Music of Don Kay

Chamber works for piano, flute and cello by Don Kay. Four of the six pieces were written for these performers, among them three piano sonatas receiving their premiere recordings.

Fiona Perrin flute
Christian Wojtowicz cello
David Bollard piano
Michael Kieran Harvey piano

Don Kay composer

For too long Kay has been under-rated and rather marginalised as ‘a Tasmanian composer’, as if association with the island state somehow meant second-class citizenship.

He was born there and has spent all but fifteen of his seventy-seven years living and working there. His output covers the principal media – three symphonies, four concertos, two one-act operas, six string quartets, choral works, song cycles, chamber music, solo piano, theatre and film. It is precisely his constant exposure and profound response to the Tasmanian environment that give his music its sonic and emotional distinctiveness.

Of the six works, four have been composed for the performers on this CD, including the three piano sonatas, which receive their premiere performances.

The Sonata for Cello and Piano (2000) was composed for Christian Wojtowicz, and first performed by him and David Bollard in 2001 during the first Ten Days on the Island Festival in Hobart. It comprises four movements, and although employing the language developed, in part, through responses to Tasmania’s natural environment, it is essentially an ‘abstract’ piece.

Hastings Triptych (1986) was composed at the request of David Cubbin for performance by him and Geoffrey Lancaster at Government House, Hobart. The work’s three pieces – Hastings Bay, The Caves and Lune River – express responses to this area, on the edge of remoteness, characterised by water in its many forms interacting with hills and forests, creating an overriding sense of tranquillity and mystery.

The Piano Sonatas Nos. 2, 3 and 4 were composed in quick succession in 2007. No. 2 is sub-titled From My Inner Nature; No. 3 Capsules; No. 4 End Notes, freely referring to ideas in the earlier sonatas so the three may be heard as a trilogy. The programme concludes with a short Scherzando for two pianos (1979).

— Don Kay

Reviews

This is a very enjoyable collection of chamber pieces that will whet your appetite to hear other of [sic] Don Kay's works

— Anton Linden Jones, Music Forum Magazine

This may come as a shock to classical music lovers, but Don Kay is still alive and composing in Hobart, Tasmania. ... Originally recorded in 2007, this is a real boon for lovers of modern, simple, easy listening music.

— Kate Rockstrom, Readings Carlton

Artist

Don Kay

Don Kay (born 1933) is a Tasmanian classical composer whose work ranges from symphony, opera and concerto to chamber, choral, vocal and piano music, often shaped by the island’s landscape, ecology and history.

Audio previews

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Tracks

Piano Sonata 2 Don Kay 15:50

Hastings Triptych Don Kay

Hastings Bay 5:57
The Caves 5:50
Lune River 3:57
Piano Sonata 3 Don Kay 12:53

Sonata for Cello and Piano Don Kay

Con energia 7:27
Con vivezza 3:10
Con sensibilità 6:31
Con agilità 4:22
Piano Sonata 4 Don Kay 6:17
Scherzando for 2 pianos Don Kay 4:46

Performers

Fiona Perrin · tracks 2–4
Christian Wojtowicz · tracks 6–9
David Bollard · all except tracks 5 and 10
Michael Kieran Harvey · tracks 5, 10 and 11

Contributors

Cover artwork

Elspeth Vaughan

Photography

Michael Stather

Where to listen

Music of Don Kay is available for streaming through Apple Music. It can also be purchased through the iTunes Music Store.

Music of Don Kay is available as a CD. It can be purchased online through Buywell Music or the Australian Music Centre which both offer online ordering.