ABSTRACT
During this period, senior composers (born between 1928 and 1950) have been very productive symphonists. George Dreyfus’s Symphony No.3 stretches the definition of ‘symphonism’ in its mix of quotation techniques and music theatre ‘happening’. Paul Paviour and David Morgan have composed symphonies consistently throughout their long careers but with a particular concentration since 2000. Paviour continues the Parry–Vaughan Williams tradition while the eclectic Morgan draws on musical styles from Pérotin through to Stravinsky. Larry Sitsky, formerly a leader in modernist styles, took up the symphony in 2000, with No.3 an experiment in minimalist techniques. Don Kay portrays the ‘Spirit of Place’ of Tasmania in his four symphonies. Mary Mageau’s Symphony of War and Peace continues a muscular neo-classical approach to theme, harmony and texture. Philip Bračanin’s eleven symphonies dating from 1995 to 2022 are predominantly traditional four-movement works, frequently in sonata based, arch forms and characterised by his idiosyncratic mixture of modal and triadic harmony. Barry Conyngham’s Symphony (2012) continues his usual timbre and texture-based manner but with four movements linked by a common opening harmonic progression. Finally, Richard Mills’s Symphony of Nocturnes is a richly scored work drawing on impressionist harmony and orchestration.
