Geoffrey Penwill Parsons AO OBE (15 June 192926 January 1995) was an Australian pianist, most particularly notable as an accompanist to singers and instrumentalists. After the retirement of

Gerald Moore Gerald Moore Order of the British Empire, CBE (30 July 1899 – 13 March 1987) was an England, English classical music, classical pianist best known for his career as a Collaborative piano, collaborative pianist for many distinguished musicians. ...

, he was generally considered the world's finest and most sympathetic accompanist of

lied In Western classical music tradition, (, plural ; , plural , ) is a term for setting poetry to classical music to create a piece of polyphonic music. The term is used for any kind of song in contemporary German, but among English and French s ...

er singers, "elevating the role of the accompanist to new heights with his musicality, authority and quiet strength of playing".

Biography

Geoffrey Parsons was born in the Sydney suburb of Ashfield, to a working-class family. He had two older brothers and a large extended family. He originally intended to study architecture, but his love of music prevailed. From 1941 to 1948 he studied with Winifred Burston (a student of

Ferruccio Busoni Ferruccio Busoni (1 April 1866 – 27 July 1924) was an Italian composer, pianist, conductor, editor, writer, and teacher. His international career and reputation led him to work closely with many of the leading musicians, artists and literary ...

) at the NSW State Conservatorium of Music (where a family friend, George Vern Barnett, was on the piano staff) and under the general tutelage of Eugene Goossens. He won the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

's Instrumental and Vocal Competition in 1947 with a performance of

Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped with ...

's Piano Concerto No. 2. He toured Australia with

Essie Ackland Essie Ackland (27 March 189614 February 1975) was an Australian contralto who performed ballads, songs and in oratorio and concerts. At one time her recordings were more in demand than those of any other female singer in the world. She also re ...

in 1948, and in 1950 travelled to Britain to perform with bass baritone Peter Dawson. The six-concert tour completed, Parsons remained in London, earning a living initially as a cocktail lounge pianist. This led to a series of engagements spanning five years with the popular duettists

Anne Ziegler Anne Ziegler (22 June 1910 – 13 October 2003) was an English singer, known for her light operatic duets with her husband Webster Booth. The pair were known as the "Sweethearts in Song" and were among the most famous and popular British music ...

and

Webster Booth Webster Booth (21 January 1902 – 21 June 1984) was an English tenor, best remembered as the duettist partner of Anne Ziegler. He was also one of the finest tenors of his generation and was a distinguished oratorio soloist. He was a chorister ...

, and permanent residence in Britain. While in London in 1950 he received some months of lessons from Gordon Watson, before deciding that he needed a different approach, as Watson concentrated on solo performing while Parsons was by now committed to the art of the accompanist. A performance of

Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wor ...

's ''

Winterreise ''Winterreise'' (, ''Winter Journey'') is a song cycle for voice and piano by Franz Schubert ( D. 911, published as Op. 89 in 1828), a setting of 24 poems by German poet Wilhelm Müller. It is the second of Schubert's two song cycles on Müller' ...

'' with

Gerhard Hüsch Gerhard Heinrich Wilhelm Fritz Hüsch (2 February 190123 November 1984) was one of the most important German singers of modern times. A lyric baritone, he specialized in '' Lieder'' but also sang, to a lesser extent, German and Italian opera ...

in his first London concert since World War II led to Parsons being invited to

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

to be Hüsch's permanent accompanist, where they worked together almost daily. There he studied with

Friedrich Wührer Friedrich Wührer (29 June 1900 – 27 December 1975) was an Austrian-German pianist and piano pedagogue. He was a close associate and advocate of composer Franz Schmidt, whose music he edited and, in the case of the works for left hand alone, revi ...

in 1956. In 1961, he made his first appearance with

Elisabeth Schwarzkopf Dame Olga Maria Elisabeth Friederike Schwarzkopf, (9 December 19153 August 2006) was a German-born Austro-British soprano. She was among the foremost singers of lieder, and is renowned for her performances of Viennese operetta, as well as the op ...

at the

Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...

at the invitation of

Walter Legge Harry Walter Legge (1 June 1906 – 22 March 1979) was an English classical music record producer, most especially associated with EMI. His recordings include many sets later regarded as classics and reissued by EMI as "Great Recordings of the ...

, and later became her principal accompanist. The list of singers with whom he worked included Dame

Joan Hammond Dame Joan Hilda Hood Hammond, (24 May 191226 November 1996) was an Australian operatic soprano, singing coach and champion golfer. Early life Joan Hilda Hood Hammond was born and baptised in Christchurch, New Zealand. Her father, Samuel Hood, w ...

Victoria de los Ángeles Victoria de los Ángeles López García (1 November 192315 January 2005) was a Catalan Spanish operatic lyric soprano and recitalist whose career began after the Second World War and reached its height in the years from the mid-1950s to the mid- ...

Nicolai Gedda Harry Gustaf Nikolai Gädda, known professionally as Nicolai Gedda (11 July 1925 – 8 January 2017), was a Swedish operatic tenor. Debuting in 1951, Gedda had a long and successful career in opera until the age of 77 in June 2003, when he made h ...

Rita Streich Rita Streich (18 December 192020 March 1987) was one of the most admired and recorded lyric coloratura sopranos of the post-war period. Biography Rita Streich was born in Barnaul, southern Siberia, in the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Repu ...

Birgit Nilsson Märta Birgit Nilsson (17 May 1918 – 25 December 2005) was a celebrated Swedish dramatic soprano. Although she sang a wide répertoire of operatic and vocal works, Nilsson was best known for her performances in the operas of Richard Wagner a ...

Hans Hotter Hans Hotter (19 January 19096 December 2003) was a German operatic bass-baritone. He stood 6 ft 4 in and his appearance was striking. His voice and diction were equally recognisable. Early life and career Born in Offenbach am Main, Hesse, ...

Hugues Cuénod Hugues-Adhémar Cuénod (; 26 June 19026 December 2010)

, Norman Bailey, and

Janet Baker Dame Janet Abbott Baker (born 21 August 1933) is an English mezzo-soprano best known as an opera, concert, and lieder singer.Blyth, Alan, "Baker, Dame Janet (Abbott)" in Sadie, Stanley, ed.; John Tyrell; exec. ed. (2001). ''New Grove Dictionar ...

. Increasingly Parsons began to partner younger singers such as

Thomas Hampson Thomas Walter Hampson (born June 28, 1955) is an American lyric baritone, a classical singer who has appeared world-wide in major opera houses and concert halls and made over 170 musical recordings. Hampson's operatic repertoire spans a range ...

Olaf Bär Olaf Bär (born 19 December 1957) is a German operatic baritone. Life Bär received his musical training in his home city of Dresden, studying at the city's Hochschule für Musik. His career has concentrated on lieder and on the lyric baritone ...

Barbara Bonney Barbara Bonney (born April 14, 1956) is an American soprano. She is associated with lyric soprano roles in operas by Mozart and Richard Strauss as well as lieder performances. Early life Bonney was born in Montclair, New Jersey. As a child she pr ...

Thomas Allen Thomas Allen may refer to: Clergy *Thomas Allen (nonconformist) (1608–1673), Anglican/nonconformist priest in England and New England *Thomas Allen (dean of Chester) (died 1732) *Thomas Allen (scholar) (1681–1755), Anglican priest in England * ...

Jessye Norman Jessye Mae Norman (September 15, 1945 – September 30, 2019) was an American opera singer and recitalist. She was able to perform dramatic soprano roles, but refused to be limited to that voice type. A commanding presence on operatic, concert ...

, Wolfgang Holzmair and

Bryn Terfel Sir Bryn Terfel Jones, (; born 9 November 1965) (known professionally as Bryn Terfel) is a Welsh bass-baritone opera and concert singer. Terfel was initially associated with the roles of Mozart, particularly '' Figaro'', ''Leporello'' and ''D ...

. Some of these younger artists such as Susan Kessler,

Yvonne Kenny Yvonne Kenny AM (born 25 November 1950) is an Australian soprano, particularly associated with Handel, Mozart and bel canto roles. Biography Born in Sydney, she first studied at the University of Sydney in science, hoping to become a biochemi ...

Felicity Lott Dame Felicity Ann Emwhyla Lott, (born 8 May 1947) is an English soprano. Education Lott was born in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. From her earliest years she was musical, having started studying piano at age 5. She also played violin and bega ...

and

Ann Murray Ann Murray, (born 27 August 1949) is an Irish mezzo-soprano. Life and career Murray was born in Dublin. Having won a number of prizes at the Feis Ceoil, she studied singing at the College of Music (now the DIT Conservatory of Music and Dram ...

were also pupils of Parsons's long-time life partner, the singer Erich Vietheer. Geoffrey Parsons also accompanied some of the world's greatest instrumentalists, including

Nathan Milstein Nathan Mironovich Milstein ( – December 21, 1992) was a Russian-born American virtuoso violinist. Widely considered one of the finest violinists of the 20th century, Milstein was known for his interpretations of Bach's solo violin works and ...

Ruggiero Ricci Ruggiero Ricci (24 July 1918 – 5 August 2012) was an American violinist known for performances and recordings of the works of Niccolò Paganini, Paganini. Biography He was born in San Bruno, California, the son of Italian immigrants who first ...

Paul Tortelier Paul Tortelier (21 March 1914 – 18 December 1990) was a French cellist and composer. After an outstanding student career at the Conservatoire de Paris he played in orchestras in France and the US before the Second World War. After the war he b ...

Wanda Wiłkomirska Wanda Wiłkomirska (11 January 1929 – 1 May 2018) was a Polish violinist and academic teacher. She was known for both the classical repertoire and for her interpretation of 20th-century music, having received two Polish State Awards for promot ...

and

Ida Haendel Ida Haendel, (15 December 19281 July 2020) was a Polish-British-Canadian violinist. Haendel was a child prodigy, her career spanning over seven decades. She also became an influential teacher. Early career Born in 1928 to a Polish Jewish fami ...

. Artists whom he partnered quickly appreciated his exemplary standards of musicianship, and a level of pianistic command that was totally new to the accompanist's role. This led to his increasing recognition as the ideal accompanist in a career that saw him perform in over 40 countries in six continents, including all the major international music festivals. He also recorded widely throughout his career, leaving a vast output. He also partnered other pianists such as

Leslie Howard Leslie Howard Steiner (3 April 18931 June 1943) was an English actor, director and producer.Obituary ''Variety'', 9 June 1943. He wrote many stories and articles for ''The New York Times'', ''The New Yorker'', and '' Vanity Fair'' and was one ...

, for example in works by

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

for two pianos, in which neither pianist is subordinate to the other. His partnership with Australia was an essential part of his entire career and he became the means for bringing some of the world's most important singers and instrumentalists to his native country. He toured Australia 31 times between 1957 and 1993. In 1967 and 1969, he appeared as one of five

harpsichord A harpsichord ( it, clavicembalo; french: clavecin; german: Cembalo; es, clavecín; pt, cravo; nl, klavecimbel; pl, klawesyn) is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. This activates a row of levers that turn a trigger mechanism ...

ists, the others being

Eileen Joyce Eileen Alannah Joyce CMG (died 25 March 1991) was an Australian pianist whose career spanned more than 30 years. She lived in England in her adult years. Her recordings made her popular in the 1930s and 1940s, particularly during World War I ...

Simon Preston Simon John Preston (4 August 1938 – 13 May 2022) was an English organist, conductor, and composer.
...

, George Malcolm (1967), and

Raymond Leppard Raymond John Leppard (11 August 1927 – 22 October 2019) was a British-American conductor, harpsichordist, composer and editor. In the 1960s, he played a prime role in the rebirth of interest in Baroque music; in particular, he was one of the ...

(1969), in concerts with the

Academy of St Martin in the Fields The Academy of St Martin in the Fields (ASMF) is an English chamber orchestra, based in London. John Churchill, then Master of Music at the London church of St Martin-in-the-Fields, and Neville Marriner founded the orchestra as "The Academy of ...

under

Neville Marriner Sir Neville Marriner, (15 April 1924 – 2 October 2016) was an English violinist and "one of the world's greatest conductors". Gramophone lists Marriner as one of the 50 greatest conductors and another compilation ranks Marriner #14 of th ...

. In 1969, he appeared with Eileen Joyce in a two-piano recital at

Australia House The High Commission of Australia in London is the diplomatic mission of Australia in the United Kingdom. It is located in Australia House, a Grade II listed building. It was Australia's first diplomatic mission and is the longest continuously ...

, London. In 1973 he accompanied

in the first lieder recital at the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century architec ...

. He also accompanied

in the first violin and piano recital in that venue. During his returns to Australia, he conducted several masterclasses at his alma mater, now the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. On 29 November 1981, he again appeared with Eileen Joyce, in a fund-raising concert at the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...

. Although not intended as such, this proved to be the last time Eileen Joyce ever played in public. His last performance in Australia was with Olaf Bär in ''Winterreise'' in the University of Melbourne's Melba Hall in 1993. He was invited to become the inaugural Prince Consort Professor of Accompanying at the

Royal College of Music The Royal College of Music is a music school, conservatoire established by royal charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, UK. It offers training from the Undergraduate education, undergraduate to the Doctorate, doctoral level in a ...

and was named a Fellow of the College (FRCM) in 1987. He became an honorary member of the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke of ...

in 1975, and the

Guildhall School of Music The Guildhall School of Music and Drama is a conservatoire and drama school located in the City of London, United Kingdom. Established in 1880, the school offers undergraduate and postgraduate training in all aspects of classical music and jazz ...

in 1983. He was named the

Royal Philharmonic Society The Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) is a British music society, formed in 1813. Its original purpose was to promote performances of instrumental music in London. Many composers and performers have taken part in its concerts. It is now a memb ...

's Instrumentalist of the Year in 1992. He was appointed an Officer (OBE) of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

in 1977 and an Officer (AO) 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 1990. Geoffrey Parsons shared his life and his home with the singer and teacher Erich Vietheer, who died in London on 15 May 1989, aged 59. Parsons lived his life as a Christian, committed to the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

. His untimely and painful death on 26 January 1995 was caused by cancer; however, he continued his career for as long as possible. On his retirement he was given his own gala concert at the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

, New York. He died in London on

Australia Day Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove and raising of the Union Flag by Arthur Phillip following days of exploration of Port Ja ...

, 26 January 1995, survived by his two elder brothers. His ashes were returned to Australia. In 2002 they were interred in a rural location outside

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, marked by a stone monument and an epitaph he had helped write.Richard Davis, ''Geoffrey Parsons: Among Friends'', p. 231 His portrait, by Michael Shannon, hangs in the National Portrait Gallery in

Old Parliament House, Canberra Old Parliament House, formerly known as the Provisional Parliament House, was the seat of the Parliament of Australia from 1927 to 1988. The building began operation on 9 May 1927 after Parliament's relocation from Melbourne to the new capit ...

. His photographic portrait by

Max Dupain Maxwell Spencer Dupain AC OBE (22 April 191127 July 1992) was an Australian modernist photographer. Early life Dupain received his first camera as a gift in 1924, spurring his interest in photography. He later joined the Photographic Society ...

is held by the

National Archives of Australia The National Archives of Australia (NAA), formerly known as the Commonwealth Archives Office and Australian Archives, is an Australian Government agency that serves as the national archives of the nation. It collects, preserves and encourages ...

Geoffrey Parsons Award

In 1995, following Parsons' death, the Geoffrey Parsons Award was named in his memory by the Accompanists' Guild of South Australia, of which Parsons was the founding international patron. The award is one of the few Australian prizes to celebrate and encourage the profession of piano accompaniment. The Geoffrey Parsons Award is an annual prize, originally with a cash-pool of $2,500. To mark the 25th anniversary of the Guild, in 2008 this was increased to $6,000. In recent years, the prize has received the support of the

Elder Conservatorium The Elder Conservatorium of Music, also known as "The Con", is Australia's senior academy of music and is located in the centre of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. It is named in honour of its benefactor, Sir Thomas Elder. Dating in ...

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

, which has given the prize an added level of prestige and public profile. In presenting the Geoffrey Parsons Award the Accompanists' Guild continues to raise the public's awareness of the importance of the skills of the professional accompanist and has assisted many emerging accompanists to establish their professional careers.

Geoffrey Parsons Memorial Trust

The Geoffrey Parsons Memorial Trust exists to encourage the art of the accompanist amongst young pianists. On

2005, the tenth anniversary of Geoffrey Parsons' death, the Trust presented the Geoffrey Parsons 10th Anniversary Memorial Concert at London's

Wigmore Hall Wigmore Hall is a concert hall located at 36 Wigmore Street, London. Originally called Bechstein Hall, it specialises in performances of chamber music, early music, vocal music and song recitals. It is widely regarded as one of the world's leadin ...

. Yvonne Kenny, Sir Thomas Allen, and Graham Johnson all provided their services free of charge.

References

Sources

The Accompanists’ Guild of South AustraliaThe Accompanists’ Guild of South Australia: About Geoffrey Parsons The Accompanists’ Guild of South Australia: The Geoffrey Parsons Award – Previous WinnersMusic Council of Australia: Geoffrey Parsons Among FriendsNational Portrait GalleryAllan and Unwin: Geoffrey Parsons – Among Friends
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20090627061921/http://naa.gov.au/whats-on/online/showcases/dupain/for-media/pianist.aspx National Archives of Australia” Max Dupain on Assignmentbr>Seen and Heard International: Geoffrey Parsons 10th Anniversary Memorial Concert Answers.com
* ttp://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/tw.asp?w=W11088 Franz Liszt: ''Fantasie und Fuge über den Choral Ad nos, ad salutarem undam'', S624 {{DEFAULTSORT:Parsons, Geoffrey Sydney Conservatorium of Music alumni Australian classical pianists Australian accompanists Male classical pianists LGBT musicians from Australia 1929 births 1995 deaths Australian expatriates in the United Kingdom Deaths from cancer in England Classical accompanists Officers of the Order of Australia Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire Gay musicians 20th-century classical pianists 20th-century Australian musicians Deaths from Merkel-cell carcinoma 20th-century Australian male musicians