Andrew Paul MacDonald
Encyclopedia
Andrew Paul MacDonald is a Canadian
composer
, guitar
ist, conductor, and music educator. His compositions have been performed in many countries including England
, Norway
, France
, Germany
, the Netherlands
, Taiwan
, Turkey
, the United States
and Australia
, as well as in Canada by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra
, l'Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, the Esprit Orchestra
, l'Orchestre symphonique de Québec
, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
, the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra
, Symphony Nova Scotia
, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
, the CBC Vancouver Orchestra, the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra
, the Evergreen Club and the I Musici de Montréal.
MacDonald has had works commissioned by outstanding orchestras, chamber ensembles, solo performers, music competitions, the Canadian Opera Company
and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
. His works are frequently broadcast on CBC
and Société Radio-Canada. He has also had many of his compositions recorded on compact disc
and has won prizes for his works, including the 2005 East Coast Music Award for Jasper Wood's recording of "Great Square of Pegasus", which also won the 2005 Independent Music Award, and the 1995 Juno Award
for “Best Classical Composition” for his Violin
Concerto
.
MacDonald studied music theory and piano with Rosemarie Hamilton and guitar with Alexandre Lagoya
, Michael Lorimer, Ray Sealey and Manuel Lopez-Ramos. He earned a Bachelor of Music
from the University of Western Ontario
in 1981 where he was a pupil of Arsenio Girón and Alan Heard. He pursued graduate studies in music composition at the University of Michigan
(UM) where he earned both a Master of Music
(1982) and a Doctor of Musical Arts
(1985). At the UM he was a pupil of William Albright
, William Bolcom
, Leslie Bassett
, and George Balch Wilson
.
In 1985 MacDonald returned to Canada; spending the next two years teaching in Manitoba
and Quebec
. In 1987 he joined the faculty at Bishop's University
in Lennoxville, Quebec
where he is currently chairman and professor of composition and electronic music. At the school he was instrumental in founding the Ensemble Musica Nova, an organization of which he is currently the Artistic Director. From 1993-1997 he served as Vice-President and Council member of the Canadian League of Composers
. In addition to teaching and composing, he remains active as a classical and electric guitarist
and as a conductor.
Biographical articles on MacDonald are to be found in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (2nd ed., 2001) and the Canadian Who's Who (annually since 1998).
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
ist, conductor, and music educator. His compositions have been performed in many countries including England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, as well as in Canada by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra
Toronto Symphony Orchestra
The Toronto Symphony Orchestra is a Canadian orchestra based in Toronto, Ontario.-History:The TSO was founded in 1922 as the New Symphony Orchestra, and gave its first concert at Massey Hall in April 1923. The orchestra changed its name to the Toronto Symphony Orchestra in 1927. The TSO...
, l'Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, the Esprit Orchestra
Esprit Orchestra
The Esprit Orchestra is a Canadian orchestra based in Toronto dedicated to the performance of new classical works. It was established in 1983 by director Alex Pauk and is Canada's only full-sized orchestra devoted exclusively to new music. Currently, there are 45 full time members...
, l'Orchestre symphonique de Québec
Orchestre Symphonique de Québec
Orchestre symphonique de Québec is a Canadian symphony orchestra based in Quebec City. Founded in 1902 as the Société symphonique de Québec, the OSQ is the oldest active Canadian orchestra. Joseph Vézina was the OSQ's first music director, from 1902 to 1924...
, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
The Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra is a Canadian orchestra based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Its primary concert venue is the Centennial Concert Hall, and the orchestra also performs throughout the province of Manitoba.-History:...
, the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra
Manitoba Chamber Orchestra
The Manitoba Chamber Orchestra is a chamber orchestra based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1972 by Ruben Gurevich, the ensemble's first music director, the MCO presents nine concerts annually at Westminster United Church and tours in rural Manitoba, Canada and elsewhere.The MCO...
, Symphony Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra is a Canadian orchestra performing in Vancouver, British Columbia. Over 240,000 people attend its live performances each year. It was founded in 1930 and plays in 12 venues. Its home is the Orpheum theatre. With an annual operating budget of $9.5 million, it is the...
, the CBC Vancouver Orchestra, the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra
Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra
The Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra is a Canadian orchestra, based in Calgary, Alberta. The orchestra gives the majority of its performances in the Jack Singer Concert Hall of the EPCOR Centre for the Performing Arts...
, the Evergreen Club and the I Musici de Montréal.
MacDonald has had works commissioned by outstanding orchestras, chamber ensembles, solo performers, music competitions, the Canadian Opera Company
Canadian Opera Company
The Canadian Opera Company is an opera company in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the largest opera company in Canada and the third largest producer of opera in North America. The COC performs in its own opera house, the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts.-History:For 40 years until...
and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
. His works are frequently broadcast on CBC
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
and Société Radio-Canada. He has also had many of his compositions recorded on compact disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
and has won prizes for his works, including the 2005 East Coast Music Award for Jasper Wood's recording of "Great Square of Pegasus", which also won the 2005 Independent Music Award, and the 1995 Juno Award
Juno Award
The Juno Awards are presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music...
for “Best Classical Composition” for his Violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
Concerto
Concerto
A concerto is a musical work usually composed in three parts or movements, in which one solo instrument is accompanied by an orchestra.The etymology is uncertain, but the word seems to have originated from the conjunction of the two Latin words...
.
MacDonald studied music theory and piano with Rosemarie Hamilton and guitar with Alexandre Lagoya
Alexandre Lagoya
Alexandre Lagoya was a classical guitarist. His early career included boxing and guitar, and as he cites on the sleeve of his 1981 Columbia album, his parents hoped he would outgrow his predilection for both....
, Michael Lorimer, Ray Sealey and Manuel Lopez-Ramos. He earned a Bachelor of Music
Bachelor of Music
Bachelor of Music is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree; the majority of work consists of prescribed music courses and study in applied music, usually requiring a...
from the University of Western Ontario
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario is a public research university located in London, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus covers of land, with the Thames River cutting through the eastern portion of the main campus. Western administers its programs through 12 different faculties and...
in 1981 where he was a pupil of Arsenio Girón and Alan Heard. He pursued graduate studies in music composition at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
(UM) where he earned both a Master of Music
Master of Music
The Master of Music is the first graduate degree in Music awarded by universities and music conservatories. The M.Mus. combines advanced studies in an applied area of specialization with graduate-level academic study in subjects such as music history, music theory, or music pedagogy...
(1982) and a Doctor of Musical Arts
Doctor of Musical Arts
The Doctor of Musical Arts degree is a doctoral academic degree in music. The D.M.A. combines advanced studies in an applied area of specialization with graduate-level academic study in subjects such as music history, music theory, or music pedagogy. The D.M.A...
(1985). At the UM he was a pupil of William Albright
William Albright
William Albright may refer to:*William F. Albright , evangelical Methodist archaeologist, biblical authority, linguist and expert on ceramics*William Albright , American composer, pianist, and organist...
, William Bolcom
William Bolcom
William Elden Bolcom is an American composer and pianist. He has received the Pulitzer Prize, the National Medal of Arts, two Grammy Awards, the Detroit Music Award and was named 2007 Composer of the Year by Musical America. Bolcom taught composition at the University of Michigan from 1973–2008...
, Leslie Bassett
Leslie Bassett
Leslie Bassett is an American composer of classical music, and the University of Michigan’s Albert A. Stanley Distinguished University Professor Emeritus of Composition...
, and George Balch Wilson
George Balch Wilson
George Balch Wilson is an American composer who is particularly known for his contributions to electronic music. In 1955 he won the Prix de Rome for composition. He taught for more than 30 years on the faculty of the University of Michigan where he notably founded and directed the school's...
.
In 1985 MacDonald returned to Canada; spending the next two years teaching in Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
and Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. In 1987 he joined the faculty at Bishop's University
Bishop's University
Bishop's University is a predominantly undergraduate university in Lennoxville, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. Bishop's is one of three universities in the province of Quebec that teach primarily in the English language...
in Lennoxville, Quebec
Lennoxville, Quebec
Lennoxville is an arrondissement, or borough, of the city of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. Lennoxville is located at the confluence of the St. Francis and Massawippi Rivers approximately five kilometers south of downtown Sherbrooke....
where he is currently chairman and professor of composition and electronic music. At the school he was instrumental in founding the Ensemble Musica Nova, an organization of which he is currently the Artistic Director. From 1993-1997 he served as Vice-President and Council member of the Canadian League of Composers
Canadian League of Composers
The Canadian League of Composers is an organization formed in 1951 of Canadian composers primarily interested in raising awareness and acceptance of Canadian music. The activities of the League are overseen and directed by an executive and a National Council...
. In addition to teaching and composing, he remains active as a classical and electric guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
and as a conductor.
Biographical articles on MacDonald are to be found in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (2nd ed., 2001) and the Canadian Who's Who (annually since 1998).
Discography
- 2005, "For There and Then", The Evergreen Club
- 2004, "Quintette à Vent Estria"
- 2004, "Quintette à Vent Estria"
- 2004, "The Great Square of Pegasus", Jasper Wood
- 2004, "Wild Honey", Timothy Steeves and Nancy Dahn
- 2000, "Premieres!", Arthur Campbell
- 1998, "Harbord Street", Trio Lyra
- 1998, "Among Friends", Trio des Iscles
- 1996, “20 years of resistance to genocide in East Timor”
- 1995, "Canadian Music for Chamber Orchestra", Manitoba Chamber Orchestra
- 1993, "Orchestre Mondiale des Jeunesses Musicales"
- 1991, “Music for the Open Air”, Quatuor Claudel
- 1991, “Passage through Time”