Malcolm Williamson - Australian Works

Australian Works

Although Williamson lived in Britain for most of his life, he travelled widely and maintained a deep affection for his native country. He wrote many works specifically for or about Australia, and frequently set texts by Australian poets, such as James McAuley and Kath Walker. Williamson was also inspired to respond through music to political issues, such as Aboriginal rights (a matter close to his heart). Below is a select list of works with a specifically Australian connection.

• Symphony No. 1 - Elevamini (1957), for orchestra
  • Public premiere given by Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, in November 1963.
• Piano Concerto No. 2 (1960), for piano and string orchestra
  • Written for a competition at the University of Western Australia, Perth. Premiered on 3 May 1962 by soloist Michael Brimer and the University String Orchestra, conducted by Frank Callaway. The concerto is divided into three movements, with the second running attacca into the third:
    • 1. Allegro con brio
    • 2. Andante lento (with cadenza)
    • 3. Allegro con spirito - Più mosso
• Travel Diaries - Sydney (1961), for piano solo
  • A book of relatively easy piano pieces intended for teaching purposes. Sydney Diaries is one of five such books, with the others concerning London, Naples, Paris and New York. Sydney Diaries has thirteen movements:
    • 1. North Head
    • 2. Pyrmont Dock
    • 3. Harbour Bridge
    • 4. Botanical Gardens
    • 5. At Central Railway
    • 6. Harbour Ferry
    • 7. Lane Cove
    • 8. King's Cross
    • 9. A Morning Swim
    • 10. Kirribilli
    • 11. The Southern Cross
    • 12. In Hyde Park
    • 13. South Head
• Symphony for Voices (1962), for a cappella SATB choir
  • An elaborate five-movement work, setting texts by the Australian poet James McAuley:
    • 1. Invocation (for unnaccompanied contralto)
    • 2. Terra Australis
    • 3. Jesus
    • 4. Envoi
    • 5. New Guinea
• Piano Concerto No. 3 (1962), for piano and orchestra
  • Commissioned by the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC). Premiered by John Ogdon (to whom the work is dedicated) and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra conducted by Joseph Post, June 1964.
• I Will Lift Mine Eyes (1970), for unison choir, echo choir and organ
  • Premiered on 3 May 1970 in Sydney
• Concerto for Two Pianos and String Orchestra (1972), subtitled Double Concerto
  • Premiered by Charles Webb and Wallace Hornibrook (pianos), with the Astra Chamber Orchestra, conducted G. L. Smith in Melbourne in 1972:
    • 1. Allegro ma non troppo
    • 2. Lento
    • 3. Allegro vivo
• The Musicians of Bremen (1972), for two countertenors, tenor, two baritones and bass voices
  • Premiered by The King's Singers in Sydney on 15 May 1972
• Adelaide Fanfare (1973), for two trumpets, two horns, 2 trombones, tuba and organ
• Canberra Fanfare (1973), for two trumpets, two trombones and percussion
• The Glitter Gang (1974), cassation for audience, choir and orchestra
  • Commissioned by the ABC, premiered at Sydney Town Hall on 23 February 1974 by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, conducted by John Hopkins
• In Thanksgiving - Sir Bernard Heinze (1982), for orchestra
  • In memory of Australian conductor and musician Sir Bernard Heinze. Premiered by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Patrick Thomas, on 23 August 1982 at the Sydney Opera House
• Symphony No. 6 - A Liturgy of Homage to the Australian Broadcasting Commission in its Fiftieth Year as University to the Australian Nation (1982), for orchestra
  • A massive 45-minute score for a huge orchestra including quadruple woodwinds, a large percussion section and organ, the work is divided up into fourteen sections. Commissioned by the ABC, premiered by all seven of the ABC orchestras (Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, The Queensland Orchestra, Sydney Symphony, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, West Australian Symphony Orchestra and Darwin Symphony Orchestra), linked electronically
• Symphony No. 7 - Symphony for Strings (1984), for string orchestra
  • Commissioned to mark the 150th Anniversary of the State of Victoria. Premiered by the Chamber Strings of Melbourne, conducted by Christopher Martin, on 12 August 1985.
• Lento for Strings (1985), for string orchestra
  • In memory of Australian violinist and conductor, Paul McDermott. Premièred in 1985 by the Philharmonia of Melbourne
• The Dawn Is At Hand (1988), for SATB choir and orchestra
  • A five-movement choral symphony to poems by Aboriginal poet Kath Walker. Commissioned by the Australian Bicentennial Authority, and premiered by the Queensland Symphony Orchestra and Chorus in Brisbane, 1989. The movements are as follows:
    • 1. The Dawn Is At Hand -- Aboriginal Charter of Rights
    • 2. The Curlew Cried -- Dawn Wail for the Dead
    • 3. Assimilation - No!
    • 4. We Are Going
    • 5. United We Win -- A Song of Hope
• Bicentennial Anthem (1988), for orchestra
  • Commissioned to mark the 200th Anniversary of European settlement of Australia
• The True Endeavour (1988), for speaker, SATB choir and orchestra
  • Symphonic statement with a text by Australian historian Manning Clark. Commissioned by the Australian Bicentennial Authority, premièred in 1989. The work is divided in seven movements:
    • 1. The Southern Cross above Gondwana
    • 2. Aboriginal Australia
    • 3. Barcarolle of the Disinherited Country
    • 4. The Rainforest: Urban Despoliation
    • 5. Threnody for Murdered Aborigines
    • 6. The Past and the Challenge
    • 7. Mateship: Whitlam's Vision: Makarrata
• Requiem for a Tribe Brother (1992), for a cappella SATB choir
  • Commissioned by Peter Broadbent and the Joyful Company of Singers, this work was written in memory of one of Williamson's Aboriginal friends who died young from AIDS.
• String Quartet No. 3 (1993)
  • A one-movement string quartet, lasting approximately 10 minutes. Written for the Australian String Quartet, and premiered by them in Birmingham on 19 February 1994.