Robert Aitken (composer)
Aitken studied from 1955 to 1959 flute with Nicholas Fiore at the Royal Conservatory of Music of Toronto. He was also in 1958 and 1959, principal flute of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and composition student of Barbara Pentland at the University of British Columbia. After 1959 he studied electronic music with Myron Schaeffer and composition with John Weinzweig at the University of Toronto. During a stay in Europe between 1964 and 1965, he finally was a student of Jean -Pierre Rampal, Severino Gazzelloni, André Jaunet and Hubert Barwähser. He refers to Marcel Moyse, in which he had nine years of teaching, with interruptions, as its main flute teacher.
From 1960 to 1964 Aitken was second flutist of the CBC Symphony Orchestra and from 1962 to 1964 first flutist of the Stratford Festival Orchestra. In 1964 he founded with his wife, the pianist Marion Ross, and of singer Mary Morrison, the Lyric Arts Trio. In the following years he performed with the trio, as a soloist and in a duo with harpsichordist Greta Kraus.
In 1971 he won the third prize at the Concours International de flute de Paris, in the following year the first prize at the Concours international de musique contemporaine pour la flute in Royan. Besides his international concert career he founded in 1971 with Norma Beecroft New Music Concerts in Toronto, which he has since then.
Focus of Aitken's repertoire is the music of the 20th century. In 1977, he took on all flute works by Kazuo Fukushima. The five-part chamber music concert series Flute Through The Ages for the CBC was sold out in a week and received the 1982 Canadian Association of Broadcasters Award for Best classic radio program.
Aitken played the premieres of flute works of numerous Canadian composers such as Louis Applebaum, Michael Conway Baker, Milton Barnes, Norma Beecroft, Walter Buczynski, John Burke, Ron Collier, Robert Fleming, Harry Freedman, John Hawkins, Otto Joachim, Walter Kemp, Tālivaldis Ķēniņš, Oskar Morawetz, François Morel, Jean Papineau - Couture, R. Murray Schafer, Norman Symonds, Gerhard Wuensch, John Wyre and León Zuckert. Also international musicians such as Larry Austin, John Beckwith, Warren Benson, Attila Bozay, John Cage, George Crumb, Elliott Carter, Lukas Foss, Haflidi Hallgrímsson, Hikaru Hayashi, Jo Kondo, Nikos Mamangakis, Bruce Mather, Páll Pálsson, Thorkell Sigurbjörnsson, Atli Tōru Takemitsu Sveinsson and Gilles Tremblay dedicated works to him.
Between 1957 to 1968 taught Aitken at the Royal Conservatory of Music of Toronto. From 1988 to 2002 he was professor at the University of Music in Freiburg. He also gave summer courses and master classes in Canada, Cuba, France, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Mexico, Norway, Poland, Sweden, New Zealand and the USA. Among his pupils were Kathryn Cernauskas, Bill McBirnie, Ron Korb, Jan Junker, Suzanne Shulman, Douglas Stewart and his daughter Diane Aitken.
Works
- Suite for Violin and Piano, 1960
- Rhapsody for Orchestra, 1961
- Quartet for flute, oboe, viola and double bass, 1961
- Music for Flute and Electronic Tape, 1963
- Noesis for tape, 1963
- Music for Hamlet for tape, 1964
- Concerto for Twelve Solo Instruments and Orchestra, 1965
- Spectra for Four Chamber Groups, 1968
- Shadows I: Nekuia for orchestra, 1971
- Kebyar for flute, clarinet, trombone and double bass, 1971
- Shadows II: Lalita for flute, three cellos, two percussion, two harps, 1973
- Shadows III: Nira for violin, flute, oboe, viola, piano, harpsichord, 1974-76
- Spiral for orchestra, 1975
- Icicle for solo flute, 1977
- Plainsong for Flute solo, 1977
- Folia for flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, bassoon, 1981
- Berceuse ( For those who sleep before us) for Flute and Orchestra, 1992
- Shadows IV: My Song for two flutes and ensemble, 1994
- Concerto for Flute and String Orchestra ( Shadows V ), 1999
- Wedding Song for Two Flutes, 1999