Percy Grainger
Percy Aldridge Grainger (1882-1961)
Born	George Percy Grainger 8 July 1882 Brighton, Melbourne, Australia
Died	20 February 1961 White Plains, New York, USA
Cause of death	Prostate cancer
Burial place	Adelaide, Australia West Terrace Cemetery
Residence	Springfield, Missouri, USA
Nationality	Australian
Education	Hoch Conservatory, Frankfurt
Occupation	Composer
Known for	The tune "English country garden"
Spouse	Ella Viola Brandelius Ström
Parents	John Harry Grainger Rosa Annie Aldridge

George Percy Grainger (8 July 1882–20 February 1961) was an Australian-born composer, pianist and champion of the saxophone and the concert band, who worked under the stage name of Percy Aldridge Grainger. Events 939 - The Major Occultation or Ghaybat el-Kubra of Muhammad al-Mahdi 1099 - First Crusade: 15000 Year 1882 ( MDCCCLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Brighton is a suburb southeast of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. Melbourne ( is the second most populous city in Australia, with a Metropolitan area population of approximately 3 For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Events 1472 - Orkney and Shetland are left by Norway to Scotland, due to a Dowry payment Year 1961 ( MCMLXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The City of White Plains is the County seat of Westchester County New York. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth largest city in Australia with a For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Springfield is a city in Christian and Greene Counties in the U The United States of America —commonly referred to as the For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Chronology 1857 14 July Dr Joseph Hoch (1815-74 makes the Hoch Conservatory foundation the main heir of his fortune A composer (literally meaning 'one who puts together' is a person who creates Music, usually in the medium of notation, for Interpretation and Performance Events 939 - The Major Occultation or Ghaybat el-Kubra of Muhammad al-Mahdi 1099 - First Crusade: 15000 Year 1882 ( MDCCCLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 1472 - Orkney and Shetland are left by Norway to Scotland, due to a Dowry payment Year 1961 ( MCMLXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. A composer (literally meaning 'one who puts together' is a person who creates Music, usually in the medium of notation, for Interpretation and Performance A pianist (/'piənɪst/ is a Musician who plays the Piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces play with an ensemble or Orchestra The saxophone (commonly referred to simply as sax) is a conical- bored transposing Musical instrument considered a member of the Woodwind A concert band, also called wind band, symphonic band, symphonic winds, wind orchestra, wind symphony, or wind ensemble

Family

His mother was Rose Grainger (née Rosa Annie Aldridge), born July 3, 1861, Adelaide and died April 30, 1922, New York City. Events 324 - Battle of Adrianople Constantine I defeats Licinius, who flees to Byzantium. Year 1861 ( MDCCCLXI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth largest city in Australia with a Events 313 - Roman emperor Licinius unifies the entire Eastern Roman Empire under his rule Year 1922 ( MCMXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. The City of New York Rose was the daughter of George Aldridge and Sarah Jane Aldridge (née Brown). Her father George died at the age of 62 on December 12, 1879 and her mother, Sarah Jane, died November 26, 1895 at the age of 75. Events 627 - Battle of Nineveh: A Byzantine army under Emperor Heraclius defeats Emperor Khosrau II 's Persian Year 1879 ( MDCCCLXXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 43 BC - The Second Triumvirate alliance of Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus ("Octavian" later "Caesar Augustus" Year 1895 ( MDCCCXCV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Rose had six brothers and two sisters: George Sydney, James Henry, Edward William, Frederick Clement, Emma Elizabeth, Clara Jane, Charles Edwin, and Frank Herbert. Rose married John Harry Grainger, giving birth to George Percy in 1882. Year 1882 ( MDCCCLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

Early life and career

Grainger was born in Brighton, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Brighton is a suburb southeast of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. Melbourne ( is the second most populous city in Australia, with a Metropolitan area population of approximately 3 For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. His father was a successful architect who emigrated from London, England, and his mother, Rose, was the daughter of hoteliers from Adelaide, South Australia, also of English immigrant stock. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth largest city in Australia with a South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country His father was an alcoholic. When Grainger was age 11, his parents separated after his mother contracted syphilis from his father, who then returned to London. Syphilis is a Sexually transmitted disease caused by the spirochetal Bacterium Treponema pallidum pallidum.

The Grainger family once lived at 36 Oxley Road, Hawthorn, Victoria. Hawthorn is an inner-eastern Suburb of Melbourne, Australia, in the state of Victoria. Grainger's mother was domineering and possessive, although cultured. While pregnant, she allocated time each day to stare at a statue of a Greek god in the belief it would pass some of its qualities to her child. Percy became a striking individual with blue eyes and brilliant orange hair who gave his first public performance at the age of 12, and critics hailed him as a new prodigy. Due to taunts about his appearance Grainger spent less than three months in school and after refusing to return was home schooled by his mother. A strict disciplinarian, Rose used a whip as punishment which may have contributed to his later sado masochistic sexuality—ironically, her tombstone reads "Wise, wonderful, devoted, angelic mother. Sadism refers to Sexual or non-sexual gratification in the infliction of Pain or humiliation upon or by another person " Grainger excelled in languages and his correspondence shows he was fluent in 11 foreign languages including Icelandic and Russian. ^[1]

His mother took him to Europe in 1895 to study at Dr. Hoch's conservatory in Frankfurt. Year 1895 ( MDCCCXCV) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Chronology 1857 14 July Dr Joseph Hoch (1815-74 makes the Hoch Conservatory foundation the main heir of his fortune There he displayed his talents as a musical experimenter, using irregular and unusual meters. He belonged to the Frankfurt Group, a circle of composers who studied at the Hoch Conservatory in the late 1890s. Frankfurt Group A group of English speaking composers and friends who all studied at the Hoch Conservatory in Frankfurt am Main in the late 1890s Fellow-students included Cyril Scott, Henry Balfour Gardiner, Norman O'Neill and Roger Quilter. Cyril Meir Scott ( September 27, 1879 &ndash December 31 1970) was an English Composer, Writer, and Poet Henry Balfour Gardiner (7 November 1877 – 28 June 1950 was an English musician composer and teacher Norman H O'Neill (14 March 1875 – 3 March 1934 was an Irish and British Composer and conductor who specialized largely in works for the theatre Roger Quilter ( November 1, 1877 &ndash September 21, 1953) was an English Composer. Grainger himself did not believe in such a concept as musical talent and attributed his career to his mother's influence. During his time in Frankfurt, he lost the tip of an index finger while working on a bicycle chain. Although Grainger himself hoped he would have to give up concerts and be able to concentrate on composing, his performance ability was not affected by this handicap.

Grainger was an innovative musician who anticipated many forms of twentieth century music well before they became established by other composers. As early as 1899 he was working with "beatless music", using metric successions (including such sequences as 2/4, 2½/4, 3/4, 2 ½ /4). His use of chance music in 1912 predated John Cage by forty years, and he wrote "unplayable" music for player piano rolls twenty years before Conlon Nancarrow. Aleatoric music (also aleatory music or chance music; from the Latin word alea, meaning " Dice " is Music WikipediaWikiProject Composers#Lead section --> John Milton Cage Jr The player piano is a self-playing Piano, containing a pneumatic mechanism that plays on the piano action pre-programmed Music via perforated paper rolls Conlon Nancarrow (born October 27 1912 &ndash August 10 1997) was a U

From 1901 to 1914, Grainger lived in London, where he befriended and was influenced by composer Edvard Grieg. Year 1901 ( MCMI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Year 1914 ( MCMXIV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Grieg had a longstanding interest in the folk songs of his native Norway, and Grainger developed a particular interest in the folk songs of rural England. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional Folk music can have a number of different meanings including Traditional music: The original meaning of the term "folk music" was synonymous England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland The interest moved to active collecting after he heard Lucy Broadwood's lecture on folksong collecting in 1905. Lucy Etheldred Broadwood ( August 9, 1858 &ndash August 22, 1929) was principally an English folksong collector and researcher during the In 1906, Grainger hiked around Britain making field recordings of these folk songs on Edison wax cylinders, the first to make such recordings in Britain. ^[2] During this period, Grainger also wrote and performed piano compositions that presaged the forthcoming popularization of the tone cluster by Leo Ornstein and Henry Cowell. The piano is a Musical instrument played by means of a keyboard that produces sound by striking steel strings with Felt covered hammers A tone cluster is a musical chord comprising at least three consecutive tones in a scale. Leo Ornstein (born Лев Орнштейн, Lev Ornshteyn) (ca Henry Cowell ( March 11, 1897 – December 10, 1965) was an American Composer, musical theorist, Pianist

Grainger's energy was legendary. In London, he was known as "the jogging pianist" for his habit of racing through the streets to a concert, where he would bound on stage at the last minute because he preferred to be in a state of utter exhaustion when playing. After finishing a concert while touring in South Africa, he then walked 105 km to the next, arriving just in time to perform. The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa When travelling by ship on tour, he spent his free time shoveling coal in the boiler room.

In 1910 Grainger began designing and making his own clothing, ranging from jackets, to shorts, togas, muumuus and leggings, all made from towels and also intricate grass and beaded skirts. Year 1910 ( MCMX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting This article is about the aviation term for the Roman garment see Toga. The muumuu ( Hawaiian:) commonly spelled muumuu, muu-muu or mumu, is a loose dress of Hawaiian origin that hangs from the shoulder Leggings are any of several sorts of fitted Clothing to cover the legs The clothing was not just for private use but were often worn in public by Grainger. He also designed a crude forerunner of the modern sports bra for his Danish sweetheart. Sports bra is a bra that provides firm support for the Breasts It is intended for wear during vigorous exercise that might cause the breasts to move uncomfortably

Grainger moved to the United States at the outbreak of World War I in 1914. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All His 1916 piano composition In a Nutshell is the first by a classical music professional in the Western tradition to require direct, non-keyed sounding of the strings—in this case, with a mallet—which would come to be known as a "string piano" technique. String piano is a term coined by American composer-theorist Henry Cowell (1897–1965 to collectively describe those pianistic Extended techniques in which sound is When the United States entered the war in 1917, he enlisted into a United States Army band playing the oboe and soprano saxophone, and spent the duration of the war giving dozens of concerts in aid of War Bonds and Liberty Loans. Year 1917 ( MCMXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year The United States Army is a military organization whose primary mission is to "provide necessary forces and capabilities. War bonds are a type of Savings bond used by combatant nations to help fund a war effort and as a Monetary policy for controlling Inflation from an A Liberty Bond was a special type of War bond that was sold in the United States to support the allied cause in World War I. Also during the year 1917, he was elected an honorary member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia music fraternity. Phi Mu Alpha (ΦΜΑ Sinfonia is a collegiate social fraternity for men with an interest in music In 1918, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States. Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

Grainger Museum. University of Melbourne Parkville Campus.

Career success

Grainger's piano solo Country Gardens became a smash hit, securing his reputation as a remarkable composer, although Grainger grew to detest the piece. The piano is a Musical instrument played by means of a keyboard that produces sound by striking steel strings with Felt covered hammers With his newfound wealth, Grainger and his mother settled in the suburb of White Plains, New York after the war. The City of White Plains is the County seat of Westchester County New York. Rose Grainger's mental and physical health, however, was in decline. She committed suicide in 1922 by jumping from the building where her son's manager, Antonia Sawyer, had an office. Year 1922 ( MCMXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ^[3] This ended an intimate relationship, which many had incorrectly assumed to be incestuous. After his mother's death, he found a letter that she had written to him the day before she took her life, explaining her state of mind, which she explained was caused by accusations of incest. Grainger kept it in a cylinder he wore around his neck for many years. He later compiled an album containing photos of his mother (including several of her in her coffin), and had thousands of copies made and distributed to friends.

In the same year, he traveled to Denmark, his first folk-music collecting trip to Scandinavia (although he had visited Grieg there in 1906). The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe Terminology and usage As a cultural term "Scandinavia" has no official definition and is subject to usage by those who identify with the culture in question as well Year 1906 ( MCMVI) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting The orchestration of the region's music would shape much of his finest output.

By 1925 Grainger was financially secure. Year 1925 ( MCMXXV) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. He was now earning $5,000 a week for performances and charging up to $200 an hour for private lessons. In November 1926, Grainger met the Swedish artist and poet Ella Viola Ström, and fell in love at first sight. Year 1926 ( MCMXXVI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Their wedding took place on 9 August 1928 on the stage of the Hollywood Bowl, following a concert before an audience of 20,000, with an orchestra of 126 musicians and an a cappella choir, which sang his new composition, To a Nordic Princess, dedicated to Ella. Events 48 BC - Caesar's civil war: Battle of Pharsalus - Julius Caesar decisively defeats Pompey at Pharsalus Year 1928 ( MCMXXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Hollywood Bowl is a famous modern Amphitheatre in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles California, USA, that is used primarily for music Performances A cappella (Italian or Latin "From the chapel/choir" Music is Vocal music or Singing without instrumental Accompaniment

In December 1929, Grainger developed a style of orchestration that he called "Elastic Scoring". Year 1929 ( MCMXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Elastic scoring is a style of Orchestration or music Arrangement that was first used by the Australian Composer Percy Grainger. He outlined this concept in an essay that he called, "To Conductors, and those forming, or in charge of, Amateur Orchestras, High School, College and Music School Orchestras and Chamber-Music Bodies".

In 1932, he became Dean of Music at New York University, and underscored his reputation as an experimenter by putting jazz on the syllabus and inviting Duke Ellington as a guest lecturer. Year 1932 ( MCMXXXII) was a Leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. New York University ( NYU) is a private, Nonsectarian, Coeducational Research University in New York City. Jazz is an American Musical art form which originated in the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29 1899 &ndash May 24 1974 was an American Composer, Pianist, and Bandleader. Twice he was offered honorary doctorates of music, but turned them down, explaining, "I feel that my music must be regarded as a product of non education".

Declining career and death

Percy Grainger's tombstone at his gravesite in Adelaide. Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth largest city in Australia with a He died February 20, 1961, and was buried on March 2, 1961. Events 1472 - Orkney and Shetland are left by Norway to Scotland, due to a Dowry payment Year 1961 ( MCMLXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 986 - Louis V becomes King of the Franks. 1127 - Assassination of Charles the Good Year 1961 ( MCMLXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. His epitaph reads, "Lover of mankind, art, and nature. "

In 1940, the Graingers moved to Springfield, Missouri, from which base Grainger again toured to give a series of army concerts during the Second World War. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Springfield is a city in Christian and Greene Counties in the U World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including However, the gradual decline in popularity of his music after the war hit his spirits hard. To get his music heard, he offered to play for little or no fee, which resulted in his income from concerts drying up. He last appeared in public at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire in 1960. Dartmouth College ( is a private, Coeducational University located in Hanover, New Hampshire, U Hanover is a town along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. Year 1960 ( MCMLX) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

In his last years, working in collaboration with physicist Burnett Cross, Grainger invented the "Free Music Machine", which was the forerunner of the electric synthesizer.

Although still physically fit into his 60s, he spent his last years suffering pain from abdominal cancer which had spread, despite a number of operations, from prostate cancer diagnosed in 1953. Cancer (medical term Malignant Neoplasm) is a class of Diseases in which a group of cells display uncontrolled The prostate (from Greek προστάτης - prostates, literally "one who stands before" "protector" "guardian" is a ^[4] Grainger died in White Plains, New York in 1961 and he was buried in West Terrace Cemetery, Adelaide, South Australia. The City of White Plains is the County seat of Westchester County New York. Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth largest city in Australia with a South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country His personal files and records have been preserved at The Grainger Museum in the grounds of the University of Melbourne, the design and construction of which he oversaw. The University of Melbourne is a Public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Many of his instruments and scores are located at the Grainger house in White Plains, New York, now the headquarters of the International Percy Grainger Society.

Percy Grainger's tomb at the West Terrace cemetery in Adelaide. Adelaide is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of South Australia, and is the fifth largest city in Australia with a The tomb is located at gravesite number 11 on row 8E of Road 1 North, close to the entrance of the cemetery.

Free Music and Grainger’s machines

In Australia Grainger is remembered chiefly for his musical innovations and for what he called “Free Music”. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. He first conceived his idea of Free Music as a boy of 11 or 12. It was suggested to him by observing the waves on Albert Park Lake in Melbourne. Albert Park and Albert Park Lake are situated in the City of Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia, 3 km south of the Melbourne Eventually he concluded that the future of music lay in freeing up rhythmic procedures and in the subtle variation of pitch, producing glissando like movement. " Glissando " (plural glissandi abbreviated gliss is a glide from one pitch to another These ideas were to remain with him throughout his life, and he spent a great deal of his time in later years developing machines to realise his conception

Free Music is melodic (polyphonic), making use of long, sustained tones capable of continuous changes in pitch. In Music, polyphony is a texture consisting of two or more independent Melodic voices, as opposed to music with just one voice ( Monophony No traditional form of notation exists to describe it in detail. Grainger's own scores were originally notated on graph paper, with an individual trace for both the pitch and dynamic changes of each note. Free Music assumes a moving tone, precluding any harmonic stability and working with Free music is difficult since almost every basic assumption about musical relationships and method must be ignored. Free music requires the abolition of the scale and its replacement by a controlled continuous glide.

Grainger resorted to the use of machines because human performers on traditional instruments were not capable of producing the wide range of "gliding tones" with the necessary control over minute fluctuations of pitch. The machines were not intended as performance devices. Rather, they were designed to allow Grainger to hear the sounds he composed. He insisted on hearing his compositions before allowing them to be published, and often went to extraordinary lengths to achieve this.

His most famous machine is the "Hills and Dales" machine, described by Grainger as the "Kangaroo Pouch method of synchronising and playing eight oscillators" (on display in the Grainger Museum). Commonly known as the “Kangaroo Pouch machine”, it consists of a large wooden frame approximately eight feet tall, housing upright rotating turrets left and right (the "feeder' and "eater" turrets) and between which a large paper roll is wound. This roll consists of three layers: a main paper roll 80 inches high, across which eight smaller horizontal strips of paper (or subsidiary rolls) are attached front and back. The top edges of these subsidiary rolls are cut into curvilinear shapes (the hills and dales) and attached to the main roll at their bottom edges, each forming a type of "pouch". As the turrets are rotated clockwise, the undulating shapes cut into the rolls move from right to left. Eight valve oscillators are mounted onto the wooden frame, four at the front and four at the back, as are eight amplifiers. Oscillation is the repetitive variation typically in Time, of some measure about a central value (often a point of Equilibrium) or between two or more different states Generally an amplifier or simply amp, is any device that changes usually increases the amplitude of a signal. The pitch controls of the oscillators are attached to levers, connected at the other ends to circular runners, or spools, which "ride" moving rolls. The volume controls of the amplifiers are operated in the same way. Thus, the pitch of the oscillators, and the volume of the amplifiers, can be accurately controlled by carefully cutting shapes into the paper rolls. The large size of the machine is necessary to maintain accuracy of pitch control. Because the valves changed characteristics as they aged, the machine needed to be recalibrated after around three hours of use.

Grainger’s final machine was perhaps the most sophisticated. It too worked on the principle of a moving roll, but this time made of clear plastic. A row of spotlights projected light beams through the plastic roll and onto an array of photocells, which in turn controlled the pitch of the oscillators. Photosensors or photodetectors are Sensors of Light or other Electromagnetic energy The undulating shapes cut into the paper rolls of the Kangaroo Pouch machine were now simply painted onto the plastic roll with black ink. The circuitry for this machine was transistorised, lending a stability which could not be achieved with the use of valves. In Electronics, a transistor is a Semiconductor device commonly used to amplify or switch electronic signals The machine was lost in the 1970’s while being transported from Grainger's home in White Plains to the Grainger museum in Melbourne.

Idiosyncrasies

Grainger was a sado-masochist, with a particular enthusiasm for flagellation, who extensively documented and photographed everything he and his wife did. Sadism refers to Sexual or non-sexual gratification in the infliction of Pain or humiliation upon or by another person Flagellation is the act of whipping (Latin flagellum, "whip" the human body His walls and ceilings were covered in mirrors so that after sessions of self-flagellation he could take pictures of himself from all angles, documenting each image with details such as date, time, location, whip used, and camera settings. ^[5] He gave most of his earnings from 1934–1935 to the University of Melbourne for the creation and maintenance of a museum dedicated to himself. The University of Melbourne is a Public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Along with his manuscript scores and musical instruments, he donated the photos, 83 whips, and a pair of his blood-soaked shorts. Although the museum opened in 1935, it was not available to researchers until the 1960s.

He was a cheerful believer in the racial superiority of blond-haired and blue-eyed northern Europeans. This led to attempts, in his letters and musical manuscripts, to use only what he called "blue-eyed English" (akin to Anglish and the 'Pure English' of Dorset poet William Barnes) which expunged all foreign (i. Anglish is a form of Constrained writing in English in which words with Greek, Latin, and Romance roots are replaced by Germanic Dorset ( (or archaically, Dorsetshire) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast William Barnes (22nd February 1801 - 7th October 1886 was an English Writer, Poet, minister and Philologist. e. , non-Germanic) influences. In Grainger's writings, a composer was a "tone-smith" who “dished up” his compositions and a piano was a "keyed-hammer-string". He hated Italian terms in music scores; "poco a poco crescendo molto" became "louden lots bit by bit".

This thinking was, however, inconsistently and eccentrically applied: he was friends with and an admirer of Duke Ellington and George Gershwin, and also gave regular donations to African-American causes. Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29 1899 &ndash May 24 1974 was an American Composer, Pianist, and Bandleader. George Gershwin (September 26 1898 &ndash July 11 1937 was an American Composer. Grainger eagerly collected folk music tunes, forms, and instruments from around the world, from Ireland to Bali, and incorporated them into his own works. Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world Bali is an Indonesian Island located at, the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands, lying between Java to the west and Lombok to Furthermore, alongside his love for Scandinavia was a deep distaste for German academic music theory; he almost always shunned such standard (and ubiquitous) musical structures as sonata form, calling them "German" impositions. Sonata form is a Musical form that has been used widely since the early Classical period. He was ready to extend his admiration for the wild, free life of the ancient Vikings to other groups around the world, which in his view shared their way of life, such as the ancient Greece of the Homeric epics. A Viking is one of the Norse ( Scandinavian Explorers Warriors Merchants, and pirates who raided and colonized wide areas Homer ( Ancient Greek:, Homēros) is a legendary ancient Greek epic Poet, traditionally said to be the author of the epic poems the

Other eccentricities included never ironing his shirts and wearing the same clothes for days. He once said "concert audiences can't tell the difference'". While in America, he was twice arrested for vagrancy due to his dress. In his later years, when he scavenged in rubbish bins in the middle of the night for parts to make musical instruments, he dressed in his best clothes for task. He was a vegetarian who hated vegetables, living chiefly on boiled rice, milk, cereals, nuts and oranges.

Throughout the 1920s Grainger recorded numerous live-recording player piano music rolls for the Aeolian Company's "Duo Art" system, all of which survive and can be heard. The 1920s is sometimes referred to as the " Jazz Age " or the " Roaring Twenties " when speaking about the United States and Canada The player piano is a self-playing Piano, containing a pneumatic mechanism that plays on the piano action pre-programmed Music via perforated paper rolls Amongst these is a complete rendition of Grieg's Piano Concerto and a recently unearthed performance of music from "The Warriors". Grainger's own Duo-Art grand pianola can still be seen at the Grainger Museum, replete with Grainger's music machine experimental modifications. The player piano is a self-playing Piano, containing a pneumatic mechanism that plays on the piano action pre-programmed Music via perforated paper rolls

Dramatic portrayals

Grainger's life has been portrayed in a number of dramas, notably Rob George's 1982 stage play, Percy & Rose, and a loose 1999 film adaptation, Passion. Featuring Richard Roxburgh as Grainger and Barbara Hershey as his mother, it was co-written by Rob George and John Bird, author of the 1999 Oxford University Press biography of Grainger. Richard Roxburgh (born 1 January 1962 is an Australian actor who has starred in many Australian films and has appeared in supporting roles in a number of Hollywood productions Barbara Hershey (born February 5, 1948) is an Academy Award -nominated and Emmy-winning American actress known for her many Film roles

Notable works

Notes and references

1. ^ Official Percy Grainger website
2. ^ D. de Val, 'Lucy Broadwood and Folksong', in Music and British Culture, 1785-1914, ed. C. Bashford and L. Langley (Oxford: OUP, 2000), 341-66, on Grainger, 355-64.
3. ^ Portrait of Percy Grainger, (eds. ) Malcolm Gillies and David Pear (Eastman Studies in Music), University of Rochester Press, Rochester, NY, 2002, pp. 99-103)
4. ^ The All-Round Man: Selected Letters of Percy Grainger, 1914-1961, ed. Malcolm Gillies, David Pear, Oxford University Press, 1994, ISBN 0198163770.
5. ^ Percy Grainger, John Bird, Oxford University Press, 1999, ISBN 0198166524

External links

• Percy Aldridge Grainger Biography
• The International Percy Grainger Society
• The Percy Grainger Society
• The Grainger Ensemble - archived website for a Melbourne chamber orchestra
• Grainger on Australian Music Centre site
• The Grainger Wind Symphony, an Australian Wind Symphony honouring Percy Grainger
• The Grainger Museum at the University of Melbourne, Australia
• Percy Grainger in MusicAustralia
• Works by Percy Grainger at Project Gutenberg
• Percy Grainger at the Internet Movie Database
• Percy Grainger at the National Film and Sound Archive
• Percy Grainger was listed in the International Music Score Library Project
• The Free Music Machines of Percy Grainger Rainer Linz
• Performance of Youthful Rapture
• Performance of Brigg Fair