Orr, Robin (actually, Robert Kemsley)

Orr, Robin (actually, Robert Kemsley), Scottish composer, organist, and teacher; b. Brechin, June 2, 1909. He studied at the Royal Coll. of Music in London (1926–29), and then was an organ scholar at Pembroke Coll., Cambridge (Mus.B., 1932); subsequently took his Mus.B. (1938) and Mus.D. (1950) at the Univ. of Cambridge; he also studied composition with Casella at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena (1934) and with Boulanger in Paris (1938). He was director of music at Sidcot School in Somerset (1933–36), and then was an asst. lecturer at the Univ. of Leeds (1936–38). From 1938 to 1941, and again from 1945 to 1951, he was organist and director of music at St. John’s Coll., Cambridge. From 1947 to 1956 he was a lecturer at the Univ. of Cambridge, and from 1950 to 1956 he was a prof. at the Royal Coll. of Music in London. After serving as the Gardiner prof. of music at the Univ. of Glasgow from 1956 to 1965, he was prof. of composition at the Univ. of Cambridge from 1965 to 1976. From 1962 to 1976 he served as the first chairman of the Scottish Opera in Glasgow. He was director of the Welsh National Opera in Cardiff from 1977 to 1983. In 1972 he was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire. As a composer, Orr has been particularly adept at investing traditional forms with an individual voice of distinction.

Works

dramatic:A Winter’s Tale, incidental music to Shakepeare’s play (1947); Oedipus et Colonus, incidental music to Sophocles’s play (1950); Deirdre of the Sorrows, incidental music (1951); Full Circle, opera (Perth, April 10, 1968); Hermiston, opera (Edinburgh, Aug. 27, 1975); On the Razzie, comic opera (1986; Glasgow, June 27, 1988). orch.:The Prospect of Whitby, overture (1948); Italian Overture (1952); Rhapsody for Strings (1956); 3 syms.: No. 1, Symphony in 1 Movement (Glasgow, Dec. 12, 1963), No. 2 (1970; Glasgow, March 28, 1971), and No. 3 (Llandaff, June 14, 1978); Sinfonietta Helvetica (1990; Glasgow, Dec. 6, 1991). chamber: Cello Sonatina (1938); Violin Sonatina (1941); Viola Sonata (1947); Serenade for String Trio (1948); Sicilienne and Chaconne for Viola and Piano (1949); 2 serenades for Horn and Piano (1951,1960); Duo for Violin and Cello (1953; rev. 1965); Sonata for Violin and Harpsichord or Piano (1956); Rondeau des Oiseaux for Recorder or Flute (1994). keyboard: piano: 2 Pieces (1940); 3 Lyric Pieces (1994). organ:Toccata alla marcia (1937); 3 Preludes on Scottish Psalm Tunes (1958); Elegy (1968). vocal: 3 Songs of Innocence for Voice and String Quartet (1932); 4 Romantic Songs for Tenor, Oboe, and String Quartet (1950); Festival Te Deum for Chorus and Organ or Orch. (1950–51); 3 Pastorals for Soprano, Flute, Viola, and Piano (1951); Te Deum and Jubilate for Chorus and Organ (1952); Spring Cantata for Mezzo-soprano, Chorus, Piano, Timpani, Percussion, and Strings (1955); Come and Let Yourselves Be Built for Chorus and Organ (1961); Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis (Short Service) for Voices (1967); From the Book of Philip Sparrow for Mezzo-soprano and Strings (1969); Journeys and Places for Mezzo-soprano and String Quintet or String Orch. (1970); Liebeslied for Mezzosoprano and Piano or Organ (1978); Versus from Ogden Nash for Medium Voice and Strings (1978); O God, Ruler of the World, anthem for Chorus and Organ (1982); Jesu, Sweet Son Dear for Chorus (1989); other choral pieces and songs.

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis Mclntire