Milan Kymlicka (Czech: Milan Kymlička; 15 May 1936 – 9 October 2008) was a Czechoslovak and Canadian

arranger In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

and conductor. He was known for his composition of film and television scores, including those for the animated television series '' Rupert'', ''

Babar Babar ( ur, ), also variously spelled as Baber, Babur, and Babor is a male given name of Pashto, and Persian language, Persian origin, and a popular male given name in Pakistan. It is generally taken in reference to the Persian language, Persian ...

'', ''

The Busy World of Richard Scarry ''The Busy World of Richard Scarry'' is an animated children's television series, produced by CINAR Animation and France Animation in association with Paramount Television, which aired from 1994 to 1997, first on Showtime (TV network), Showtime ...

'' and ''

The Adventures of Paddington Bear ''The Adventures of Paddington Bear'' is an animated children's television series. It is based on the book ''Paddington Bear'' by Michael Bond and was written by Bruce Robb. It was produced by CINAR Corporation and Protecrea, in co-production ...

'' and the live-action television series '' Lassie'' and ''

Little Men ''Little Men,'' or ''Life at Plumfield with Jo's Boys,'' is a children's novel by American author Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888), which was first published in 1871 by Roberts Brothers. The book reprises characters from her 1868–69 two-volume ...

''. He received a

Genie Award The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978; also known as the "Etrog Awards," for scu ...

in 1996 for his work on ''

Margaret's Museum ''Margaret's Museum'' is a 1995 British-Canadian drama film, directed by Mort Ransen and based on Sheldon Currie's novel '' The Glace Bay Miners' Museum''. Plot Set in the 1940s in Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, the film tells the story of ...

''.

Early life

Kymlicka was born in

Louny Louny (; german: Laun) is a town in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 18,000 inhabitants. It lies on the river Ohře. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone. Administrat ...

, Czechoslovakia. He earned degrees from the

Academy of Performing Arts in Prague The Academy of Performing Arts in Prague ( cs, Akademie múzických umění v Praze, AMU) is a university in the centre of Prague, Czech Republic, specialising in the study of music, dance, drama, film, television and multi-media. It is the larg ...

and the

Prague Conservatory The Prague Conservatory or Prague Conservatoire ( cs, Pražská konzervatoř) is a music school in Prague, Czech Republic, founded in 1808. Currently, Prague Conservatory offers four or six year study courses, which can be compared to the level ...

. At the latter institution he was a pupil of Emil Hlobil.

Career

Kymlicka began his work as a composer in his native country and by 1967, he had produced 20

film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to ...

s, a

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

, a cello concerto, several works for solo

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

, a number of

string quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two violinists ...

s, and created the theme for an animated television series. After the

Prague Spring The Prague Spring ( cs, Pražské jaro, sk, Pražská jar) was a period of political liberalization and mass protest in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. It began on 5 January 1968, when reformist Alexander Dubček was elected First Sec ...

in 1968, Kymlicka emigrated to Canada, where he settled in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Ontario. By the early 1970s, he was working as a studio arranger/conductor at the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

. In 1974, Kymlicka became a naturalized Canadian citizen. That year, he arranged music for and conducted the Hamilton Philharmonic, accompanying pop musician Ian Thomas; his arrangements were included on some of Thomas' recordings in the 1970s. Kymlicka continued working as a composer, arranger, and conductor for film, television, and radio. His composition "Four Valses" was recorded by pianist

Antonín Kubálek Antonín Kubálek (November 8, 1935January 18, 2011) was a Czech-Canadian classical pianist. Life and career Kubálek was born in Libkovice, Most District, Czechoslovakia and studied in Prague with Czech pianist František Maxián. He emigrated ...

in New York."RECORDINGS; Acoustics Are The Treasure In Bank's Hall"
''New York Times'', Apr 30, 1989. Lawrence B. Johnson Kymlicka died in Toronto in 2008. Among his last released works was '' Závoj tkaný touhami'' (originally by

Tanita Tikaram Tanita Tikaram (born 12 August 1969) is a British pop/ folk singer-songwriter. She achieved chart success with the singles "Twist in My Sobriety" and " Good Tradition" from her 1988 debut album, ''Ancient Heart''. Background Tikaram was born i ...

), arranged for the 2008 album ''

Ohrožený druh ''Ohrožený druh'' (''Threatened Species'') is a compilation album by Czech recording artist Michal Horáček, released on Sony BMG in 2008. Track listing ;Notes * All songs performed in Czech with exception of "Esik az eső, csendesen", su ...

''.

References

External links

"Milan Kymlicka"
''Encyclopedia of Music in Canada'', Historic Canada *
Death notice
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kymlicka, Milan 1936 births 2008 deaths Academy of Performing Arts in Prague alumni Canadian film score composers Canadian television composers Czechoslovak emigrants to Canada Canadian Screen Award winners People from Louny Prague Conservatory alumni 20th-century Canadian composers Naturalized citizens of Canada Male conductors (music) Canadian male composers Best Original Score Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners 20th-century Canadian conductors (music) Male film score composers 20th-century Canadian male musicians