Skaila Kanga
Encyclopedia
Skaila Kanga (born in India) is a harpist and is Head of Harp Studies at the Royal Academy of Music
, London, England. After winning a Junior Exhibition to the Royal Academy of Music for piano, she switched to harp studies at age 17. She studied with Tina Bonifacio, Sir Thomas Beecham's harpist in the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
.
, after which she went on to freelance with many London orchestras under such conductors as André Previn
, Sir Georg Solti, Otto Klemperer
, Evgeny Svetlanov
, Simon Rattle
, Sir Adrian Boult, Rudolf Kempe
, Carlo Maria Giulini
, Pierre Monteux
, Bernard Haitink
, Lorin Maazel
, Zubin Mehta
, Pierre Boulez
and Daniel Barenboim
.
, Jerry Goldsmith
, Michel Legrand
, James Horner
, Pat Metheny
, Michael Nyman
, Frank Sinatra
, Barbra Streisand
, Elton John
, Luciano Pavarotti
, Joan Sutherland
, Plácido Domingo
, José Carreras
, Barbara Hendricks
, Kiri Te Kanawa
, Richard Rodney Bennett
and many others.
In 1977, Tommy Reilly
and Skaila formed a duo for harmonica
and harp which lasted 22 years. They performed in concert and on television throughout Britain, Europe and South America, recording on the Chandos Records
, the label for whom Skaila also recorded all the major French chamber music
repertoire with the Academy of St. Martin's in the Fields Chamber Ensemble, as well as Mozart's Concerto for flute and harp with Susan Milan
, Richard Hickox
and the City of London Sinfonia
.
, Sumi Jo, James Galway
, Joni Mitchell
, Cliff Richard
, Elton John
, Kylie Minogue
, Northern Line
, Girl Thing
, McFly
, G4
, Il Divo
, Duel
, Zizi Possi
, Michael Civisca, Jose Cura
, Slava
, Robbie Williams
, Westlife
, Samantha Mumba
, and Izzy Cooper.Paul McCartney
, Boyzone
, Eternal
, Michael Ball
, Jane McDonald
, Sarah Brightman
, Bjork
, Pharaoh Sanders, Milton Nascimento
, Manic Street Preachers
, Massive Attack
and Sting (a solo track for the CD 20th Century Blues).
, Die Another Day
, The 25th Hour
, Ghost Ship, Nicholas Nickleby, Cold Mountain
, Troy
, Shrek 2
, Bridget Jones
, Shark Tale
, Alfie
, Enduring Love
, Sahara
, Batman Begins
, Fragile, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The Constant Gardener
, The Da Vinci Code
. Harry Potter
, The Mummy Returns
, The Hole
, Chocolat
, End Game, Crush
, The Others
, Sacrifice
, Possession, From Hell
, Return to Neverland, Before You Go
, The Time Machine
, The Guru, Shipping News
, The Truth About Charlie
, We Were Soldiers
, Talk To Her
, Ararat
, Simon
, 101 Dalmatians 2, Swept Away
, The Hours
.
catalogue)
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
, London, England. After winning a Junior Exhibition to the Royal Academy of Music for piano, she switched to harp studies at age 17. She studied with Tina Bonifacio, Sir Thomas Beecham's harpist in the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra"...
.
Early career
Skaila began with the BBC Concert OrchestraBBC Concert Orchestra
The BBC Concert Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London, one of the British Broadcasting Corporation's five radio orchestras. With around fifty players, it is the only one of the five which is not a full-scale symphony orchestra....
, after which she went on to freelance with many London orchestras under such conductors as André Previn
André Previn
André George Previn, KBE is an American pianist, conductor, and composer. He is considered one of the most versatile musicians in the world, and is the winner of four Academy Awards for his film work and ten Grammy Awards for his recordings. -Early Life:Previn was born in...
, Sir Georg Solti, Otto Klemperer
Otto Klemperer
Otto Klemperer was a German conductor and composer. He is widely regarded as one of the leading conductors of the 20th century.-Biography:Otto Klemperer was born in Breslau, Silesia Province, then in Germany...
, Evgeny Svetlanov
Evgeny Svetlanov
Yevgeny Fyodorovich Svetlanov was a Russian conductor, composer, and though less well-known, a pianist.Svetlanov was born in Moscow and studied conducting at the Moscow Conservatory. From 1955 he conducted at the Bolshoi Theatre, being appointed principal conductor there in 1962...
, Simon Rattle
Simon Rattle
Sir Simon Denis Rattle, CBE is an English conductor. He rose to international prominence as conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and since 2002 has been principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic ....
, Sir Adrian Boult, Rudolf Kempe
Rudolf Kempe
Rudolf Kempe was a German conductor.- Biography :Kempe was born in Dresden, where from the age of fourteen he studied at the Dresden State Opera School. He played oboe in the opera orchestra of Dortmund and then in the Leipzig Gewandhaus orchestra, from 1929...
, Carlo Maria Giulini
Carlo Maria Giulini
Carlo Maria Giulini was an Italian conductor.-Biography:Giulini was born in Barletta, Italy, to a father born in Lombardy and a mother born in Naples; but he was raised in Bolzano, which at the time of his birth was part of Austria...
, Pierre Monteux
Pierre Monteux
Pierre Monteux was an orchestra conductor. Born in Paris, France, Monteux later became an American citizen.-Life and career:Monteux was born in Paris in 1875. His family was descended from Sephardi Jews who came to France in the wake of the Spanish Inquisition. He studied violin from an early age,...
, Bernard Haitink
Bernard Haitink
Bernard Johan Herman Haitink, CH, KBE is a Dutch conductor and violinist.- Early life :Haitink was born in Amsterdam, the son of Willem Haitink and Anna Haitink. He studied music at the conservatoire in Amsterdam...
, Lorin Maazel
Lorin Maazel
Lorin Varencove Maazel is an American conductor, violinist and composer.- Early life :Maazel was born to Jewish-American parents in Neuilly-sur-Seine in France and brought up in the United States, primarily at his parents' home in Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood. His father, Lincoln Maazel , was...
, Zubin Mehta
Zubin Mehta
Zubin Mehta is an Indian conductor of western classical music. He is the Music Director for Life of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.-Biography:...
, Pierre Boulez
Pierre Boulez
Pierre Boulez is a French composer of contemporary classical music, a pianist, and a conductor.-Early years:Boulez was born in Montbrison, Loire, France. As a child he began piano lessons and demonstrated aptitude in both music and mathematics...
and Daniel Barenboim
Daniel Barenboim
Daniel Barenboim, KBE is an Argentinian-Israeli pianist and conductor. He has served as music director of several major symphonic and operatic orchestras and made numerous recordings....
.
Solo career
Skaila's solo career has included many performances of concertos and broadcasts in the realms of records, films and television. She has worked for musical artists such as John WilliamsJohn Williams
John Towner Williams is an American composer, conductor, and pianist. In a career spanning almost six decades, he has composed some of the most recognizable film scores in the history of motion pictures, including the Star Wars saga, Jaws, Superman, the Indiana Jones films, E.T...
, Jerry Goldsmith
Jerry Goldsmith
Jerrald King Goldsmith was an American composer and conductor most known for his work in film and television scoring....
, Michel Legrand
Michel Legrand
Michel Jean Legrand is a French musical composer, arranger, conductor, and pianist...
, James Horner
James Horner
James Roy Horner is an American composer, orchestrator and conductor of orchestral and film music. He is noted for the integration of choral and electronic elements in many of his film scores, and for frequent use of Celtic musical elements...
, Pat Metheny
Pat Metheny
Patrick Bruce "Pat" Metheny is an American jazz guitarist and composer.One of the most successful and critically acclaimed jazz musicians to come to prominence in the 1970s and '80s, he is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works and other side projects...
, Michael Nyman
Michael Nyman
Michael Laurence Nyman, CBE is an English composer of minimalist music, pianist, librettist and musicologist, known for the many film scores he wrote during his lengthy collaboration with the filmmaker Peter Greenaway, and his multi-platinum soundtrack album to Jane Campion's The Piano...
, Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
, Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
, Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, Luciano Pavarotti
Luciano Pavarotti
right|thumb|Luciano Pavarotti performing at the opening of the Constantine Palace in [[Strelna]], 31 May 2003. The concert was part of the celebrations for the 300th anniversary of [[St...
, Joan Sutherland
Joan Sutherland
Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, OM, AC, DBE was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano noted for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s....
, Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
, José Carreras
José Carreras
Josep Maria Carreras i Coll , better known as José Carreras , is a Spanish Catalan tenor particularly known for his performances in the operas of Verdi and Puccini...
, Barbara Hendricks
Barbara Hendricks
Barbara Hendricks is an African American operatic soprano and concert singer. Hendricks has lived in Europe since 1977, and in Switzerland on Lake Geneva since 1985, She is a citizen of Sweden.-Early life and education:...
, Kiri Te Kanawa
Kiri Te Kanawa
Dame Kiri Jeanette Te Kanawa, ONZ, DBE, AC is a New Zealand / Māori soprano who has had a highly successful international opera career since 1968. Acclaimed as one of the most beloved sopranos in both the United States and Britain she possesses a warm full lyric soprano voice, singing a wide array...
, Richard Rodney Bennett
Richard Rodney Bennett
Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, CBE is an English composer renowned for his film scores and his jazz performance as much as for his challenging concert works...
and many others.
In 1977, Tommy Reilly
Tommy Reilly
Thomas Rundle Reilly MBE was a Canadian classical harmonica player. He began studying violin at eight and began playing harmonica at aged eleven as a member of his father's band...
and Skaila formed a duo for harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
and harp which lasted 22 years. They performed in concert and on television throughout Britain, Europe and South America, recording on the Chandos Records
Chandos Records
Chandos Records is an independent classical music recording company based in Colchester, Essex, in the United Kingdom, founded in 1979 by Brian Couzens.- Background :...
, the label for whom Skaila also recorded all the major French chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
repertoire with the Academy of St. Martin's in the Fields Chamber Ensemble, as well as Mozart's Concerto for flute and harp with Susan Milan
Susan Milan
Susan Milan ARCM PG, GSMD, FRCM, is an English Professor of flute of the Royal College of Music, classical performer, recording artiste, composer, author and entrepreneur.-Biography:...
, Richard Hickox
Richard Hickox
Richard Sidney Hickox CBE was an English conductor of choral, orchestral and operatic music.-Early life:Hickox was born in Stokenchurch in Buckinghamshire into a musical family...
and the City of London Sinfonia
City of London Sinfonia
The City of London Sinfonia is an English chamber orchestra based in London. In London, the CLS performs regularly at Cadogan Hall and St Paul's Cathedral. It is also the resident orchestra at Opera Holland Park. The CLS has annual residencies in four towns in Southern England: Ipswich, King's...
.
Session musician
Kanga has also been very active as a session musician in many other musical genres. She has worked with artists such as The BeatlesThe Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, Sumi Jo, James Galway
James Galway
- External links : IMGArtists.com 15 September 2008. AllAboutJazz.com 5 August 2008.*...
, Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell, CC is a Canadian musician, singer songwriter, and painter. Mitchell began singing in small nightclubs in her native Saskatchewan and Western Canada and then busking in the streets and dives of Toronto...
, Cliff Richard
Cliff Richard
Sir Cliff Richard, OBE is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist who has sold over an estimated 250 million records worldwide....
, Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...
, Northern Line
Northern Line
The Northern line is a London Underground line. It is coloured black on the Tube map.For most of its length it is a deep-level tube line. The line carries 206,734,000 passengers per year. This is the highest number of any line on the London Underground system, but the Northern line is unique in...
, Girl Thing
Girl Thing
Girl Thing were a British girl band, made up of members, Jodi Albert, Anika Bostelaar, Linzi Martin, Michelle Barber and Nikki Stuart. They are most famous for their song "Last One Standing" written and produced by the Steelworks production team of Tim Lever, Mike Percy and Eliot Kennedy, which hit...
, McFly
McFly
McFly are an English pop rock band who first found fame in 2004. The band consists of Tom Fletcher , Danny Jones , Dougie Poynter and Harry Judd . They were signed to the Island Records label from their 2004 launch until December 2007, before creating their own label, Super Records...
, G4
G4 (band)
G4 were a four-piece British vocal troupe who first came to prominence when they finished second in ITV's talent show The X Factor in 2004. The members met at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, from which the name G4, standing for "Guildhall 4", derives.-The X Factor:G4 auditioned for the...
, Il Divo
Il Divo
Il Divo is a multinational operatic pop vocal group created by music manager, executive, and reality TV star Simon Cowell. Formed in the United Kingdom, they are also signed to Cowell's record label, Syco Music...
, Duel
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two individuals, with matched weapons in accordance with agreed-upon rules.Duels in this form were chiefly practised in Early Modern Europe, with precedents in the medieval code of chivalry, and continued into the modern period especially among...
, Zizi Possi
Zizi Possi
Maria Izildinha "Zizi" Possi is a Brazilian singer from São Paulo, the daughter of Italian immigrants.She is the mother of another famous Brazilian singer, Luiza Possi.-Discography:All albums are in Portuguese unless noted otherwise....
, Michael Civisca, Jose Cura
José Cura
José Cura is a prominent operatic tenor known for his intense and original interpretations of his characters, notably Verdi’s Otello and Saint-Saëns’ Samson, as well as for his unconventional and innovative concert performances. He is also able to perform high baritone roles with the extended...
, Slava
Slava
The Slava , also called Krsna Slava and Krsno ime , is the Serbian Orthodox tradition of the ritual celebration and veneration of a family's own patron saint. The family celebrates the Slava annually on the patron saint's feast day...
, Robbie Williams
Robbie Williams
Robert Peter "Robbie" Williams is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams...
, Westlife
Westlife
Westlife are an Irish boy band established on 3 July 1998. They are to disband in 2012. The group's line-up was Nicky Byrne, Kian Egan, Mark Feehily, Shane Filan, and Brian McFadden . The group are the only act in British and Irish history to have their first seven singles peak at number one...
, Samantha Mumba
Samantha Mumba
Samantha Tamania Anne Cecilia Mumba is an Irish singer and actress.Her first album was released in 2000. Her most notable role was Mara in the 2002 film The Time Machine. She has also appeared in a number of Irish independent films.-Early life, education and early career:Mumba was born in Dublin,...
, and Izzy Cooper.Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
, Boyzone
Boyzone
Boyzone are an Irish boy band comprising Keith Duffy, Mikey Graham, Ronan Keating,Shane Lynch, and formerly Stephen Gately. Boyzone have 19 singles in the top 40 UK charts and 21 singles in the Ire charts. The group currently have 6 UK number one singles and 9 number one singles in Ireland with 12...
, Eternal
Eternal (band)
Eternal were an English R&B girl group formed in 1992. The group featured two sisters Easther and Vernie Bennett, alongside Kelle Bryan and Louise Nurding...
, Michael Ball
Michael Ball (singer)
Michael Ashley Ball, born 27 June 1962) is a British actor, singer, and radio and TV presenter who is best known for the song "Love Changes Everything" and musical theatre roles such as Marius in Les Misérables, Alex in Aspects of Love, Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Edna Turnblad...
, Jane McDonald
Jane McDonald
Jane McDonald is a British singer, actress and media personality and broadcaster, who first became famous following her appearance on the BBC docusoap The Cruise...
, Sarah Brightman
Sarah Brightman
Sarah Brightman is an English classical crossover soprano, actress, songwriter and dancer. She is famous for possessing a vocal range of over 3 octaves and singing in the whistle register...
, Bjork
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
, Pharaoh Sanders, Milton Nascimento
Milton Nascimento
-Biography:Nascimento's mother was the maid Maria Nascimento. As a baby, Milton Nascimento was adopted by his mother's former employers: the couple Josino Brito Campos, a banker employee, mathematics teacher and electronic technician; and Lília Silva Campos, a music teacher and choir singer...
, Manic Street Preachers
Manic Street Preachers
Manic Street Preachers are a Welsh alternative rock band, formed in 1986. They are James Dean Bradfield, Nicky Wire, Richey Edwards and Sean Moore. The band are part of the Cardiff music scene, and were at their most prominent during the 1990s...
, Massive Attack
Massive Attack
Massive Attack are an English DJ and trip hop duo from Bristol, England consisting of Robert "3D" Del Naja and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall. Working with co-producers, as well as various session musicians and guest vocalists, they make records and tour live. The duo are considered to be of the trip...
and Sting (a solo track for the CD 20th Century Blues).
TV credits
- The Prince's TrustThe Prince's TrustThe Prince's Trust is a charity in the United Kingdom founded in 1976 by Charles, Prince of Wales to help young people. They run a range of training programmes, provide mentoring support and offer financial grants to build the confidence and motivation of disadvantaged young people...
Gala - Andrew Lloyd WebberAndrew Lloyd WebberAndrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
's 5oth Birthday Gala - Elizabeth TaylorElizabeth TaylorDame Elizabeth Rosemond "Liz" Taylor, DBE was a British-American actress. From her early years as a child star with MGM, she became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age...
's Birthday Concert - 16 Royal Variety Performances
Film soundtrack credits
Legend of Bhagat Singh, Life of David Gale, The Four FeathersThe Four Feathers
The Four Feathers is a 1902 adventure novel by British writer A.E.W. Mason that has inspired many films of the same title.-Plot summary:...
, Die Another Day
Die Another Day
Die Another Day is the 20th spy film in the James Bond series, and the fourth and last film to star Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond; it is also the last Bond film of the original timeline with the series being rebooted with Casino Royale...
, The 25th Hour
The 25th Hour
The 25th Hour is the 2001 debut novel by David Benioff. A film adaptation, for which Benioff wrote the screenplay, was directed by Spike Lee and released in 2002.-Plot:...
, Ghost Ship, Nicholas Nickleby, Cold Mountain
Cold Mountain (film)
Cold Mountain is a 2003 war drama film written and directed by Anthony Minghella. The film is based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Charles Frazier...
, Troy
Troy
Troy was a city, both factual and legendary, located in northwest Anatolia in what is now Turkey, southeast of the Dardanelles and beside Mount Ida...
, Shrek 2
Shrek 2
Shrek 2 is a 2004 American computer-animated fantasy comedy film, produced by DreamWorks Animation and directed by Andrew Adamson, Kelly Asbury and Conrad Vernon. It is the second installment in the Shrek film series and the sequel to 2001's Shrek...
, Bridget Jones
Bridget Jones
Bridget Jones is a franchise based on the fictional character with the same name. English writer Helen Fielding started her Bridget Jones's Diary column in The Independent in 1995, chronicling the life of Bridget Jones as a thirtysomething single woman in London as she tries to make sense of life...
, Shark Tale
Shark Tale
Shark Tale is a 2004 American computer-animated comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation. In the story, a young fish named Oscar falsely claims to have killed the son of a shark mob boss to win favour with the mob boss' enemies and advance his own community standing...
, Alfie
Alfie (2004 film)
Alfie is a 2004 British/American comedy-drama film based on the 1966 British film of the same name, starring Jude Law as the title character, originally played by Michael Caine. The film was written, directed and produced by Charles Shyer.-Plot:...
, Enduring Love
Enduring Love
Enduring Love is a 2004 British film directed by Roger Michell with screenwriter Joe Penhall, based on a novel by Ian McEwan. The story is about two strangers who become dangerously close after witnessing a deadly accident. It stars Daniel Craig, Rhys Ifans and Samantha Morton with Bill Nighy,...
, Sahara
Sahara
The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...
, Batman Begins
Batman Begins
Batman Begins is a 2005 American superhero action film based on the fictional DC Comics character Batman, directed by Christopher Nolan. It stars Christian Bale as Batman, along with Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Cillian Murphy, Morgan Freeman, Ken Watanabe, Tom Wilkinson,...
, Fragile, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a 1964 children's book by British author Roald Dahl. The story features the adventures of young Charlie Bucket inside the chocolate factory of the eccentric chocolatier, Willy Wonka....
, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The Constant Gardener
The Constant Gardener
The Constant Gardener is a 2001 novel by John le Carré. It tells the story of Justin Quayle, a British diplomat whose activist wife is murdered...
, The Da Vinci Code
The Da Vinci Code
The Da Vinci Code is a 2003 mystery-detective novel written by Dan Brown. It follows symbologist Robert Langdon and Sophie Neveu as they investigate a murder in Paris's Louvre Museum and discover a battle between the Priory of Sion and Opus Dei over the possibility of Jesus having been married to...
. Harry Potter
Harry Potter
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
, The Mummy Returns
The Mummy Returns
The Mummy Returns is a 2001 American adventure film written and directed by Stephen Sommers, starring Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, John Hannah, Arnold Vosloo, Oded Fehr, Patricia Velásquez and Freddie Boath. The film is a sequel to the 1999 film The Mummy...
, The Hole
The Hole (2001 film)
The Hole is a 2001 psychological thriller film directed by Nick Hamm, based on the novel After the Hole by Guy Burt.The film starred Thora Birch, whose headlining credit and highly-publicized seven-figure salary was attributed to her appearance in American Beauty...
, Chocolat
Chocolat
Chocolat is a 1999 novel by Joanne Harris. It tells the story of Vianne Rocher, a young mother, who arrives at a fictional insular French village of Lansquenet-sous-Tannes with her six-year-old daughter, Anouk...
, End Game, Crush
Crush
-Bands:* Crush , a band on Atlantic Records from 1991 to 1993* Crush , a band featuring Jayni Hoy and Donna Air from the television series Byker Grove* Crush , a band from Newfoundland, Canada...
, The Others
The Others (2001 film)
The Others is a 2001 psychological horror film by the Spanish-Chilean director Alejandro Amenábar, starring Nicole Kidman. It is inspired partly by the novella The Turn of the Screw....
, Sacrifice
Sacrifice
Sacrifice is the offering of food, objects or the lives of animals or people to God or the gods as an act of propitiation or worship.While sacrifice often implies ritual killing, the term offering can be used for bloodless sacrifices of cereal food or artifacts...
, Possession, From Hell
From Hell
From Hell is a comic book series by writer Alan Moore and artist Eddie Campbell, originally published from 1991 to 1996, speculating upon the identity and motives of Jack the Ripper. The title is taken from the first words of the "From Hell" letter, which some authorities believe was an authentic...
, Return to Neverland, Before You Go
Before You Go
Before You Go is an album by Buck Owens and his Buckaroos, released in 1965. It is no longer in print.-Side one:# "Before You Go" # "Gonna Have Love" # "Getting Used to Loving You"...
, The Time Machine
The Time Machine
The Time Machine is a science fiction novella by H. G. Wells, published in 1895 for the first time and later adapted into at least two feature films of the same name, as well as two television versions, and a large number of comic book adaptations. It indirectly inspired many more works of fiction...
, The Guru, Shipping News
Shipping News
Shipping News is an American post-rock/post-hardcore band. The group formed in the fall of 1996 when members Jason Noble and Jeff Mueller, who were both in Rodan, collaborated to create music for the Chicago-based syndicated National Public Radio program This American Life. Kyle Crabtree was later...
, The Truth About Charlie
The Truth About Charlie
The Truth About Charlie is a 2002 remake of the 1963 film Charade. It is also an homage to François Truffaut's 1960 film Shoot the Piano Player complete with that film's star, Charles Aznavour, making two surreal appearances singing his song "Quand tu m'aimes" .The Truth About Charlie was produced,...
, We Were Soldiers
We Were Soldiers
We Were Soldiers is a 2002 American war film that dramatizes the Battle of Ia Drang on November 14, 1965. The film was directed by Randall Wallace and stars Mel Gibson. It is based on the book We Were Soldiers Once… And Young by Lieutenant General Hal Moore and reporter Joseph L...
, Talk To Her
Talk to Her
Talk to Her is a 2002 Spanish comedy-drama film written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar, starring Javier Cámara, Darío Grandinetti, Leonor Watling, Geraldine Chaplin, and Rosario Flores...
, Ararat
Ararat (film)
Ararat is a 2002 film directed, written, and co-produced by Atom Egoyan based loosely on the Siege of Van during the Armenian Genocide, an event that is disputed by the government of Turkey. In addition to exploring the human impact of that specific historical event, the film also examines the...
, Simon
Simon
Simon is a common name, from Hebrew meaning "He who has heard/hears [the word of God]".Simon may also refer to:-Names:* Simon , including a list of people with the given name Simon...
, 101 Dalmatians 2, Swept Away
Swept Away (2002 film)
Swept Away is a 2002 Franco-British romantic comedy film directed by Guy Ritchie and starring Madonna, Adriano Giannini, and Bruce Greenwood. It was released by Screen Gems and produced by Matthew Vaughn. It received generally negative reviews from critics and was a box office failure.-Plot:Amber...
, The Hours
The Hours (film)
The Hours is a 2002 drama film directed by Stephen Daldry, and starring Nicole Kidman, Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore and Ed Harris. The screenplay by David Hare is based on the 1999 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same title by Michael Cunningham....
.
Performances
- With the Nash Ensemble (for over 25 years) including works by Ravel, BaxArnold BaxSir Arnold Edward Trevor Bax, KCVO was an English composer and poet. His musical style blended elements of romanticism and impressionism, often with influences from Irish literature and landscape. His orchestral scores are noted for their complexity and colourful instrumentation...
, Debussy, Françaix, Saint-Saëns and world premieres of Gordon Kerry's Blue Latitudes, John TavenerJohn TavenerSir John Tavener is a British composer, best known for such religious, minimal works as "The Whale", and "Funeral Ikos"...
's A Sacred Dream and her own transcription of the Sonatine by Ravel for flute, viola and harp, first performed in 1994.. - 1977- 2002, 32 premieres of new works and countless series at the Wigmore HallWigmore HallWigmore Hall is a leading international recital venue that specialises in hosting performances of chamber music and is best known for classical recitals of piano, song and instrumental music. It is located at 36 Wigmore Street, London, UK and was built to provide London with a venue that was both...
. - Four solo appearances at the Proms.
- Appeared at the MeltdownMeltdown (festival)Meltdown is an annual, English festival, held in London, featuring a mix of music, art, performance and film. Meltdown is held in June at Southbank Centre, the arts complex covering and including the Royal Festival Hall, the Queen Elizabeth Hall and The Hayward...
and London Jazz FestivalLondon Jazz FestivalThe London Jazz Festival is a London-wide music festival held every November. It takes place in a variety of London venues, including larger concert halls—such as the Barbican and the Royal Festival Hall—and smaller jazz clubs, such as Ronnie Scott's and Vortex...
s with the Matrix Ensemble. - Performed Britten's Ceremony of Carols at the BarbicanBarbicanA barbican, from medieval Latin barbecana, signifying the "outer fortification of a city or castle," with cognates in the Romance languages A barbican, from medieval Latin barbecana, signifying the "outer fortification of a city or castle," with cognates in the Romance languages A barbican, from...
with Carl DavisCarl DavisCarl Davis CBE is an American born conductor and composer who has made his home in the UK since 1961. In 1970 he married the English actress Jean Boht....
. - Toured Germany with Sir Neville Marriner and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields in seven performances of Debussy's Danses for solo harp and orchestra.
- The Nash Inventions series at the Purcell Room in 2001, performing works by Henze, Simon HoltSimon HoltSimon Holt is a British composer.-Biography:Holt was educated at Bolton School. Shortly after graduating from the Royal Northern College of Music, he became firmly established on the new music circuit with a series of commissions and fruitful collaborations with the London Sinfonietta and the Nash...
, Heinz HolligerHeinz HolligerHeinz Holliger Heinz Holliger Heinz Holliger (born 21 May 1939 is a Swiss oboist, composer and conductor.-Biography:He was born in Langenthal, Switzerland, and began his musical education at the conservatories of Bern and Basel. He studied composition with Sándor Veress and Pierre Boulez...
, Sally BeamishSally BeamishSally Beamish is a British composer of chamber, vocal, choral and orchestral music. She has also worked in the field of music theatre, film and television, as well as composing for children and for her local community....
and Raising Sparks by James Macmillan (recorded for Black Box Records). - In 2002, works by Holt, AndersonAnderson (surname)Anderson, Andersson or Andersen is a surname deriving from a patronymic meaning "son of Anders/Andrew"...
, Debussy and Dallapiccola. - 2002 series with the London Mozart PlayersLondon Mozart PlayersThe London Mozart Players is a British chamber orchestra founded in 1949. The LMP is the longest-established chamber orchestra in the United Kingdom whose performances and recordings focus largely on the core repertoire from the Classical era...
.
Solo albums
- Britten: Ceremony of Carols (Naxos, 1995).
- Duos by HeifetzHeifetzHeifetz is a Jewish surname from Belarus and Lithuania. It derives from Hebrew חפץ . It is also spelled Chafets, Chaffetz, Chaifetz, Chofets. It may refer to:* Jascha Heifetz, Lithuanian-born violinist...
and KreislerFritz KreislerFriedrich "Fritz" Kreisler was an Austrian-born violinist and composer. One of the most famous violin masters of his or any other day, he was known for his sweet tone and expressive phrasing. Like many great violinists of his generation, he produced a characteristic sound which was immediately...
: with Maxim Xue Wei - Kaila Kanga with Emma Johnson, clarinet
- Kaila Kanga with Philippa Davies, flute
- Invocation: with Julian Lloyd WebberJulian Lloyd WebberJulian Lloyd Webber is a British solo cellist who has been described as the "doyen of British cellists".-Early life:Julian Lloyd Webber is the second son of the composer William Lloyd Webber and his wife Jean Johnstone . He is the younger brother of the composer Andrew Lloyd Webber...
(1998)
Performs on
- Elton John: Elton John (UNI RecordsUni RecordsUni Records was a record label owned by MCA Inc. The brand, which long featured a distinct UNi logo, was established in 1966 by MCA executive Ned Tanen and developed by music industry veteran Russ Regan...
, 1969) - Elton John: Tumbleweed ConnectionTumbleweed ConnectionTumbleweed Connection is the third album by English international recording artist Elton John. It is a concept album based on the Country and Western/Americana themes. All songs are written by Bernie Taupin and Elton John with the exception of "Love Song" by Lesley Duncan. It was recorded at...
(UNI Records, 1970) - Snell: Chamber Music for Harp - (Divine Art CD, DVT 24130, 2008)
- Bax: Nonet & other chamber music. With The Nash Ensemble. (Hyperion RecordsHyperion RecordsHyperion Records is an independent British classical record label.-History:The company was named after Hyperion, one of the Titans of Greek mythology. It was founded by George Edward Perry, widely known as "Ted", in 1980. Early LP releases included rarely recorded 20th century British music by...
CDA66807) - Arthur BlissArthur BlissSir Arthur Edward Drummond Bliss, CH, KCVO was an English composer and conductor.Bliss's musical training was cut short by the First World War, in which he served with distinction in the army...
: Rout & Rhapsody. With The Nash Ensemble, Lionel Friend (conductor), (Hyperion Records CDA66137) - Lowell Lieberman: Flute Concertos, with James GalwayJames Galway- External links : IMGArtists.com 15 September 2008. AllAboutJazz.com 5 August 2008.*...
and the London Mozart Players (RCARCARCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
) - Passion 2: with José Carreras
- David Mullikin: Oboe Concerto, with Neville Marriner and the Academy of St Martins Orchestra
- Serenade Vol 2 - Tommy Reilly, Skaila Kanga
- Ravel, Debussy, Saint-Saëns: Kanga, Asmf Chamber Ensemble (Chandos, 1987)
- Tommy Reilly: Works for Harmonica, Harp, and String Quartet (Chandos, 1990)
- Pat MethenyPat MethenyPatrick Bruce "Pat" Metheny is an American jazz guitarist and composer.One of the most successful and critically acclaimed jazz musicians to come to prominence in the 1970s and '80s, he is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works and other side projects...
: Secret Story (Geffin, 1992) - Boys Air Choir: Requiem - (Victor/Roux 1997)
- British folk songs: Tommy Reilly, Skalia Kanga (Chandos, 2001)
Criticism
- "...the smoother sound and slower but superbly sustained Chandos performance (of the Bax Harp Quintet, by harpist Skaila Kanga and the English String Quartet on Chandos) has much more atmosphere and drama (than the Mobius, Ensemble)."
Compositions
(Published by ALAW and included in the Lyon and HealyLyon and Healy
Lyon & Healy is an American manufacturer of harps founded in 1864 in Chicago by George W. Lyon and Patrick J. Healy. Lyon & Healy has its headquarters in Chicago, Illinois, United States, which, in addition to being the location of the production of its harps, also contains a showroom and concert...
catalogue)
- Les Saisons de la Harpe Suite for solo harp
- Cadenzas for Mozart's Concerto for flute and harp
- British Folk Songs Vol. 1 and 2, For flute [violin or oboe] and harp
- Miniatures 1, for harp [with optional 2nd part]
- Miniatures 2, for harp and solo instrument
- American Sketches for clarinet and harp (flute version available)
- Conversations for tuba (cello or double bass or bassoon) and harp.
- All-Time Jazz Favourites
- Minstrel's Gallery -Maruka Music (a collection of 30 easy pieces for non-pedal or pedal harp)
- Pathways, (a suite for solo harp in the classical style) and Harp Songbook.
- Mozart's Piano Concerto K414 in A major for Solo Harp. (Transcription by Skaila)
- Cadenza Notebook Vol. 1 featuring HandelHANDELHANDEL was the code-name for the UK's National Attack Warning System in the Cold War. It consisted of a small console consisting of two microphones, lights and gauges. The reason behind this was to provide a back-up if anything failed....
's Harp Concerto in Bb, published by Lyon and Healy and Sightreading Tests for Concert and Celtic Harp (Grades 1-8) published by ABRSM.
Collaborations
- With RautavaaraRautavaaraRautavaara is a municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Eastern Finland and is part of the Northern Savonia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is ....
in the editing of his new harp concerto and with Gareth Wood with his Concerto for Harp and Brass.
Recent activity
- Mozart's Flute and Harp Concerto with Edward Beckett and the London Festival Orchestra.
- The recorded works of Mark-Anthony TurnageMark-Anthony TurnageMark-Anthony Turnage is a prolific English composer of classical music. His initial musical studies were with Oliver Knussen, John Lambert, and later with Gunther Schuller...
. - August 2002, judge at the Lily Laskine Harp Competition in Paris.
- Guest of Honour at the International Harp Competition in BloomingtonBloomington, IndianaBloomington is a city in and the county seat of Monroe County in the southern region of the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 80,405 at the 2010 census....
, Indiana, 2004 (featuring a recital of her own compositions.) - August 2004, gave a Masterclass at the 6th European Harp Symposium in LyonLyonLyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
. - Toured the BalticBaltic statesThe term Baltic states refers to the Baltic territories which gained independence from the Russian Empire in the wake of World War I: primarily the contiguous trio of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania ; Finland also fell within the scope of the term after initially gaining independence in the 1920s.The...
Capitals as a recital soloist. - Spring 2005, Skaila gave the Opening Recital of the Russian Harpists’ Festival in Moscow.
- 2005 coast to coast lecture/recital tour of American universities.
- July 2005, gave a presentation on ‘The Harp in the Film and Recording Industry’ at the World Harp CongressWorld Harp CongressThe World Harp Congress, Inc. is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to players of the harp, with members in over 50 countries around the world. It was established in 1981....
in Dublin. - Featured soloist with Richard BakerRichard Baker (composer/conductor)Richard Baker is a British composer and conductor, known equally for his own highly charged and distinctive music and for his performances of contemporary music, especially the music of his contemporaries in the UK.-Life:...
on P&O Oriana in October 2006. - Jury member of the new composition award for the 2007 USA Harp Competition in Bloomington.
External links
- Harp masters website http://www.harpmasters.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=64
- Musician's gallery http://www.musiciansgallery.com/start/strings/harps/kanga/skaila.htm
- Royal Academy of Music http://www.ram.ac.uk/study/selectadepartment/biogs/Pages/Skaila%20Kanga.aspx
- With Julian Lloyd Weber on YouTube