James Gayfer
Encyclopedia
James McDonald Gayfer was a Canadian
bandmaster
, clarinet
ist, composer
, conductor
, organist
, military officer, and music educator. His compositional output encompasses several orchestra
l works, including two symphonies
, numerous works for band and solo piano, a modest amount of chamber music
, and several song
s, hymn
s, and choral works
. In 1944 his string quartet
won the CPRS award and in 1947 his Six Translations from the Chinese for tenor
and small orchestra won the Composers, Authors and Publishers Association of Canada
competition. In 1960 he wrote The Canadian Infantryman, the official march past of the Canadian School of Infantry. Although Gayfer's works remain unpublished, some of them have been recorded by a number of artists, including Howard Cable
, David Mills
, and the Edmonton Wind Ensemble. The band of the Royal 22e Régiment
continues to perform his works with some frequency. In 1983 he was awarded the Service Medal of the Order of St John
.
, Gayfer studied at the University of Toronto
where he earned a Bachelor of Music
in 1941. In 1942 he met Ralph Vaughan Williams
and the two men went on to become lifelong friends. He pursued further studies in London where he earned an associates diploma at the Royal College of Music
in 1946 and a licentiate
from the Royal Academy of Music
in 1947. He also attended courses at the Royal Military School of Music
from 1945-1947. He returned to the University of Toronto, earning a Doctor of Music
in 1950. Among his notable teachers were Jennie Goodman Bouck and Reginald Godden (piano), Maitland Farmer (organ), and Ettore Mazzoleni
(orchestration), Arthur H. Middleton, and S. Drummond Wolff
.
In 1940 Gayfer joined the Canadian Army, ultimately becoming a clarinetist in the band of the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals
with whom he was stationed in Europe from 1943-1945. He later was appointed command bandmaster and command inspector of bands, a post he held from 1947-1951. From 1954-1961 he was director of music of the band of The Canadian Guards
and from 1961-1968 he served as the first musical training officer for the Canadian Forces School of Music. He notably took some of the military bands to Japan and Korea for concerts to entertain troops overseas. He retired from the military in 1966 with the rank of Major.
While serving in the military, Gayfer, also held various church posts in the Ontario area as organist/choirmaster. He was also conductor of the Harmony Symphony Orchestra from 1949–1954 and was involved in conducting opera and operetta performances in Toronto from 1962-1966. He served as the associate conductor of the Victoria Symphony Orchestra in 1963-1964 and was the leader of the Kitchener Musical Society Band in 1971-1972.
After leaving the Canadian Army, Gayfer joined the teaching staff at Southwood Secondary School
in Galt where he taught from 1966-1972. In 1967 he founded the Galt Community Choir and Orchestra, serving as the groups conductor through 1970. He also taught music classes at Champlain High School in Pembroke and was a member of the music faculty at Dalhousie University
from 1972-1974. In 1978 he founded the Petawawa Legion Community Band. He died in Lindsay, Ontario
at the age of 81.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
bandmaster
Bandmaster
A bandmaster is the leader and conductor of a band, usually a military band, brass band or a marching band.-British Armed Forces:In the British Armed Forces, a Bandmaster is always a Warrant Officer Class 1 . A commissioned officer who leads a band is known as the Director of Music...
, clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
ist, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
, organist
Organist
An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists...
, military officer, and music educator. His compositional output encompasses several orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
l works, including two symphonies
Symphony
A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
, numerous works for band and solo piano, a modest amount of chamber music
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
, and several song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
s, hymn
Hymn
A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification...
s, and choral works
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
. In 1944 his string quartet
String quartet
A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
won the CPRS award and in 1947 his Six Translations from the Chinese for tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
and small orchestra won the Composers, Authors and Publishers Association of Canada
Composers, Authors and Publishers Association of Canada
The Composers, Authors and Publishers Association of Canada was a Canadian copyright collective for the right to communicate to the public and publicly perform musical works...
competition. In 1960 he wrote The Canadian Infantryman, the official march past of the Canadian School of Infantry. Although Gayfer's works remain unpublished, some of them have been recorded by a number of artists, including Howard Cable
Howard Cable
Howard Reid Cable is a conductor, arranger, music director, composer, and radio and television producer.-Biography:...
, David Mills
David Mills (bass)
David Mills is a Canadian bass, poet, composer and actor. Retired now, he had an active international singing career that spanned more than five decades. He has published two books of poetry, Isobelle, a Novel in Verse and The Social Comedy...
, and the Edmonton Wind Ensemble. The band of the Royal 22e Régiment
Royal 22e Régiment
The Royal 22nd Regiment is an infantry regiment and the most famous francophone organization of the Canadian Forces. The regiment comprises three Regular Force battalions, two Primary Reserve battalions, and a band, making it the largest regiment in the Canadian Army...
continues to perform his works with some frequency. In 1983 he was awarded the Service Medal of the Order of St John
Service Medal of the Order of St John
The Service Medal of the Order of St John is an award given to those that have provided a requisite number or years service to the Venerable Order of St John...
.
Life
Born in TorontoToronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Gayfer studied at the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
where he earned a Bachelor of Music
Bachelor of Music
Bachelor of Music is an academic degree awarded by a college, university, or conservatory upon completion of program of study in music. In the United States, it is a professional degree; the majority of work consists of prescribed music courses and study in applied music, usually requiring a...
in 1941. In 1942 he met Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan Williams OM was an English composer of symphonies, chamber music, opera, choral music, and film scores. He was also a collector of English folk music and song: this activity both influenced his editorial approach to the English Hymnal, beginning in 1904, in which he included many...
and the two men went on to become lifelong friends. He pursued further studies in London where he earned an associates diploma at the Royal College of Music
Royal College of Music
The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire founded by Royal Charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, England.-Background:The first director was Sir George Grove and he was followed by Sir Hubert Parry...
in 1946 and a licentiate
Licentiate
Licentiate is the title of a person who holds an academic degree called a licence. The term may derive from the Latin licentia docendi, meaning permission to teach. The term may also derive from the Latin licentia ad practicandum, which signified someone who held a certificate of competence to...
from the Royal Academy of Music
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
in 1947. He also attended courses at the Royal Military School of Music
Royal Military School of Music
The Royal Military School of Music in Twickenham, west London, trains musicians for the British Army's twenty-nine bands. It is part of the Corps of Army Music...
from 1945-1947. He returned to the University of Toronto, earning a Doctor of Music
Doctor of Music
The Doctor of Music degree , like other doctorates, is an academic degree of the highest level. The D.Mus. is intended for musicians and composers who wish to combine the highest attainments in their area of specialization with doctoral-level academic study in music...
in 1950. Among his notable teachers were Jennie Goodman Bouck and Reginald Godden (piano), Maitland Farmer (organ), and Ettore Mazzoleni
Ettore Mazzoleni
Ettore Mazzoleni was a Canadian conductor, music educator, writer, and arts administrator of Swiss birth. He was one of the Canadian Opera Company's principal conductors during its early years, working there from 1958-1968...
(orchestration), Arthur H. Middleton, and S. Drummond Wolff
S. Drummond Wolff
Stanley Drummond Wolff was an English organist, choirmaster, composer, and music educator who was primarily active in North America. His compositional output primarily consists of anthems for choir and works for solo organ. In the 1980s he completed and published four volumes of hymns...
.
In 1940 Gayfer joined the Canadian Army, ultimately becoming a clarinetist in the band of the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals
Royal Canadian Corps of Signals
The Royal Canadian Corps of Signals was a corps of the Canadian Army. Major Wallace Bruce Matthews Carruthers established the corps in 1903, making it the first independent Signal Corps in the British Empire...
with whom he was stationed in Europe from 1943-1945. He later was appointed command bandmaster and command inspector of bands, a post he held from 1947-1951. From 1954-1961 he was director of music of the band of The Canadian Guards
The Canadian Guards
The Canadian Guards was an infantry regiment of the Canadian Army that served in the same role as the five regiments of Foot Guards in the British Army...
and from 1961-1968 he served as the first musical training officer for the Canadian Forces School of Music. He notably took some of the military bands to Japan and Korea for concerts to entertain troops overseas. He retired from the military in 1966 with the rank of Major.
While serving in the military, Gayfer, also held various church posts in the Ontario area as organist/choirmaster. He was also conductor of the Harmony Symphony Orchestra from 1949–1954 and was involved in conducting opera and operetta performances in Toronto from 1962-1966. He served as the associate conductor of the Victoria Symphony Orchestra in 1963-1964 and was the leader of the Kitchener Musical Society Band in 1971-1972.
After leaving the Canadian Army, Gayfer joined the teaching staff at Southwood Secondary School
Southwood Secondary School
Southwood Secondary School is a high school in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada, for students in West Galt and North Dumfries.-History:Southwood was founded in 1962. Although it has one of the lower student enrollments in the region, that does not seem to affect performance...
in Galt where he taught from 1966-1972. In 1967 he founded the Galt Community Choir and Orchestra, serving as the groups conductor through 1970. He also taught music classes at Champlain High School in Pembroke and was a member of the music faculty at Dalhousie University
Dalhousie University
Dalhousie University is a public research university located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The university comprises eleven faculties including Schulich School of Law and Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine. It also includes the faculties of architecture, planning and engineering located at...
from 1972-1974. In 1978 he founded the Petawawa Legion Community Band. He died in Lindsay, Ontario
Lindsay, Ontario
Lindsay is a community of 19,361 people on the Scugog River in the Kawartha Lakes region of south-eastern Ontario, Canada. It is approximately west of Peterborough...
at the age of 81.