Robert Joseph Farnon was a
CanadianCanada 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...
-born composer, conductor, musical arranger and trumpet player. As well as being a famous composer of original works (often in the
light musicLight music is a generic term applied to a mainly British musical style of "light" orchestral music, which originated in the 19th century and had its heyday during the early to mid part of the 20th century, although arguably it lasts to the present day....
genre, but also for film and television), he was recognised as one of the finest arrangers of his generation. In later life he composed a number of more serious orchestral works, including three symphonies, and was recognised with four Ivor Novello awards and the
Order of CanadaThe Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
.
Life
Born in
TorontoToronto 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...
,
OntarioOntario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, he was commissioned as a captain in the
Canadian ArmyThe Canadian Army , previously called Land Force Command, is responsible for army operations within the Canadian Forces. The current size of the Army is 19,500 regular soldiers and 16,000 reserve soldiers, for a total of around 35,500 soldiers...
and became the conductor/arranger of the Canadian Band of the
Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary ForceSupreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force , was the headquarters of the Commander of Allied forces in north west Europe, from late 1943 until the end of World War II. U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower was in command of SHAEF throughout its existence...
sent overseas during
World War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, which was the Canadian equivalent of the American Band of the SHAEF led by Major
Glenn MillerAlton Glenn Miller was an American jazz musician , arranger, composer, and bandleader in the swing era. He was one of the best-selling recording artists from 1939 to 1943, leading one of the best known "Big Bands"...
. He was noted as a Jazz trumpeter - his long time friend
Dizzy GillespieJohn Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
once stated that he was pleased that Farnon took up composing, arranging and conducting as Robert was the better jazz trumpeter.
He married Joanne Dallas, a singer from the SHAEF band, whom he later divorced. At the end of the war, Farnon decided to make
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
his home, and he later moved to
GuernseyGuernsey, officially the Bailiwick of Guernsey is a British Crown dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy.The Bailiwick, as a governing entity, embraces not only all 10 parishes on the Island of Guernsey, but also the islands of Herm, Jethou, Burhou, and Lihou and their islet...
in the
Channel IslandsThe Channel Islands are an archipelago of British Crown Dependencies in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two separate bailiwicks: the Bailiwick of Guernsey and the Bailiwick of Jersey...
with his new wife Patricia Smith and his five children. His friend the composer
Wally StottAngela Morley was an English composer and conductor. Morley was born in Leeds, Yorkshire in 1924, and played saxophone in a number of dance bands, and in 1944 became a member of Geraldo's band....
composed "A Canadian in Mayfair" as a tribute.
He was considered by his peers the finest arranger in the world, and his talents influenced many composer-arrangers including
Quincy JonesQuincy Delightt Jones, Jr. is an American record producer and musician. A conductor, musical arranger, film composer, television producer, and trumpeter. His career spans five decades in the entertainment industry and a record 79 Grammy Award nominations, 27 Grammys, including a Grammy Legend...
, all of whom acknowledge his contributions to their work. Conductor
André PrevinAndré George Previn, KBE is an American pianist, conductor, and composer. He is considered one of the most versatile musicians in the world, and is the winner of four Academy Awards for his film work and ten Grammy Awards for his recordings. -Early Life:Previn was born in...
called him "the greatest writer for strings in the world."
He won four
Ivor Novello AwardsThe Ivor Novello Awards, named after the Cardiff born entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and composing. They are presented annually in London by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors and were first introduced in 1955.Nicknamed The Ivors, the awards take place...
including one for "Outstanding Services to British Music" in 1991 and in 1996 he won the
Grammy Award for Best Instrumental ArrangementThe Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement has been awarded since 1963. The award is presented to the arranger of the music.There have been several minor changes to the name of the award:...
for "Lament" performed by J. J. Johnson & his Robert Farnon Orchestra. He was also awarded the
Order of CanadaThe Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
early in 1998.
Robert Farnon died at the age of eighty-seven at a hospice near his home of forty years in Guernsey. He was survived by his wife Patricia and their five children, as well as two children from his previous marriage and his many grandchildren.
Works
Robert Farnon is probably best known for two famous pieces of
light musicLight music is a generic term applied to a mainly British musical style of "light" orchestral music, which originated in the 19th century and had its heyday during the early to mid part of the 20th century, although arguably it lasts to the present day....
, "Jumping Bean" and "Portrait of a Flirt", which were originally released as the A and B sides on the same
78A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
. Also famous are his "Westminster Waltz", "Destiny Waltz" and "A Star is Born".
Farnon also wrote the music for more than forty motion pictures including
Maytime in MayfairMaytime in Mayfair is a 1949 British musical comedy film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Anna Neagle, Michael Wilding, Nicholas Phipps, and Tom Walls...
(1949) and
Captain Horatio Hornblower R.N. (1951) and for a number of television series and miniseries including
The PrisonerThe Prisoner is a 17-episode British television series first broadcast in the UK from 29 September 1967 to 1 February 1968. Starring and co-created by Patrick McGoohan, it combined spy fiction with elements of science fiction, allegory and psychological drama.The series follows a British former...
,
Secret ArmySecret Army is a television drama series made by the BBC and the Belgian national broadcaster BRT created by Gerard Glaister. The series chronicled the history of a Belgian resistance movement during the Second World War dedicated to returning Allied airmen, usually having been shot down by the...
,
ColditzColditz is a British television series co-produced by the BBC and Universal Studios and screened between 1972 and 1974.The series deals with Allied prisoners of war imprisoned at the supposedly escape-proof Colditz Castle when designated Oflag IV-C during World War II, and their many attempts to...
, and
A Man Called IntrepidWilliam Stevenson is a British-born Canadian author and journalist.His 1976 book A Man Called Intrepid was about William Stephenson and was a best-seller...
. His Canadian Impressions also netted a lovely memory for one of his most famous pieces (actually almost a national air for Canada), "A la Claire Fontaine". Those living in/near Cleveland, Ohio will remember this theme best as the theme that was use by "Barnaby" a local children's show host. His show was ALWAYS introduced by this theme for more than 30 years!
In 1962 Farnon arranged and conducted
Frank SinatraFrancis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
's only album recorded outside of the United States,
Sinatra Sings Great Songs from Great BritainSinatra Sings Great Songs From Great Britain is an album by Frank Sinatra, arranged by Robert Farnon, recorded in London in 1962.It was released on LP in Great Britain, but not in the United States. It was released in the U.S. on compact disc in the early 1990s...
.
He also completed three full-length classical symphonies, a concerto for piano and orchestra called
Cascades to the Sea and a concerto for bassoon.
The last piece he composed was titled
The Gaels: An American Wind Symphony, as a commission to the
Roxbury High SchoolRoxbury High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school in the Succasunna section of Roxbury Township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Roxbury School District....
band in honor of the school's mascot, the
gaelGaël is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department of Brittany in north-western France.It lies southwest of Rennes between Saint-Méen-le-Grand and Mauron...
. The piece made its world debut in May 2006. It was performed by the Roxbury High School Honors Wind Symphony under the direction of Dr.
Stanley SaundersDr. Stanley Saunders, D.M.A., is a Welsh educator, clarinetist, violinist, and conductor. Born in Newport, Monmouthshire, he is a founding member of the first youth orchestra: the National Youth Orchestra of Wales....
, a close friend of Farnon.
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