Bruce Davis

Bruce Davis

Bruce (Gridley) Davis. Composer, b Toronto 27 Sep 1946; B MUS (McGill) 1970. After studies in composition with Bruce Mather at McGill University, Davis moved in 1971 to Vancouver to teach at Simon Fraser University and participate in the World Soundscape Project there. (He became the project's research officer in 1972 and collaborated on its publications; see that entry's Bibliography). He received Canada Council grants in 1971 and 1976 and shared first prize in the 1974 CBC National Radio Competition for Young Composers. His String Quaret was commissioned by the Purcell String Quartet and his From Night Chant was premiered by Days Months and Years to Come (Magnetic Band). His Salmacis, also premiered by Days Months and Years to Come, was inspired by two months of research into aboriginal music in Australia in 1976. The Vancouver New Music Society premiered Shields, Shadows, Smiles in 1978. He was an instructor 1980-4 at David Thompson U Centre, Nelson, BC. Davis turned to a career in business in 1985, but still composes; his recent pieces include a work for young adult audiences, commissioned by the Vancouver Opera, entitled The Pearl. In 1991 he was vice-president of a Vancouver high-technology firm. He is an associate of the Canadian Music Centre.

Selected Compositions

Mixed Media
How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin. 1970. Fl, piano, vibraphone, mar, tape, conductor. Ms

Comp 110 1011. 1975. Fl, english horn, vibraphone, mar, piano, conductor, tape. Ms

Breakaway (traditional). 1984. Youth chorus, boy's chorus, girl's chorus, soloists, computer. Ms

Chamber Music

String Quartet. 1973. Ms

Trace/Comp 2. 1976. Str quartet. Ms

Salamacis. 1977. Fl, oboe, violoncello, piano, percussion. Ms

Shields, Shadows, Smiles. 1978. 2 trumpet, 2 tenor saxophone, alto saxophone, clarinet, percussion. Ms

Also works for stage, theatre, and radio, including Music for Labyrinth (1972), Music for Binocular (1974); for piano; and for tape including Okeanus with R. Murray Schafer(1971), and Canto II (1971)