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Honorary Doctor of Music, 2011
Bio | Citation

Mark-Anthony Turnage is a classical music composer of truly global stature. He is one of the most performed international composers of his generation and is revered as one the most relevant communicators and creators of today. His orchestral and operatic music ranges from theatrical to contemporary. Often forthright and confrontational, he often produces compositions that reflect the harsh realities of modern life.

Mark-Anthony's music has a characteristic personal style, with energy, colourful orchestration, prominent percussion and strong hints of jazz. Alongside the influences of Britten and Stravinsky, his one-time teacher Oliver Knussen, John Lambert, and later Gunther Schuller, he found room for Miles Davies, and even Prince. This rich and eclectic background has given his music an edge and potency which makes it easily identifiable.

Born in Essex in 1960, Mark-Anthony began composing at the age of nine. His parents and school were supportive of his very obvious musical talent. Aged just 14, he was studying at the junior section of the Royal College of Music.

Mark-Anthony has composed numerous orchestral and chamber works and three highly acclaimed operas. Greek was his first, performed in 1988 at the Munich Biennale. It is based on Steven Berkoff's adaptation of Oedipus the King. The Silver Tassie followed in 2000 and is based on the play by Seán O'Casey. Other works include Three Screaming Popes, after the paintings by Francis Bacon; Your Rockaby, a concerto for saxophone and orchestra; and Yet Another Set To, a concerto for trombone and orchestra dedicated to Christian Lindberg.

In 1990, the post of Radcliffe Composer in Association with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra was created and Mark-Anthony was appointed. In 2005 he was appointed as the Royal College of Music's Research Fellow in Composition. In 2006, he was named a co-composer-in-residence of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and in the same year he married cellist Gabriella 'Gabi' Swallow, for whom he wrote the 2010 piece GG. They have a son, Milo and a daughter Amelie.

Mark-Anthony's most recent opera, Anna Nicole, charts the rise and fall of the American glamour model and reality TV hostess. The collaboration with writer Richard Thomas charts the short life of Anna Nicole Smith who famously married a billionaire who was 62-years her senior before dying tragically at the age of 39 from a drugs overdose. The performances were sell outs and the opera received top reviews from the worldwide media.

Over the past three decades Mark-Anthony has worked with world-famous conductors, including Sir Simon Rattle, and has been attached to prestigious institutions such as English National Opera and the BBC. Most recently his work was performed at The Sydney Opera House by the YouTube Symphony Orchestra.

An outstanding example of what can be achieved through sheer musical talent, Mark-Anthony Turnage is a modern-day music entrepreneur who has achieved the globalisation of his creative talents. There are many students on our arts, music and business programmes, past and present, who would like to emulate his phenomenal success.

Areas Of Interest: Music, Arts, Business
Faculty: Arts, Law & Social Sciences
Citation:

"Vice Chancellor, it is my pleasure to read the citation for Mark-Anthony Turnage for the award of Doctor of Music.

Mark-Anthony Turnage is a classical music composer of truly global stature. He is one of the most performed international composers of his generation and is revered as one the most relevant communicators and creators of today. His orchestral and operatic music ranges from theatrical to contemporary. Often forthright and confrontational, he often produces compositions that reflect the harsh realities of modern life.

Mark-Anthony's music has a characteristic personal style, with energy, colourful orchestration, prominent percussion and strong hints of jazz. Alongside the influences of Britten and Stravinsky, his one-time teacher Oliver Knussen, John Lambert, and later Gunther Schuller, he found room for Miles Davies, and even Prince. This rich and eclectic background has given his music an edge and potency which makes it easily identifiable.

Born in Essex in 1960, Mark-Anthony began composing at the age of nine. His parents and school were supportive of his very obvious musical talent. Aged just 14, he was studying at the junior section of the Royal College of Music.

Mark-Anthony has composed numerous orchestral and chamber works and three highly acclaimed operas. Greek was his first, performed in 1988 at the Munich Biennale. It is based on Steven Berkoff's adaptation of Oedipus the King. The Silver Tassie followed in 2000 and is based on the play by Seán O'Casey. Other works include Three Screaming Popes, after the paintings by Francis Bacon; Your Rockaby, a concerto for saxophone and orchestra; and Yet Another Set To, a concerto for trombone and orchestra dedicated to Christian Lindberg.

In 1990, the post of Radcliffe Composer in Association with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra was created and Mark-Anthony was appointed. In 2005 he was appointed as the Royal College of Music's Research Fellow in Composition. In 2006, he was named a co-composer-in-residence of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and in the same year he married cellist Gabriella 'Gabi' Swallow, for whom he wrote the 2010 piece GG. They have a son, Milo and a daughter Amelie.

Mark-Anthony's most recent opera, Anna Nicole, charts the rise and fall of the American glamour model and reality TV hostess. The collaboration with writer Richard Thomas charts the short life of Anna Nicole Smith who famously married a billionaire who was 62-years her senior before dying tragically at the age of 39 from a drugs overdose. The performances were sell outs and the opera received top reviews from the worldwide media.

Over the past three decades Mark-Anthony has worked with world-famous conductors, including Sir Simon Rattle, and has been attached to prestigious institutions such as English National Opera and the BBC. Most recently his work was performed at The Sydney Opera House by the YouTube Symphony Orchestra.

An outstanding example of what can be achieved through sheer musical talent, Mark-Anthony Turnage is a modern-day music entrepreneur who has achieved the globalisation of his creative talents. There are many students on our arts, music and business programmes, past and present, who would like to emulate his phenomenal success.

Vice Chancellor, it is my pleasure to present Mark-Anthony Turnage for the award of Doctor of Music, honoris causa."

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