Born in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, the son of a lawyer, Race learned the piano from the age of five.[3] He was educated (1932–37) at Lincoln School, where he formed his first jazz group, which included a young Neville Marriner, later a major figure in the world of classical music. At sixteen, he attended the Royal Academy of Music, studying composition under Harry Farjeon and William Alwyn. After leaving the academy, Race (encouraged by the classical music critic of the News Chronicle, Scott Goddard)[4] wrote occasional dance band reviews for Melody Maker and, in 1939, joined the Harry Leader dance band as pianist, succeeding Norrie Paramor.[5][6]
Race joined the Royal Air Force in 1941, and formed a jazz/dance quintet. After the Second World War, he began a long and productive career with the BBC, where his ready wit, musicianship and broad musical knowledge made him much sought after as a musical accompanist for panel games and magazine shows, such as Whirligig and Many a Slip.
At the same time he was playing in the bands of Lew Stone and Cyril Stapleton, and arranging material for Ted Heath.[7] In, 1949 The Steve Race Bop Group recorded some of the first British bebop records for the Paxton label. These included four sides with Leon Calvert, Johnny Dankworth, Peter Chilver, Norman Burns (drums), Jack Fulton (bass) and Race on piano, and four more (with the addition of saxophonist Freddy Gardner) as the Bosworth Modern Jazz Group on the Bosworth label.[8][9] He also developed a sideline arranging player piano rolls for the Artona company.
From the 1950s to the 1980s, he presented numerous music programmes on radio and television. Additionally, in 1955, he was appointed the first Light Music Advisor to the independent television companyAssociated-Rediffusion. He is probably best known as the chairman of the long-running light-hearted radio and TV panel gameMy Music which ran from 1967 to 1994. He presented and wrote most of the questions for all 520 episodes broadcast. He also presented Jazz For Moderns on radio and Jazz 625 on television for the BBC in the 1960s. Away from music, for two years from 1970 Race co-presented (with William Hardcastle) the BBC Radio 4 "drive-time" news magazine PM.
Race coined the term Denham Concerto for short romantic film pieces inspired by the success of Richard Addinsell's Warsaw Concerto, such as Hubert Bath's Cornish Rhapsody, Nino Rota's Legend of the Glass Mountain and Charles Williams' The Dream of Olwen, after the Denham Film Studios where many of them were made.[10]
Composer
As a composer, he produced a number of pieces in the jazz, classical and popular idioms. The bebop jazz piece Blue Acara (named after one of the many tropical fish he and his wife collected)[11] was arranged for jazz band or for full orchestra and recorded by Harry Parry.[12] It is likely that the composer of light Latin American dance tunes known as "Esteban Cera" was Race hiding behind a pseudonym.[13]Faraway Music, the theme to an ITV Play of the Week in 1961,[14] was issued as a single by Steve Race and his Orchestra.[15] Others followed, including one of his better-known compositions, the short instrumental piece Nicola (named after his daughter), which won an Ivor Novello Award in 1962.[16] The 'b' side of the 1962 single featured another instrumental, Ring Ding. The follow-up single Pied Piper (The Beeje) reached No. 29 in the UK Singles Chart in March 1963.[17][18] In the mid-1970s this piece was played as Queen's Park Rangers ran onto the pitch at the start of each home game at Loftus Road. Steve Race was a season ticket holder and keen fan of the club.
Race wrote (and with the Steve Race Orchestra performed) library music for the Chappell Recorded Music Library,[19] an example being Pacemaker.[20] But his best-known and, according to his autobiography, his most lucrative composition is his music for the Birds Eye frozen peas jingle, "Sweet as the moment when the pod went pop". Race also wrote the acoustic guitar jingle which introduced programmes made by Southern Television in the 1970s and early 1980s.
In the film Calling Paul Temple (1948) Race (with Sid Colin) wrote two of the songs performed by Celia Lipton, and appeared himself as the pianist/bandleader in the nightclub section.[21][22] He also wrote the score for the 1962 British B-movie crime film Crosstrap,[23] and the scores for Three Roads to Rome (1963),[24]Against the Tide (1965)[25] and Land of Three Rivers (1966).[26]
Windsor Blues, a duet written in 1970 for Prince Charles (cello) and the Earl of Chester (trumpet) has been recorded. (The two titles refer to the same person, and the cello part was intended to be tape recorded by Charles).[27]
Personal life
Race's autobiography, Musician at Large, was published in 1979, and in 1988 Souvenir Press Ltd published his book about his grandfather's short but interesting life, from lead miner to missionary, entitled The Two Worlds of Joseph Race.
Race married Marjorie Leng in 1944 and they had a daughter, Nicola. Marjorie died from cancer in 1969. He married again in 1970, to radio producer Léonie Mather, who survived him.[5] Race had his first heart attack in 1965. He died of the second attack at his home in Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire, in June 2009.[5]
Publications
Piano-Style: A Complete Guide for the Modern Dance Band Pianist (sheet music, 1949)
Musician at Large (autobiography, 1979), ISBN0413397408)
The King's Singers: A Self Portrait by Race, Nigel Perrin and The King's Singers (1980, ISBN086051109X)
^"Faraway Music". 19 September 1961. Retrieved 6 October 2021 – via IMDb.
^"Steve Race; Faraway Music". YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
^"Steve Race and his Orchestra, Nicola". YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2020.
^"Steve Race and his Group: Pied Piper (The Beejee)". YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2020.
^Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 447. ISBN1-904994-10-5.
^"Chappell LPC694-705". Open.spotify.com. Retrieved 4 August 2020.
^"Steve Race and his Orchestra: Pacemaker". YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2020.
^"CALLING PAUL TEMPLE". Library of Congress. Retrieved 4 August 2020.
^"Credits and the song 'Lady on the Loose' by Steve Race and Sid Colin, from Calling Paul Temple (1948)". YouTube. Retrieved 4 August 2020.[dead YouTube link]
^"The Steve Race Group and Tubby Hayes: Crosstrap". YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2020.
^"Three Roads to Rome (1963)". BFI. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
^"Against the Tide (1965)". BFI. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
^"Land of Three Rivers (1966)". BFI. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
^Music for a Prince, Music by a Prince, Toccata TOCN0009 (2021)
Steve Race appears on Desert Island Discs, 27 November 1971
Steve Race – Daily Telegraph obituary
March 10, 2023
steve, race, stephen, russell, steve, race, april, 1921, june, 2009, british, composer, pianist, radio, television, presenter, bornstephen, russell, race1, april, 1921lincoln, lincolnshire, englanddied22, june, 2009, aged, great, missenden, englandnationalityb. Stephen Russell Steve Race 1 OBE 1 April 1921 22 June 2009 2 was a British composer pianist and radio and television presenter Steve RaceBornStephen Russell Race1 April 1921Lincoln Lincolnshire EnglandDied22 June 2009 aged 88 Great Missenden EnglandNationalityBritishOccupation s radio personality pianist composerSpouse s Marjorie Leng d 1969 Leonie Mather Contents 1 Biography 2 Composer 3 Personal life 4 Publications 5 References 6 External linksBiography EditBorn in Lincoln Lincolnshire the son of a lawyer Race learned the piano from the age of five 3 He was educated 1932 37 at Lincoln School where he formed his first jazz group which included a young Neville Marriner later a major figure in the world of classical music At sixteen he attended the Royal Academy of Music studying composition under Harry Farjeon and William Alwyn After leaving the academy Race encouraged by the classical music critic of the News Chronicle Scott Goddard 4 wrote occasional dance band reviews for Melody Maker and in 1939 joined the Harry Leader dance band as pianist succeeding Norrie Paramor 5 6 Race joined the Royal Air Force in 1941 and formed a jazz dance quintet After the Second World War he began a long and productive career with the BBC where his ready wit musicianship and broad musical knowledge made him much sought after as a musical accompanist for panel games and magazine shows such as Whirligig and Many a Slip At the same time he was playing in the bands of Lew Stone and Cyril Stapleton and arranging material for Ted Heath 7 In 1949 The Steve Race Bop Group recorded some of the first British bebop records for the Paxton label These included four sides with Leon Calvert Johnny Dankworth Peter Chilver Norman Burns drums Jack Fulton bass and Race on piano and four more with the addition of saxophonist Freddy Gardner as the Bosworth Modern Jazz Group on the Bosworth label 8 9 He also developed a sideline arranging player piano rolls for the Artona company From the 1950s to the 1980s he presented numerous music programmes on radio and television Additionally in 1955 he was appointed the first Light Music Advisor to the independent television company Associated Rediffusion He is probably best known as the chairman of the long running light hearted radio and TV panel game My Music which ran from 1967 to 1994 He presented and wrote most of the questions for all 520 episodes broadcast He also presented Jazz For Moderns on radio and Jazz 625 on television for the BBC in the 1960s Away from music for two years from 1970 Race co presented with William Hardcastle the BBC Radio 4 drive time news magazine PM Race coined the term Denham Concerto for short romantic film pieces inspired by the success of Richard Addinsell s Warsaw Concerto such as Hubert Bath s Cornish Rhapsody Nino Rota s Legend of the Glass Mountain and Charles Williams The Dream of Olwen after the Denham Film Studios where many of them were made 10 Composer EditAs a composer he produced a number of pieces in the jazz classical and popular idioms The bebop jazz piece Blue Acara named after one of the many tropical fish he and his wife collected 11 was arranged for jazz band or for full orchestra and recorded by Harry Parry 12 It is likely that the composer of light Latin American dance tunes known as Esteban Cera was Race hiding behind a pseudonym 13 Faraway Music the theme to an ITV Play of the Week in 1961 14 was issued as a single by Steve Race and his Orchestra 15 Others followed including one of his better known compositions the short instrumental piece Nicola named after his daughter which won an Ivor Novello Award in 1962 16 The b side of the 1962 single featured another instrumental Ring Ding The follow up single Pied Piper The Beeje reached No 29 in the UK Singles Chart in March 1963 17 18 In the mid 1970s this piece was played as Queen s Park Rangers ran onto the pitch at the start of each home game at Loftus Road Steve Race was a season ticket holder and keen fan of the club Race wrote and with the Steve Race Orchestra performed library music for the Chappell Recorded Music Library 19 an example being Pacemaker 20 But his best known and according to his autobiography his most lucrative composition is his music for the Birds Eye frozen peas jingle Sweet as the moment when the pod went pop Race also wrote the acoustic guitar jingle which introduced programmes made by Southern Television in the 1970s and early 1980s In the film Calling Paul Temple 1948 Race with Sid Colin wrote two of the songs performed by Celia Lipton and appeared himself as the pianist bandleader in the nightclub section 21 22 He also wrote the score for the 1962 British B movie crime film Crosstrap 23 and the scores for Three Roads to Rome 1963 24 Against the Tide 1965 25 and Land of Three Rivers 1966 26 Windsor Blues a duet written in 1970 for Prince Charles cello and the Earl of Chester trumpet has been recorded The two titles refer to the same person and the cello part was intended to be tape recorded by Charles 27 Personal life EditRace s autobiography Musician at Large was published in 1979 and in 1988 Souvenir Press Ltd published his book about his grandfather s short but interesting life from lead miner to missionary entitled The Two Worlds of Joseph Race Race married Marjorie Leng in 1944 and they had a daughter Nicola Marjorie died from cancer in 1969 He married again in 1970 to radio producer Leonie Mather who survived him 5 Race had his first heart attack in 1965 He died of the second attack at his home in Great Missenden Buckinghamshire in June 2009 5 Publications EditPiano Style A Complete Guide for the Modern Dance Band Pianist sheet music 1949 Musician at Large autobiography 1979 ISBN 0413397408 The King s Singers A Self Portrait by Race Nigel Perrin and The King s Singers 1980 ISBN 086051109X My Music 1980 ISBN 0140052062 Dear Music Lover 1981 Music Quiz 1983 ISBN 0297782924 The Two Worlds of Joseph Race 1988References Edit Berkshire Life Archived from the original on 26 June 2009 Retrieved 15 September 2008 Steve Race The Daily Telegraph London 22 June 2009 Retrieved 22 June 2009 Spencer Leigh Steve Race Musician and broadcaster best known for his association with the programme My Music The Independent 24 June 2009 Barker Dennis 23 June 2009 Obituary Steve Race The Guardian Retrieved 4 August 2020 a b c The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Oxford Dictionary of National Biography online ed Oxford University Press 2004 doi 10 1093 ref odnb 102156 ISBN 9780198614111 Subscription or UK public library membership required Harry Leader and his Band Mastersofmelody co uk Retrieved 4 August 2020 Tracy Sheila Who s Who in Popular Music 1984 p 150 51 Godbolt Jim A History of Jazz in Britain 1919 1950 Quartet 1984 p 229 30 Bop In Britain Volume 1 The Learning Curve Bop In Britain Volume 1 The Learning Curve Jasmine Records JASCD 637 2003 Proper Music British Light Classics WARNER CLASSICS 2564 61438 2 TB Musicweb international com Retrieved 6 October 2021 Harry Parry Henrybebop co uk Retrieved 6 October 2021 Datenbank HitHistory Website Hithistory de Retrieved 6 October 2021 ISNI 0000000081268519 Cera Esteban 1921 2009 Isni oclc org Retrieved 4 August 2020 Faraway Music 19 September 1961 Retrieved 6 October 2021 via IMDb Steve Race Faraway Music YouTube Archived from the original on 21 December 2021 Retrieved 6 October 2021 Steve Race and his Orchestra Nicola YouTube Archived from the original on 21 December 2021 Retrieved 4 August 2020 Steve Race and his Group Pied Piper The Beejee YouTube Archived from the original on 21 December 2021 Retrieved 4 August 2020 Roberts David 2006 British Hit Singles amp Albums 19th ed London Guinness World Records Limited p 447 ISBN 1 904994 10 5 Chappell LPC694 705 Open spotify com Retrieved 4 August 2020 Steve Race and his Orchestra Pacemaker YouTube Archived from the original on 21 December 2021 Retrieved 4 August 2020 CALLING PAUL TEMPLE Library of Congress Retrieved 4 August 2020 Credits and the song Lady on the Loose by Steve Race and Sid Colin from Calling Paul Temple 1948 YouTube Retrieved 4 August 2020 dead YouTube link The Steve Race Group and Tubby Hayes Crosstrap YouTube Archived from the original on 21 December 2021 Retrieved 4 August 2020 Three Roads to Rome 1963 BFI Retrieved 6 October 2021 Against the Tide 1965 BFI Retrieved 6 October 2021 Land of Three Rivers 1966 BFI Retrieved 6 October 2021 Music for a Prince Music by a Prince Toccata TOCN0009 2021 External links EditSteve Race discography at Discogs Steve Race at IMDb Steve Race appears on Desert Island Discs 27 November 1971 Steve Race Daily Telegraph obituary Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Steve Race amp oldid 1137926964, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
