Ronald Charles Douglas Hanmer (2 February 191723 May 1994) was a
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
conductor, composer and arranger of
light music, who spent his latter years in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
.
[Philip Scowcroft]
6th Garland
accessed 20 November 2010 He was best known for his themes to the ''Adventures of P.C. 49'' and ''
Blue Hills'', and is also noted for his large oeuvre of light orchestral and brass band compositions, as well as his arrangements of popular stage musicals. During the 1950s and 1960s he directed his own Latin-American percussion ensemble called "The Marimberos" on BBC radio and was, for a while, conductor of the Sydney Thompson Old-Time Orchestra for the programme "Take Your Partners".
Biography
Ronald Charles Douglas Hanmer was born in
Reigate
Reigate ( ) is a town status in the United Kingdom, town in Surrey, England, around south of central London. The settlement is recorded in Domesday Book in 1086 as ''Cherchefelle'' and first appears with its modern name in the 1190s. The earlie ...
,
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
and studied at
Blackheath Blackheath may refer to:
Places England
*Blackheath, London, England
** Blackheath railway station
**Hundred of Blackheath, Kent, an ancient hundred in the north west of the county of Kent, England
*Blackheath, Surrey, England
** Hundred of Blackh ...
Conservatory. Between 1935 and 1948 he was a
theatre organ
A theatre organ (also known as a theater organ, or, especially in the United Kingdom, a cinema organ) is a type of pipe organ developed to accompany silent films, from the 1900s to the 1920s.
Theatre organs have horseshoe-shaped arrangements o ...
ist and dance band arranger. After emigrating to Australia in 1975, he was an arranger and conductor for the St Lucia Orchestra in
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...
.
Hanmer was appointed a
Member of the Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...
in 1992 for "service to music and musical education".
Hanmer died in Brisbane on 23 May 1994.
Works
Hanmer's original works included pieces such as ''Bouquet de Paris'', ''Capstan and Windlass'', ''The Heather and the Thistle'', ''Heritage of England'', ''The Holly and the Mistletoe'', ''The Oak and the Rose'' and ''Memories of Hungary'', and original genre pieces in orchestral or piano versions such as ''On a Windy Day'', ''Limelight Lady'', ''Dot and Carry One'', ''Mosquito'', ''City Desk'', and ''Fashion Parade''.
[
In Britain he is remembered for his ''Changing Moods'', which was used as the theme for the radio serial ''Adventures of P.C. 49''. After emigrating to Australia in 1975 he was surprised to discover that his short composition ''Pastorale'' introduced the famous long-running radio serial '' Blue Hills''. He later re-worked the piece into a longer orchestral work named ''Blue Hills Rhapsody'', a recording of which was made with the composer conducting the ]Queensland Symphony Orchestra
Queensland Symphony Orchestra (QSO) is an Australian symphony orchestra in the state of Queensland. The orchestra is based in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's building in South Bank. The Orchestra is funded by private corporations, the ...
.Biography
musicweb, accessed 20 November 2010
His works for wind ensembles included clarinet quartets and trios, flute trios, ''Cuckoo Quartet'' for two flutes and two clarinets, ''Two Contrasts'' for oboe and piano, trumpet trios, ''Suite for French horn and piano'', ''Three Sketches'' for trumpet and piano, ''Suite for Seven'' (two flutes, oboe, three clarinets and bassoon), and a ''Serenade for Seven''.
[
He also gained considerable fame in the brass band world, where his works are renowned as test pieces. For brass band, Hanmer wrote pieces such as ''Latin Americana'', ''Brass Spectacular'', ''March With a Beat'', ''Waltz with a Beat'', ''Mexican Fiesta'' and ''Over Hill Over Dale''. For smaller brass ensembles his work includes ''Praeludium and Allegro'' for trombone, ''Cavatina and Allegro'' for E-flat horn, ''Arioso and Caprice'' for horn, ''Flight of Fancy'', for cornet and euphonium, the fantasy ''Alice in Wonderland'', ''The Four Corners of the World'', ''Down Under'', ''Episodes for Brass'', ''Prelude and Rondo'' and ''Seven Up'' for septet, ''Prelude, Romance and Finale'' for brass quartet and the cornet quartet ''Foursome Fantasy''.
His arrangements of musicals include '']Calamity Jane
Martha Jane Cannary (May 1, 1852 – August 1, 1903), better known as Calamity Jane, was an American frontierswoman, sharpshooter, and storyteller. In addition to many exploits she was known for being an acquaintance of Wild Bill Hickok. Late ...
'', ''Blossom Time Blossom Time may refer to:
* Blossom Time (operetta), a 1921 English-language adaptation of the operetta ''Das Dreimäderlhaus''
* Blossom Time (1934 film), a British musical drama film, based on the operetta ''Das Dreimäderlhaus''
* Blossom Time ...
'', ''The Merry Widow
''The Merry Widow'' (german: Die lustige Witwe, links=no ) is an operetta by the Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's attempt t ...
'', ''Viva Mexico!'', ''Die Fledermaus
' (, ''The Flittermouse'' or ''The Bat'', sometimes called ''The Revenge of the Bat'') is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée, which premiered in 1874.
Background
The original ...
'', ''The Chocolate Soldier
''The Chocolate Soldier'' (German: ''Der tapfere Soldat'' he courageous soldier
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (pronoun), an English pronoun
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or ''Der Praliné-Soldat'') is an operetta composed in 1908 by Oscar Straus (composer), Oscar Straus based on George Bernard Shaw's 1894 play, ''Arms and the Man' ...
'' and ''La Périchole
''La Périchole'' () is an opéra bouffe in three acts by Jacques Offenbach. Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy wrote the French libretto based on the 1829 one act play '' Le carrosse du Saint-Sacrement'' by Prosper Mérimée, which was revived on ...
'' and his orchestrations of shows for amateur companies remain in demand world wide.
Some of his self-composed dramatic cues were featured in ''The Ren & Stimpy Show
''The Ren & Stimpy Show'' (also known as ''Ren & Stimpy'') is an American animated television series created by Canadian animator John Kricfalusi. Originally produced by Spümcø for Nickelodeon, the series aired from August 11, 1991, to Decemb ...
'', ''Rocko's Modern Life
''Rocko's Modern Life'' is an American animated television series created by Joe Murray for Nickelodeon. The series centers on the surreal life of an anthropomorphic Australian immigrant wallaby named Rocko and his friends: the eccentric steer ...
'', ''SpongeBob SquarePants
''SpongeBob SquarePants'' (or simply ''SpongeBob'') is an American animated comedy television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. It chronicles the adventures of the title character a ...
'', ''Camp Lazlo
''Camp Lazlo'' is an American animated television series created by Joe Murray for Cartoon Network. The series follows Lazlo, an anthropomorphic spider monkey that goes to a camp called "Camp Kidney", a Boy Scout-like summer camp in Pimpleback M ...
''. and ''The Loud House
''The Loud House'' is an American animated television series created by Chris Savino that premiered on Nickelodeon on May 2, 2016. The series revolves around the chaotic everyday life of a boy named Lincoln Loud, who is the middle child and only so ...
''
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hanmer, Ronald
1917 births
1994 deaths
20th-century classical composers
20th-century English composers
20th-century British male musicians
Brass band composers
British music arrangers
English classical composers
English male classical composers
English emigrants to Australia
Light music composers
Members of the Order of Australia
People from Reigate