Dame Evelyn Elizabeth Ann Glennie
, DBE (born July 19 1965 in Aberdeen) is a Scottish virtuoso percussionist. She was the first full-time, solo percussionist in 20th century western society. [1]
|
EVELYN GLENNIE TICKETS
|
Background
Evelyn Glennie was brought up on a farm in
Aberdeenshire near where she was born. Her father was
Herbert Arthur Glennie, an
accordionist in a
Scottish country dance band, and the strong,
indigenous musical traditions of north-east Scotland were important in the development of the young musician, whose first instruments were the
mouth organ and the
clarinet. Other major influences were
Glenn Gould,
Jacqueline du Pré and
Trilok Gurtu. She studied at
Ellon Academy and the
Royal Academy of Music, and was also a member of the
National Youth Orchestra of Scotland.
Career
Glennie tours extensively in the
northern hemisphere, spending up to four months each year in the
United States, and performs with a wide variety of orchestras and contemporary musicians, giving over 100 concerts a year as well as master classes and 'music in schools' performances. She frequently commissions percussion works from composers and performs them in her concert repertoire.
She also plays the
Great Highland Bagpipes and has her own registered
tartan known as 'The Rhythms of Evelyn Glennie'. Glennie is in the process of producing her own range of handmade jewellery and also works as a motivational speaker.
Deafness
Glennie has been profoundly
deaf – meaning that she has some very limited hearing – since age 12. This does not inhibit her ability to perform at the international level. She regularly plays
barefoot for both live performances and studio recordings, to better "feel" the music.
[2]
Glennie contends that deafness is largely misunderstood by the public. She claims to have taught herself to hear with parts of her body other than her ears. In response to criticism from the media, Glennie published in which she personally discusses her condition.
Collaborations
Glennie featured on Icelandic singer
Björk's album
Telegram
, performing the duet "My Spine". She has collaborated with many other musicians including former Genesis guitarist
Steve Hackett,
Bela Fleck,
Bobby McFerrin,
Fred Frith and
The King's Singers.
On 21 November 2007, the UK government announced an infusion of £332 million just for music-education. This resulted from the successful lobby spearheaded by Glennie,
Sir James Galway,
Julian Lloyd Webber, and the late
Michael Kamen; they formed the Music in Education Consortium in 2002/2003.
Personal life
In 1994, Glennie married composer, sound engineer and tuba player Greg Malcangi, with whom she collaborated on several musical projects. They divorced in 2003 following her widely-publicised affair with orchestral conductor
Leonard Slatkin.
[3]
Awards and recognitions
Glennie has won many awards, including:
- Best Chamber Music Performance in the Grammy Awards of 1989
- Scot of the Year 1982
- Queen's Commendation prize for all round excellence 1985
- Scotswoman of the Decade 1990
- Best Studio and Live Percussionist from Rhythm Magazine 1998, 2000, 2002, 2003 & 2004
- Walpole Medal of Excellence 2002
- Musical America Instrumentalist of the Year 2003
- Sabian Lifetime Achievement Award 2006
- Hall of Fame PAS - November 2008 [4]
She is the recipient of fifteen honorary doctorates from universities in the United Kingdom, was awarded the
OBE in 1993 and promoted to
DBE in the
New Year's Honours of 2007.
[5]
She owns over 1800
percussion instruments from all over the world and is continually adding to her collection.
Films
- Touch the Sound
(2004). Directed by Thomas Riedelsheimer, featuring a collaboration with Fred Frith. The farm where she grew up burned down during the production of the film, but her brother, Roger (who is featured in the film), and the animals, were unhurt.
References
- Voices of the Oral Deaf: Fourteen Role Models Speak Out
- Title Unavailable
- Profile: Leonard Slatkin: Last night of the maestro who hit a wrong note
- PAS.org: News
- 2007 honours list, BBC website