Ann Southam (1937-2010)
Early
on, Ann Southam (born in Winnipeg, Canada) was interested in visual
arts,
but she turned to composing at age 15. After studies in composition
with Samuel Dolin at the Royal Conservatory of Music, piano
studies with Pierre
Souvairan and studies in electronic music (1960-63) with Gustav
Ciamaga at the
University of Toronto, she began teaching at the Royal Conservatory of
Music in 1966. Her association with the New Dance Group of Canada
(later Toronto Dance Theatre) began in 1967, and she became
composer-in-residence in 1968. She composed many electronic scores for
this company, and for other dance companies and choreographers. In
1977, with Diana McIntosh, she helped to create Music Inter Alia,
which
promoted Winnipeg new music. Southam's early
works, especially for piano, are lyrical atonal pieces. Lyricism
remains an important element of the later electronic scores. She
later adopted 12-tone procedures,
though never strictly. In the 1980s, Southam began drawing away from
electronic music, while simultaneously fostering an increasing interest
in music by American minimalists Terry Riley and Steve Reich. In
the 1990s Southam
abandoned electroacoustic writing, creating wholly instrumental works.
Southam is one of Canada's first prominent women composers. When she
came of age as a composer, in the 1960s, it was comparatively uncommon
for women to be recognized in the field of music composition. She was
on the vanguard of a generation that profoundly and positively changed
the landscape and social mechanics of contemporary Canadian music.
Southam, an avowed feminist, proudly - and even provocatively -
incorporated this change in her music. Eve Egoyan and Gayle Young
observe that for Southam, ". . . there is a close connection between
composing for or playing the piano and other forms of work done by
hand, such as weaving, that reflect the nature of traditional women's
work - repetitive, life-sustaining, requiring time and patience. But
through it all, runs a thread of questioning . . ."- The Canadian Encyclopedia
COMPOSITIONS Southam Links ~ ~ ~ Works by Genre
Suite for Piano (1960)
Four Bagatelles, piano (1961)
Sea Flea, piano (1962) [for young performers]
Altitude Lake, piano (1963)
Rhapsodic Interlude, violin (1963)
Three in Blue, jazz preludes, piano (1965) [for young performers]
Quodlibet, for piano (1966)
Momentum, viola, cello, harpsichord, 2 percussionists and tape (1967)
Momentum: Head Witch, dance piece (1967) [music also by Couperin & Rameau; chor. by P. Beatty/New Dance Grp of Canada]
Mito, dance piece (1968) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
(The) Recitation, dance piece, tape? (1968) [choreographed by David Earle/Dance Concert, Toronto]
Trapezoid, dance piece, tape (1968) [music also by Donald Himes; chor. by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
3 + 3, dance piece (1968) [CBC]
Against Sleep, dance piece, tape (1968) [choreographed by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre] (1969?)
Bernarda Alba, dance piece (1969) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
Encounter, dance piece, tape (1969) [choreographed by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Voyage for Four Male Dancers, dance piece (1969) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Continuum, dance piece (1969) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
A Thread of Sand, tape (1969) [dance piece, 1969, choreographed by David Earle/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Portrait, dance piece (1970) [Baroque music arr. by Ann Southam; chor. by David Earle/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Untitled Solo, dance piece (1970) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Hot and Cold Heroes, dance pc (1970) [music also by The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix; chor. by P. Beatty/Toronto Dance Thtr]
Five Pieces in a Jazz Manner, piano (1970)
Five Shades of Blue, piano (1970)
Legend, dance piece (1971) [choreographed by David Earle/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Prospect Park, dance piece (1971) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Counterparts, orchestra and tape (1971-72)
Boat, River, Moon, tape (1972) [dance piece, 1972, choreographed by David Earle/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Figure in the Pit, dance piece (1973) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Sky-Sails, tape (1973)
Configurations, piano and tape (1973)
CounterPlay, string quartet and tape (1973)
L'Assassin Menace, tape (1974) [dance piece, 1975, Toronto Dance Theatre]
Antic Eden, dance piece (1974) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
Harold Morgan's Delicate Balance, dance piece (1973) [choreography by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre] (1974?)
Mythic Journey, tape (1974) [dance piece, 1974, Toronto Dance Theatre]
A Summer Song, dance piece (1974) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
Walls and Passageways, tape (1974) [dance piece, 1974, Toronto Dance Theatre]
Arrival of All Time Dancemakers, dance piece (1975) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
Me and My Friends, dance piece (1975) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
The Reprieve, tape (1975) [dance piece, 1976, choreographed by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Integruities, narrator, piano and tape (1975)
Nighthawks, tape (1976) [dance piece, 1976, choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Rude Awakening, tape (1976) [dance piece, 1976, Toronto Dance Theatre]
Interviews, narrator, piano and tape (1976)
Waves (Of Waves?), string orchestra (1976) [based on electronic wave forms]
Towards Green, flute, clarinet, violin and viola (1976)
Soundplay, tape (1978)
Networks, variable instrumentation (1978; rev. 1998 for clarinet, trumpet, violin, doublebass, piano and 2 percussion)
Seastill, tape (1979) [dance piece, 1979, choreographed by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Rivers: Set 1 (2 pieces), piano (1979; rev. 2004)
Rivers: Set 2 (8 pieces), piano (1979; rev. 1991; 2004) ["The Bells"]
The Story's Dream, tape (1980)
Cool Blue, Red Hot, piano (1980)
Rivers: Set 3 (9 pieces), piano (1981; rev. 2004)
Glass Houses, piano, w/opt. tape (1981) [No. 5; No. 9] [choreographed, 1983, by Christopher House]
Glass Houses [choreographed, 1983, by Christopher House/Toronto Dance Theatre] [from original piano work, 1981]
Four in Hand, 2 pianos (1981) [dance piece, 1984, chor. by Christopher House/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Music at the Centre, cl, pf, perc, slide projections & tape (1981) [music: Diana McIntosh; visuals: Vivian Sturdee;
tape: Ann Southam]
Tuning, viola and tape (1982; rev. 1985 at the request of, and in collaboration with, Rivka Golani - see Re-tuning, 1985)
The Emerging Ground, tape (1983) [dance piece, 1983, choreographed by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Rite for Future Time, dance piece (1983) [choreographed by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Painters and the Dance, dance work (1983) [music also by Daigneault & Baker; chor. by P. Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Rewind, tape (1984) [dance piece, 1985, choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Untitled Quartet, dance piece (1984) [choreographed by Christopher House(?)/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Ces Plaisirs, dance piece (1985) [Danny Grossman Dance Company]
Music for Slow Dancing, tape (1985) [also dance piece]
Re-tuning, viola and tape (1985; rev. 2006 for viola, voice and rhythm) [revision of earlier "Tuning", 1982]
Soundings for a New Piano, piano (1986)
Spatial View of Pond (After a Painting by Aiko Suzuki), piano and tape (1986)
Piano Quintet, piano and string quartet (1986)
Goblin Market, tape (1986) [dance piece, 1986, choreographed by Christopher House/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Alternate Currents, percussion music for solo performer (1987)
Broken Symmetry, dance piece (1987) [Dancemakers]
Throughways: Improvising Music, instrumental ensemble/chamber orchestra (1988)
In a Measure of Time, 2 pianos (1988)
Fluke Sound, tape (1989)
Passing Through, clarinet, trumpet, marimba, vibraphone, piano and doublebass (1991)
Song of the Varied Thrush, string quartet (1991)
This Time, flute, cello and piano (1992)
The Music So Far, clarinet and piano (1992)
Webster's Spin, string orchestra (1993)
Remembering Schubert, piano (1993)
Full Circles, trumpet, violin, vibraphone and piano (1996; rev. 2005)
Qualities of Consonance, piano (1998) (pub. Canadian Music Centre, 1998)
Music for Strings, string orchestra (2000)
Two by Two, piano (2000)
Figures: Music for Piano and String Orchestra (2001)
In Retrospect, piano (2004)
Parade of the Spirits, dance piece (2004) [choreographed by Danny Grossman/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Re-tuning, viola, voice and rhythm (2006) [revision of 1985 work for viola and tape]
Pond Life (20 movements), piano (2007?)
Simple Lines of Enquiry (12 movements), piano (2008)
accidental dances, dance piece (2008) [piano pieces choreographed by Julia Sasso]
WORKS BY GENRE Southam Links ~ top of page ~
Dance
Momentum: Head Witch, dance piece (1967) [music also by Couperin & Rameau; chor. by P. Beatty/New Dance Grp of Canada]
Mito, dance piece (1968) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
(The) Recitation, dance piece (1968) [choreographed by David Earle/Dance Concert, Toronto]
Trapezoid, dance piece, tape (1968) [music also by Donald Himes; chor. by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
3 + 3, dance piece (1968) [CBC]
Against Sleep, dance piece, tape (1968) [choreographed by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre] (1969?)
Bernarda Alba, dance piece (1969) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
Encounter, dance piece, tape (1969) [choreographed by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Voyage for Four Male Dancers, dance piece (1969) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Continuum, dance piece (1969) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Portrait, dance piece (1970) [Baroque music arr. by Ann Southam; chor. by David Earle/Toronto Dance Theatre]
A Thread of Sand, dance piece (1969) [choreographed by David Earle/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Untitled Solo, dance piece (1970) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Hot and Cold Heroes, dance pc (1970) [music also by The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix; chor. by P. Beatty/Toronto Dance Thtr]
Legend, dance piece (1971) [choreographed by David Earle/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Prospect Park, dance piece (1971) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Boat, River, Moon, dance piece, tape (1972) [choreographed by David Earle/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Figure in the Pit, dance piece (1973) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Harold Morgan's Delicate Balance, dance piece (1973) [choreography by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre] (1974?)
Antic Eden, dance piece (1974) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
Mythic Journey, dance piece (1974) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
A Summer Song, dance piece (1974) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
Walls and Passageways, dance piece (1974) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
Arrival of All Time Dancemakers, dance piece (1975) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
L'Assassin menacé, dance piece (1975) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
Me and My Friends, dance piece (1975) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
The Reprieve, dance piece, tape (1975) [orig. tape piece choreographed 1976 by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Nighthawks, dance piece (1976) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Rude Awakening, dance piece (1976) [Toronto Dance Theatre]
Seastill, dance piece, tape (1979) [choreographed by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Emerging Ground, dance piece (1983) [choreographed by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Glass Houses [choreographed, 1983, by Christopher House/Toronto Dance Theatre] [from original piano work, 1981]
Rite for Future Time, dance piece (1983) [choreographed by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Painters and the Dance, dance work (1983) [music also by Daigneault & Baker; chor. by P. Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Untitled Quartet, dance piece (1984) [choreographed by Christopher House(?)/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Four in Hand [choreographed 1984 by Christopher House/Toronto Dance Theatre] [from orig. work for 2 pianos, 1981]
Ces Plaisirs, dance piece (1985) [Danny Grossman Dance Company]
Rewind, dance piece (1985) [choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Music for Slow Dancing, tape (1985) [dance piece]
Goblin Market, dance piece (1986) [choreographed by Christopher House/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Broken Symmetry, dance piece (1987) [Dancemakers]
Parade of the Spirits, dance piece (2004) [choreographed by Danny Grossman/Toronto Dance Theatre]
accidental dances, dance piece (2008) [piano pieces choreographed by Julia Sasso]
Orchestra
Suite for Orchestra (1963?)
Counterparts, orchestra and tape (1971-72)
Waves (Of Waves?), string orchestra (1976) [based on electronic wave forms]
Throughways: Improvising Music, instrumental ensemble/chamber orchestra (1988)
Webster's Spin, string orchestra (1993)
Music for Strings, string orchestra (2000)
Soloist(s) w/Orchestra
Figures: Music for Piano and String Orchestra (2001)
Chamber
Momentum, viola, cello, harpsichord, 2 percussionists and tape (1967)
CounterPlay, string quartet and tape (1973)
Integruities, narrator, piano and tape (1975)
Interviews, narrator, piano and tape (1976)
Towards Green, flute, clarinet, violin and viola (1976)
Networks, variable instrumentation (1978; rev. 1998 for clarinet, trumpet, violin, doublebass, piano and 2 percussion)
Music at the Centre, cl, pf, perc, slide projections & tape (1981) [music: Diana McIntosh; visuals: Vivian Sturdee;
tape: Ann Southam]
Piano Quintet, piano and string quartet (1986)
Throughways: Improvising Music, instrumental ensemble/chamber orchestra (1988)
Passing Through, clarinet, trumpet, marimba, vibraphone, piano and doublebass (1991)
Song of the Varied Thrush, string quartet (1991)
This Time, flute, cello and piano (1992)
Full Circles, trumpet, violin, vibraphone and piano (1996; rev. 2005)
Re-tuning, viola, voice and rhythm (2006) [revision of 1985 work for viola and tape]
Solo Instrument
Rhapsodic Interlude, violin (1963)
Tuning, viola and tape (1982; rev. 1985 at the request of, and in collaboration with, Rivka Golani - see Re-tuning, 1985)
Re-tuning, viola and tape (1985; rev. 2006 for viola, voice and rhythm) [revision of earlier "Tuning", 1982]
Alternate Currents, percussion music for solo performer (1987)
The Music So Far, clarinet and piano (1992)
Piano
Suite for Piano (1960)
Four Bagatelles, piano (1961) (pub. Berandol Music, 1974)
Sea Flea, piano (1962) [for young performers]
Altitude Lake, piano (1963)
Three in Blue, jazz preludes, piano (1965) (pub. Don Mills/BMI Canada, 1966) [for young performers]
Quodlibet, for piano (1966) (pub. Don Mills/BMI Canada, 1967)
Five Pieces in a Jazz Manner, piano (1970)
Five Shades of Blue, piano (1970) (pub. Berandol, 1981)
Configurations, piano and tape (1973)
Rivers: Set 1 (2 pieces), piano (1979; rev. 2004)
- 1st set, #1 (5:08)
- 1st set, #2 (6:33)
Rivers: Set 2 (8 pieces), piano (1979; rev. 1991; 2004) ["The Bells"]
- 2nd set, #1 (7:31)
- 2nd set, #2 (5:24)
- 2nd set, #3 (6:17)
- 2nd set, #4 (6:16)
- 2nd set, #5 (5:31)
- 2nd set, #6 (2:37)
- 2nd set, #7 (3:21)
- 2nd set, #8 (6:59)
Cool Blue, Red Hot, piano (1980)
Rivers: Set 3 (9 pieces), piano (1981; rev. 2004)
- 3rd set, #1 (8:40)
- 3rd set, #2 (6:09)
- 3rd set, #3 (5:05)
- 3rd set, #4 (1:51)
- 3rd set, #5 (5:14)
- 3rd set, #6 (5:12)
- 3rd set, #7 (3:46)
- 3rd set, #8 (11:11)
- 3rd set, #9 (12:58)
Glass Houses, piano, w/opt. tape (1981)
[ - No. 1]
[ - No. 2]
[ - No. 3]
[ - No. 4]
- No. 5 (1981)
[ - No. 6]
[ - No. 7]
[ - No. 8]
- No. 9
Four in Hand, 2 pianos (1981)
Soundings for a New Piano, piano (1986) (pub. Brandon, Man, 1986)
Spatial View of Pond (After a Painting by Aiko Suzuki), piano and tape (1986)
In a Measure of Time, 2 pianos (1988)
Remembering Schubert, piano (1993)
Qualities of Consonance, piano (1998) (pub. Canadian Music Centre, 1998)
Two by Two, piano (2000)
In Retrospect, piano (2004)
Pond Life, piano (2007?)
- Spatial View of Pond 1
- Noisy River
- Soundstill IV
- Soundstill VI
- Soundstill VII
- Soundstill VIII
- Soundstill IX
- Soundstill X
- Commotion Creek
- Soundstill V
- Fidget Creek
- Soundstill I
- Soundstill II
- Soundstill III
- Fiddle Creek
- Spatial View of Pond 2
- Pond Life I
- Pond Life II
- Pond Life III
- Pond Life IV
Simple Lines of Enquiry (12 movements), piano (2008)
Electronic
A Thread of Sand, tape (1969) (50') [also dance piece choreographed, 1969, by David Earle/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Legend, tape (1971) (30') [dance piece]
Boat, River, Moon, tape (1972) (24') [also dance piece chor., 1972, choreographed by David Earle/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Sky-Sails, tape (1973)
L'Assassin Menace, tape (1974) [also dance piece, 1975, Toronto Dance Theatre]
Walls and Passageways, tape (1974) (12') [also dance piece, 1974, Toronto Dance Theatre]
Mythic Journey, tape (1974) [also dance piece, 1974, Toronto Dance Theatre]
The Reprieve, tape (1975) (26') [also dance piece choreographed, 1976, by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Nighthawks, tape (1976) [also dance piece, 1976, choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Rude Awakening, tape (1976) [also dance piece, 1976, Toronto Dance Theatre]
Soundplay, tape (1978)
Seastill, tape (1979) (15') [also dance piece, 1979, choreographed by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
The Story's Dream, tape (1980)
The Emerging Ground, tape (1983) [also dance piece, 1983, choreographed by Patricia Beatty/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Rewind, tape (1984) (12') [also dance piece, 1985, choreography by Peter Randazzo/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Music for Slow Dancing, tape (1985) [also dance piece]
Goblin Market, tape (1986) [also dance piece, 1986, choreographed by Christopher House/Toronto Dance Theatre]
Fluke Sound, tape (1989) (10')
Several other electronic works, mostly for dance; also scores for Toronto Arts Productions
SOUTHAM LINKS Works by Genre ~ top of page ~
Ann Southam, A One-Woman Tone Poem (Robert Everett-Green, The Globe and Mail)
Ann Southam - If Only I Could Sing (Kalvos & Damian/cec.concordia.ca)
Canadian Composer Southam Brought an Engagingly Quiet Life Force to the Piano Keyboard (John Terauds, Sound Mind)
CentreStreams: The Launch of the Ann Southam Audio Archive at the Canadian Music Centre (Michelle Arbuckle)
Eve Egoyan's Miraculous One-Hour Meditation (John Terauds, Sound Mind, thestar.com)
Eve Egoyan Plays Southam’s Simple Lines of Enquiry (Stanley Fefferman, showtime magazine.ca)
Obsession, Coming to a Brain Near You (David McCullum, MusicWorks, Issue #101) *** go to page 6-7 ***
Southam - Rivers (American Record Guide, July 2005)
Toronto Composer Ann Southam Dies (CBC News)
York's Petrowska Quilico Premieres Ann Southam's Cycle "Rivers" (LSM Newswire)
Composer's website [none at the moment - see Canadian Music Centre]
Southam @ Wikipedia
Southam @ The Canadian Encyclopedia
Southam @ Canadian Music Centre
Southam @ Classical Composers Database
Southam @ CMC Audio Gallery
Southam @ Dance Collection Danse: Boat, River, Moon and Legend and A Thread of Sand
Southam @ Dancetheatre David Earle/Historical Repertoire
Southam @ Danny Grossman Dance Company
Southam @ Diana McIntosh - Music Inter Alia History
Southam @ Facebook
Southam @ International Who's Who in Classical Music 2003 (Europa Publications, books.google.com)
Southam @ IrritableHedgehog
Southam @ Kalvos & Damian
Southam @ MusicWorks (Issue # 101)
Southam @ MySpaceMusic
Southam @ Naxos
Southam @ New Music Concerts/Rien à voir also here [click Foley/Croall/Southam]
Southam @ Norton/Grove Dictionary of Women Composers (Macmillan Press, books.google.com)
Southam @ The Rest Is Noise
Southam @ The School of Toronto Dance Theatre also here
Southam @ Sequenza21
Southam @ Women & Music: A History (Karin Pendle, Indiana Univ Pr, books.google.com)
Streaming Audio
Southam @ Canadian Music Centre/The Composer's Chair
Southam @ CMC Boutique
Southam @ MusicWorks (Issue # 101)
Southam @ Other Minds
Southam @ Rhapsody
Recordings
Southam @ ArkivMusic
Southam @ ClassicsOnline
Southam @ CMC/The Reprieve (1975)
Southam @ CMC Audio Gallery/The Reprieve (1975)
Southam @ CMC Boutique/Canadian Composer Portraits: Ann Southam
Southam @ CMS Boutique/Simple Lines of Enquiry
Southam @ Discogs
Southam @ Music & Vison
- Pond Life also @ MySpaceMusic
- Simple Lines of Enquiry
Southam @ MySpaceMusic
Southam @ WNYC/New Sounds (2/28/05)
Southam @ York Fine Arts Recording Label
Southam @ YouTube
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