Margaret Sutherland
Margaret Sutherland (1897–1984) was an Australian composer whose work ranged across almost every form, with a particular gift for chamber music. She remains one of the most distinctive voices in twentieth-century Australian composition.
A student of Sir Arnold Bax in London during the 1920s, she wrote in almost every form, though chamber music remained her chief ground. Major works include the symphony The Four Temperaments (orchestrated by Robert W. Hughes in 1964), concertos for various instruments including violin, the symphonic poem Haunted Hills (1953), and the chamber opera The Young Kabbarli (1964; libretto by Maie Casey).
One of her best-known pieces is In the Dim Counties (1936), for voice and piano, from Five Songs. Setting poetry by John Shaw Neilson—a pastoral lyric poet whose verse is marked by simplicity of form and restraint of utterance—she answers that plainness with clear rhythms, light textures and even musical balance. Five Songs has been recorded by numerous Australian female artists, among them Helen Noonan.
Margaret Sutherland is featured on the following titles
Rush, The Adventures of Sebastian the Fox and Other Goodies
An enjoyable collection built around two of George Dreyfus’s best-known scores, the charting TV theme Rush and the suite from the ABC children’s series The Adventures of Sebastian the Fox.
Compositions by Margaret Sutherland also appear on
Jewel
Australian gems for violin and piano. Jewel gathers works by some of Australia’s finest composers, among them Peter Sculthorpe, Margaret Sutherland, Don Banks and Vincent Plush.
Worlds Apart
Worlds Apart gathers music for piano duet, two and three pianos from France and Australia. At its centre is the first Australian recording of Max Bruch’s Concerto for two pianos and orchestra.