Gordon McPherson (born 1965) is a Scottish composer. McPherson was born in Dundee. He studied at the University of York, England, returning there for his

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...

, continuing with post-doctoral research at the Royal Northern College of Music. MacPherson has composed almost 100 pieces (as of 2006). His work has been performed and broadcast widely throughout the world. Recent works have included ''Kamperduin'', a second work for the

Royal Scottish National Orchestra The Royal Scottish National Orchestra (RSNO) ( gd, Orcastra Nàiseanta Rìoghail na h-Alba) is a British orchestra, based in Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of the five national performing arts companies of Scotland. Throughout its history, the O ...

, commissioned to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the 1797 Battle of Camperdown; ''Friends in Strange Places'', a new chamber work recorded for the inauguration of

Dundee Contemporary Arts Dundee Contemporary Arts (DCA) is an art centre in Dundee, Scotland, with two contemporary art galleries, a two-screen cinema, a print studio, a learning and public engagement programme, a shop and a café bar. The director of DCA is Beth Bate ...

; a second study for

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

, ''Miami'', premiered at the

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 leadi ...

in 1998 and ''Detours'', commissioned by the Hebrides Ensemble. The ''Baby Bear's Bed'' for

Icebreaker An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters, and provide safe waterways for other boats and ships. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller ...

was premiered in

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in October 1999 and has subsequently received performances in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

and the United Kingdom. It has also been recorded by Icebreaker on their Extraction album. Other recent works include ''South'' for the

National Youth Orchestra of Scotland The National Youth Orchestras of Scotland (NYOS) caters for students aged between 8 and 25, through orchestras, jazz bands, training ensembles and outreach programmes. In addition to organising residential training courses, rehearsals and nati ...

, a seventh movement for his ''Handguns'', a suite for Psappha, a third string quartet for the Salisbury Festival and a third study for the Bath International Guitar Festival. He has been in demand both as a teacher and lecturer and is currently head of composition at the

Royal Conservatoire of Scotland The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland ( gd, Conservatoire Rìoghail na h-Alba), formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama ( gd, Acadamaidh Rìoghail Ciùil is Dràma na h-Alba) is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and ...

References

External links

*Digitised scores of his musical works can be viewed through th
Five Centuries of Scottish Music
collection hosted b

1965 births 20th-century classical composers 21st-century classical composers Academics of the University of St Andrews Alumni of the University of York Living people Scottish classical composers British male classical composers 20th-century Scottish musicians Musicians from Dundee 20th-century British composers 20th-century British male musicians 21st-century British male musicians {{UK-composer-stub