Maria Grenfell
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Maria Grenfell (born 1969) is an Australian music teacher of New Zealand origin.
Early life and education[]
Maria Grenfell was born in Malaysia in 1969 and raised in Christchurch, New Zealand, graduating with a Master of Music degree from the University of Canterbury. She completed further studies in the USA, gaining a Master of Arts from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, and a doctorate from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, where she was also a lecturer. Her teachers have included Stephen Hartke, Erica Muhl, , and Morten Lauridsen in Los Angeles, and Joseph Schwantner and Samuel Adler in Rochester, New York.
Work[]
Maria Grenfell’s work is influenced by poetic, literary and visual sources and from non-Western music and literature. Her music has been described as “expansive, effusive and energetic”, “magic”, “refreshingly groovy” and "brilliantly crafted." Her chamber works are performed by musicians such as the Australia Ensemble, The , the , the , the , , and in the Netherlands. Her orchestral music has been performed by most of the orchestras in Australia and New Zealand. Maria Grenfell’s music is broadcast regularly on ABC Classic FM in Australia and Concert FM in New Zealand, and is released on Kiwi-Pacific and Trust CDs. Her works are available from the Australian Music Centre, , Opus House Press and Reed Music.
Awards and career[]
Maria has been a violinist with the Christchurch Symphony and the New Zealand Youth Orchestra, and has performed bowed piano with the University of Southern California Percussion Ensemble. Her awards include the Jimmy McHugh Composition Prize and the Halsey Stevens Prize from the University of Southern California, the Composers’ Association of New Zealand Trust Fund Award and the University of Otago’s prestigious Philip Neill Memorial Prize.
Winner of the Tasmanian State Award for Ten Suns Ablaze in 2013, and Spirals in 2018 at the Australian Art Music Awards, Maria’s orchestral music has been commissioned, performed or recorded by all the major symphony orchestras in Australia, and her chamber music is played regularly around the world.
In Spring of 2013 Grenfell was a Visiting Professor at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas. In the Fall of 2019, Grenfell served as Kerr Composer-in-Residence at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music.[1]
She is currently an Associate Professor at the Conservatorium of Music at the University of Tasmania.[2]
Personal life[]
Maria lives in Hobart, Australia, with her husband, guitarist David Malone, and their two children.
References[]
- ^ "About". Maria Grenfell. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
- ^ Unknown (7 July 2011). "Maria Grenfell - Profiles". Profiles - University of Tasmania, Australia. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
External links[]
- Maria Grenfell (Personal Website)
- Australian Music Centre
- Maria Grenfell Page - Tasmanian Composers Collective
- Australasian Performing Right Association
- IHOS Music Theatre and Opera
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