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Gordon Kerry : Represented Artist

Random Audio Sample: Nocturne : for double chamber orchestra by Gordon Kerry, from the CD Harvesting the solstice thunders


Gordon Kerry's most recent works include Wimmera Phantasy for oboe, violin and cello; Missa gaudeamus omnes for the choir of St Francis of Assisi, Paddington NSW, Alchemy for the Australian Chamber Choir and his Piano Sonata No.2 for Amir Farid. The 2022 season also saw the premiere of his Six-Part Inventions for Inventi and Soliloquy for solo cello, composed for Daniel Chiou as part of The ANAM Set.

Works premiered in 2021 and 2020 include his Sinfonia concertante for flute, clarinet and orchestra, premiered by Alison Mitchell, Irit Silver and the Queensland Symphony Orchestra under Benjamin Northey in May ; a Violin Sonata for Musica Viva Australia played by Emily Sun and Amir Farid; My Sorrow's Flower, for Halcyon; the Clarinet Quintet for Omega Ensemble and its artistic director David Rowden; Christchurch Monody for The Marais Project (available on Move Records) and I dreamed I moved among the Elysian Fields for Elysian Fields. In 2021 the Australian Chamber Choir performed his Seven Last Words, Quercus Trio gave the Australian premiere of his Horn Trio, No Abiding City, and the Australia Ensemble @ UNSW revisited while the music lasts. The 2021 Adelaide Festival featured performances of the Clarinet Quintet and String Quintet No.1 with the Australian String Quartet, Jason Noble and James Wannan.

Other recent works include The Snow Queen, with John Kinsella for Victorian Opera, his String Quartet No.5 for the Acacia Quartet, String Quintet No.2 for the Australian String Quartet and Pieter Wispelwey, Victorian Pastoral for Young Voices of Melbourne, Exaudi Youth Choir and Ensemble Liaison, and Drei Jahreszeitenslieder for soprano Merlyn Quaife and Plexus. Other recent pieces include Three Malouf Songs, Snow White and other Grimm Tales (libretto by John Kinsella), the violin concerto Now Dream thy Sails, Jean à Jean for baritone and piano and the chamber work while the music lasts.

He was featured composer with Musica Viva Australia in 2012; that year also saw the premiere of Midnight Son, to Louis Nowra's libretto, with Victorian Opera, which won several of that year's Green Room Awards. The Established Composer Fellowship from the Ian Potter Cultural Trust in 2009 supported his Symphony for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and the flute concerto Captain Flinders' Musick for Alison Mitchell and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. His book New Classical Music: Composing Australia was published in 2009. In 2008 he was composer in residence at the Australian National Academy of Music.

Gordon Kerry studied composition with Barry Conyngham and has held fellowships from the Australia Council, Peggy Glanville-Hicks Trust and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts. He lives on a hill in north-eastern Victoria.

August 2022


Gordon Kerry — current to August 2022

Selected Commissions

  Work Commission Details
String quartet No 5 : string quartet Commissioned by Stuart L. Kerry for performance by Acacia Quartet.
Digital sheet music sample Wimmera Phantasy : for oboe, violin and cello (2022) Commssioned by Rod Klein for the 90th birthday of Dorothy Klein (née Tepper)
Digital sheet music sample Six-part Inventions : for flute, oboe, bassoon, violin, viola and cello (2022) Commissioned by Inventi Ensemble.
Sonata for Violin and Piano : violin with piano (2020) Commissioned by Julian Burnside for performance by Musica Viva Australia.
Digital sheet music sample Clarinet Quintet : clarinet with string quartet (2019) Commissioned by Omega Ensemble.
Digital sheet music sample Piano Trio No.3 : piano trio (2018) Commissioned for the Albury Chamber Music Festival 2018

Analysis & Media

Article: 'Where words cannot reach' : an interview with Gordon Kerry / James Wade.

Book: Gordon Kerry : the influence of literature on the compositional process / by Nirmali Fenn.

- Document: A text in mind Gordon Kerry’s works often take their titles from literature. He talks here to Gordon Williams.

- Program note: Barry Conyngham's "Monuments"

- Article: Dawn of a new world symphony

- Video: Gordon Kerry Insights: Variations for String Quartet

- Video: La musique, by Gordon Kerry

- Video: Gordon Kerry on composition - In conversation with...

- Video: Gordon Kerry on setting text - In conversation with

- Video: Gordon Kerry on Writing for the Voice - In Conversation With...