains - Chamber Music of Dorothy Ker (2008)
* ''
..and...1' on A Place in the Sky
* ''Clepsydra'' on New Music for a New Oboe Volume 2
References
External links
Institutional page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ker, Dorothy
1965 births
20th-century New Zealand people
New Zealand classical composers
New Zealand women classical composers
People from Carterton, New Zealand
Living people
University of Auckland alumni
Alumni of the University of York
British music educators
British women music educators
New Zealand educators
New Zealand women music educators
Academics of the University of Sheffield
20th-century New Zealand women composers
20th-century New Zealand composers
21st-century New Zealand women composers
21st-century British women educators
21st-century British educators