Malcolm Forsyth, (December 8, 1936 – July 5, 2011) was a South African and Canadian

trombonist The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...

and composer. His daughter is former

National Arts Centre Orchestra The National Arts Centre Orchestra (NAC Orchestra) is a Canadian orchestra based in Ottawa, Ontario led by music director Alexander Shelley. The NAC Orchestra's primary concert venue is Southam Hall at the National Arts Centre. Since its incepti ...

principal cellist

Amanda Forsyth Amanda Forsyth (born 12 October 1966) is a Canadian cellist and the former principal cellist of the National Arts Centre Orchestra. Biography Daughter of composer Malcolm Forsyth, Forsyth came to Canada from South Africa at age 2 and began pla ...

Life and career

Forsyth was born in Pietermaritzburg, and educated at Maritzburg College

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

. He studied

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...

, conducting, and composition at the

University of Cape Town The University of Cape Town (UCT) ( af, Universiteit van Kaapstad, xh, Yunibesithi ya yaseKapa) is a public research university in Cape Town, South Africa. Established in 1829 as the South African College, it was granted full university statu ...

from which he received a

Bachelor of Music Bachelor of Music (BM or BMus) is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of a program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree, and the majority of work consists of pre ...

in 1963. He played trombone with the Cape Town Symphony Orchestra while studying and receiving his Master of Music in 1966 and Doctorate of Music in 1969. In 1968, he emigrated to Canada and joined the

Edmonton Symphony Orchestra The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (ESO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Edmonton, Alberta. As the professional orchestra of Alberta's creative capital city it presents over 85 concerts a year of symphonic music in all genres, from classical to cou ...

with which he played bass trombone for 11 years. He was a Professor of Music at the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a Public university, public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexande ...

for 34 years. He was appointed Composer-In-Residence in 1996 and remained so until the time of his retirement in 2002. In 1970, he wrote ''Sketches from Natal'' for 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. ...

. Some of his other works include ''Concerto for Piano and Orchestra'' (1979), ''Sagittarius'' (1975), ''Quinquefid'' (1976), ''African Ode (Symphony No. 3)'' (1981), and Atayoskewin (Suite for Orchestra) (1984), which won the

Juno Award for Classical Composition of the Year The Juno Award for "Classical Composition of the Year" has been awarded since 1987, as recognition each year for the best classical music composition in Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territori ...

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, ...

Death

Forsyth died on July 5, 2011, aged 74, from pancreatic cancer.

Honours

In 1989, he was named Canadian Composer of the Year. In 2003, he was made a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the cen ...

Sources

*''The Canadian Encyclopedia''
"Forsyth, Malcolm"
(accessed 13 January 2010) *Kennedy, Michael and Bourne, Joyce (eds)
"Forsyth, Malcolm"
''The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Music'', Oxford University Press, 2007 (accessed via Answers.com 13 January 2010) *Kennedy, Michael (2006), ''The Oxford Dictionary of Music'', 985 pages, *Primos, Kathy. 1994. "A Life Experience: The Orchestral Works of Malcolm Forsyth." SoundNotes. SN6:12-21.

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20111229101724/http://www.musiccentre.ca/mus-pla.cfm?audiofile=Podcast_12-CC.mp3&buyitem=1 * http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/edmontonjournal/obituary.aspx?page=notice&pid=152425344#fbLoggedOut (An hour-long radio interview with Forsyth in 2008) {{DEFAULTSORT:Forsyth, Malcolm 1936 births 2011 deaths 20th-century classical composers 21st-century classical composers Canadian classical composers Canadian male classical composers Deaths from cancer in Alberta Deaths from pancreatic cancer Juno Award for Classical Composition of the Year winners Members of the Order of Canada South African emigrants to Canada South African College of Music alumni Alumni of Maritzburg College 20th-century Canadian composers 20th-century Canadian male musicians 21st-century Canadian male musicians