Grant Foster
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Grant Foster (born 1945) is an Australian composer, pianist, teacher and novelist. He was the co-founder and inaugural Artistic Director of the Southern Highlands International Piano Competition. His musical is lyrical and romantic, and he is well-known in Russia, despite being relatively unknown in his own country.
Grant Foster was born in Sydney in 1945[1] and studied at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music under Alexander Sverjensky, then in Paris under Marcel Ciampi, to whom he was recommended by Yehudi Menuhin after hearing him play, and under .[2][3][4] In 1966 Foster won the State ABC Concerto Competition with his performance of the Piano Concerto in D-flat by Aram Khachaturian.[2]
The musical Peter Pan, directed by Sir Robert Helpmann, with music by Foster, ran in London for seven consecutive Christmas seasons.[3][4] After 20 years in Europe, he returned to Australia in 1985. In 2007 he co-founded the Southern Highlands International Piano Competition, which is held every two years.[4] He was its Artistic Director until 2013, when he was succeeded by Gerard Willems.
He is better known in Russia than in Australia. His works have been recorded by the Novaya Rossiya State Symphony Orchestra, by the Serbian-born pianist , among others.[3]
Foster has also written eight novels, six of them for children.[4] He resides in Bowral, New South Wales.[3]
Selected works[]
- Dark Love, opera, based on Romeo and Juliet
- Children of the Sun, musical
- Peter Pan, musical
- Elegy - In homage to Sir Robert Helpmann
- War, Peace, Love, rhapsody for piano and orchestra (recorded with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra)
- Celebration Overture (recorded with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra)
- Ballad for two pianos
- Ballad for violin and piano
- La Paolina, overture
- Songs of Love and Loss
- Piano Concerto in C minor
- Piano Quintet
- Pearl of Dubai Suite; piano, cello and orchestra
- The Ballad of Reading Gaol (Oscar Wilde, tenor and piano, premiered in Saint Petersburg, Russia, by Andrew Goodwin and ) [5]
- three symphonies
- piano works
Notes[]
- ^ Andrew Lamb, review of Music of Grant Foster, Gramophone
- ^ Jump up to: a b Australian Music Centre: Grant Foster. Retrieved 28 September 2016
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Julian Day, "Why the Russians love Grant Foster", Limelight, April 2012, p. 59
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Melba Recordings. Retrieved 28 September 2016
- ^ "Backstage with Andrew Goodwin", Limelight, February 2013, p. 24
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