Burnett, Andrew

 

d.o.b. 2.7.50

I am an amateur composer now based in Plymouth, South West England.

I have been writing music for the last 37 years (doesn't time fly when you are having fun?!), to include pieces written for and performed by choir and orchestra at school, plus chamber and orchestral works for amateur ensembles in London and the west country.

My most recent work includes the wind band piece 'Tribute' as well as a number of jazz pieces for small ensembles.

I have a fairly catholic musical taste. My early classical influences, orchestral and church music, were soon balanced out by a healthy dose of jazz and the discovery of the late 19th. and early 20th. century music of Sibelius, Debussy, Ravel, Delius, Hindemith, Stravinsky, Shostakovich and Bartok. 'New' music interests me although has not greatly influenced my writing at the present time.

My musical education started with the priceless encouragement of an enlightened music teacher at school &endash; Kas Hardulak. Since then I have progressed via occasional formal study with tutors, otherwise by endless listening, working through ideas and playing a succession of instruments &endash; partly to help me really understand the various sections of the orchestra/wind band/jazz group from within.

Music school was sadly never an option as I did not have the instrument skills to support my application. Fortunately for young composers nowadays this is no longer a barrier.

'Tribute' is my first published work although a number of my pieces are in the COMA (Contemporary Music Making for Amateurs) music library &endash; one piece, Variations for B flat clarinet and piano will be accessible via the COMA website.

 

Completed works include: (* denotes compositions performed in public)

 

'Lament for Gilbert' &endash; piano 1966

Sketches no. 1 for orchestra 1966*

'Fair Springtime' &endash; choir 1968*

'Who art thou Lord?' &endash; choir 1968*

Sketches no. 2 for orchestra 1968*

Friendship is dead &endash; vocal and guitar 1968

'Song for a girl' &endash; voice and guitar 1968

Piano Trio &endash;violin cello 1968

'Ballade' for violin and piano 1968*

'Do I really have to feel alone?' Voice and guitar 1969

Sketches no. 3 for orchestra 1970

'A thought for Rosie '&endash; piano 1971

'Ave Verum Corpus' &endash; choir 1979

'Variations' for clarinet and piano 1981

'Dream' for bassoon and piano 1981*

'Sketch for Trio' &endash; trumpet, cello and piano 1980*

'Variations' no. 3 for piano 1981

'Orchestral Waltz no.1.' 1982*

'Smidgeon' for flute and piano 1984

Piano study 1995

'Blue Tone' for clarinet and piano 1995

Clarinet Quartet 1997*

'Inside In' and 'Lullaby' for alto sax and piano 1999

'Tribute' for wind band 2000*

'So long old fella' for jazz ensemble 2000*

'Sad Song' for alto sax and piano 2000

'Ballad' for alto sax and piano 2000

'Truly' for alto sax and piano 2000

 

Current work includes jazz pieces and a wind band 'waltz'.

Andrew Burnett

October 2000