56-573: Syd Dale (20 May 1924 – 15 August 1994) was an English self-taught composer and arranger of big band , easy listening and library music . His themes and underscore music played an important role on television, radio and advertising media of the 1960s and 1970s and many cues are still in use today. Dale was born in York , and started as an apprentice technician at Rowntree's chocolate factory at 16. Soon big band music became his passion. He spent as much time as possible listening to bands and studying
112-532: A singer in a choir , as a player in a youth orchestra , or as a performer on a solo instrument (e.g., piano , pipe organ , or violin ). Teens aspiring to be composers can continue their postsecondary studies in a variety of formal training settings, including colleges, conservatories, and universities. Conservatories , which are the standard musical training system in countries such as France and Canada, provide lessons and amateur orchestral and choral singing experience for composition students. Universities offer
168-632: A Go Go" in 1965, and "It Started with Eve"/"The Hellraisers" in 1966. Both were taken up by radio and television, with "The Hellraisers" used as the theme tune to Orlando , an Associated Rediffusion children's television thriller serial starring Sam Kydd which ran for 76 episodes from 1965 to 1968. Dale entered the world of library music in 1965, when he produced a set of 16 pieces for music publishing company Josef Weinberger, recorded at Lansdowne Studios . They were issued that year on two 10-inch vinyl LPs in Weinberger's Audio series, and ten years later as
224-458: A Swinging Christmas on the Chevron label. In the early 1990s, Meryn Cadell sampled "Walk and Talk" for the spoken word monologue "The Sweater," which was used by skater Josée Chouinard in one of her award-winning routines. The rapper Eazy-E also sampled the track for his performance in "Gimme Datt Nutt." His music is still used in productions today. For example, his "Beauty Parade" was used in
280-467: A breeze, to avant-garde music from the 20th century that uses graphic notation , to text compositions such as Aus den Sieben Tagen , to computer programs that select sounds for musical pieces. Music that makes heavy use of randomness and chance is called aleatoric music , and is associated with contemporary composers active in the 20th century, such as John Cage , Morton Feldman , and Witold Lutosławski . The nature and means of individual variation of
336-426: A composition professor , ensemble experience, and graduate courses in music history and music theory, along with one or two concerts featuring the composition student's pieces. A master's degree in music (referred to as an M.Mus. or M.M.) is often a required minimum credential for people who wish to teach composition at a university or conservatory. A composer with an M.Mus. could be an adjunct professor or instructor at
392-412: A culture eventually developed whereby faithfulness to the composer's written intention came to be highly valued (see, for example, Urtext edition ). This musical culture is almost certainly related to the high esteem (bordering on veneration) in which the leading classical composers are often held by performers. The historically informed performance movement has revived to some extent the possibility of
448-432: A given place is referred to as performance practice , whereas interpretation is generally used to mean the individual choices of a performer. Although a musical composition often has a single author, this is not always the case. A work of music can have multiple composers, which often occurs in popular music when a band collaborates to write a song, or in musical theatre , where the songs may be written by one person,
504-441: A performer of Western popular music creates a "cover" of an earlier song, there is little expectation of exact rendition of the original; nor is exact faithfulness necessarily highly valued (with the possible exception of "note-for-note" transcriptions of famous guitar solos ). In Western art music, the composer typically orchestrates their compositions, but in musical theatre and pop music, songwriters may hire an arranger to do
560-473: A range of composition programs, including bachelor's degrees, Master of Music degrees, and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees. As well, there are a variety of other training programs such as classical summer camps and festivals, which give students the opportunity to get coaching from composers. Bachelor's degrees in composition (referred to as B.Mus. or B.M) are four-year programs that include individual composition lessons, amateur orchestra/choral experience, and
616-453: A sequence of courses in music history, music theory, and liberal arts courses (e.g., English literature), which give the student a more well-rounded education. Usually, composition students must complete significant pieces or songs before graduating. Not all composers hold a B.Mus. in composition; composers may also hold a B.Mus. in music performance or music theory. Master of Music degrees (M.mus.) in composition consists of private lessons with
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#1732851039914672-459: A tendency to cluster in specific cities throughout history. Based on over 12,000 prominent composers listed in Grove Music Online and using word count measurement techniques, the most important cities for classical music can be quantitatively identified. Paris has been the main hub for western classical music in all periods. It was ranked fifth in the 15th and 16th centuries but first in
728-676: A university, but it would be difficult in the 2010s to obtain a tenure track professor position with this degree. To become a tenure track professor, many universities require a doctoral degree . In composition, the key doctoral degree is the Doctor of Musical Arts , rather than the PhD ; the PhD is awarded in music, but typically for subjects such as musicology and music theory . Doctor of Musical Arts (referred to as D.M.A., DMA, D.Mus.A. or A.Mus.D) degrees in composition provide an opportunity for advanced study at
784-487: A very difficult time breaking through and getting the credit they deserve." During the Medieval eras, most of the art music was created for liturgical (religious) purposes and due to the views about the roles of women that were held by religious leaders, few women composed this type of music, with the nun Hildegard von Bingen being among the exceptions. Most university textbooks on the history of music discuss almost exclusively
840-1400: A vinyl LP, The Wonderful World of Man , which contained recordings of the sounds of the Isle of Man, where Ronnie Aldrich lived from the 1960s onwards. This record was sold in the island to tourists. Decca Discography "The New Big Band" Melody and Percussion for Two Pianos (1961) Ronnie Aldrich and His Two Pianos (1962) The Magnificent Pianos of Ronnie Aldrich (1963) The Romantic Pianos of Ronnie Aldrich (1964) Christmas with Ronnie Aldrich (1964) The Magic Mood of Ronnie Aldrich (1965) That Aldrich Feeling (1965) All-Time Piano Hits (1966) Where The Sun Is (1966) Two Pianos in Hollywood (1967) Two Pianos Today! (1967) For Young Lovers (1968) This Way "In" (1968) It's Happening Now (1969) Destination Love (1969) Togetherness (1970) Released as two separate albums in US: Here Come The Hits! (+) and Close to You (++) Love Story (1971) The Phase 4 World of Burt Bacharach (1971) Great Themes to Remember (1972) Invitation to Love (1972) Come to Where The Love Is (1972) Soft and Wicked (1973) Top of The World (1973) The Way We Were (1974) In The Gentle Hours (1975) Love (1975) Reflections (1976) Today in
896-450: Is a loose term that generally refers to any person who writes music. More specifically, it is often used to denote people who are composers by occupation, or those who work in the tradition of Western classical music . Writers of exclusively or primarily songs may be called composers, but since the 20th century the terms ' songwriter ' or ' singer-songwriter ' are more often used, particularly in popular music genres. In other contexts,
952-627: Is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music , or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. The term is descended from Latin , compōnō ; literally "one who puts together". The earliest use of the term in a musical context given by the Oxford English Dictionary is from Thomas Morley 's 1597 A Plain and Easy Introduction to Practical Music , where he says "Some wil [ sic ] be good descanters [...] and yet wil be but bad composers". "Composer"
1008-404: Is termed "interpretation". Different performers' interpretations of the same work of music can vary widely, in terms of the tempos that are chosen and the playing or singing style or phrasing of the melodies. Composers and songwriters who present their music are interpreting, just as much as those who perform the music of others. The standard body of choices and techniques present at a given time and
1064-540: The SpongeBob SquarePants episode " Spy Buddies ", and in The IT Crowd episode "Men Without Women." In the television comedy series Episodes , Matt LeBlanc uses the tune "Two Time" as his iPhone's ringtone. The composition known either as "Man Friday" or "The Penthouse Suite" (from KPM 1049 Chorus and Orchestra , 1969), was used as the theme tune to LWT 's Tarrant on TV and was also used extensively in
1120-589: The Baroque music era, many composers were employed by aristocrats or as church employees. During the Classical period , composers began to organize more public concerts for profit, which helped composers to be less dependent on aristocratic or church jobs. This trend continued in the Romantic music era in the 19th century. In the 20th century, composers began to seek employment as professors in universities and conservatories. In
1176-597: The Cyril Stapleton Show Band. Dale married his wife Audrey while he was still working at Rowntree's. In 1958 the twins Ian and Erica were born, and the family were living in Maida Vale . In 1960 they moved to 1, Turpington Lane in Bromley . A decade later he was able to buy the mansion Kerchesters, Waterhouse Lane, Kingswood , Surrey, from where he ran his own studios and record label. Dale died on 15 August 1994, at
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#17328510399141232-469: The Decca recordings have been released on CD format by Vocalion. Many of his sessions for radio stations have been released by Apple iTunes in m4a format. He was appointed musical director at Thames Television , and thus was widely known as the musical director for the television programme The Benny Hill Show . He was married twice and had a daughter from his first marriage. At the time of his death, he
1288-519: The Renaissance music era, composers typically worked for aristocratic employers. While aristocrats typically required composers to produce a significant amount of religious music, such as Masses , composers also penned many non-religious songs on the topic of courtly love : the respectful, reverential love of a great woman from afar. Courtly love songs were very popular during the Renaissance era. During
1344-400: The orchestration of the accompaniment parts and writing of the overture is done by an orchestrator, and the words may be written by a third person. A piece of music can also be composed with words, images, or, in the 20th and 21st centuries, computer programs that explain or notate how the singer or musician should create musical sounds. Examples of this range from wind chimes jingling in
1400-858: The 12-inch album Strictly for the Birds/Straight Down the Middle . Included was the track "Marching There and Back," which became familiar from 1970 as the signature tune to the BBC television series Screen Test . Then Dale met Robin Phillips of the KPM Music Recorded Library at his office in 21 Denmark Street, and began contributing to KPM's 1000 Series of library records, such as KPM 1002 The Sounds of Syd Dale (1966). Others with major Syd Dale contributions included KPM 1017 Impact and Action , and KPM 1018 Tension and Suspense , which both proved popular in
1456-427: The 17th to 20th centuries inclusive. London was the second most meaningful city: eighth in the 15th century, seventh in the 16th, fifth in the 17th, second in the 18th and 19th centuries, and fourth in the 20th century. Rome topped the rankings in the 15th century, dropped to second in the 16th and 17th centuries, eighth in the 18th century, ninth in the 19th century but back at sixth in the 20th century. Berlin appears in
1512-422: The 20th century, composers also earned money from the sales of their works, such as sheet music publications of their songs or pieces or as sound recordings of their works. In 1993, American musicologist Marcia Citron asked, "Why is music composed by women so marginal to the standard 'classical' repertoire?" Citron "examines the practices and attitudes that have led to the exclusion of women composers from
1568-751: The Squadcats Decca Discography "Ronnie Aldrich And His Two Pianos" (PFS is the Decca (UK) original catalogue number; SP is the London label (USA) version) / (*) Also issued as "Romantic Screen Themes" in Japan (London SLC4484) / (**) Togetherness (UK double-disc set) was issued as two separate albums in the USA Decca (Polygram) Discography (One Piano) Amberjack Discography (One Piano) Seaward Music recordings licensed to EMI (One Piano) Seaward also issued
1624-577: The United States and Australian markets. KPM soon became part of the international EMI Group , and Dale was asked by EMI's Capitol Records in the US to arrange and conduct an album of music from the TV shows Bonanza and The High Chaparral . In 1971, he founded his own Amphonic Music company and record label for the express purpose of recording and producing his compositions and supplying library and production music to
1680-652: The Way (1975, credited as the Concert Pop Orchestra), AMPS 114 Sounds 80 (1975), and AMPS 120 Where the Action Is (1977). Among Syd Dale's many production music pieces, the bongo drum and harpsichord -driven "Cuban Presto" (originally released on the 1966 KPM album Accent on Percussion ), was used by WPIX (Channel 11) in New York City as the theme for its late-night movie show, The Channel 11 Film Festival , from
1736-461: The Western world, before the Romantic period of the 19th century, composition almost always went side by side with a combination of either singing, instructing and theorizing . Even in a conventional Western piece of instrumental music, in which all of the melodies , chords , and basslines are written out in musical notation, the performer has a degree of latitude to add artistic interpretation to
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1792-416: The age of 70. In the late 1950s he acted as musical director on Six-Five Special (1957), Oh Boy (1958) and Braden's Week (1968), and also forged links with record labels Decca and Island Records , where he worked as an arranger. His music, which emphasized melody and harmony with intricate arrangements, was composed for many television and radio projects. Decca issued the single "C'mon In"/"Disc
1848-531: The arrangements. Three years later, in 1945, he left the factory and joined several local bands as pianist and arranger. In 1952 he was recruited as a pianist with The Squadronaires , the dance orchestra of the Royal Air Force, where he worked with the conductor Ronnie Aldrich . The band toured extensively. In February 1953 they recorded Dale's arrangement of "Jeepers Creepers," his first recording session. He also played in several London hotels, and later joined
1904-517: The definition of composition is broad enough for the creation of popular and traditional music songs and instrumental pieces and to include spontaneously improvised works like those of free jazz performers and African percussionists such as Ewe drummers . During the Middle Ages, most composers worked for the Catholic church and composed music for religious services such as plainchant melodies. During
1960-404: The episode "Speed 3" of Father Ted to introduce libidinous milkman Pat Mustard. Dale's tracks have been widely used by NFL Films over some four decades; his track "Artful Dodger" is given prominent use in such films as the official film recapping Super Bowl V . The following list is only a small sample of his work. Composer A composer is a person who writes music . The term
2016-503: The guidance of faculty composition professors. Some schools require DMA composition students to present concerts of their works, which are typically performed by singers or musicians from the school. The completion of advanced coursework and a minimum B average are other typical requirements of a D.M.A program. During a D.M.A. program, a composition student may get experience teaching undergraduate music students. Some composers did not complete composition programs, but focused their studies on
2072-552: The highest artistic and pedagogical level, requiring usually an additional 54+ credit hours beyond a master's degree (which is about 30+ credits beyond a bachelor's degree). For this reason, admission is highly selective. Students must submit examples of their compositions. If available, some schools will also accept video or audio recordings of performances of the student's pieces. Examinations in music history, music theory, ear training/dictation, and an entrance examination are required. Students must prepare significant compositions under
2128-405: The increased use by composers of more detailed scoring in the form of dynamics, articulation et cetera; composers became uniformly more explicit in how they wished their music to be interpreted, although how strictly and minutely these are dictated varies from one composer to another. Because of this trend of composers becoming increasingly specific and detailed in their instructions to the performer,
2184-406: The late 1960s to the 1980s. In 1967, he created a piece entitled "Walk and Talk," which was used for many years on BBC2 as the countdown music before television transmitter information bulletins were read over the air. It also appeared in the 1967 ABC television animated series Spider-Man along with many other Dale library tracks. His "C'mon In" (released as a Decca single in its own right)
2240-400: The mid-20th century was Nadia Boulanger . Philips states that "[d]uring the 20th century the women who were composing/playing gained far less attention than their male counterparts." Women today are being taken more seriously in the realm of concert music, though the statistics of recognition, prizes, employment, and overall opportunities are still biased toward men. Famous composers have
2296-419: The mind of the musician"—and subsequently written and passed through written documents . In the development of European classical music , the function of composing music initially did not have much greater importance than that of performing it. The preservation of individual compositions did not receive enormous attention and musicians generally had no qualms about modifying compositions for performance. In
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2352-400: The music are varied, depending on the musical culture in the country and the time period it was written. For instance, music composed in the Baroque era , particularly in slow tempos, often was written in bare outline, with the expectation that the performer would add improvised ornaments to the melody line during a performance. Such freedom generally diminished in later eras, correlating with
2408-628: The only son of a store manager. He started playing the piano at three years old and was educated at the Harvey Grammar School in Folkestone and learned violin at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. He travelled to India in the late 30s ahead of World War Two to play jazz and first gained fame in the 1940s as the leader of a Royal Air Force band called The Squadronaires who had a twenty-year-long career before they disbanded in 1964. Aldrich
2464-435: The orchestration. In some cases, a pop songwriter may not use notation at all, and, instead, compose the song in their mind and then play or record it from memory. In jazz and popular music, notable recordings by influential performers are given the weight that written scores play in classical music. The study of composition has traditionally been dominated by the examination of methods and practice of Western classical music, but
2520-464: The performance of voice or an instrument or on music theory , and developed their compositional skills over the course of a career in another musical occupation. Ronnie Aldrich Ronald Frank Aldrich (15 February 1916 – 30 September 1993) was a British easy listening and jazz pianist , arranger , conductor and composer . He was born Ronald Frank Aldrich on 15 February 1916 in Erith, England,
2576-408: The performer elaborating seriously the music as given in the score, particularly for Baroque music and music from the early Classical period . The movement might be considered a way of creating greater faithfulness to the original in works composed at a time that expected performers to improvise . In genres other than classical music, the performer generally has more freedom; thus for instance when
2632-479: The received ' canon ' of performed musical works." She argues that in the 1800s, women composers typically wrote art songs for performance in small recitals rather than symphonies intended for performance with an orchestra in a large hall, with the latter works being seen as the most important genre for composers; since women composers did not write many symphonies, they were deemed to be not notable as composers. According to Abbey Philips, "women musicians have had
2688-752: The recording development of playing two pianos in his recordings (the Decca Phase 4 Stereo series). He recorded for the Decca Record Company Ltd in the 1960s and 1970s, moving to Seaward Ltd (his own company) licensed to EMI in the 1980s. He also regularly broadcast on BBC Radio 2 with his own orchestra as well as with the BBC Radio Orchestra and the BBC Scottish Radio Orchestra , based at BBC Glasgow . Aldrich also recorded special tracks that were released by Reader's Digest. All
2744-430: The role of male composers. As well, very few works by women composers are part of the standard repertoire of classical music. In Concise Oxford History of Music , " Clara Shumann [ sic ] is one of the only female composers mentioned", but other notable women composers of the common practice period include Fanny Mendelssohn and Cécile Chaminade , and arguably the most influential teacher of composers during
2800-512: The television, film and radio business. Initially it operated from 8- Mortimer Street, close to the BBC, but later moved into a Surrey mansion, Kerchesters, Waterhouse Lane in Kingswood . The first Amphonic album was Big Band Sounds of Today (AMPS 101), including music by Brian Fahey , James Clarke , Malcolm Lockyer , Dick Walter, Ronnie Hazlehurst and Ronnie Aldrich . Other Amphonic LPs, including compositions by Dale include AMPS 113 Melody all
2856-416: The term 'composer' can refer to a literary writer, or more rarely and generally, someone who combines pieces into a whole. Across cultures and traditions composers may write and transmit music in a variety of ways. In much popular music, the composer writes a composition , and it is then transmitted via oral tradition . Conversely, in some Western classical traditions music may be composed aurally—i.e. "in
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#17328510399142912-440: The top ten rankings only in the 18th century and was ranked third most important city in both the 19th and 20th centuries. New York City entered the rankings in the 19th century (in fifth place) and stood at second rank in the 20th century. The patterns are very similar for a sample of 522 top composers. Professional classical composers often have a background in performing classical music during their childhood and teens, either as
2968-422: The work, by such means as by varying their articulation and phrasing , choosing how long to make fermatas (held notes) or pauses, and — in the case of bowed string instruments, woodwinds or brass instruments — deciding whether to use expressive effects such as vibrato or portamento . For a singer or instrumental performer, the process of deciding how to perform music that has been previously composed and notated
3024-580: Was educated at The Harvey Grammar School , Folkestone , and taught violin at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama . Before the Second World War , he went to India to play jazz and first gained fame in the 1940s with the Squadronaires , which he led from 1951, when the band was then billed as Ronnie Aldrich and The Squadronaires, up until their disbanding in 1964. Aldrich was noteworthy for
3080-911: Was married to Edith Mary Aldrich (1919-2006), his wife for more than 30 years. In later years he moved to the Isle of Man where he lived with his wife in Strathallan Castle, formerly the Clifton Hotel, in Port St. Mary , but he continued to work in London, where he remained a member of the local Branch of the Musicians Union . He died of prostate cancer at age 77 on 30 September 1993 in Clatterbridge , Cheshire . He found his final rest at St. Luke's Churchyard, Baldwin Braddan, Middle, Isle of Man. Ronnie Aldrich and
3136-497: Was the signature tune to BBC Radio 2's Breakfast Special in the late sixties. Another production piece, "Here in a Smoky Room," composed by Brian Fahey and performed by Dale as the Otto Keller Band on AMPS 101, was broadcast multiple times on BBC test card transmission music soundtracks in the early 1970s. In 1973, under the pseudonym Dali Caldis, Dale released a big band swing jazz Christmas album entitled Sounds for
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