Peter Graham is a talented British composer who has written many pieces of music for a brass band.
Biography
Peter Graham was born in Lanarkshire, Scotland in 1958. As a child, he received an elementary musical education - his parents taught him to play brass instruments and the piano. Peter's father was an orchestral conductor in the Salvation Army, and his mother was a pianist. That is why little Peter "studied" the Salvation Army from an early age, and later - for some time was a member of it.
Later, until 1980, Peter was educated at the University of Edinburgh, after which he continued his postgraduate studies with Edward Gregson at Goldsmiths College, University of London. Peter currently holds a PhD in Philosophy and Composition in Music.
From 1980 to 1983 he worked as a music editor in the same Salvation Army.
From 1983 to 1986 he lived in the USA, in the city of New York. There he worked for the SA Music Bureau as a freelance composer, arranger and publication editor.
After returning to the United Kingdom, he took up a full-time position as arranger for BBC Radio and Television, specializing in composing music for brass bands.
From 1997 to 2004, he served as Music Officer for the Black Duke Group and Resident Composer for Her Majesty's Goldstream Guards.
The composer currently lives in Cheshire, UK. He is Professor of Composition at the University of Salford and specializes in arranging and composing pieces for one or a group of brass bands.
Peter Graham is married to Janey Graham. The couple have two children: son Ryan and daughter Megan.
Together with his wife, in 1994, Peter organized the music publishing house Gramercy Music, which specializes in the release of music for a brass band, as well as for a brass band and vocals.
Creation
The first significant work of Graham is considered a composition called "Dimensions" (1983). After the publication of this work, Peter was recognized as an outstanding arranger for wind bands and a leading figure among contemporary composers.
Peter's original works, such as The Essence of Time, Editing, Journey to the Center of the Earth, are performed all over the world and are used as musical screensavers for national championships in Australia, New Zealand, North America and some European countries.
Graham's musical compositions have been recorded and performed by many leading ensembles around the world, including the Tokyo Kosei Wing Brass Band and the Norwegian Royal Naval Orchestra.
The piece, titled Harrison's Dream, was commissioned by the US Air Force Band in Washington, DC. It should be noted that the composition "Harrison's Dream", based on motives of the British watchmaker John Harrison, is recognized as a composition with extremely high complexity of execution.
In 2002, Peter was awarded the Ostwald Prize from the American Kapellmeister Association.
Commissioned by BMG / RCA Red Label in 1999, Graham composed and arranged an album of xylophone music for virtuoso Evelyn Glennie. The resulting musical recording was nominated for a 1999 Grammy in Los Angeles for Best Classic Crossover Album.
Graham's works for brass bands have been adapted for performance by a variety of ensembles, from fanfare bands from the Benelux countries to American bands. The performance of Peter's music by orchestras such as the Blue Knights Drum and the US Corps bugle confirms her high ratings to date.
In 2006, the Grand Orchestra of America's National Champions from Broken Arrow High School performed Graham's "Harrison's Dreams."
In June 2008, he made his second official visit to Japan, where he participated in the University Orchestra Fair sponsored by the All Japan Student Brass Band Federation. At this fair, Peter made several scheduled performances and made his debut as a conductor in Japan.
In the 2017 show, the US Corps bugles performed Graham's Santa Clara Vanguard, Blue Devils Drum, as well as Urobos and Metamorph excerpts from Triumph of Time.
The 2018 multi-award-winning show featured Peter's composition "Vanguard", as well as excerpts from "1927 Metropolis" and "Journey to the Center of the Earth."
Famous works
Currently, several CDs have been released with recordings of Peter Graham's works:
- Peter Graham;
- "Call of the Cossacks";
- "Cry of the Celts";
- "Hinoda";
- "Irish";
- "Red car";
- The Peter Graham Collection;
- "Music to Cartoons";
- "Essence of Time";
- "Windows of the World";
- "Shine like light";
- Celebrate Rotary;
- "Dimensions";
- "Prisms";
- On Alderley Edge;
- "Torchbearer";
- "Installation";
- Harrison's Dream;
- "Journey to the Center of the Earth";
- "Standing on the Shoulders of Giants";
- "Day of the Dragon";
- "War of the Worlds";
- The Last Amen;
- Gelfors;
- "Renaissance";
- "Fairy Tales of a Cat";
- "Triumph of Time".
Many of these pieces are frequently performed by the Scottish National Brass Band, Her Majesty's Brass Band, at the BBC Proms, the eight-week summer seasons of daily orchestral concerts of classical and other music.
