fbpx
Wikipedia

Don Banks

April 08, 2024

Not to be confused with Don Bank.

Donald Oscar Banks (25 October 1923 – 5 September 1980) was an Australian composer of concert, jazz, and commercial music.

Don Banks
Born
Donald Oscar Banks

25 October 1923
Australia
Died5 September 1990 (aged 66)
McMahons Point, New South Wales, Australia
OccupationMusic composer

Early life and education edit

Jazz was Banks' earliest and strongest musical influence. He learned the saxophone as a boy in Australia and was proficient enough to be invited to play in the Graeme Bell band, then one of the finest outside America. He served with the Australian Army Medical Corps between 1941 and 1946 and began to study piano, harmony and counterpoint privately. He attended the University of Melbourne Conservatorium of Music for two years before moving to Europe in 1950.[1]

In the UK he studied composition privately with Mátyás Seiber, who was himself much interested in jazz, from 1950 to 1952. He became a friend and associate of Gunther Schuller and was much involved with Tubby Hayes, writing several compositions for him. There were also periods of study in Salzburg with modernist Milton Babbitt and in Florence with the serialist composer Luigi Dallapiccola.[2]

Career edit

In the 1950s Banks was the secretary to Edward Clark, head of the London Contemporary Music Centre.[3] He was chairman of the Society for the Promotion of New Music (SPNM) in 1967–68, and held several other posts in London whilst living in Purley, Surrey (at 16, Box Ridge Avenue). While in the UK during the 1960s his primary source of income came from scoring horror films produced by Hammer Studios, including Rasputin the Mad Monk, The Frozen Dead and The Mummy’s Shroud.[2][4]

He returned to Australia in 1972, as Head of Composition and Electronic Music Studies at the Canberra School of Music. He remained there till 1977, then had a series of educational positions. In 1978 he was appointed Head of the School of Composition Studies at the New South Wales Conservatorium of Music.[1]

He died at his home in the Sydney suburb of McMahons Point, after an eight-year battle with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia.[5] He left a widow, Valerie, and a son, Simon. The Don Banks Music Award, established in 1984, is funded by the Australia Council for the Arts.

Music edit

Banks's regarded his opus 1 as the Violin Sonata of 1953, though there are earlier works, such as the piano Sonatina and a trio, both 1948.[2] The Five North Country Folk Songs, also from 1953, clearly show the influence of Mátyás Seiber.[6] His best-known concert works include the Sonata da Camera for flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, piano, percussion, violin, viola, and cello (1961, dedicated to Seiber); a Horn Concerto (1965, dedicated to and premiered by Barry Tuckwell); a Trio for horn, violin, and piano (1962); a Violin Concerto (1968), and Nexus, his major 'third stream' composition.[7]

Banks scored 19 feature films, 22 documentaries and more than 60 episodes of various television serials. Nearly half of his film scores were for Hammer Films. Composer Douglas Gamley said that Banks "was a twelve-tone/serial composer who revelled in the opportunity to write abrasive and highly dissonant scores in an idiom akin to that of the late Schoenberg."[8] Randall Larson has said that The Reptile (1968) is perhaps his best Hammer score. Banks also composed jazz scores for Hammer, including Hysteria (1964). He also worked regularly with Halas & Batchelor on cartoon films, scoring more than 70 shorts, advertisements and animated television series.[8]

Compositions edit

Orchestral works edit

  • Four Pieces for Orchestra (1953)
  • Coney Island (1961)[9]
  • Elizabethan Miniatures (1962)[10]
  • Horn Concerto (1965)
  • Assemblies (1966)
  • Violin Concerto (1968)
  • Intersections for Orchestra and Electronics (1969)
  • Prospects (1973)
  • Trilogy (1979)

Chamber and instrumental edit

  • Sonatina in c♯ minor for piano (1948)
  • Trio for flute, violin and cello (1948)
  • Sonata for violin and piano (1953)
  • Three Studies for cello and piano (1954)
  • Pezzo Dramatico (1956) (for pianist Margaret Kitchin)
  • Sonata da Camera (1961)
  • Trio for horn, violin and piano (1962) (for Barry Tuckwell)
  • Prologue, Night Piece and Blues for Two for clarinet and piano (1968)
  • String Quartet (1975)

Vocal edit

  • Five North Country Folk Songs (1953) (for soprano Sophie Weisse)
  • Tirade for mezzo-soprano and chamber ensemble (1968) (words, Peter Porter)

Third stream/crossover works edit

  • Equations I (1963) for jazz and chamber players
  • Meeting Place (1970) for jazz ensemble, symphony orchestra and synthesizer
  • Equations II for jazz and chamber players
  • Nexus (1971) for jazz quintet and symphony orchestra

Filmography edit

Banks is credited for composing music in the following films:[4]

References edit

  1. ^ a b Biography, Australian Music Centre
  2. ^ a b c Daniel Herscovitch. Don Banks, Australian Modernist, notes to Toccata CD TOCC0591 (2022)
  3. ^ Graham Hair, Musical Ideas, Musical Sounds: A Collection of Essays
  4. ^ a b Larson, Randall D. (1996). "Don Banks". Music from the House of Hammer: Music in the Hammer Horror Films, 1950-1980. The Scarecrow Filmmakers Series, vol. 47. Scarecrow Press. pp. 51–57. ISBN 9781461669845.
  5. ^ Sitsky, Larry (1993). "Banks, Donald Oscar (Don) (1923–1980)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 13. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISSN 1833-7538.
  6. ^ 'Don Banks: Vocal and Chamber Music'. Toccata Classics TOCC0591, reviewed at MusicWeb International
  7. ^ Toop, Richard (2001). "Banks, Don(ald Oscar)". The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 2nd edition, edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell. London: Macmillan
  8. ^ a b Randall D. Larson. 'Don Banks Biographical Essay', Soundtrack Magazine. Vol. 15, no. 58 (1996)
  9. ^ Review, 'The Golden Age of Light Music', in MusicWeb International, May 2012
  10. ^ Music of the Four Realms, Heritage HTGCD 169 (2021)

Further reading edit

  • Banks, Don (June 1970). "Converging Streams". The Musical Times 111, no. 1528: 596–599.
  • Barkl, Michael. (1997). "Don Banks". The Oxford Companion to Australian Music, edited by Warren Bebbington. Melbourne: Oxford University Press.
  • Covell, Roger (1967). Australia’s Music: Themes for a New Society. Melbourne: Sun Books.
  • David Huckvale (2008). "Australian Menace: Don Banks and Malcolm Williamson". Hammer Film Scores and the Musical Avant-Garde. McFarland. pp. 133–153. ISBN 9780786451661.
  • Mann, William (August 1968). "The Music of Don Banks". The Musical Times 109, no. 1506: 719–721.
  • Sitsky, Larry (2011). Australian Chamber Music with Piano. Canberra: Australian National University E Press. ISBN 978-1921862403 (pbk); ISBN 9781921862410 (ebook).
  • Pressing, Jeff, John Whiteoak, and Roger T. Dean (2002). "Banks, Don(ald Oscar)". The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz, second edition, edited by Barry Dean Kernfeld, 3 vols. London: Macmillan. ISBN 9780333691892.

External links edit

  • Don Banks at IMDb
  • AMCOZ web profile 31 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  • Music Australia: source the National Library

April 08, 2024
banks, confused, with, bank, donald, oscar, banks, october, 1923, september, 1980, australian, composer, concert, jazz, commercial, music, borndonald, oscar, banks25, october, 1923australiadied5, september, 1990, aged, mcmahons, point, south, wales, australiao. Not to be confused with Don Bank Donald Oscar Banks 25 October 1923 5 September 1980 was an Australian composer of concert jazz and commercial music Don BanksBornDonald Oscar Banks25 October 1923AustraliaDied5 September 1990 aged 66 McMahons Point New South Wales AustraliaOccupationMusic composer Contents 1 Early life and education 2 Career 3 Music 4 Compositions 4 1 Orchestral works 4 2 Chamber and instrumental 4 3 Vocal 4 4 Third stream crossover works 5 Filmography 6 References 7 Further reading 8 External linksEarly life and education editJazz was Banks earliest and strongest musical influence He learned the saxophone as a boy in Australia and was proficient enough to be invited to play in the Graeme Bell band then one of the finest outside America He served with the Australian Army Medical Corps between 1941 and 1946 and began to study piano harmony and counterpoint privately He attended the University of Melbourne Conservatorium of Music for two years before moving to Europe in 1950 1 In the UK he studied composition privately with Matyas Seiber who was himself much interested in jazz from 1950 to 1952 He became a friend and associate of Gunther Schuller and was much involved with Tubby Hayes writing several compositions for him There were also periods of study in Salzburg with modernist Milton Babbitt and in Florence with the serialist composer Luigi Dallapiccola 2 Career editIn the 1950s Banks was the secretary to Edward Clark head of the London Contemporary Music Centre 3 He was chairman of the Society for the Promotion of New Music SPNM in 1967 68 and held several other posts in London whilst living in Purley Surrey at 16 Box Ridge Avenue While in the UK during the 1960s his primary source of income came from scoring horror films produced by Hammer Studios including Rasputin the Mad Monk The Frozen Dead and The Mummy s Shroud 2 4 He returned to Australia in 1972 as Head of Composition and Electronic Music Studies at the Canberra School of Music He remained there till 1977 then had a series of educational positions In 1978 he was appointed Head of the School of Composition Studies at the New South Wales Conservatorium of Music 1 He died at his home in the Sydney suburb of McMahons Point after an eight year battle with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia 5 He left a widow Valerie and a son Simon The Don Banks Music Award established in 1984 is funded by the Australia Council for the Arts Music editBanks s regarded his opus 1 as the Violin Sonata of 1953 though there are earlier works such as the piano Sonatina and a trio both 1948 2 The Five North Country Folk Songs also from 1953 clearly show the influence of Matyas Seiber 6 His best known concert works include the Sonata da Camera for flute clarinet bass clarinet piano percussion violin viola and cello 1961 dedicated to Seiber a Horn Concerto 1965 dedicated to and premiered by Barry Tuckwell a Trio for horn violin and piano 1962 a Violin Concerto 1968 and Nexus his major third stream composition 7 Banks scored 19 feature films 22 documentaries and more than 60 episodes of various television serials Nearly half of his film scores were for Hammer Films Composer Douglas Gamley said that Banks was a twelve tone serial composer who revelled in the opportunity to write abrasive and highly dissonant scores in an idiom akin to that of the late Schoenberg 8 Randall Larson has said that The Reptile 1968 is perhaps his best Hammer score Banks also composed jazz scores for Hammer including Hysteria 1964 He also worked regularly with Halas amp Batchelor on cartoon films scoring more than 70 shorts advertisements and animated television series 8 Compositions editOrchestral works edit Four Pieces for Orchestra 1953 Coney Island 1961 9 Elizabethan Miniatures 1962 10 Horn Concerto 1965 Assemblies 1966 Violin Concerto 1968 Intersections for Orchestra and Electronics 1969 Prospects 1973 Trilogy 1979 Chamber and instrumental edit Sonatina in c minor for piano 1948 Trio for flute violin and cello 1948 Sonata for violin and piano 1953 Three Studies for cello and piano 1954 Pezzo Dramatico 1956 for pianist Margaret Kitchin Sonata da Camera 1961 Trio for horn violin and piano 1962 for Barry Tuckwell Prologue Night Piece and Blues for Two for clarinet and piano 1968 String Quartet 1975 Vocal edit Five North Country Folk Songs 1953 for soprano Sophie Weisse Tirade for mezzo soprano and chamber ensemble 1968 words Peter Porter Third stream crossover works edit Equations I 1963 for jazz and chamber players Meeting Place 1970 for jazz ensemble symphony orchestra and synthesizer Equations II for jazz and chamber players Nexus 1971 for jazz quintet and symphony orchestraFilmography editBanks is credited for composing music in the following films 4 The Price of Silence 1959 Murder at Site 3 1959 The Third Alibi 1961 Captain Clegg Night Creatures in U S 1962 Panic 1963 The Punch and Judy Man 1963 The Evil of Frankenstein 1964 Crooks in Cloisters 1964 Nightmare 1964 Hysteria 1964 The Brigand of Kandahar 1965 Monster of Terror Die Monster Die in U S 1965 The Reptile 1966 Rasputin the Mad Monk 1966 The Frozen Dead 1966 Torture Garden 1967 The Mummy s Shroud 1967 Die Monster Die 19xx References edit a b Biography Australian Music Centre a b c Daniel Herscovitch Don Banks Australian Modernist notes to Toccata CD TOCC0591 2022 Graham Hair Musical Ideas Musical Sounds A Collection of Essays a b Larson Randall D 1996 Don Banks Music from the House of Hammer Music in the Hammer Horror Films 1950 1980 The Scarecrow Filmmakers Series vol 47 Scarecrow Press pp 51 57 ISBN 9781461669845 Sitsky Larry 1993 Banks Donald Oscar Don 1923 1980 Australian Dictionary of Biography Vol 13 National Centre of Biography Australian National University ISSN 1833 7538 Don Banks Vocal and Chamber Music Toccata Classics TOCC0591 reviewed at MusicWeb International Toop Richard 2001 Banks Don ald Oscar The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians 2nd edition edited by Stanley Sadie and John Tyrrell London Macmillan a b Randall D Larson Don Banks Biographical Essay Soundtrack Magazine Vol 15 no 58 1996 Review The Golden Age of Light Music in MusicWeb International May 2012 Music of the Four Realms Heritage HTGCD 169 2021 Further reading editBanks Don June 1970 Converging Streams The Musical Times 111 no 1528 596 599 Barkl Michael 1997 Don Banks The Oxford Companion to Australian Music edited by Warren Bebbington Melbourne Oxford University Press Covell Roger 1967 Australia s Music Themes for a New Society Melbourne Sun Books David Huckvale 2008 Australian Menace Don Banks and Malcolm Williamson Hammer Film Scores and the Musical Avant Garde McFarland pp 133 153 ISBN 9780786451661 Mann William August 1968 The Music of Don Banks The Musical Times 109 no 1506 719 721 Sitsky Larry 2011 Australian Chamber Music with Piano Canberra Australian National University E Press ISBN 978 1921862403 pbk ISBN 9781921862410 ebook Pressing Jeff John Whiteoak and Roger T Dean 2002 Banks Don ald Oscar The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz second edition edited by Barry Dean Kernfeld 3 vols London Macmillan ISBN 9780333691892 External links editDon Banks at IMDb AMCOZ web profile Archived 31 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine Don Banks Music Award Music Australia source the National Library History of British and Australian innovation includes Don Banks ideas and equipment Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Don Banks amp oldid 1216680058, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.